MVN - Most Valuable Network

Expect Big Things in Big D

     Let’s get one thing out of the way early: the Dallas Cowboys are going to win the Super Bowl.  Got a gut feeling; it’s gonna happen.

     But, that is some weeks away, so, for now, let us center on Sunday’s season opener up in Cleveland.  Both teams are coming off of double-digit win seasons, but the Browns’ 10 just weren’t enough to “sneak” into the postseason (that a 10-win team shouldn’t have to sneak in is another story).  For many, last season was a surprise in Cleveland, especially to Romeo Crennel, Derek Anderson, and Brady Quinn.

     Crennel got to keep his job, Anderson went to the Pro Bowl, and Prince Quinn’s coronation will have to wait at least another season. 

     The reward for the Browns’ emergence?  A brutal opening schedule where the only guaranteed non-loss is the Week 5 bye.  With Dallas, Pittsburgh, at Baltimore, at Cincinnati, and the champion Giants in Week 6, it’s conceivable–if unlikely–that the Browns could start 0-5 or 1-4. 

     Having said that, the Cowboys will need to play darn good football in order to have a chance at challenging New England’s 16-0 record from last year.

     ON OFFENSE:  The Cowboys are starting the season with Patrick Crayton as the No. 2 receiver.  Actually, he’s the No. 3 behind Terrell Owens and Jason Witten, but that’s only slightly more comforting.  I imagine Tony Romo’s progression goes something like this: Owens, Witten, Owens, Barber/Jones, “Can I run it?,” Owens, Crayton. 

     Fortunately, he should have time to make each level in the progression against this defense.  Last year, the Browns were not an exciting defense; they rarely pressured the quarterback, and managed only 17 interceptions.  That being said, Romo needs to be aware of Sean Jones in the secondary (5 INTs), and the middle of the offensive line will have a tough day containing Shaun Rogers.

     Owens and Witten will be able to find ample room over the middle of the field against a middling group of linebackers.  Marion Barber and Felix Jones should have plenty of running room outside or right behind Leonard Davis.  In short, the league’s most potent offense should have very little problem padding their stats this first game.

     ON DEFENSE:  Last year, Dallas’ defense returned to elite status, and this group is arguably better than that.  With no significant losses (be quiet, Nate Jones/Jason Ferguson fans), and the additions of Zach Thomas and much-hyped Mike Jenkins, the Cowboys should again have one of the three best defenses in football.

     Of course, it all starts with DeMarcus Ware, who’ll have, even for him, a tough assignment in getting around Pro Bowl tackle Joe Thomas.  Ware is gaining recognition as one of the best pass rushers in football, and he will need to put consistent pressure on Anderson–another Pro Bowler–in order to keep him from taking shots at the secondary.  Although Anderson did suffer a concussion on August 18, he is expected to play Sunday at full strength.

     Unfortunately, the same cannot be said of Terrance Newman.  If he plays at all, it will likely be only for a few snaps, meaning Adam Jones and Jenkins (even rookie Orlando Scandrick) will be matching up opposite Anthony Henry.  Make no mistake, the corners are much weaker without Newman.  Jones hasn’t played in more than a year, and rookie corners always face an adjustment period in the NFL.

     The Browns have plenty of weapons to challenge the defense, most notably Braylon Edwards.  After three underwhelming years, Edwards exploded last year for nearly 1,300 yards and 16 touchdowns (Owens had 15).  Expect the Browns to move him all over the field in order to try and get him as many snaps as possible against the Jones/Jenkins combination.  Veterans Joe Jurevicius and Donte’ Stallworth are also solid compliments to Edwards, and it would be a grievous error to underestimate the potential disaster of Roy Williams trying to cover Kellen Winslow.

     Jamal Lewis rushed for 1,300 yards last year, and, even with Thomas on the line, he may need to use a cell phone to try and set up some running lanes against the Dallas front seven.

     OVERALL:  Both teams have excellent offenses, which should make for plenty of big plays and points.  It’ll be a shoot-out, but the Cowboys’ defense is significantly better than the Browns’, allowing Dallas to grab a win in a game that may not be as close as the score indicates.

     Dallas 38, Cleveland 28

Brian Smith can be reached at BLSmith@mail.utexas.edu

Were the Giants that good or the Redskins that bad?

I came into this game like any other NFL opening game, hoping to predict what aspirations each NFL team could hold up to this season. I came out of this game more puzzled than I was going in. The Giants looked flawless in the first quarter. Eli Manning dialed up Plaxico Burress a few times for some big gains. Brandon Jacobs pounded the ball and Steve Smith came up with a big catch on a third down. Their defense was just as good in the first quarter. The Giants got to Jason Campbell and really made him frustrated. Jason Tuck was effective and the Redskins offensive line looked out of sync. It really looked like the beginning of a perfect night for the Giants. But things were going to change. 

 

As the game dwindled on, the Giants looked less and less like the flawless team that was present in the first quarter. The Redskins defense stepped it up a little bit but they still were pretty dismal. The Giants gave Fred Smoot two opportunities for an interception that could have seriously changed the momentum. Then Smoot got a pass interference call (which could have gone the other way) that really capped off an effective Giants drive. As the game continued, the Giants had a sequence of three-and-outs but the Redksins couldn’t capitalize.

 

Jim Zorn looked completely lost in tonight’s game. Nearing the end of the second-half when the Redskins still had 3 timeouts and there was 45 seconds left in the game, Zorn allowed the clock to dwindle 25 seconds. They ended up with a third and 11 and were fortunate that the GIants left Santana Moss open underneath for a touchdown. Zorn might be the wrong coach for the Redskins after the Gibb’s era. He is definitely not a good play-caller. He looked confused on simple things such as time-management. There was a time in the game where it appeared as if Clinton Portis was coaching Zorn. Its going to be a long year for the Redskins if they don’t fix minute things such as clock management and learn how to throw the ball deep. 

 

The Giants have to be upset with the way they let the Redskins hang around in this game. Eli Manning looked like the Super Bowl quarterback during the 1st quarter but then he looked like his old-self during the second-half. Manning made many errant throws and looked out of it. The Giants have to find a way to get more receivers besides Burress involved. The loss of Jeremy Shockey will be more serious than the Giants think. Shockey would have been a safety receiver for Manning tonight. Kevin Boss is not the best replacement and one of the worst blocking tight-ends in the league. 

 

The Redskins have to re-shape their strategies for the remainder of the season. Throwing short passes in a close game with 20 seconds left is the wrong way to win a game. I know this is the West-coast offense but there has to be plays for deep passes. Jason Campbell needs to get comfortable real quick. Receivers such as Randal-El and Moss should be used in screens to get out into the open and use their juke and speed abilities. Zorn needs to bounce Portis more on the outside. Redskins have a lot to work on this week and I hope Zorn can find a way to bring this team back up after this loss. 

 

Newman out for Week 1? …and other news

So this isn’t so good…

Newman questionable for Week 1

IRVING, Texas - Although Cowboys cornerback Terence Newman has participated in every practice since returning 10 days ago from a slight groin tear, head coach Wade Phillips said he’s remaining “cautious” with Newman and hasn’t fully decided whether he’ll be active for Sunday’s regular-season opener at Cleveland.

“No, I won’t definitely say he’ll play. It looks good for him right now,” Phillips said Thursday. “But we’ll see where he is tomorrow.”

First off, allow me to apologize for missing the past week. I was out of town and failed to alert you faithful readers. But I’m back in time for the season and in time to watch those awful Giants and the ridiculous Redskins open the year tonight. Yikes.

No, I’m not giving you all clearance to panic with this Newman news. It’s murky stuff at best, but its enough to wonder about. The Cowboys’ newfound depth at CB, on the surface, seems to glaze over this issue at least somewhat. But upon closer inspection, things aren’t so rosy. Pacman is still adjusting to more zone coverage, Henry has his physical limitations and the rest of the guys are really, really young. That’s a worst-case scenario, of course, but T-New is the only player in the entire secondary with no question marks hovering over his head. So with him out, how can you not start questioning the group? Can’t help it.

I’ve missed a few things here so bear with me if I’m rehashing:

• Alan Ball over Evan Oglesby? Yeah, so we’re splitting hairs over the No. 6 corner, but why Ball over Ogs? Doesn’t make much sense on any level, considering Evan’s stellar camp and Ball’s injury issues. I’ve read the excuses and none of it is very compelling. Ball has an extra year on his salary. He’s younger and is maybe a little faster. Meh. Oglesby is a better corner, and somebody knew it even if we didn’t… Baltimore just picked him off waivers.
• Offensive team captains are Romo, Witten, TO and the Barbarian. Defensive captains are Ellis, Hamlin and Bradie, and the recently returned Killah Keith Davis will head up the Special Teams unit. More things change, the more they stay the same…
  • While we’re on Killa, I’m glad he’s back. I really hope he never graces the defensive depth chart, but it’s nice to see some legitimate kick coverage experience back there considering what’s happened the last few weeks.
• Wade is hoping Isaiah Stanback, shoulder sling and all, is going to serve equitably as the team’s No. 3 receiver. Think he can draw coverage like that? He’ll command a defender because he’s a human in a football uniform, but how much will he force coverage away from Witten and TO? I’m not optimistic but I’m willing to bet the awful Cleveland secondary will be a nice proving ground.
• The only real noteworthy cuts came at the receiver position in the form of WRs Mike Jefferson and Danny Amendola,. Also of note is the fact that the team kept 11 offensive linemen in lieu of cutting the extra receiver. Guess they’re confident in the rag-tag group they’ve got there now. Can’t say I share that opinion.  Can’t argue too much with keeping an extra lineman, and we’ll see if they try to pick through waivers for guys like Hannah or Amendola, but I’m a little tentative on keeping an injury-plagued and thin position even thinner with cuts on guys that have shown some flashes.

More to come on the Brownies as the glorious day approacheth.

Kosier out 6 weeks, Stanglass busts out the Windex

…and here we go.

Left guard Kyle Kosier could miss up to six weeks because of a sprained right foot and hairline fracture. Kosier left Texas Stadium in a walking boot.

Joe Berger is the favorite to take over for Kosier.

Also, wide receiver Isaiah Stanback suffered a dislocated left shoulder on a kickoff. The Cowboys will wait to see how Stanback responds to treatment before determining if he needs surgery.

The loss of Stanback, we doubt he will play on Thursday night against Minnesota, has causes problems on the depth chart on special teams and at wide receiver.

Well, here comes all that depth we were talking about falling round our ankles.

Stanback is an appreciable loss, something you can feel but something you won’t see much on Sundays. You don’t like seeing the guy have a setback like this, but is it really much of a burden on the team? It certainly is more so now that we know Miles Austin is out another 5+ weeks, but this is something you can easily cope with. Especially considering than Stanback is considering holding off on the surgery and simply gritting through the shoulder pain all year. It’s a nice gesture, how limiting will that be on a kid who’s still figuring out how to play wide receiver. So again, this is a surmountable obstacle. Kosier, on the other hand…

Kyle is an interesting conundrum. This is the Cowboys’ first real taste of lack of continuity anywhere on the line since before last season when Marc Colombo won his spot at RT. After Kosier took over for the unflappable Larry Allen at LG, he’s done a serviceable job, rarely bringing notice to himself for much outstanding play. But he’s a guy you don’t need to think about… plug him into his socket and let him run his course and generally you’re in for a good day… typically more than we can say about Flo. In general I’d say Kosier is neck-and-neck with Colombo for “weakest link of the O-line” award, so once again… it’s not the injury itself that gets you, it’s the guys behind him. Joe Berger was the immediate choice, but he hasn’t impressed, so the coaching staff is now trying Pat McQuistan there to see if he sticks. Whoops, they both suck. McQ, in my opinion, is the worst tenured Cowboy offensive lineman on the roster… that is, there are no holdovers from last year’s line, starters or otherwise, that are worse than McQ, and he might have even regressed. He didn’t look this bad during the sparse time he played last year and the year before. He’s simply not quick enough. Seeing him pull to kick out a linebacker will likely be tragically hilarious… for us, not the Barbarian, who will likely be presented with one more tackler than he otherwise would.

Berger’s no good either, but what do you do here? Marten hasn’t shown anything either, and Free is being groomed as the swing tackle, where he’s shown tons of promise, so he’s out of the question. Me? I’m praying to Tom Landry that something pops up on the waiver wire and that he heals Kosier soon, because this has “bad news” written all over McQ’s ugly, ugly face.