The Key To A Quick Start For The Dallas Cowboys

The Dallas Cowboys report to training camp in San Antonio, Texas today and practice starts tomorrow.

Now that all the off season chatter about Terrell Owens’ departure and Tony and Jessica splitting up is behind us, it is time to look at what it will take to get the Dallas Cowboys back on top of the NFC East and ready to make a legitimate run at the Super Bowl.

The NFC East is once again the toughest division in the conference if not the entire NFL.

While every year the talk is how the Cowboys play in December and January, it is imperative the Cowboys get off to a quick start in 2009.

2008 was a disappointment and the team needs to prove they are more like the 13-3 team of 2007 than the 9-7 lackluster team of a year ago.

Granted it is crucial that Tony Romo and the offense gel quickly and put some points on the board.

But the determining factor on whether or not the Cowboys will be a force this year comes down to: The Front Seven must stop the run.

In 2008 the Cowboys defense ranked 12^th in the NFL against the rush giving up an average of 106.6 yards a game and 4.2 yards per rushing attempt.

Nightmares of last season’s Week 16 loss to Baltimore continue to haunt the Cowboys fans.

The defense gave up 265 yards rushing that day which included two fourth quarter touchdown runs of 77 and 82 yards.

That performance was the nail in the Cowboys coffin and ended any real play-off hopes for 2008.

This season will start facing six opponents that will rely heavily on their running game.

Game 1 at Tampa Bay: The Bucs will be breaking in a new starting quarterback, probably Byron Leftwich, as well as a new offensive system under new offensive coordinator Jeff Jagodzinski.

The Bucs will be more committed to the running game with the addition of Derrick Ward who rushed for 1,025 yards with the Giants last season.

Last year the Bucs ranked 15^th in the NFL in rushing with 114.8 yards per game.

Game 2 home vs. New York Giants: The Giants led the NFL in rushing in 2008 with 157.4 yards per game. In the two games vs. Dallas in ’08, they averaged 136.0 yards per game and 5.3 yards per carry.

Brandon Jacobs, who missed the second game against Dallas last year, will return for the Giants this year.

Without a proven number one receiver for Eli Manning to rely on look for the Giants to continue to pound the ball, especially early in the season.

Game 3 home vs. Carolina Panthers: Well the first Monday Night game in the new Cowboys Stadium does not get any easier for the Cowboys run defense.

The Panthers averaged over 152 yards per game rushing last year to rank third in the NFL.

They bring back the one-two punch of DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart to try and overwhelm the Cowboys front seven.

Game 4 at Denver: Last year although the Broncos were devastated by injuries at the running back position and they had Jay Cutler at quarterback, they still ranked 12th in the league in rushing.

To put that in perspective, the Cowboys ranked 21st in the NFL in rushing offense in 2008.

This year, the Broncos have number one draft choice, Knowshon Moreno, along with free agent pick-ups Correll Buckhalter and LaMont Jordan to lead their running game.

Plus they now have Kyle Orton playing quarterback. Believe me the Broncos will want to establish the running game each week.

Game 5 at Kansas City: Running Back Larry Johnson only played in 12 games for the Chiefs in 2008 but he still had 874 yards rushing while the team ranked 16th in the league.

New QB Matt Cassel will have to go to battle with only one legitimate threat on the outside in WR Dwayne Bowe.

Look for Johnson to be called on early and often in the Chiefs game plan.

Game 6 home vs. Atlanta: Well the Cowboys face the number one ranked Giants and the number three ranked Panthers so you might as well add the number two ranked Falcons to the mix.

Michael Turner powered the Falcons with 1,699 yards rushing and 17 rushing touchdowns.

As you can see the first six games will present some very big challenges for the Cowboys front seven. So who will be responsible for plugging the holes for the Cowboys in 2009?

Defensive End Marcus Spears: At 6’4” and 315 pounds Spears has good size and strength. He had 35 tackles and one forced fumble in 2008.

He is not much of a playmaker and tends to disappear at times.

Nose Tackle Jay Ratliff: Probably the biggest surprise for the Cowboys defense in 2008.

Ratliff earned Pro Bowl recognition with his 51 tackles and 7.5 sacks. He is solid and can create congestion along the line of scrimmage.

Defensive End Igor Olshansky: Olshansky comes in to replace Chris Canty who took the free agent train to the divisional rival New York Giants.

Olshansky plays the run well. At 6”6” and 309 pounds he is ideal as a defensive end in the Cowboys 3 – 4 defense.

Plus he played under Coach Wade Phillips defense when Phillips was at San Diego.

Outside Linebacker Anthony Spencer: Perhaps the biggest question mark on the front seven, Spencer steps in to fill the shoes of the departed Greg Ellis.

Spencer, in his third year out of Purdue, has excellent ball awareness to come off blocks and make plays.

As a former first round draft choice, the expectations are high that Spencer will be a force opposite Pro Bowler DeMarcus Ware.

Inside Linebacker Bradie James: The heartbeat of the Cowboys defense. James led the team with 116 tackles in 2008.

He is aggressive and fills the hole quickly. He continues to improve his playmaking skills forcing three fumbles last season.

Inside Linebacker Keith Brooking: The long time Atlanta Falcon joins Olshansky as a new addition to the front seven.

Age is the maintain question for the 33 year old, 12 year veteran. But durability has not been an issue for Brooking who has started every game over the past seven seasons for the Falcons.

Outside Linebacker DeMarcus Ware: If James is the heartbeat then Ware is the lifeblood of the Cowboys defense.

Ware played like the Defensive Player of the Year last year, he finished 2^nd to the Steelers James Harrison . Ware forced six fumbles and had a league leading 20 sacks.

He is the best playmaker on the team and can make tackles from sideline to sideline.

So there you have it. While all the media attention is on Romo, Barber, Witten and Roy Williams, the key to the Cowboys in 2009 will be Spears, Ratliff, Olshansky, Spencer, James, Brooking and Ware.

Let’s hit the field.

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2009 Buyline NFL Mock Draft “part two”

Well it really did happen, the Broncos traded quarterback Jay Cutler to the Chicago Bears for two first round draft choices including this year’s #18 selection as well as quarterback Kyle Orton. So now the big question is what will the Broncos do with both the #12 and #18 selections? Will they try and move up and get their quarterback of the future? My guess is no. I think new Coach Josh McDaniels has seen enough tape of Kyle Orton that he is willing to give him a shot. So Denver will use their two picks in this part of the draft to add two play-makers to their woeful defense. And keep in mind, next year’s quarterback draft class should be pretty solid with Heisman Trophy winner Sam Bradford from Oklahoma likely to come out joining Texas QB Colt McCoy and Florida’s Tim Tebow in a marquee class. So the Broncos who will have two first round picks again next year could have their choice. If you were McDaniels would you rather have Stafford or Sanchez this year and no defensive help, or take two defensive starters and use your two picks next year to finagle your way into Bradford or McCoy? 

11. Buffalo Bills – Needs: OL, DL, TE. So how many times will we have to listen to Chris Berman and all the other draft analysts mention T.O. leading up to this pick? Owens has definitely raised the Bills media profile if nothing else. While my initial reaction was the Bills should and would select TE Brandon Pettigrew out of Oklahoma State, the addition of T.O. brought back memories of Owens and Jason Witten’s issues vying for the quarterback’s attention. Instead I think they use the spotlight-grabbing Owens as a distraction to select the troubled tackle out of Alabama Andre Smith. While questionable work ethic during the combine and pro day has dropped Smith from a top three pick, he still has the natural ability and with the focus on Terrell Owens maybe the Bills are just what Smith needs to fit in and learn what it takes to be a professional.

12. Denver Broncos – Needs: DE/OLB. Talk about distractions. Has any team had more distractions this off-season then the feud between new Head coach Josh McDaniels and star quarterback Jay Cutler? The Broncos will turn from the offensive madness and use their first draft choice to fill their major need of rushing the passer. The Broncos use the 12th pick in the draft to select Everette Brown defensive end from Florida State.

13. Washington Redskins – Needs: OL, LB. The tackle position is definitely an area of need for the Redskins. Both their starters Chris Samuels and Jon Jansen have over 10 years in the league. They stepped out and signed this year’s premier free agent DT Albert Haynesworth to fill the middle of the line. Now they must decide do they “reach” for the 5th best offensive tackle in the draft or do they look for help in the linebacker corps? I think the age at tackle is just too much to ignore and the Washington Redskins will make offensive tackle Eben Britton of Arizona the 5th offensive tackle taken in the first 13 picks.

14. New Orleans Saints – Needs:  LB, DB. The Saints have a need in the defensive backfield both at the corner and at free safety and they find themselves in the position of having their choice of all available defensive backs in this years draft. And although I tend to discount CB’s from the Big Ten (come on how many great passing teams are there to defend in the Big Ten?) I think the Saints will use the 14th pick in the draft to select Malcolm Jenkins from The Ohio State University. A poor showing at the combine has caused this Buckeye to drop out of the top ten but his size and ball awareness makes him a candidate to fill either the cornerback or free safety need the Saints are faced with.

15. Houston Texans – Needs: WR, OL, OLB It sure seems like they have gone heavy on defense the last 3 drafts and if they are finally going to make the play-offs they need to score points. A compliment to Pro Bowl WR Andre Johnson is a definite possibility here as is a trade down with a team looking for a quarterback. Would the Jets, Bears, Bucs, or Lions pull the trigger on a trade to move up a few slots for a chance at USC’s Mark Sanchez or K-State’s Josh Freeman? If I were the Lions or Bucs I would strongly consider it. But the clock runs out and the Texans are going to use the 15th pick in the draft to select Brian Cushing LB, USC. By the way, get ready Trojans fans there will be a lot of “from USC” being heard in the next half dozen picks. 

16. San Diego Chargers – Needs: LB. Boy did the Chargers miss Shawn Merriman. Granted Phillip Rivers could use an upgrade at wide receiver to go along with Vincent Jackson but really was the offense the problem? No the defense needs to get back on track and San Diego will make it two Trojans linebackers in a row when they select linebacker, from USC, Rey Maualuga. Maualuga’s size and explosiveness would make him a great fit at inside linebacker in the Chargers’ 3-4 defense

17. New York Jets  – Needs: QB, WR. Yes the loss of WR Laverneus Coles creates a huge hole in the offensive attack of the Jets but really can you believe their starting quarterback will be Kellen Clemens? Or Erik Ainge? Or Brett Ratliff? Now Thomas Jones may not end up leading the league in yards rushing but my money’s on him to lead the league in number of carries. How are the Jets going to move the ball? New head coach Rex Ryan will have the defense ready. Especially with the additions of LB Bart Scott, CB Lito Sheppard and S Jim Leonhard. The Jets will use the 17th pick in the draft to select their quarterback of the future, a quarterback who is at least familiar to “big city” lights as they announce the 3rd USC Trojan in a row; quarterback Mark Sanchez from USC is their pick.

18. Denver Broncos (from Chicago in the Jay Cutler trade) – Needs: QB, LB, DT. Is Kyle Orton the answer? Probably not. Will the Broncos select Josh Freeman to replace him? Probably not. Denver may try and trade up and select Sanchez or they could be tempted to add RB Knowshon Moreno out of Georgia but the Broncos still need help on the defensive side of the ball. The Broncos will look to solidifying their front seven by selecting DE from LSU Tyson Jackson. Jackson and Everette Brown, the Broncos earlier pick at #12 will give the Broncos an instant makeover pass rush.

19. Tampa Bay Buccaneers – Needs: WR, QB, LB, DL. Joey Galloway is gone, Mark Clayton might as well be so you figure the Bucs need a receiver. But LB Derrick Brooks is also gone. How do you replace the leader of your defense? The Bucs are looking to copy the Steelers road to success by hiring a young defensive-minded Mike Tomlin-esque coach in first year coach Raheem Morris. So to follow that blueprint you must start with defense. The Bucs use the 19th pick to select defensive tackle Peria Jerry from the University of Mississippi to be the foundation of their front seven.

20. Detroit Lions (from Dallas Cowboys) – Needs: see #1. Well it looks like it might just work out for the Lions. First they went away from conventional wisdom and selected OT Jason Smith with the first overall pick to start rebuilding the offensive line. Now via the trade of WR Roy Williams last season they sit with the 20th pick poised to select their quarterback of the future. Kansas State’s Josh Freeman will be the Lions selection.

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