32 Teams In 32 Days: Dallas Cowboys 2009 Preview

[Vinsane]

Did I ever mention that Tim Seder was my High School Gym teacher?

 

[Rayman]

Did I ever mention that Tim Seder was my High School Gym teacher?

lmao I'd heard he was a gym teacher when they signed him.

I miss Steve Hoffman. He could turn any bum off the street into a servicable kicker.

 

[Hasselbeck]

OK then...


FACT

-No team lost as many key players to injury last season as this team. You can go on and on about the 16 players Baltimore lost as well as other teams losses, but few of those losses had the impact of Dallas' and no team had lost so much collectively when you consider Felix Jones, Mat McBriar, Romo, Kosier (for the simple fact that Cory Proctor replaced him), Newman, among the guys that missed multiple games.

LOL. Uh... as a Seahawk fan.. this is extremely laughable. Regardless, playoff teams fight through this.. the Cowboys folded like a paper doll down the stretch when they were a lot more healthy than many other teams..

FACT

-Special teams lost at least two games last year.

Bruce Read thankfully got canned, McBriar is healthy, and a lot of the rookies are good special teamers. McBriar basically got his leg destroyed last year because of a blown assignment by a street free agent in the Arizona game. His replacement averaged 8 fewer yards per punt. While I love Nick Folk's accuracy as a FG kicker, his kickoffs are generally weak, and I'm interested to see what David Buehler (who averaged 53% touchbacks at USC) does as the kickoff specialist.

All this alone greatly impacts the field position game, where this team stuggled all season long even when healthy.

:confused2:

I don't recall special teams allowing back to back 80 yard touchdown runs against Baltimore.. or special teams laying down in a 44-6 beatdown with the playoffs on the line.. or special teams giving up 34 points to a terrible Rams team.. or special teams throwing a pick 6 and blowing a game against Pittsburgh. But anyway.

FACT

-I'm not one of the "TO ripped the team apart" fanatics. In fact, I think he got a raw deal this time but oh well.

What getting rid of him does accomplish, though, is that I no longer have hear about how he's bitching to get the ball even after Romo's looked for him 18 times. All joking aside, him being gone means Garrett should be moving to a more ball-control oriented offense, similar to what we ran in the SB years. With a line that big, and three solid RBs behind Romo, there's no reason for Garrett to keep asking Romo to beat teams by himself while only running the ball 8 times a game. You've got a young and fast defense that keeps getting better on the other side of the ball, and keeping them fresher goes a long way toward their continued improvement; When Parcells took this team to the playoffs in 2003, he had a defense which was vastly inferior to this one, yet they had the #1 ranking in the league because he played keep-away. This offense is also vastly superior to the 2003 version, whether Romo is asked to carry the load again or not.

What Owens departure does is puts more pressure on Jason Witten to be the guy. Roy Williams will obviously also have to step up, but Owens presence on the field alone drew constant double teams allowing other weapons to have man coverage. I'm not sure Roy Williams will command the attention T.O. did. That said, the chemistry of the Cowboys should be better in large part of Owens departure - and that should help you guys.

FACT

-People say Romo can't win a big game. They're wrong.

While there's no excuse for the debacle at Philadelphia this past year, Romo's been unfairly labeled a choker even though he's only been a starting QB 2 1/2 seasons, completely ignoring the three late-season games he's beaten the Giants in, the time he beat Peyton and the Colts, and the time he beat up the Packers in the "NFC Championship preview" (hate that). I guess those weren't big games. People point to the aforementioned Philly game (again, no excuse), the 2007 playoff game (not his fault) and the 2006 Wild Card game (dropping the ball on a FG after he drove the team downfield in the first place) as evidence of this. As I said earlier, he's only been the QB for 21/2 seasons, and he's done a hell of a job thus far. Can we at least give him 3-5 years like we did Peyton before we started calling him a choker? That being said, like in my previous point, the movement to ball control is gonna take a lot of that so-called "pressure" off of him. It would be a joy to actually see him work the play-fake again like he did in '06.

Actually.. Romo's criticism for folding in big games is completely justified. His loss to the Eagles wasn't the first time he has played terrible in a big time situation. In the playoffs against the Giants.. he made two horrible mistakes down the stretch that cost them that game. In the playoffs against the Seahawks, he put a snap on the turf .. and while many Romo backers will say.. "Yeah! But he also led them down the field to put them in that spot!".. He was mediocre most of the game against a secondary that was injury riddled and starting a cornerback that was selling insurance four days earlier.

It's funny you cite wins over the Giants.. when Dallas was 7-1.. and wins over the Packers .. when they were 10-1.. as huge wins. Huge wins are what Kurt Warner put up in the postseason this year. Huge wins are what Eli Manning put up during the Giants Super Bowl run.. it's easy to perform in the middle of October and November when your team is already doing well... it's not so easy to perform in a must win situation where when you lose you go home.. and so far in those situations, Romo is 0-3.

So yes. He has not shown the ability to win a big game yet.

FA...er..well...

-I can't speak for the coaching, because although Phillips says he's going to be more hands-on, I can't believe it until I see results. But the aforementioned firing of Bruce Read will do the special teams a world of good. I guess this one is a wait-and-see.

As long as Wade Phillips is coach, you guys will lose games you should win.. it comes with the territory.. much like Norv Turner in San Diego.

While special teams are an underrated part of the game.. the simple replacement of a special teams coach isn't going to be the cure all for every single Dallas problem.

And unfortunately for you.. the Cowboys play in the strongest division in the NFC, (arguably anyway as I think the NFC South can make a case) and if that wasn't enough you drew that NFC South as your interconference matchup in 2009.

So the schedule will be difficult, and I just can't see the Cowboys overcoming two stronger teams (New York and Philadelphia) and surviving a tough couple of games with the Skins, and NFC South.

 

[Rayman]

LOL. Uh... as a Seahawk fan.. this is extremely laughable. Regardless, playoff teams fight through this.. the Cowboys folded like a paper doll down the stretch when they were a lot more healthy than many other teams..

Bullshit.

They did fold, but to say they were a lot more healthy than many teams is a bold faced lie. Seattle lost a bunch of guys, but aside from Hasselbeck, none was as important as Romo or Jones was in Dallas.

That's why they threw money at Housh.

:confused2:

I don't recall special teams allowing back to back 80 yard touchdown runs against Baltimore.. or special teams laying down in a 44-6 beatdown with the playoffs on the line.. or special teams giving up 34 points to a terrible Rams team.. or special teams throwing a pick 6 and blowing a game against Pittsburgh. But anyway.

No, you're right.

Hamlin blowing two tackles led to the 80 yard TDs with B'More.

The whole team laid down in Philly.

Brad Johnson QB'd the Rams game

Yeah, they had a bad 4th quarter in Pitt. God forbid they should score less than 13 points against a great defense in Pittsburgh in the middle of December. They played great for 55 minutes against the eventual champs in their own stadium. While it was a gut-wrenching loss, it's not something to be ashamed of. And contrary to what you think, special teams played a huge role in that loss because they were constantly in poor field position to start drives.

Special teams was also the reason they lost in Arizona.

So for you to say it didn't have a big effect, well sorry to tell you, you're flat out wrong.

What Owens departure does is puts more pressure on Jason Witten to be the guy. Roy Williams will obviously also have to step up, but Owens presence on the field alone drew constant double teams allowing other weapons to have man coverage. I'm not sure Roy Williams will command the attention T.O. did. That said, the chemistry of the Cowboys should be better in large part of Owens departure - and that should help you guys.

What Owens' departure does is allow Romo to make the next step as a vocal leader, something he never would have done if Owens still had a voice in the lockerroom. Roy Williams doesn't need to demand constant double teams. As I said before, this offense is going to move more toward a style of the mid-90's - the one they ran when Garrett was backing up Aikman. Witten will be featured heavily as always, but the one thing that Williams beats Owens as is that he doesn't need to be wide open to make a play. He has enough size and skill (and we've seen it before) to make a play over a DB. And while he's not as good at it as say, Moss or Fitzgerald, he's good enough to get the job done.

Miles Austin will have a solid year on the other side.

Actually.. Romo's criticism for folding in big games is completely justified. His loss to the Eagles wasn't the first time he has played terrible in a big time situation. In the playoffs against the Giants.. he made two horrible mistakes down the stretch that cost them that game. In the playoffs against the Seahawks, he put a snap on the turf .. and while many Romo backers will say.. "Yeah! But he also led them down the field to put them in that spot!".. He was mediocre most of the game against a secondary that was injury riddled and starting a cornerback that was selling insurance four days earlier.

It's funny you cite wins over the Giants.. when Dallas was 7-1.. and wins over the Packers .. when they were 10-1.. as huge wins. Huge wins are what Kurt Warner put up in the postseason this year. Huge wins are what Eli Manning put up during the Giants Super Bowl run.. it's easy to perform in the middle of October and November when your team is already doing well... it's not so easy to perform in a must win situation where when you lose you go home.. and so far in those situations, Romo is 0-3.

So yes. He has not shown the ability to win a big game yet.

I get it. The criteria changes with the record.

What two mistakes did he make down the stretch in the Giants' game? Because an INT on a last gasp 4th down is all I have. You of all people should understand what it is to see your QB play his ass off in a playoff game only to see the receiving corps let him down in a big spot.

Romo was the best player on the field that day and it wasn't even close. I've gone over this time and time again. It is in no way his fault they lost that game, no matter what you or ESPN has to say on the subject.

As far as 2006, aside from Plummer, he was the only starting QB to even hold that year. It's funny that people say it's a sign of his inability to step up when he was the reason they got so far in the first place in only his first year as a starter.

What's funny is you think I'm a shameless Romo apologist and that I think he can do no wrong. And you're full of shit if you think so.

The guy has made many boneheaded plays in games. Sometimes he makes me want to punch a baby. But he gets killed way too often in such a short period of time as a starter. NO other QB in the league would be have to hear about how pathetic he is as a starter in 2 1/2 years despite the fact that he's already had the single greatest season in the history of a franchise that already has 2 HOF QBs and a 3rd one who was pretty good in his own right.

It's ridiculous how much he is hated on for no other reason than being the QB of the Cowboys. Whatever. I suppose once he finally wins a Super Bowl, we'll hear all about how he was carried to it by his teammates, even though we never hear that about Eli.

As long as Wade Phillips is coach, you guys will lose games you should win.. it comes with the territory.. much like Norv Turner in San Diego.

Can't argue with this.

While special teams are an underrated part of the game.. the simple replacement of a special teams coach isn't going to be the cure all for every single Dallas problem.

Never said this. Reading comprehension is your friend.

And unfortunately for you.. the Cowboys play in the strongest division in the NFC, (arguably anyway as I think the NFC South can make a case) and if that wasn't enough you drew that NFC South as your interconference matchup in 2009.

So the schedule will be difficult, and I just can't see the Cowboys overcoming two stronger teams (New York and Philadelphia) and surviving a tough couple of games with the Skins, and NFC South.

Agree with this, and the Eagles always scare me, but I already know that when the Cowboys bring their A game, the Giants can't touch them, so I'm not worried about "Big Blue". Redskins are always tough, but we should be fine so long as we RUN THE F'N BALL.

NFC South - We'll roll Tampa and New Orleans. And I think we're better than Carolina and Atlanta. I say 3-1 vs. those guys. At worst 2-2.

BTW, we're going to smother Seattle.

Enjoy/

 

[Rayman]

I think TO got a bad rap in Dallas,but Romo has alot of weapons,and the 'Boys should be fine.But I wouldn't put much stock in Roy Williams;dude is MAAAAD overrated.

It's funny how everyone was on his nuts when he was in Detroit the first few years, he has a down year, then gets traded to Dallas and all of a sudden he sucks.

Fuckin' love it.

 

[G-men]

It's funny how everyone was on his nuts when he was in Detroit the first few years, he has a down year, then gets traded to Dallas and all of a sudden he sucks.

Fuckin' love it.

thats because hes not has good has he used to be. he wasnt playing against much talent when he was a lion. in the NFC East he has to play the Giants, Eagles, and Redskins twice. hes gonna get shut down.

 

[Rayman]

thats because hes not has good has he used to be. he wasnt playing against much talent when he was a lion. in the NFC East he has to play the Giants, Eagles, and Redskins twice. hes gonna get shut down.

70 rec 1000 yds 10 TDs


quote me.

 

[G-men]

70 rec 1000 yds 10 TDs


quote me.

domenik hixon (if he ends up starting) has more yards and TD's them roy williams

quote me

 

[Rayman]

domenik hixon (if he ends up starting) has more yards and TD's them roy williams

quote me

:jonesy:
I'll take that bet.

What's your wager?

 

[Hasselbeck]

Bullshit.

They did fold, but to say they were a lot more healthy than many teams is a bold faced lie. Seattle lost a bunch of guys, but aside from Hasselbeck, none was as important as Romo or Jones was in Dallas.

That's why they threw money at Housh.

LOL. Walter Jones wasn't important? Patrick Kerney wasn't important? Lofa Tatupu wasn't important? Bobby Engram? Nate Burleson? Deion Branch?

Seattle's damage was done early on.. the Seahawks season was over basically before it began due to injuries up and down the roster. But, again.. good teams fight through this.. and we simply couldn't close out games.. like bad teams typically do.

Romo played the last month when the Cowboys were in control of their own destiny.. MUCH different than Seattle getting Hasselbeck back at 50% .. or Engram.. or Branch on a 2-8 team.

Hamlin blowing two tackles led to the 80 yard TDs with B'More.

Agreed.

The whole team laid down in Philly.

Duh.

Brad Johnson QB'd the Rams game

Did he play defense too? I forget. Was Johnson at LB when Steven Jackson had his best game of the year?

Yeah, they had a bad 4th quarter in Pitt. God forbid they should score less than 13 points against a great defense in Pittsburgh in the middle of December. They played great for 55 minutes against the eventual champs in their own stadium. While it was a gut-wrenching loss, it's not something to be ashamed of. And contrary to what you think, special teams played a huge role in that loss because they were constantly in poor field position to start drives.

If Romo is the great QB you think he is.. the Cowboys don't lose that game. They had a 13-3 lead with 7 minutes left.. somehow Pittsburgh scored 17 unanswered points to close the game out. How? Romo's 3 picks (including one that went for a score) sure helped...

Special teams was also the reason they lost in Arizona.

It was part of the reason. You could also argue the game doesn't even go overtime without Nick Folk's 52 yarder...

What Owens' departure does is allow Romo to make the next step as a vocal leader, something he never would have done if Owens still had a voice in the lockerroom. Roy Williams doesn't need to demand constant double teams. As I said before, this offense is going to move more toward a style of the mid-90's - the one they ran when Garrett was backing up Aikman. Witten will be featured heavily as always, but the one thing that Williams beats Owens as is that he doesn't need to be wide open to make a play. He has enough size and skill (and we've seen it before) to make a play over a DB. And while he's not as good at it as say, Moss or Fitzgerald, he's good enough to get the job done.

Miles Austin will have a solid year on the other side.

We'll see.. Roy Williams showed absolutely nothing in his first year as a Cowboy.. so he could just as easily flop as he can replace TO's production.

I get it. The criteria changes with the record.

What two mistakes did he make down the stretch in the Giants' game? Because an INT on a last gasp 4th down is all I have. You of all people should understand what it is to see your QB play his ass off in a playoff game only to see the receiving corps let him down in a big spot.

Taking a sack when he could have thrown the ball into the stands. Committing a backbreaking intentional grounding penalty. Those were two HUGE plays.

Romo was the best player on the field that day and it wasn't even close. I've gone over this time and time again. It is in no way his fault they lost that game, no matter what you or ESPN has to say on the subject.

As far as 2006, aside from Plummer, he was the only starting QB to even hold that year. It's funny that people say it's a sign of his inability to step up when he was the reason they got so far in the first place in only his first year as a starter.

What's funny is you think I'm a shameless Romo apologist and that I think he can do no wrong. And you're full of shit if you think so.

You overlooked the other thing I said.. he played very average in that Seattle game. Our secondary was decimated. For Romo to only have 189 yards against a patchwork secondary that had been getting roasted the last month of December and made Rex Grossman look great a week later.. doesn't really help his case of not being able to perform in the clutch.

And you defend your guy like I defend mine.. I get it.

The guy has made many boneheaded plays in games. Sometimes he makes me want to punch a baby. But he gets killed way too often in such a short period of time as a starter. NO other QB in the league would be have to hear about how pathetic he is as a starter in 2 1/2 years despite the fact that he's already had the single greatest season in the history of a franchise that already has 2 HOF QBs and a 3rd one who was pretty good in his own right.

It's ridiculous how much he is hated on for no other reason than being the QB of the Cowboys. Whatever. I suppose once he finally wins a Super Bowl, we'll hear all about how he was carried to it by his teammates, even though we never hear that about Eli.

It comes with being the Cowboys quarterback. Don't like it.. then become a Lions fan.

But with great criticism comes the extreme over hyping of him as well. Romo would not be talked about nearly as much if he weren't a Cowboy. Romo is the Derek Jeter of the NFL.. only Jeter actually performs in the clutch and has a ring

BTW, we're going to smother Seattle.

May happen. We suck on the road and it's an early kickoff. I'm not penciling that in as a win.. but if we're healthier going into the game.. it sure as hell won't be 34-9 again either.

 

[Rayman]

Taking a sack when he could have thrown the ball into the stands. Committing a backbreaking intentional grounding penalty. Those were two HUGE plays.

We'll see.. Roy Williams showed absolutely nothing in his first year as a Cowboy.. so he could just as easily flop as he can replace TO's production.

Just a quick comment on these two;

The intentional grounding penalty is one of two HUGE flags from that game that the league has since admitted was the wrong call.


And I feel Williams' struggles last year were a perfect storm of coming to the team so late, while Romo was out, and never developing a rapport with him due to the injury, that never quite healed, all while playing third banana to TO and Witten.

He'll be much better in '09.

It was part of the reason. You could also argue the game doesn't even go overtime without Nick Folk's 52 yarder...

That's not what I'm talking about and you know it. He also missed a kick before halftime.

 

[Rayman]

Read my comments. Seriously, I see the Division going this way. Redskins, Eagles and Giants have had BIG offseasons, well.. us and the Redskins moreso. But the Conboys lost a future Hal of Fame receiver, and they have an inconsistent QB. 9-7 at BEST. We'll easily win the 2 games against the Conboys. Yes, the Conboys. Read it and weep. Anyways dude, the division will go this way:

NFC EAST
Eagles- 11-5
Giants-10-6
Redskins-9-7
Conboys-7-9/8-8

Realism Conboy fans, embrace it.

Games aren't won during free agency.

 

[G-men]

Read my comments. Seriously, I see the Division going this way. Redskins, Eagles and Giants have had BIG offseasons, well.. us and the Redskins moreso. But the Conboys lost a future Hal of Fame receiver, and they have an inconsistent QB. 9-7 at BEST. We'll easily win the 2 games against the Conboys. Yes, the Conboys. Read it and weep. Anyways dude, the division will go this way:

NFC EAST
Eagles- 11-5
Giants-10-6
Redskins-9-7
Conboys-7-9/8-8

Realism Conboy fans, embrace it.

you are a joke

are you gonna go on about how the eagles ALMOST won two super bowls and how they would have won them IF the other two teams hadnt cheated.

its funny how the capped words are always used in your arguments.

 

[G-men]

:jonesy:
I'll take that bet.

What's your wager?

my left nut

 

[Woy]

Read my comments. Seriously, I see the Division going this way. Redskins, Eagles and Giants have had BIG offseasons, well.. us and the Redskins moreso. But the Conboys lost a future Hal of Fame receiver, and they have an inconsistent QB. 9-7 at BEST. We'll easily win the 2 games against the Conboys. Yes, the Conboys. Read it and weep. Anyways dude, the division will go this way:

NFC EAST
Eagles- 11-5
Giants-10-6
Redskins-9-7
Conboys-7-9/8-8

Realism Conboy fans, embrace it.

Are the Cowboys only going to go 7-9 cause Tony Romo has cancer?

 

[Archer]

You moron. I use the capitals for emphasis. Or do you not know what emphasis is? And dude, I didn't mean the JJ thing that way. Now that I come to think of it, the cancer has no relevance to how he calls plays. But whatever. He was idiotic to stop blitzing when we came back with a 25-24 lead.

lulz now that you think of it

 

[Hasselbeck]

You moron. I use the capitals for emphasis. Or do you not know what emphasis is? And dude, I didn't mean the JJ thing that way. Now that I come to think of it, the cancer has no relevance to how he calls plays. But whatever. He was idiotic to stop blitzing when we came back with a 25-24 lead.

Warner was playing so well in the last 3-4 games of the year that the only way you were going to beat him was to outscore him.

The Steelers did that. No one else could.

The health of your defensive coordinator, albeit a sad story, had nothing to do with this. No one in the NFC was playing better football in January than the Cardinals. End of story.