itsaboat
Well-Known Member
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Sorry for the late post. I was out of town this past week.
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This game was ugly live and even uglier after watching the coaches film. There were a lot of mistakes. Even though we lost Dallas had chances to win, even late in the game.
Washington's 0-blitzes gave us more trouble than it should. We didn't make the proper adjustments until late in the 4th quarter. That's unacceptable.
Let's look at those blitzes that resulted in sacks:
SACK 1 (I forgot to show where Witten is lined up in the slot. Romo tells him to come to the backfield)
Romo should have gotten the ball out at the top of his drop. Romo tried to spin but the safety was waiting for it.
SACK 2
The read was correct but Bryant needed to run his the slant at 1 yard instead of 3 yards. This was a big play. The sack forces Dallas out of field goal range. It looked like Bryant could have had a huge gain if Romo hit him in stride.
SACK 3
Martin could have done a better job picking up the stunt. There was late movement on the defensive line. A split second before the snap #73 moves from over Leary to the other side over Martin. It could have caused some confusion. Romo was looking at the wrong side (Witten) and didn't have time to get to Beasley, who was open.
SACK 4
Dallas tries to use two extra blockers which only leaves three running routes. This play wasn't going to work because it takes too long to set up. There is going to be an unblocked defender no matter how many they decide to leave behind to block. Bryant wasn't sure what route to run. Romo wants to try to hit Williams on the dig route but he doesn't have enough time.
After looking at the diagrams and plays you should notice that Washington gave our WR's a big cushion on all of those plays. They didn't want to get beat deep so they conceded the short throws. Linehan should have done a better job calling plays to attack those blitzes. There were too many medium/long routes. I'm not sure how much Romo and the receivers can audible at the line but you've got to adjust the routes/plays against those 0 blitzes.
Dallas did adjust later in the 4th quarter.
PLAY 1
4 slants and Murray to the flat.
PLAY 2
Nice play call with screens on both sides.
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I thought Romo had a decent game. He could have made some better decisions but some of it was play calling. I was surprised that he came back after that nasty knee to the back. He's a tough guy, no doubt about it.
It looked like Washington slowed down with their blitzes when Weeden came in. He looked solid in his limited time. My only complaint was when he went for the goal line throw to Bryant instead of running the ball with Murray on 2nd and 3 on the Washington 3. I have a little more confidence if he has to start against Arizona.
Murray needs to learn when to go down. He had a HUGE game, 19 carries for 141 yards (7.4 ave), but his most memorable play is the fumble inside the red zone. To make things worse, Randle had a lost fumble too.
The defense was sloppy. We had too many missed tackles. Rolando had 4 himself. Very uncharacteristic. Church had one that really hurt. It was 1st and 25 and Washington calls a draw. Church can limit it to a 7 yard gain but can't get the tackle. The draw gains 18. Two plays later Washington scores a touchdown.
Losing Durant for the season is a huge loss for the team. He's a play maker. Luckily, Carter is back.
Melton gave Washington problems. He had two sacks and had a nice TFL. Dallas even had him lined up as LDE on a couple of plays. Can this game be a sign of things to come?
Mincey did it again. When Dallas needs a play late in the game he seems to step up and get a key pressure. This time he gets the sack. It forces Washington from getting into position for a go ahead field goal. They have to punt which gave Dallas a shot to win the game.
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Some people are worried that we lost to Washington. I'm not. Dallas continued to dominate on the ground. For whatever reason, we abandoned the run late when the game was on the line. We had numerous mistakes but we kept it close. As long as Dallas can learn from the game (0 blitzes and trust the run) we should be fine.
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This game was ugly live and even uglier after watching the coaches film. There were a lot of mistakes. Even though we lost Dallas had chances to win, even late in the game.
Washington's 0-blitzes gave us more trouble than it should. We didn't make the proper adjustments until late in the 4th quarter. That's unacceptable.
Let's look at those blitzes that resulted in sacks:
SACK 1 (I forgot to show where Witten is lined up in the slot. Romo tells him to come to the backfield)
Romo should have gotten the ball out at the top of his drop. Romo tried to spin but the safety was waiting for it.
SACK 2
The read was correct but Bryant needed to run his the slant at 1 yard instead of 3 yards. This was a big play. The sack forces Dallas out of field goal range. It looked like Bryant could have had a huge gain if Romo hit him in stride.
SACK 3
Martin could have done a better job picking up the stunt. There was late movement on the defensive line. A split second before the snap #73 moves from over Leary to the other side over Martin. It could have caused some confusion. Romo was looking at the wrong side (Witten) and didn't have time to get to Beasley, who was open.
SACK 4
Dallas tries to use two extra blockers which only leaves three running routes. This play wasn't going to work because it takes too long to set up. There is going to be an unblocked defender no matter how many they decide to leave behind to block. Bryant wasn't sure what route to run. Romo wants to try to hit Williams on the dig route but he doesn't have enough time.
After looking at the diagrams and plays you should notice that Washington gave our WR's a big cushion on all of those plays. They didn't want to get beat deep so they conceded the short throws. Linehan should have done a better job calling plays to attack those blitzes. There were too many medium/long routes. I'm not sure how much Romo and the receivers can audible at the line but you've got to adjust the routes/plays against those 0 blitzes.
Dallas did adjust later in the 4th quarter.
PLAY 1
4 slants and Murray to the flat.
PLAY 2
Nice play call with screens on both sides.
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I thought Romo had a decent game. He could have made some better decisions but some of it was play calling. I was surprised that he came back after that nasty knee to the back. He's a tough guy, no doubt about it.
It looked like Washington slowed down with their blitzes when Weeden came in. He looked solid in his limited time. My only complaint was when he went for the goal line throw to Bryant instead of running the ball with Murray on 2nd and 3 on the Washington 3. I have a little more confidence if he has to start against Arizona.
Murray needs to learn when to go down. He had a HUGE game, 19 carries for 141 yards (7.4 ave), but his most memorable play is the fumble inside the red zone. To make things worse, Randle had a lost fumble too.
The defense was sloppy. We had too many missed tackles. Rolando had 4 himself. Very uncharacteristic. Church had one that really hurt. It was 1st and 25 and Washington calls a draw. Church can limit it to a 7 yard gain but can't get the tackle. The draw gains 18. Two plays later Washington scores a touchdown.
Losing Durant for the season is a huge loss for the team. He's a play maker. Luckily, Carter is back.
Melton gave Washington problems. He had two sacks and had a nice TFL. Dallas even had him lined up as LDE on a couple of plays. Can this game be a sign of things to come?
Mincey did it again. When Dallas needs a play late in the game he seems to step up and get a key pressure. This time he gets the sack. It forces Washington from getting into position for a go ahead field goal. They have to punt which gave Dallas a shot to win the game.
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Some people are worried that we lost to Washington. I'm not. Dallas continued to dominate on the ground. For whatever reason, we abandoned the run late when the game was on the line. We had numerous mistakes but we kept it close. As long as Dallas can learn from the game (0 blitzes and trust the run) we should be fine.
