28 Joker
28 Joker
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Instant Analysis — Chargers 31, Cowboys 17
With 13 minutes left in the 3rd quarter the Chargers had 31 points and just 132 yards of total offense.
Sloppy play, a hazard of the first practice game, helped the Chargers to a 31-17 win, as did some overzealous coverage. Danny Amendola’s fumble put Dallas in an early hole after the first teamers had made two stops on San Diego and the first offense drove the field.
I know that one concern early in practice was that the corners were playing a bit too aggressively, grabbing and holding too far down the field. The appearance of league referees was supposed to help the corners get a better understanding of what they can and cannot do, but the secondary guys will have to review the rules again, as Dallas was flagged on three Chargers TD drives, putting the ball inside the Cowboys ten each time. Consider:
Bright sparks:
– Tony Romo — three for three on his lone TD drive. Got the ball out with ease, though the Chargers rushed five men on every throw.
– Jason Witten — caught the first two Romo darts. Threw an effective block on Marion Barber’s 13 yard scamper when he turned out his OLB, then raced upfield when Barber was clear to lead interference.
– Andre Gurode — pushed Jamal Williams around on Dallas’ drive, which is quite a feat. On Barber’s long run, Gurode threw Williams to the turf.
– Flozell Adams and Kyle Kosier — the left side of Dallas’ line caved in their opposites. They provided deep push on Barber’s TD run. His 13 yard scamper actually started right, but they pushed their guys well upfield and gave Barber a huge cutback lane. He was 10 yards upfield before he contacted anybody, and that was Witten’s backside.
– Tank Johnson — he got penetration and sacked Phillip Rivers on San Diego’s first throw.
– Felix Jones – you saw the explosiveness everybody talked about. Get him the ball in space and he’ll make linebackers and safeties look stupid. Blocked well too.
– Tashard Choice — relentless. Can slide, spin and accelerate quickly when the hole appears.
– Miles Austin — The Cowboys receivers practice catching the ball at its highest point every day. Austin had to catch several such passes in the second half because Richard Bartel was consistently high. Austin showed strong hands, something he didn’t display last year.
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It was a tough day at the office for:
– Martellus Bennett — dropped his first pass and looked slow blocking on the edge when he stayed in.
– Tank Johnson — could be disruptive but was blown off the ball on Darren Sproles 5 yard TD run.
– Cory Proctor — interior linemen must anchor and prevent pressure right up the gut. I saw him jacked up and driven into Brad Johnson’s lap more than once.
– the core punt coverage team. The Justin Rogers, Pat Watkins, Bobby Carpenter, Kevin Burnett, L.P. Ladoceur group surrendered four long returns, almost all to their right. The third one set the Chargers up at the Dallas 31.
– Adam Jones — was juked by Chris Chambers on a deep in on his first series and was faked out of his jock by Jacob Hester on a 23 yard run early in the 3rd quarter. He was flagged for an 18 yard pass interference penalty one play later.
– the third D-line of Junior Siavii, Remi Ayodele and Marcus Smith was goal line fodder on the Chargers’ fourth TD.
With 13 minutes left in the 3rd quarter the Chargers had 31 points and just 132 yards of total offense.
Sloppy play, a hazard of the first practice game, helped the Chargers to a 31-17 win, as did some overzealous coverage. Danny Amendola’s fumble put Dallas in an early hole after the first teamers had made two stops on San Diego and the first offense drove the field.
I know that one concern early in practice was that the corners were playing a bit too aggressively, grabbing and holding too far down the field. The appearance of league referees was supposed to help the corners get a better understanding of what they can and cannot do, but the secondary guys will have to review the rules again, as Dallas was flagged on three Chargers TD drives, putting the ball inside the Cowboys ten each time. Consider:
- The Chargers went 36 yards to the Dallas one on the first interference call;
- The Chargers moved 28 yards to the Dallas four on an interference call against Alan Ball for their 3rd TD.
- The Chargers moved 22 yards to the Dallas four on an PI call against Adam Jones and scored shortly thereafter.
Bright sparks:
– Tony Romo — three for three on his lone TD drive. Got the ball out with ease, though the Chargers rushed five men on every throw.
– Jason Witten — caught the first two Romo darts. Threw an effective block on Marion Barber’s 13 yard scamper when he turned out his OLB, then raced upfield when Barber was clear to lead interference.
– Andre Gurode — pushed Jamal Williams around on Dallas’ drive, which is quite a feat. On Barber’s long run, Gurode threw Williams to the turf.
– Flozell Adams and Kyle Kosier — the left side of Dallas’ line caved in their opposites. They provided deep push on Barber’s TD run. His 13 yard scamper actually started right, but they pushed their guys well upfield and gave Barber a huge cutback lane. He was 10 yards upfield before he contacted anybody, and that was Witten’s backside.
– Tank Johnson — he got penetration and sacked Phillip Rivers on San Diego’s first throw.
– Felix Jones – you saw the explosiveness everybody talked about. Get him the ball in space and he’ll make linebackers and safeties look stupid. Blocked well too.
– Tashard Choice — relentless. Can slide, spin and accelerate quickly when the hole appears.
– Miles Austin — The Cowboys receivers practice catching the ball at its highest point every day. Austin had to catch several such passes in the second half because Richard Bartel was consistently high. Austin showed strong hands, something he didn’t display last year.
–
It was a tough day at the office for:
– Martellus Bennett — dropped his first pass and looked slow blocking on the edge when he stayed in.
– Tank Johnson — could be disruptive but was blown off the ball on Darren Sproles 5 yard TD run.
– Cory Proctor — interior linemen must anchor and prevent pressure right up the gut. I saw him jacked up and driven into Brad Johnson’s lap more than once.
– the core punt coverage team. The Justin Rogers, Pat Watkins, Bobby Carpenter, Kevin Burnett, L.P. Ladoceur group surrendered four long returns, almost all to their right. The third one set the Chargers up at the Dallas 31.
– Adam Jones — was juked by Chris Chambers on a deep in on his first series and was faked out of his jock by Jacob Hester on a 23 yard run early in the 3rd quarter. He was flagged for an 18 yard pass interference penalty one play later.
– the third D-line of Junior Siavii, Remi Ayodele and Marcus Smith was goal line fodder on the Chargers’ fourth TD.
