What's so different from our opening game last year?
- Thread starter dargonking999
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Here's my take on the Jag's game:
Jag's secondary against TO, Glenn, Witten and Fasano:
I think their secondary is going to have a very hard time against our WR's and TE's. They're okay at CB, but Glenn and TO really are going to cause a lot of problems for defenses, starting with Jacksonville. How they defend them will be critical for both teams. If they double up on TO and leave Glenn singled up... Glenn will eat them alive. If they start giving too much attention to both WR's, then Witten or Fasano or both will give them fits. We threw very little to Fasano in the preseason, and that tells me that we're going to go to him quite a bit more than we have been. He's a very good receiver and I think he'll catch a lot of balls this year... starting with Jacksonville. Teams are going to be giving TO, Glenn and Witten as much attention as they dare and the obvious guy to worry less about is Fasano. So look for him to have a pretty big day as Bledsoe's outlet guy.
Jag's defensive line against the Dallas offensive line:
Definately advantage Jacksonville. This is the biggest concern that I have about Sunday's game... probably most people's biggest concern, too. Their two tackles are as good a pair as you'll find in the NFL. How good are the Dallas guards and center? As they say, we're about to find out. There's no doubt that Henderson and Stroud will give the Dallas O-line fits... how much is the real question. In the passing game, I think that Kosier, Gurode and Rivera will play well enough to keep them off of Bledsoe, for the most part. They'll collapse the pocket some, but Drew should be able to pass most of the time. The run game, up the middle very well may be non-existant though. The Dallas run blocking has been sporadic at best and against those two guys, we might just have to run wide most of the time in order to do much good. The only thing Dallas has going for them for runs up the middle is that MLB Mike Peterson probably will miss the game. So they might be able to do something between the tackles, but will likely find more success outside.
The Jacksonville DE's aren't in the same class as their two tackles, so I look for them to be handled pretty well by the dallas tackles and TE's. If Dallas can handle the DE's with just their tackles and chips from the RB's then they should be able to get the TE's out into patterns, which will put more pressure on the Jags secondary, which is their weak spot on D, IMO. Their secondary isn't bad... but their front seven is very good.
The Dallas defensive front Seven against the Jag's offensive line:
This is a matchup that favors Dallas. With Spears, Ferguson and Canty manning the DL positions and with DeMarcus Ware and/or Greg Ellis rushing off of the edges... it looks like Dallas could provide quite a pass rush against Leftwich. That is a very good group of rushers. The Dallas depth at LB and DL should really help in the Florida heat they'll be playing in. There is very little dropoff in the pass rush when Ratliff comes in for Spears and Hatcher comes in for Canty. Hopefully J'Vonne Parker can anchor well enough when he comes in for Ferguson. Neither of those should provide much of a pass rush, but hopefully, both will be good against the run.
The nickel for Dallas should consist of a DL of Ware, Ratliff, Spears, and Ellis. You could concievably see Hatcher in there instead of Ratliff or Spears, because Hatcher is such a good pass rusher. I look for the nickel LB's to be Carpenter and Burnett. Both of them are excellent in coverage and both have a lot of ability on the blitz. So with say, Ware, Hatcher, Ratliff and Ellis providing the basic four man rush and Burnett or Carpenter blitzing, the pressure will be on the Jag's O-Line to keep Leftwich upright. Will they be up to that task? We just don't know, but if I had to guess, I'd bet that Dallas gets to him fairly often. A big part of that will be the coverage our secondary provides against their WR's.
The Dallas secondary against the Jacksonville WR's:
Again, this matchup favors Dallas. Henry, Newman and Glenn are as good a trio as you'll find anywhere. Maybe the best in the NFL. Add in Pat Watkins at FS, who matches up very well against the tall Jacksonville WR's and the Jags could have a lot of trouble moving the ball through the air. Their WR's have ability, but they're all young and have proven very little in the NFL. With a consistant pass rush it will be hard to complete passes against Dallas. And it looks like, for the first time since Charles Haley left, Dallas will have a very good pass rush. So, the combination of the good pass rush and the excellent coverage by the Dallas secondary, very well could make things exceedingly difficult on the Jacksonville passing game.
The Dallas D against the Jacksonville run game:
With the Dallas defense being so big, it's going to be hard for teams to run against them. Ware really came on last year by the end of the season and was a force against the run. He ended up with several tackles behind the line of scrimmage. Ellis on the other side, being an ex-DE, should provide excellent run support. Also, with the depth that Dallas has in the front seven, they should be able to stay fresh enough to anchor against the run all day long. Look for Zimmer to send the ILB's Ayodele and James, and the SS Roy Williams of run blitzes too. All three of those guys pack a wallop and should really help stifle Fred Taylor and the Jag's running game.
Overall, I look for Dallas to win most of the matchups and I'm not very worried about anything except Henderson and Stroud against Kosier, Gurode and Rivera. If those three hold up, I look for Dallas to win the game relatively easily. If they don't, then it could be a long day for Bledsoe and there will be quite a good chance that Dallas comes away with a loss. I look for a defensive struggle and a fairly low scoring game. If Bledsoe gets time in the pocket... look out. Dallas might walk away with this one.
Jag's secondary against TO, Glenn, Witten and Fasano:
I think their secondary is going to have a very hard time against our WR's and TE's. They're okay at CB, but Glenn and TO really are going to cause a lot of problems for defenses, starting with Jacksonville. How they defend them will be critical for both teams. If they double up on TO and leave Glenn singled up... Glenn will eat them alive. If they start giving too much attention to both WR's, then Witten or Fasano or both will give them fits. We threw very little to Fasano in the preseason, and that tells me that we're going to go to him quite a bit more than we have been. He's a very good receiver and I think he'll catch a lot of balls this year... starting with Jacksonville. Teams are going to be giving TO, Glenn and Witten as much attention as they dare and the obvious guy to worry less about is Fasano. So look for him to have a pretty big day as Bledsoe's outlet guy.
Jag's defensive line against the Dallas offensive line:
Definately advantage Jacksonville. This is the biggest concern that I have about Sunday's game... probably most people's biggest concern, too. Their two tackles are as good a pair as you'll find in the NFL. How good are the Dallas guards and center? As they say, we're about to find out. There's no doubt that Henderson and Stroud will give the Dallas O-line fits... how much is the real question. In the passing game, I think that Kosier, Gurode and Rivera will play well enough to keep them off of Bledsoe, for the most part. They'll collapse the pocket some, but Drew should be able to pass most of the time. The run game, up the middle very well may be non-existant though. The Dallas run blocking has been sporadic at best and against those two guys, we might just have to run wide most of the time in order to do much good. The only thing Dallas has going for them for runs up the middle is that MLB Mike Peterson probably will miss the game. So they might be able to do something between the tackles, but will likely find more success outside.
The Jacksonville DE's aren't in the same class as their two tackles, so I look for them to be handled pretty well by the dallas tackles and TE's. If Dallas can handle the DE's with just their tackles and chips from the RB's then they should be able to get the TE's out into patterns, which will put more pressure on the Jags secondary, which is their weak spot on D, IMO. Their secondary isn't bad... but their front seven is very good.
The Dallas defensive front Seven against the Jag's offensive line:
This is a matchup that favors Dallas. With Spears, Ferguson and Canty manning the DL positions and with DeMarcus Ware and/or Greg Ellis rushing off of the edges... it looks like Dallas could provide quite a pass rush against Leftwich. That is a very good group of rushers. The Dallas depth at LB and DL should really help in the Florida heat they'll be playing in. There is very little dropoff in the pass rush when Ratliff comes in for Spears and Hatcher comes in for Canty. Hopefully J'Vonne Parker can anchor well enough when he comes in for Ferguson. Neither of those should provide much of a pass rush, but hopefully, both will be good against the run.
The nickel for Dallas should consist of a DL of Ware, Ratliff, Spears, and Ellis. You could concievably see Hatcher in there instead of Ratliff or Spears, because Hatcher is such a good pass rusher. I look for the nickel LB's to be Carpenter and Burnett. Both of them are excellent in coverage and both have a lot of ability on the blitz. So with say, Ware, Hatcher, Ratliff and Ellis providing the basic four man rush and Burnett or Carpenter blitzing, the pressure will be on the Jag's O-Line to keep Leftwich upright. Will they be up to that task? We just don't know, but if I had to guess, I'd bet that Dallas gets to him fairly often. A big part of that will be the coverage our secondary provides against their WR's.
The Dallas secondary against the Jacksonville WR's:
Again, this matchup favors Dallas. Henry, Newman and Glenn are as good a trio as you'll find anywhere. Maybe the best in the NFL. Add in Pat Watkins at FS, who matches up very well against the tall Jacksonville WR's and the Jags could have a lot of trouble moving the ball through the air. Their WR's have ability, but they're all young and have proven very little in the NFL. With a consistant pass rush it will be hard to complete passes against Dallas. And it looks like, for the first time since Charles Haley left, Dallas will have a very good pass rush. So, the combination of the good pass rush and the excellent coverage by the Dallas secondary, very well could make things exceedingly difficult on the Jacksonville passing game.
The Dallas D against the Jacksonville run game:
With the Dallas defense being so big, it's going to be hard for teams to run against them. Ware really came on last year by the end of the season and was a force against the run. He ended up with several tackles behind the line of scrimmage. Ellis on the other side, being an ex-DE, should provide excellent run support. Also, with the depth that Dallas has in the front seven, they should be able to stay fresh enough to anchor against the run all day long. Look for Zimmer to send the ILB's Ayodele and James, and the SS Roy Williams of run blitzes too. All three of those guys pack a wallop and should really help stifle Fred Taylor and the Jag's running game.
Overall, I look for Dallas to win most of the matchups and I'm not very worried about anything except Henderson and Stroud against Kosier, Gurode and Rivera. If those three hold up, I look for Dallas to win the game relatively easily. If they don't, then it could be a long day for Bledsoe and there will be quite a good chance that Dallas comes away with a loss. I look for a defensive struggle and a fairly low scoring game. If Bledsoe gets time in the pocket... look out. Dallas might walk away with this one.
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windward said:That was exactly my point. I was agreeing with you, actually. Looking back ony post, I can see it may have been a bit murky.
When someone goes overboard and calls our close wins lucky and saying we were fortunate not to lose any particular game while not taking into account games that we had in hand and ended up losing is being intellectually dishonest.
I think things tend to balance out over the couse of the season as well, and eventualy the cream rises to the top.
In summation, you made a good point.
thanks. sorry for misunderstanding