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2011-2012 Regular Season: Redemption Or Rerun?
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September 9, 2011
At 8:53 AM CST
By Eric M. Scharf
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- The moment has finally arrived.
The nightmare labor negotiation that followed the nightmare Cowboys’
season is over.
The NFL and the NFLPA ultimately proved that a long-term, robust CBA
can be achieved.
A third nightmare – of back-to-back busted Cowboys seasons – would be the
unwanted charm.
Will the Cowboys really allow it to happen? Do they have the power
to continue the self-corrective measures installed by Jason Garrett
late last season?
Extracting That Effort
Recall Buddy Ryan’s first game against the Chicago Bears as the head
coach of the Philadelphia Eagles in 1986. Buddy’s boys lost to
Ditka’s dudes, but the Eagles played their guts out for their brash
new head coach . . . and in every game that season.
Oh, sure – Buddy had an eye for talent, but extracting that effort
from that talent is the bigger challenge. After all, Buddy’s son Rex
should know all about having a supreme talent on his hands – in
Vernon Gholston – and failing to extract that effort from that
“phony” . . . but I digress.
Recall Jimmy Johnson’s first year as head coach of the Dallas
Cowboys. The team had a miserable Detroit-like 1-15 record and a rag
tag team of talent, but no one in or out of NFL circles questioned
the effort, heart, and passion of Jimmy’s players that year.
Oh, sure – Jimmy had an eye for talent (which he would use
decisively in winning two Super Bowls), but extracting that effort
from that talent is the bigger challenge.
Jimmy – in fact – seemed to relish scaring that effort out of his
underachievers more than presiding over a series of splendid drafts.
Jimmy – whether his players were prepared for it or not – was going
to extract that effort one way or another. Just because Jimmy sent a
player over to the “asthma field” did not free that player from
Jimmy’s clutches. Imagine the relief of a player thinking he had
finally bombed out of one of Jimmy’s terminal training camps only to
realize the nightmare was not yet over . . . but I digress.
Buddy and Jimmy – for two guys who could not stand each other (for
historically obvious reasons) – were more alike than either would
admit. While their coaching careers ended on down notes, both men
were able to extract that effort from marginal players and
superstars alike more often than not.
“Effort is but a small part of success, you say?” While it is,
indeed, small, it is the driver for everything else that follows.
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- That effort shows up once or twice a year for bad teams, but it is
something to behold when a struggling team – with no foreseeable way
out of its downward spiral – decides to zero in on what its head
coach is cooking . . . even if it may not look, smell, or taste
good at first glance.
That effort can and should be respected by fans of all NFL teams.
That effort should be what fans want from the Dallas Cowboys . . .
because of what it breeds for the future.
That effort results in a team that mentally aches for the
opportunity to leave it all on the field on any given Sunday.
That effort is what fans purchase tickets to see. The results of
that effort – one of many possible wins, greater experience gained
towards veteran reliability, greater confidence to face any opponent
(whether in regular or post season battle) – are the potential icing
on the cake.
That effort – (1) buying into that singular vision, (2) studying
that playbook, (3) paying attention in that team meeting, (4)
performing as instructed during that practice, (5) being able to
“play rather than think” from a deeper understanding of that
instruction, and (6) delivering the goods on that game day – will
progressively turn into winning results.
That effort – 9 times out of 10 in today’s parody-driven NFL – can
slowly or speedily establish reliability, stability, and success.
That effort is what I remember just as much as any of the fantastic
five Super Bowl victories by the Dallas Cowboys.
When Jason Garrett took over an underperforming Cowboys team halfway
through last season, fans began to see that effort extracted. The
Cowboys went suddenly from shoddy charlatans to shockingly showing
up in all three phases of the game.
The Cowboys were far from acceptable at year’s end, but they were
far better than Phillips’ first half fools that began the season.
The effort extracted by Garrett from what had become a team of
rudderless underachievers was palpable and gave fans renewed hope
for the future.
While it remains debatable how many players actually feared for
their jobs (knowing how quickly they might be picked up by another
team under the “change of scenery” guise), Garrett still managed to
treat fans to that extracted effort over the final eight games of
the season.
Fans would realistically love nothing more than seeing a Rob Ryan
revamped defense resulting in a reliable match for Garrett’s
offense.
Just like Garrett – and even more than Garrett – Ryan seems
completely up to the task of extracting that effort from a defensive
unit that needs to show more heart and do its part.
Caught In The Cut Down
Jerry and Jason were not kidding when they refreshingly stated they
would be looking for competition up and down the roster . . . and
that – other than a few veterans and their top draft picks – no
player was safe.
The writing had been on the wall for so many underachievers and so
many oft-injured for so long.
Fans were beyond perplexed – for the umpteenth time during Jerry’s
stewardship of America’s Team – as to why certain players were still
collecting paychecks from the Bank of Jerry.
While the answer provided by Jerry and Jason was not ideal (nor will
it ever be), fans finally saw some of that writing on the wall jump
off the wall and onto the street . . . where several problematic
players were placed.
The Cowboys immediately kicked offensive line starters Leonard Davis
and Marc Colombo to the curb.
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- After a miserable start to his career in Arizona, Davis was very
good for his first 2+ years in Dallas followed by a not so slow
functional fade over the rest of his time with the Cowboys. Davis
remains unsigned – even past the eleventh hour before the season
began when many teams are were (and are still) desperately picking through
available free agents for good offensive linemen.
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- Colombo was a warrior his entire time in Dallas, but his body simply
would not hold up. It was a miracle to some in league circles that
Colombo ever came back from the knee injury he suffered with his
first team, the Chicago Bears. Colombo signed with Miami just days
after he was released in Dallas. If he sticks in South Beach, then,
the Cowboys will be wearing egg on their collective face. The smart
– but respectful – money suggests otherwise.
Andre Gurode – who was cut as recently as last week – did a good but
not great job for the Cowboys. Gurode spent his first couple years
butting heads with Big Bill over whether he should be playing center
or guard. While Parcells admitted an error in judgment and moved
Gurode back to center, there were lingering concerns about Gurode’s
level of dedication.
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- Fans will unfortunately come to remember Gurode more for the stomp
to his forehead delivered by Albert Haynesworth, the ridiculous
number of snaps that sailed over Romo’s head, and the last few Pro
Bowls he achieved by default rather than by d’ effort.
“Sources” say Gurode would have been able to remain with the Cowboys
if not for an unwillingness to lower his salary cap figure, but it
was time to bite more of the offensive line bullet and move on to
the next young candidate – who just happened to be Phil Costa.
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- Montrae “Entrée” Holland was a miracle of modern marshmallow men. He
came to the Cowboys via trade with the Broncos a few years ago.
Garrett generally indicated Holland did everything asked of him . .
. until he showed up to training camp looking like he ate some of
his teammates.
Fans will remember Holland for how little he played and how snug his
uniform always looked.
While fullback Chris Gronkowski was inadvertently responsible for
destroying Tony Romo’s 2010 season, he is a good kid who was simply
doomed to a departure due to Dallas’ desire to ultimately go without a
“traditional” lead blocker in the running game.
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- Roy Williams and Marion Barber were
two of the least shocking cut down casualties – who had numerous
chances to prove they deserved their enormous salaries. While they
were both plagued by nagging and untimely injuries – and having to
share reps with other equally talented teammates at the same
position – it is what they did with those reps and game day touches
that is remembered . . . not how few reps they may have had.
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- Williams was inserted into the
offense the moment he arrived from Detroit. He was completely
unreliable and unpredictable – which made it impossible for Tony
Romo to build a rapport with the receiver even on those rare days
when he did make some catches.
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- Williams will remain a walking,
talking reminder of the second time Jerry ever seriously overpaid
for a traded player. While Jerry is no Mike Lynn, Williams was an
obvious waste, and fans will continue to brace for similarly
terrifying trades until personnel decisions are eventually and
officially turned over to Stephen or, gasp, a general manager. Yes,
even Jerry is too vain to hang on until he looks and acts like a
cross between Al Davis and Ralph Wilson . . . but I digress.
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- Barber was a different story
altogether. He had a great gig under Parcells – who simply asked him
to finish off short yardage plays with his punishing running style,
particularly in the red zone. Barber neither asked for a greater
role nor did he need one and yet, he was thrust into the starting
tailback position upon Big Bill's exit from the organization.
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- While Barber did rather well in that
first year as the full-time starter, his production and ability to
stay healthy started down a steep slope . . . to the point where
even returning him to his former finite function was not going to
work, either.
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- Would Barber have accepted being a
career 3rd down and short yardage back? It is too late to find out
and, unfortunately, it no longer matters.
It is safe to say that
all but one or two of these players absolutely earned their way off
the 53-man roster.
Over But Not Quite Out
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- There were at least two players on
which fans finally expected to receive trade traction in tight end
Martellus Bennett and running back Tashard Choice.
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- Third year tight end John Phillips
is fully recovered from the ACL injury that robbed him of a
promising second season. While Bennett is said to be the better run
blocker, Phillips is superior and preferred in the passing game.
While Bennett is a physical specimen with good athleticism and speed
for someone his size, he has had the focus of drunk driver when
it comes to catching passes . . . with limited exception.
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- Fans can appreciate that Jerry and
Jason desperately want to avoid trading away someone who may simply
require ADD medication to finally catch on in the passing game. If
Martellus recovers from his high ankle sprain in time to log some
legitimate activity on offense this season – and he still finds the
football to be a foreign object while running routes – Jerry and
Jason will be forgiven for cutting their losses with Bennett . . .
and building a better blocker with ball-hauler Phillips.
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- Tashard Choice – on the other hand –
would welcome a trade out of town in exchange for more playing time.
Fans have been puzzled as to why Tashard has been trailing two other
tailbacks during his time in North Texas. Other than repeated vague
suggestions that Choice has to channel better performances on
special teams, his lack of playing time on offense remains a
mystery.
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- While rapid rookie running back
DeMarco Murray was drafted this year, fans expected Choice to get
more than a fair chance to become Felix's backfield buddy. Tashard
was slowed by a swollen knee of sorts – and some dynamic DeMarco
Murray moves – in the pre-season.
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- Choice is sufficiently recovered to
be ready for the Red Ball, Rob, and Rex show on Sunday night. Fans
would choose Choice to be in the lineup alongside Felix or to spell
him. DeMarco was electric with his few touches in pre-season, but
Tashard has a much better understanding of the offense. Fans are
prepared either way, and Choice has chosen to take whatever he gets
and go with the flow.
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- One more year of the same old
underachievement by Bennett and underutilization of Choice by
Garrett, and fans will find it even harder to fathom why both
players are still over but not quite out.
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- Just For Kicks
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- When most fans think of long-term
stability and clutch accuracy at kicker, they usually think of
low-maintenance, high-output guys like Morten Anderson, Gary
Anderson, George Blanda, John Carney, Matt Stover, Norm Johnson,
Jason Elam, Nick Lowery, Jan Stenerud, Eddie Murray, and – of course
– Rafael Septien.
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- Septien is responsible for the last
time Cowboys fans enjoyed long-term stability and clutch accuracy at
the kicker position – when the former soccer player just happened to
be Tom Landry's leading scorer for the majority of his nine year
career in Dallas.
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- Septien was certainly not
mistake-free or injury-free but – like the other members of this
exclusive group – his mistakes rarely happened in clutch time and
were generally spread out over a long period of time, while his few
injuries occurred towards the end of his career.
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- Adam Vinatieri – who is still going
strong at 14 years – is the only active participant in that group of
kickers . . . but I digress, because he neither plays for the
Cowboys nor can he help them.
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- Many (but not all) NFL teams have
resigned themselves to having an average to good kicker for 1-3
years before their decreasing clutch accuracy encourages an
aggressive search for their replacements. At least that is what
Jimmy Johnson, Barry Switzer, Chan Gailey, Dave Campo, Bill
Parcells, Wade Phillips, and – now – Jason Garrett have experienced
in the role of Cowboys head coach.
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- Nick Folk rushed back (or was rushed
back) from hip surgery during Wade's second to last supper, and the
results were foul enough to force him from the famous football
fraternity the following off-season. Folk deserved to be placed on
season-ending injured reserve following hip surgery – in hind
sight, of course – because, with proper healing time, he might have
returned to his accurate 2007-2008 form . . . and any field goal
foolishness might have
been forgiven.
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- David Buehler was drafted for a 2009
folksy pairing . . . with a strict focus on kickoffs. Buehler was
befuddled by placekicking and – once Folk began to flounder – the
Cowboys temporarily turned to Shaun Suisham, who was not the
solution.
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- David Buehler – ready or not – was
given his shot in 2010. He delivered the most touchbacks of any
kicker, but he made only 24 of 32 placekicks.
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- Buehler is an excellent athlete –
with college experience at kicker, linebacker, and as an eager special teams
gunner. He can kickoff farther on a line than most established NFL
kickers, and he can level punishing special teams tackles better
than some linebackers.
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- While his accuracy was admittedly
poor last year, Buehler holds no less promise than Martellus Bennett with
his pass-catching skills.
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- Buehler is more than eager to do
whatever it takes to transform that promise into plenty of accurate
points on many game days to come – but like Bennett, Buehler may not
get that opportunity if the Boys' brain trust runs low on patience.
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- Dallas brought in (Dan) Bailey to
battle with Buehler – with Dan outdoing David, thus, earning (for
now) the placekicking job.
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- While Bailey may be better than
Buehler at the moment, Dallas really had designs on Kai
Forbath – who was forced from the field and onto the PUP list for
the first six weeks of the season. The Boys may be taking an
unnecessary bath on Forbath but that, in turn, means more
competitive practice reps partitioned between Dan and David.
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- The kicking catastrophe may simply
come down to karma catching up with the Cowboys – who have enjoyed
excellence at so many important player positions for so many years.
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- If karma is king, what will happen
first? Will Romo "finally" raise the roof with postseason proof that he
will carry the Cowboys toward a Super Bowl thrill? Will the Cowboys
finally acquire their next great safety (or two)? Will the Cowboys
finally acquire their next great cornerback (or two)? Or will the
Cowboys finally find a fantastic foot to finesse their field goals?
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- And speaking of kicking corrections,
fans seem split on whether or not the NFL competition committee was
concussed when concocting this new kickoff rule . . . which was
designed to help limit violent concussions.
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- The new kickoff rule requiring all teams to kickoff from the 35 yard
line rather than the 30 is both good and bad. It does nothing for
Buehler – who could reach an opponent's end zone from his own 10 or
20 yard line.
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- Most fans can appreciate the
physical protection provided by placekicks that pass through the back of the
end zone – preventing kick returners from being reamed by raging
runners on special teams – but the rule also ruins the historical
excitement of such runbacks.
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- The excitement favors no particular side – as
fans want to see their special teams cream the opposing returner
and, conversely, see their returner escape the opposing onslaught
for a special teams score.
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- While no team wants to have a kick
returned on them for a touchdown, no team wants to spend all season
giving their opponents a free pass to the 20 yard line, either. Fans
should expect to see the cocky kickers of at least a few teams lobby
their coaches for a chance to plant a placekick inside an opponent's
20 yard line . . . only after those same coaches instruct their own
gunners to run off-sides on the initial kicking attempt, thus, getting pushed back to the good ole'
30 yard line.
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- It would be interesting to see how
quickly Goodell would react if this sneaky scheme occurred more than
a few times. I can see a fine "for knowingly stepping beyond the
line of scrimmage before the kicker's foot makes contact with the
football, for the sole purpose of incurring a five yard penalty
which would move the re-kick back to the 30 yard line" . . . but I
digress.
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- While the new kickoffs may be
turnoffs, the Cowboys' clock is tirelessly ticking on their painful
placekicking.
Cornered
While Roy Williams was removed and Marion Barber was bounced for
poor play, their collective release had even more to do with
creating awesome cap space for Asomugha.
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- Dallas was dearly determined they had a done deal for their newest
and deadliest defender, but they were denied when Nnamdi gave the
nod to the enemy Eagles.
Count me among the majority of fans who would love to replace the
oft-injured Terence Newman with a healthy Terence Newman – or
another serviceable player with a similar skill set and a healthier
history.
Terence does not appear to be a malicious person who goes out of his
way to sabotage best laid plans with self-inflicted injuries . . .
or being stupid enough to “sprain his ankle by tripping over his dog
and falling down the stairs” like Son of Griese. Terence would love
to be healthy rather than a hindrance but, sometimes, it is what it
is.
Terence knew he had dodged a Texas-sized silver bullet when the
second coming of Sanders and savior to the secondary juked Jerry and
Jason right out of their jockstraps.
Fans do not feel favorably towards Orlando Scandrick and cringe at
the thought of Allan Ball bailing out a bad backfield.
Newman missed the entire pre-season when his gawd awful groin
started groaning again. Mike Jenkins’ jammed neck still needs its
nerves nursed. The perfect storm of secondary soreness has placed
the Cowboys and their fans in the very position they did not want to
occupy with Orlando and be with Ball.
Jerry, Jason, and Rob evidently see something that fans do not in
the Cowboys’ king of the slot. They rewarded him with a big contract
and the chance to work his way into a spot beyond the slot.
Scandrick did, indeed, play better in the pre-season . . . but it
was the pre-season. Will Scandrick look scatterbrained and make
Jerry, Jason, and Rob look like idiots?
Sure – Jerry does not deserve the fan flogging like the Bungles’
Mike Brown, but he is used to the second-guessing.
Sure – Jason certainly has promise, but he has only been in the top
job for eight measly games and one off-season.
Sure – Rob might be reading from a ridiculously hypnotic script
furnished by Big Bad Buddy to completely cough up poor personnel
pursuits and dumb defensive designs for the Cowboys. If you believe
that, I have 10,000 foreclosed homes to sell you. “Just prick your
finger and sign right here” . . . but I digress.
It is clear Jerry and Jason are leaning heavily and wisely on Rob
for his dynamic defensive input, and fans can only hope that
Scandrick will scatter any secondary scares aimed his way.
Fans can only hope that Ball – who is now back at his natural corner
position – has not hit the wall . . . and that Ryan has sufficiently
raised Alan’s range to answer the call.
Fans should also remember the salary cap nightmare that followed
Deion-style deals like the one almost achieved with Asomugha. While
fans can be confident that Jerry will always (attempt to) be in the
mix towards top free agents, Dallas does not need to dial
up Dave Campo’s dog years.
While Asomugha may never get dinged during his dastardly tour of
Philly duty – or develop the Deion-destroying plantar fasciitis –
you can never say never with cornerbacks . . . and not just because
Jenkins and Newman are proving less than superhuman.
Dead money can be a sheet-hogging bed buddy.
Offensive Obligation
While fans have been screaming for a rebuilt offensive line for a
few years now, they are never quite prepared for when they get any
part of their wish.
“Rebuilt” – for most but not all fans – magically means through the
unrealistic combination of top flight first round draft choices and
high-priced free agents.
Top flight first round draft choices and high-priced free agents
usually happen through a few successive years of poor play and
plenty of salary cap space.
Fans need look no further than the Bungles’ Mike Brown for an
example of what they think they might prefer to the Cowboys’
offensive line woes.
Most Dallas fans – thankfully – are too intelligent to really want
the Cowboys to follow the “Brown and Smelly” plan to rebuilding any
part of a professional football team.
Fans were glad to back away from the cliffs of Bungle Bay just in
time to hear –
“And with the 9th pick in the 2011 NFL Draft, the Dallas Cowboys
select Tyron Smith – right offensive tackle from the University of
Southern California.”
Smith may, indeed, need improved footwork, but with Titanium Tyron
officially guarding Tony’s blind side, Romo can now realistically
roll to the right without worrying about a run down.
Defenders should be fit to be Ty’d on Romo’s blind side for the
foreseeable future.
Will David Arkin and Bill Nagy help solve even more of the offensive
line’s nagging issues?
They both joined Tyron in showing tremendous pre-season promise, but
it will take more than promise to support the obligation facing this
year’s offense.
Jason Garrett’s offense will be under the most pressure it has ever
endured . . . until Rob Ryan’s defense proves it is healthy enough
and practiced enough to handle its own share of that pressure.
Who knows? Rob’s pre-season scheme might have been just vanilla
enough to fool everyone into thinking his defensive unit will be the
victim against the Jets – rather than the victor.
Ready For Ryan
Are fans still reeling after seeing their beloved Cowboys dealing
for Rob Ryan – son of Buddy and brother of Rex?
Will Rob Ryan and Jason Garrett be like William Wallace and Edward
Longshanks? Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde? The Odd Couple? Riggs and
Murtaugh? Or will they simply be the perfectly balanced Yin and Yang
all teams seek?
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- Ryan and Garrett are polar opposites
save one thing – their shared desire to do things right, do things
that are renewable and reusable, and do things that ensure success.
“Buddy Bowl” certainly took its toll, but unlike the one-time
addition of Terrell Owens (the formerly despised 49er and Eagle),
Buddy is not joining the Cowboys.
Those few remaining fans who may still be shocked – that Dallas
reached out to a related Ryan – need to show a little faith and move
forward.
If the Ryan brothers have proven anything – beyond their defensive
wizardry – they are loyal to those who bring them aboard . . . and
fans can thank Buddy for instilling that quality in his boys.
Rob Ryan will obviously have much to do with whether or not the
Cowboy’s season is one of redemption or simply a replay of last
season’s ripe routine.
Rob “Dr. Frankenstein” Ryan is determined to combine the Boys’ best
bodies – and a few familiar faces he dug up from free agency – and
build a ferocious football monster.
He has already made his mark on the roster by convincing Jerry and
Jason to let Stephen Bowen bow out to the always-eager-to-overpay
Redskins. He also decided Igor (Olshansky) was no longer worth
keeping on as a one-sided defensive laboratory assistant.
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- Anthony Spencer could easily have
ended up as "Spenser for Hire" (Robert Urich - may you rest in
peace), but Ryan saw something in Spencer that made him buy in. And
if Anthony decides to go Gholston on Dallas, then, Ryan will take
him out like Avery Brooks as Hawk.
Fans will find out soon enough if Dallas will be odd without
Olshansky or begging for Bowen, but the consensus is that Ryan will
have the Cowboys’ defense high flyin’ or dyin’ tryin’ – and
extracting that effort.
Potential Playoff Pattern?
The Dallas Mavericks won the 2010-2011 NBA Finals.
The Texas Rangers almost won the 2010-2011 MLB World Series.
Does this pattern indicate the Dallas Cowboys will at least return
to the NFL playoffs in the 2011-2012 season?
Fans would be foolish to quite literally pray for such a result,
because fans should want their team to earn such an achievement . .
. rather than be held hostage by a magical moment they cannot
reproduce under their own power.
Teams who can earn their achievements are more apt to repeat and
improve upon such achievements.
The Cowboys have a chance to piggyback the potential playoff pattern
and earn their way back into the post season . . . and earn back
their title of America’s Team, as well.
Give None, Get None
The 2011-2012 NFL season could shape up to be the most competitive
(or ugly) that fans have seen in years.
The CBA drama just short of ruined training camp for every team –
player-driven practices aside.
An incredible (but believable) number of players throughout the
league arrived at camp out of shape.
Many of those same players have been dealing with nagging injuries
that stole valuable practice time.
Coaches – established and newly minted – have been scrambling to
download as much knowledge and technique into the minds of their
rookies . . . and as many new system wrinkles for the veterans as
possible.
Fans might normally identify one or two games on the schedule as
trap games.
The entire season may prove to be a trap game for any team who
enters a contest less than fully prepared to do battle.
There may be games won this season by teams who seemingly have no
business winning anything.
There may be games won this season by teams who were out-schemed but
not outmuscled and vice versa.
There may be games won this season where the outcome makes no sense
at all.
While performance-enhancing drugs are illegal in the NFL, this
season may turn out to be parody – rather than players – on
steroids.
There has never been a time in NFL history quite like this one –
where so many teams have a chance to compete due to preparation that
has been incomplete.
There are no excuses to be given out and no excuses to be taken in.
Give none, get none.
The Cowboys have had a sudden rash of injuries leading up to their
first game of season in the Meadowlands against the Rex Ryan-readied
New York Jets.
Injuries – like violent collisions – are part of the game.
Dallas fans would do well to remember the 2010-2011 Super Bowl
winners. The Green Bay Packers played most of the season while
having lost a number of their first day starters to injury, nearly
missed the playoffs, won their playoff games on the road, and filled
Cowboys Stadium with plenty of championship cheese.
Rob Ryan is willing to take risks with the Dallas defense, and he
is willing to establish depth on that defense by using all of his
players on game day . . . not just the starters. While Dom Capers
had no choice in the matter, Ryan may get the chance to choose when
his backups get to give his top brawlers a breather.
Give none, get none.
The New York Giants – in their quest to regain the NFC East crown –
have already lost at least five would-be contributors to
season-ending injuries.
The Cowboys lost an undrafted free agent wide receiver – in raw
rookie Raymond Radaway – to a broken leg. He showed great promise
that will have to wait until next year to be revealed.
Give none, get none.
Tony Romo is back healthy, heaving crisp and accurate passes at all
of his top targets. While Doug will be freewheeling and Kosier will be
keeping Tyron cozy, Romo will be relying on a youthful Costa-led
conga line for protection.
Give none, get none.
Will They Or Won't They?
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- Will the Cowboys resemble Red Ball
and Ryan on game day – calculating and systematic on offense,
controlled chaos on defense?
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- Will undrafted rookie running back Phillip Tanner perform with the
same fire as Tanner Boyle from the Bad News Bears – whether on
special teams or on offense?
Will the future be all bright for undrafted rookie linebacker Alex
Albright – whether on special teams or defense?
Will a recently extended Jay Ratliff go out of his way to ratify
Ryan’s relentless defense?
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- Will Ryan's "bunch o' bullies"
be able to grab Greene, topple Tomlinson, and make Mr. GQ look like
just another quarterback?
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- Will the Cowboys' secondary look
downright primary against the Jets' squadron of wide receivers?
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- Will Dez Bryant get locked away on
Revis Island, get locked away for not paying his jewelry bills, or
both?
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- Will Dez and Miles Austin make Revis
and Cromartie look like Bevis and Cro-Magnon man?
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- Will Witten run past Bart like a
dart, down the seam, nice and clean?
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- Will DeMarco Murray get involved in
two back sets in a hurry? Murray swings left and Jones swings right.
One makes the catch and speeds out of sight . . . leaving defenses
filled with fright.
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- Will the Jet's defensive line incur
a large fine for trying to send Romo straight to the pine . . . or
will the chances be slim that they can get a finger on him?
-
- Will Folk be fancy free in fitting a
field goal through the uprights . . . or will the dynamic duo of Dan
and David be dynamite down the middle?
Will the Cowboys’ 2011-2012 season result in the righteous
redemption of a new team readied by Red Ball and Ryan . . . or just
another rerun by red-faced retreads?
Will the Cowboys cold cock a jacked up Jets team on the emotional
evening of September 11?
-
- Will they or won't they?
We shall see. We always do.
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