Linebacker Offers ‘Cush’-y feel to Houston Texans defense

When the Houston Texans unveiled their No. 1 draft pick on the first day of organized team activities, eyes were definitely on the top prize.

“He’s pretty ready to go,” Texans head coach Gary Kubiak relayed to team insiders after getting a first-hand look at his first round pick. “We’re just excited about him. Getting him out here and getting him to work, and having him here in the city of Houston is exciting for everybody, including this guy.”

This guy is University of Southern California linebacker Brian Cushing, whom the Texans selected with the No. 15 pick in last month’s NFL draft. Cushing became Houston’s fifth defensive first round pick in the organization’s eight-year history. The Texans have chosen a defensive player with their first pick in five of the last six years.

Here’s why:

Since 2003, the team’s second year in the league, Houston has finished no higher than 22nd in the NFL in total defense. In two of those seasons, the Texans’ defense ranked 31st in the 32-team league.

After selecting quarterback David Carr with the first pick in franchise history in 2002, Houston ranked 16th in total defense.

That begs the question: What kind of an impact will Cushing have as defense once again remains a focal point?

“I’m really trying to get the base defense down,” he said. “I’m sure as camp progresses and the more I learn, I can also work in the nickel a little bit. The biggest thing for me right now is to get out there and run around. I’m not going to know everything, but the biggest thing is effort.

“I’m going to try to learn this playbook inside and out, know what every single player’s doing on the field, and like I said, help this team as best as possible.”

Cushing found himself soaking up the system from fourth-year linebacker DeMeco Ryans, the Texans’ first pick of the second round in 2006.

“It’s been a privilege already to play next to him,” Cushing said. “All-Pro linebacker, just an unbelievable talent, so I’m going to try to get everything I can from him. He was in the same situation, and he’s just been doing a great job since day one.”

Ryans has started every game since he’s been in the league. He’s also led the Texans in tackles in each of those previous three seasons. In his rookie season, he had a career-high 156 tackles and three-and-a-half sacks, while picking off one pass, and recording five pass deflections. Last year, Ryans had a team-high 112 tackles, a sack, and four pass deflections.

In 13 games at USC last year, Cushing had 73 tackles, including 10.5 for loss, and three sacks. His 73 stops was second on the team behind Rey Maualuga’s 79. Cushing had six pass breakups, one interception, and a forced fumble.

A team captain, Ryans silenced rumors he would skip the non-mandatory OTAs after he missed several weeks of offseason workouts while negotiating a new contract with the Texans.

“It just lets them know that I care about them and I’m here to win games, and that’s what it’s all about,” Ryans said in an interview with HoustonTexans.com.

“We’re here to accomplish the goal of winning games. With me being here and all the other guys seeing me here, that just lets them know that that’s what I’m about. I’m about winning, winning first. That’s what it’s going to take for us to move forward as a franchise is to start winning games.”

Ryans’ presence registered well with his coaching staff.

“DeMeco’s upholding his end,” Kubiak said. “He’s busting his tail. He’s out here leading his team, which everybody expected him to do. We understand the issue he’s working through and those type of things. That’s part of football, but the thing that’s always been impressive about him, and continues to be, is that he’s going to take care of his business, and everybody out here knows that he will do that.”

What kind of influence Ryans has on Cushing remains to be seen. Either way, the Texans haven’t been shy expressing they are pleased with their investment.

“I can’t tell you enough how excited we are to have Brian,” defensive coordinator Frank Bush said after making the USC linebacker the team’s top pick. “Brian was a kid that we targeted all along. We just like the way he plays football. I like the energy he brings, the intensity he brings.”

Hypothetical Situations in Which the Oakland Raiders Cruise to Super Bowl

There are two reasons the Raiders have no chance of making it to the Super Bowl this year—or even the next.

First off, the Raiders don’t have a dominant offense.

Go ahead, try and prove me wrong. You can’t.

Without a high-powered offense, the Raiders will undoubtedly struggle to put points on the board.

Secondly, the Raiders don’t have a dominant defense, either.  Thus, other teams will undoubtedly have no trouble putting points up on the board against the Raiders.

Once again, feel free to challenge me.

But without one or the other—or even both—no NFL is going to win the Vince Lombardi Trophy this season.

While you probably don’t need me to tell you, the Raiders clearly don’t qualify as a Super Bowl contender under these assumptions.

The Raider Nation can dream and have faith, but it won’t happen—not this year nor the next.

I’ve tried and tried to imagine a metamorphism in which the Raider defense becomes solid, invincible, and dominant.

Sadly, even in my wildest imaginations, there are no overnight remedies that seem to even hypothetically cure the Raiders’ defensive ills, namely their rush defense.

I have, however, devised two situations in which the Raider offense could catapult to become the No. 1 offense in 2009.

 

1. Raiders Abandon Russell’s Hopeless Passing Game

As I’ve pointed out before, the Raiders’ air “assault” was absolutely pathetic last season. You can say JaMarcus Russell will improve. Has to improve. Whatever. But until he actually does, I’m not buying into it.

So, let’s imagine that Russell, for the sake of my hypothetical situation, completes 10 of 22 passes in week one for 79 yards no touchdowns and three interceptions against San Diego. And for the sake of the argument, he follows up week two with an even more dismal performance.

That same week, Al Davis decides to give Michael Vick, who just happened to be reinstated to the NFL by Commissioner Roger Godell at the same time, a chance to play for the Raiders, while completely forgetting Jeff Garcia is even on the active roster.

Vick learns the Raiders’ system overnight, and after secretly playing football everyday, while in jail with his fellow inmates against the guards, ala Burt Reynolds and Adam Sandler in “The Longest Yard,” leads the Raiders to a 14-2 season.
 
Vick, who threw for 3,000 yards and ran for another 1,500, is named the NFL MVP and leads the AFCs top-seeded Raiders to the Super Bowl.

 

2. Raiders abandon hopeless passing game altogether.
 
In week one, Darrius Heyward-Bey doesn’t catch a single pass. Russell can’t hit the target. Heyward-Bey is simply just too fast. So fast, in fact, that it throws Russell’s timing off on his other targets, who he claims to be too “slow.”

Al Davis comes to the conclusion that his No. 1 overall pick may never become the star he had hoped for and decides the Raiders don’t need to pass the ball anymore. His reasoning, the Raiders have too much speed and can just run the ball all day long.

Coach Tom Cable installs a permanent “Wildcat” offense. Michael Bush, Justin Fargas, and Darren McFadden rotate as two of the three in the backfield and Lorenzo Neal becomes a permanent blocking force. Every now and then, the Raiders opt for the trick play and give the ball to Heyward-Bey on a reverse, because he’s so fast nobody can catch him.

The Raiders go on to finish the season 15-1, because no team can stop them from running 300+ yards per game, and Heyward-Bey sets a wide receiver all-time record of rushing touchdowns, scoring 30 on the season.

The Raiders cruise through the playoffs and on to the Super Bowl with the introduction of the halfback toss pass in “Wildcat” formation to throw the other teams off.

Bar Stool Banter with Owen Schmitt: Seahawks’ Fullback Mock Interview

Owen, my most important question needs to be asked before you and I sit on our bar stools. I’m on a Pabst Blue Ribbon and, well, vodka budget, and you aren’t, so who is picking up the tab?

In all seriousness Owen, you’ve got big shoes to fill. Leonard Weaver was something of a cult hero among fans in Seattle. You’re something of a cult hero in West Virginia, can you take over for Weaver both on the field and in the hearts and minds of the fans?

Weaver played tight end in college, and was considered a very good pass-catcher. You also took some snaps at tight end. Who is a better pass catcher, you or Leonard Weaver?

Lets talk about “The Legend of Owen Schmitt,” you’ve achieved a Chuck Norris like following with some of your antics. Is the helmet-bashing, coaster-eating, bleacher-jumping, band-following guy with a Mohawk a persona you keep off the field also? And if so, explain how it helps you as a football player from an intimidation or mental clarity standpoint.

The night the Seahawks drafted you were playing in a band with two of your college buddies, did you get the opportunity to watch any of the draft? How did it feel to be on stage with a guitar, rather than pads and a helmet?

Some fans have been critical of your commitment to football, citing a lack there of, very much related to your trip to Charleston, West Virginia to play music with your friends, explain to Seahawks fans why they shouldn’t be worried about your commitment to the game.

Explain what it feels like to be at the foundation of a West Virginia surge to prominence. Do you still talk to Steve Slaton or Pat White? If so, were you excited for White when he was drafted in the second round?

You were born with a cleft palate Owen. How did that effect you growing up, and do you have any plans to raise awareness of the condition in the public perception?

Thank you for your time Owen, we’re all hoping to see a seamless transition at the fullback position and hopefully you can be a large reason for that. (Whispering: Beer Pong at my place.)

 

Tony Sparano: A Humble Man Who Transformed The Dolphins and The NFL

Its hard to believe the head coach of a team that had the best turnaround from a one-win season in NFL history could be under-appreciated, but Tony Sparano is. So why is Sparano under-appreciated?

Sparano had to share the spotlight with football mastermind Bill Parcells. He had to share the spotlight as new owner Stephen Ross immersed himself into the Dolphins organization. He had to share the spotlight as the Dolphins success was attributed to Joey Porter and Chad Pennington’s re-emergence.

Not much of the spotlight was left for Tony Sparano. Sure, he got some credit, but not nearly enough.

The best turnaround in league history. From one win to 11 wins. That just does not happen. When teams hit league bottom, they stay there. Just ask the Lions.

Not even the Dolphins 10 win improvement could win Sparano the AP Coach of the Year award. Mike Smith won that award in Atlanta with a seven win improvement. An award that surely would have been Sparano’s had the spotlight been his, or had he been a flashier coach.

Sparano is not that type of coach. In an age where coaches and owners have become celebrities themselves Sparano prefers to go about his work with little fanfare.

Trying to find information on Sparano is difficult; there just is not much to go on.

So how did this little-known first-year coach transform the NFL in 2008?

He decided to run the Wildcat.

The Dolphins were having a rough start to the season. They were 0-2 and heading back from a crushing defeat in Arizona.

What was Tony Sparano thinking about? He wanted Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams on the field at the same time. Two of the best running backs in the league; oh the havoc they could wreak if used right.

Wildcat.

Somehow it clicked for Sparano. He gave the orders to his assistants.

“I called David [Lee] to the front of the plane and said, ‘Look. Here’s what I want: Tomorrow when we get back, I want three runs, maybe a pass out of this Wildcat package” Sparano commented after the idea came to him on a charter flight home.

Lee, the quarterbacks coach, would draw up those plays. The Dolphins would then go to New England and rock the Patriots world.

The league took notice of the Dolphins, even if the league did not take notice of Tony Sparano.

Sparano’s idea forced teams to spend extra time preparing for the Wildcat. It forced them to live in fear of Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams running wild around the field. That was before the flea-flickers and end-arounds were even introduced.

How much did the Wildcat help the Dolphins? While their success can not be fully attributed to it, the Dolphins went 11-3 after its introduction.

That has to make Dolphins fans feel excited about next season.

Sure, Bill Parcells is considered the mastermind behind the Dolphins success. He put the pieces together, but Sparano was the one who utilized them.

Parcells can only be given so much credit for what the Dolphins did. Sparano was the one on the sidelines, not Parcells. Parcells did not even accompany the team for away games.

I am in no way trying to take away from what Parcells has done because he did amazing things for the Dolphins. One of those amazing things was bringing in Sparano.

Sparano spent four years under Parcells in Dallas, as did Paul Pasqualoni.

After being hired Sparano was responsible for bringing in Pasqualoni to be defensive coordinator. Pasqualoni would be the one to implement the Dolphins 3-4 defense that would allow Joey Porter’s resurgence.

So with little attention Sparano changed the Dolphins, and he changed the NFL. While he may not be well known, he is well respected both within the Dolphins and outside the Dolphins.

“The guys passionate. He loves to come out here and watch his players play, and he throws himself completely into it” remarked team leader and quarterback Chad Pennington.

The Dolphins have three more years of Sparano. Parcells is also under contract for three more years, but a clause that was activated when Wayne Huizenga sold the Dolphins to Ross would allow Parcells to leave whenever he pleases.

The Dolphins have great management, and with the leadership of Sparano they should have continued success.

The following quote would not mean as much unless I put it in context. A rookie coach taking the reins of a 1-15 team, and what did Sparano say?

“I’m not afraid of challenges. I look forward to them.”

Jim Caldwell: A Look at a Man So Similarly Different

For the first time since the 2001 NFL season, Indianapolis Colts fans will no longer bear witness to the man whom can be attributed nearly all of the success that the last seven years has brought Indianapolis. In a small way, seeing Tony Dungy on the sidelines at all was a small victory for the Colts.

Dungy was the man. There was and is no simpler way to describe it. He brought dedication, maturity, responsibility, and success to an organization so starved since its fabled days in Baltimore.

A devout Christian, Tony preached camaraderie, ethics, and morals in the locker room—on the football field he preached respect, behavior, and success. Tony was the epitome of what Indianapolis needed—that is, the Colts were in need of a rallying point; someone they could lean on to provide great insight on and off the football field.

Regardless, that fabled face will no longer grace the sidelines of the Lucas Oil Stadium in the 2009-2010 NFL season; but not to say there won’t be similarities.

In his stead, the Colts hired longtime Dungy assistant, Jim Caldwell. While Caldwell, emotional and candid, and Dungy, calm and determined, couldn’t differ more in their sideline conduct, their philosophies vary little, if at all.

The new regime, under Caldwell, plans on utilizing most of the tools and strategies that made Dungy so successful during his term in Indianapolis. Jim Caldwell is also an outspoken religious man who believes that lessons are taught and learned with actions—not words, much as Dungy was. Perhaps one of the most intriguing aspects of Caldwell is that he—like Dungy and many before him—places as much emphasis on community assistance as on winning football games.

Indianapolis Colts Owner Jim Irsay and Team President Bill Polian’s excitement to welcome Jim Caldwell to the team as head coach is unmatched—not even by that of Indiana as a whole, which is no mean feat in itself. After the changes that have taken place in the offseason, it’s hard not to draw parallels between the Dungy-Caldwell change and the Walsh-Seifert change in San Francisco in the late 1980s.

“I really think it is kind of like that,” Irsay said. “It’s really about saying ‘We’ve been great, but we need to be better, push it harder, do the things we need to do to make us better.’ That’s what I’m excited about.”

I can tell you right now, that’s not all we as fans are excited about. However, it does seem like a good starting point, right?

– Dexter Lee [Gonzo] VSN

If I Could Ask Houston Texans QB Matt Schaub Anything?

If I were to do a feature on one of the Houston Texans I would pick quarterback Matt Schaub.  Here are the questions I would ask him:

 

–When did you get started with football?

 

–What were some of the challenges when you first started playing football?

 

–Where did you play high school football?

 

–Did you start all four years in high school?

 

–What challenges did you experience going from high school to college, and college to the pros?

 

–How did you pick the number eight?

 

–Who was your favorite quarterback to watch?

 

–What was it like to learn from a coach with NFL experience in college?

 

–What was the best advice you received in playing football?

 

–Describe your experience in Atlanta and backing up Michael Vick?

 

–How did you feel when you were traded to the Texans?

 

–What did you think about the situation with the Texans?

 

–Did you talk with David Carr about playing quarterback for the Texans?

 

–What do you think about what happened in Atlanta with Michael Vick the same season?

 

–How has Gary Kubiak and his experience in working with great quarterbacks impacted your career?

 

–What’s been your biggest challenge in the pros?

 

–Where do you see yourself in five years?

 

–What are your goals for the 2009 season?

The Schottey Six: The NFL’s Most Underrated Players

How does an NFL player qualify as underrated?

In a way, it’s always a misnomer. Paid millions to play a game, simply because they play it well. To many normal folks, it doesn’t seem fair.

Monopoly geniuses don’t get millions. Even Bobby Fischer went bankrupt.

So how does an NFL player become underrated?

Example: Fred Taylor. Before 2007, he wasn’t regarded as of the best running backs in the league. In fact, he wasn’t regarded at all. He flew under the radar in Jacksonville, quietly amassing rushing yards which placed him in the top-20 all time in the NFL.

In 2007, he broke out, making the All-pro team and his first Pro Bowl.

No longer underrated? He was jettisoned in favor of the younger and more powerful Maurice Jones Drew, now he’s with the Patriots—not exactly the best place for a runner. As with the first overrates, our cover boy isn’t a part of this list.

Players become underrated when fans and executives don’t understand their contributions. Certain positions strive for underrating. Other players exceed in a glamor position in a way that doesn’t draw the limelight.

These are the six most underrated players in the NFL.

Falcons Coaching Staff: The Faces under the Headsets

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After the disastrous 2007 season, the Atlanta Falcons cleaned house and started over with a new general manager and head coach.  The additions were quick payoffs, as the Falcons climbed from 4-12 in 2007 to an 11-5 record in 2008 with a playoff berth. 

Arthur Blank, Owner and CEO, holds a high standard for his franchise, and showed it when he rebuilt after the fallout left from Mike Vick and Bobby Petrino.  Blank has grown to realize the importance of quality as a key element in his responsibilities to the coaches, players, and fans.  He has shown this commitment by building the team around the right personnel, starting from the top.

One of the biggest acquisitions for the Falcons since 2007 was the hiring of general manager Thomas Dimitroff from New England.  In his time with the Patriots, Dimitroff was influenced by Bill Belichick and Scott Pioli and their reputation for putting together all the right pieces for a successful franchise. 

One element that Dimitroff brings to the Falcons is the ability to recognize the needs of a team and find players that not only fit that void but also are compatible to the coaching system.  This offseason Dimitroff made two major acquisitions outside of the draft: linebacker Mike Peterson and tight end Tony Gonzalez.  Both men are great fits at their respective positions, and are ready to step into the Falcons system and contribute.

This year, Dimitroff made an effort to build through the draft, using the first five selections on defense players.  He saw the needs for the Falcons as the team lacked the ability to shut down opponents, ranking 24th in yards allowed per game.  Key additions on the D-line and secondary will solidify the Falcons as they aim to be a stronger team on both sides of the ball.

Mike Smith enters 2009 as his second season as a head coach in the NFL.  He has an impressive résumé as he has been a part of some of the best defensive teams in the league.  In 2000, he was a part of the coaching staff in Baltimore when the Ravens won the Super Bowl.  He then worked under Jack Del Rio in Jacksonville as the defensive coordinator, leading the team to the second best defense in 2006.

Smith held true to his reputation of a strong work ethic earning the 2008 NFL Coach of the Year Award.  His strong character and hard work ethic define his ability to build the Falcons into a dominant team.

A vital part of the Falcons defense is coordinator Brian VanGorder.  He has experience in winning programs with time in Jacksonville and also college experience with the Georgia Southern Eagles and University of Georgia Bulldogs.  While at UGA, VanGorder received the NCAA Assistant Coach of the Year Award as the Bulldogs ranked third in defense in the nation.

Mike Mularkey calls the plays on offense for the Falcons and brings experience and leadership to the team.  After a successful career playing tight end for the Minnesota Vikings, Mularkey coached for several years at Tampa Bay and Pittsburgh.  After a brief head coaching job with the Bills, he worked with the Miami Dolphins until being promoted to offensive coordinator of the Falcons in 2008. 

In his first year with the team, Mularkey turned heads by bringing the fourth worst franchise on offense to a top ten team in 2008.  The upcoming season will be exciting to watch as the team is loaded on offensive and comes back with more experience and chemistry.

Although there have been many changes to the Falcons organization in the last two years, the new-look coaching staff is a talented and hard working group of leaders.  Arthur Blank and Thomas Dimitroff have made the right moves to bring in individuals who are committed to making the Falcons a premier team in the NFL. 

The 2009 season will be a test for them as they look to build off their early success.  Expect the Falcons to be a focused team on and off the field as Mike Smith guides the team to what will hopefully be a special season for the team. 

 

Sixteen Questions With Greg Jennings: The Anti-Terrell Owens

The wide receiver position has turned into the NFL’s version of the fashionable, blonde Hollywood socialite who can’t stay out of the news, and, in fact, doesn’t want to.  Terrell Owens bears a striking resemblance to Britney Spears, doesn’t he?  That would mean Chad Johnson is Paris Hilton.  While Plaxico Burress fits the psychological description of the schizophrenic Lindsey Lohan.  Even the consummate professional Marvin Harrison has forged himself a back story in this tiresome soap opera.

And then there’s Greg Jennings, whose emergence has been a breath of fresh air to many NFL fans.  Not only has he quickly become one of the game’s brightest offensive weapons, but he has the brain capacity, personality, and work ethic to back it up.  On game days, every time the camera zooms in on Jennings viewers are treated to his wide smile framing his set of pearly whites.  He loves the game, and he reminds all of us that football is just that – a game.  Yet, Packer fans can’t help but feel secure when watching Jennings work, because he’s a game breaker, and he gives the team a chance to win every Sunday.

I would love the chance to sit down with Jennings and pick his brain.

1.  Hi, Greg.  How has the offseason been?   Any family vacations?

2.  How has your offseason training program differed from previous years?  How do you think that will help you?

3.  How do you feel your fellow wide receivers have progressed this offseason?

4.  The bond between a quarterback and wide receiver is obvious.  Have you worked extensively with Brian Brohm and Matt Flynn since they have been here?  How do you think they have progressed this offseason?

5.  Is the Packers’ offense always evolving?  Are there any new wrinkles that the coaching staff has introduced?  Can you share some of them with us?

6.  What is your favorite formation to work out of?

7.  Knowing the talent level that the Packers possess at wide receiver, what kind of jolt do you get from lining up in the spread formation?

8.  Your passion for the game reminds me so much of Donald Driver’s.  What has Donald taught you about football, or maybe just life in general?

9.  Is there anything new that you can share with us about your contract situation?

10.  I am contractually obligated to ask, so, any opinions on the Favre situation?

11.  What is your opinion of the defense’s switch to the 3-4?  As a wide receiver what differences do you face when lining up against a 3-4, as opposed to the 4-3?

12.  What is your opinion on the personality and behavior of the Terrell Owens’ and Chad Johnson’s of the world?  Do they give wide receivers a bad name?

13.  What do you think the key is to recapturing the Lambeau Field dominance that the team once enjoyed?

14.  There has been a lot of talk about the lack of leadership on the team since Brett Favre was traded.  What is your take on the leadership of this team?

15.  Do you set any personal goals for yourself before the season?  Stats, accomplishments, etc?

16.  Some players say that every year is a Super Bowl or bust situation, because the league is filled with parity and any team can win on any given Sunday.  Do you believe in the Super Bowl or bust mantra?  Does it apply to this season?

 

Dallas Cowboys: A Leader Away From The Super Bowl

One of the greatest works of classical political theory was a work written by Thomas Hobbes called “The Leviathan.”  Arguably, this is the single most significant literary work to grace the face of the planet since Plato took quill to parchment. 

Among the multitudinous subjects Hobbes decides to touch on, the main point of the book is to justify how direly important a strong and capable leader is to any societal group. To prove this point, he examines human society in what he calls a “State of Nature,” which is simply a state of humans living together without a natural power or leader to make the rules or laws that govern their existence.

Hobbes goes on to conclude that humans, regardless of race, color, gender, or age, will end up in a perpetual state of warfare because they will have no higher power to quell what Hobbes claims to be the three main causes of hostility between people:

“First, competition; secondly, diffidence (i.e. a secret inner doubt of one’s own abilities); and thirdly, glory.”

Now for a great majority of human history, there has rarely been an actual society without any leader or social structure to dictate societal norms and behaviors like the state Hobbes examines in his theoretical “State of Nature,” which makes it very hard to examine his hypotheses in anything other then a purely theoretical discussion.

However, for the first time maybe ever, a practical and real world example of a Hobbesian State of Nature has come to pass that clearly shows the development of hostilities among humans in the same leaderless group, the very same hostilities Hobbes predicted would happen when humans congregate with no leader.

Ladies and gentleman, your 2008 Dallas Cowboys.

Football games aren’t won on paper.  Everybody knows that. However, if Vegas bookies feel comfortable enough making pre-season odds on who will win the Super Bowl two months before the season, obviously the composition of a roster is a very large component in any teams’ success.

With that in mind, the underachievement of the 2008 Dallas Cowboys was beyond unreasonable.  It was beyond unfathomable.  It was beyond unacceptable.

Nobody will argue the Cowboys’ level of talent, and, at least on the defensive side of the ball, that talent seemed to cohesively work together to have a very productive season. They produced the NFL sack leader and Defensive Player of the Year runner up Demarcus Ware.

They finished 8th overall in the league in yards surrendered per game and 5th overall in passing yards surrendered per game. Ravens game aside, they gave up far fewer huge plays last season than they have in the past five seasons.

The aggregation of talent on defense for the most part held up their end of the bargain, and absolutely played well enough to propel a team into the playoffs.

This is why the buck stops here at the Cowboys’ offense, which ended up being less productive than the likes of the Patriots (starting quarterback hadn’t started since high school), the Saints (didn’t have one healthy Pro Bowl Running back, let alone 3), the Dolphins (no comment necessary), and the Sage Rosenfels-led Houston Texans.

A quick look at the Cowboys’ offense should drive home how ridiculous that underproduction is, as well as demonstrate how another January spent at home should be out of the question for the 2009 squad.

The Cowboys have not 1, not 2, but 3 Pro Bowl caliber running backs in Marion Barber, Felix Jones, and Tashard Choice. 

Don’t think Choice is a Pro Bowl caliber player?  Ask the Steelers defense (who I hear is decent) that question, as no back in the league put up more rushing yards against the Steelers than Tashard Choice did in Pittsburgh.

On top of the plethora of talent at that position is the fact that all three backs are so complimentary to each other.  Marion Barber’s ferocious warrior-like, between the tackles running style is compliments by the diametrically opposite style of scatback-type, get-around-the-corner-and-go ball that Felix Jones plays.

Choice is a perfect compliment to both, with better speed than Barber to accelerate around the edge for the big play, and with better size than Felix to take the ball and get meaningful bruising carries between the tackles.

Many teams could create a Super Bowl capable offense with just this talent at running back (see: The Baltimore Ravens and Tennessee Titans). However, the Cowboys also are blessed with a ridiculous amount of talent in the passing game. 

Jason Witten is arguably the best tight end in the league, and is one more injury-plagued season from Antonio Gates away from securing that marvelous mantle for good.  He rarely, if ever, drops passes, has created superb timing with Tony Romo when working the middle of the field, and is phenomenal in the run game when blocking big defensive ends or linebackers running downhill.

To compliment him on the outside the Cowboys have Roy Williams (not to mention the phenomenal talent they had in TO last year). Admittedly, Roy Williams had an infinitesimal effect on the offense last year, but you really can’t ignore the importance of timing and familiarity a quarterback has to have with his receivers to create any productive results whatsoever.

The best example of this would be timing routes, in which multiple routes are called for a receiver on a given play, and the receiver has to read the defensive rotation mid-play to decide which of the two or three called routes he will end up running.

Oh yeah, and the quarterback needs to make the same read of the defense, anticipate which of the two to three routes the receiver will end up running before he gets rid of the ball.

My favorite route to demonstrate this concept with is the fade-stop.  Often offense coordinators will send big, rangy wide receivers like Roy Williams on streaks or fades up the side-line.

However, there are two defensive scenarios that dictate that the wide out should break off that fade route to run a 10 yard curl/comeback. The first defensive look would be when the defense rotates a certain way that leaves a huge void between the corner back playing the flats and the safety playing the deep third of the field, like in a cover 2 zone. 

Conversely, a cornerback playing man-to-man that is running step-for-step right on the hip of the wide out as he is running his fade route also dictates that the receiver should break that route off at about 10 yards into a curl.

This will leave the wide out to either catch the ball in the soft spot of the zone coverage, or to catch the ball after the man-to-man corner back takes three or four more steps up field before he can stop his forward momentum and turn around to recover and break up the play.

It should be evident, however, that this is the NFL, and that by no means are these reads black-or-white situations.  It is in the many plays where the defense operates in the shades of grey between those obvious reads that timing and recognition between a quarter back and wide receiver become vitally essential.

Because of the speed of the NFL game, a quarterback usually has a paltry few seconds to read the entire offense/defense, make a decision, and get the ball out of his hands.  A lot of the time, it takes the wide outs longer to run their routes than the quarterback has time to hold onto the ball.

He therefore must get rid of the ball to where he thinks the receiver will be as opposed to sitting back, waiting forever, and having the luxury to throw to where the receiver is after he has made his break.

This fact alone signifies the undeniable importance of timing and recognition between a quarterback and wide receiver.

Peyton Manning and Marvin Harrison were not only ridiculously successful because of their God-given talent, but also because they were always undeniably on the same page on every pass they completed. 

Because they played so long together, Manning inevitably knew what situations Harrison would break off his streak in, and what defensive looks Marvin would keep chugging up the sideline for the deep bomb.

There was no confusion or murkiness in Manning’s reads of Marvin’s route running choices in situations like these.

Conversely, quarterbacks who haven’t established a similar report with the receivers are hurt in one of two ways.  Either they glance in the direction of the fade-stop, are unsure how the receiver in question is going to react to that particular defensive look, and will quickly look to get rid of the ball elsewhere.  That is a huge explanatory variable in Williams’ lack of production last year.

If the quarterback does throw the ball that way, a mis-read can have disastrous consequences. 

If the quarterback thinks the receiver is going to keep chugging up the sideline and throws it deep, only to have the receiver break into a curl right after he throws it, the ball sails majestically into the arms of a sideline attendant, or, more then likely, into the arms of a waiting safety.

If the quarterback thinks the receiver is going to run a curl, and throws the ball short while the receiver fails to turn around and keeps sprinting up the sideline, 9 times out of 10 that will result in an interception with an extremely large return, as the only thing standing between that cornerback on the sidelines and the endzone is the ability of the huge offensive linemen to catch him from behind as he high steps his way to glory.

These are the plays where it looks like the quarterback simply threw the ball directly to the defense, and are almost always the result of a miscommunication because the quarterback thought the receiver was going to do one thing, and the receiver did the other.

Romo had this timing down with T.O. last year, and the offense still failed miserably.  He should finally have this timing down with Roy Williams after an entire off-season of working together, making another season without a playoff win equally as disappointing and unacceptable as the last.

Now no doubt Tony Romo has his critics, but two playoff losses in two tries is nowhere near a sample size large enough to condemn Tony Romo’s ability to win the big game.  Romo has a unique skill set and gunslinger attitude that can absolutely win in this league, in both big games and small.

Romo’s pocket presence alone is ridiculous. 

He is not the speedster like Michael Vick or Donovan McNabb, but his constant awareness of defensive pressure and his Mr. Fantastic-like ability to bend and wiggle his way out of sacks gives the Cowboys 3-5 extra plays per game on offense that would have resulted in a sack or a throw away with any other more concrete footed quarterback.

He can throw either up top or side-armed (or even underhanded as he channels his legend Brett Favre), and this ability to release the ball at multiple angles allows him to avoid yet even more sacks/pressure in a tight situation, as he can move his arm to throw the ball over, around, or under any descending defensive pressure.

While his decision-making might need some improving, a lot of his mistakes result from an unbelievable drive to keep the play alive and moving, and, to date, more positive plays have resulted from this desire than negative plays, making his gunslinger mentality much more of an asset to the team then a detriment.

To put Romo’s performance into better perspective in terms of Cowboys history, if you took Troy Aikman’s three highest career single season touchdown totals (23 TD’s in 1992, 19 TD’s in 1997, and 17 TD’s in 1999), they total to 59 total touchdowns.  And those are numbers from three whole seasons as a starter.

In a mere two and a half seasons as the Cowboys starting quarterback, Romo has thrown for 19 touchdowns in 2006, 39 touchdowns in 2007, and 26 touchdowns in 2008 for a grand total of 86 total, a smooth 27 more total touchdowns than Aikman threw….in the three best touchdown-producing years of Troy’s career.

That figure above all else should demonstrate that Romo is the real deal and a force to be reckoned with, interceptions and all.

History has also shown that quarterbacks with a similar style can win Super Bowls, most notably Favre, and, to some extent, Steve Young.

For all of the negative things people say about Tony Romo, they are mostly refusing the recognize the bevy of positive traits and skills he brings to the Dallas Cowboys, as the Cowboys wouldn’t be a perennial playoff contender without Tony Romo at the helm.

To recap, last year the Cowboys offense had a stable of Pro Bowl Caliber Running Backs, a Pro Bowl caliber quarterback, one of the best wide receivers (statistically) ever to play the game in T.O., arguably the best tight end in the game, and a Pro Bowl studded offensive line.

Yet they failed to even reach the playoffs.

This year, the Cowboys will have all of the same pieces in place (swap T.O. for a fully up-to-speed Roy Williams).  How can this team avoid the same fate as last year’s group?

By finding the only thing the 2008 team was missing last year: a leader.

Strong and successful teams oftentimes find this Hobbesian Leviathan in their head coach.  Bill Belicheck or Bill Cowher are the ultimate examples of this, as they are leaders that are both respected and feared.

Wade Phillips, for all his defensive prowess, is probably respected and liked by a majority of the roster, but definitely not feared. 

This is why Jerry Jones felt the need to emasculate him repeatedly in front of teammates and the media by being the final source of information on the Dallas Cowboys on any issue, to the point where he felt the need to not let any members of the coaching staff whatsoever talk to the media at all this summer.

Other great teams look to experienced and accomplish veterans to fill the same role.  Michael Jordan on the Chicago Bulls beautifully elucidated this concept, because while he left it up to Phil Jackson to design the X’s and O’s, Jordan’s teammates on the Bulls weren’t afraid of incurring the wrath of Jackson when they made a mistake. They were terrified of Jordan, because it was Jordan that brought the hammer down before they could even get off the court to reach the relative safety of Phil Jackson’s “anger.”

It is now becoming apparent what any competitive team needs in a leader: both a sense of respect and a sense of fear, because those feelings will synergistically combine to translate into a team-wide desire to succeed out of both respect for the leader and out of a fear of letting the leader that unites the locker room down.

Tony Romo, for all his strengths, still hasn’t been seen to become the fiery on-the-field leader of a Tom Brady or a Ben Roethlisberger, and, on the offensive side of the ball, it is very rare for anybody besides the quarterback to be able to take that leadership role that is so natural for any quarterback to step into.

Team leaders can also be found on defense in many different positions.  Ray Lewis is unquestionably the leader of the Baltimore Ravens.  Brian Dawkins fulfilled a similar role on the Eagles.  Brian Urlacher on the Bears.

However, Dallas’ best defensive players just haven’t seemed to be able to rise to command a similar amount of respect as the aforementioned gridiron defenders that have led their teams to Super Bowls.

Demarcus Ware is unquestionably the best defender on Dallas’ squad.  He was a few Brett Favre-freebies away from breaking Strahan’s sack record last year, but I can’t remember him saying one memorable comment or taking one single motivating jab at the under-performance of his team as a whole.

Terrence Newman was probably the most vocal defensive player, but by no means could you say he commanded the attention of the team like Ray Lewis or Brian Urlacher can.

Zach Thomas was the most seasoned and accomplished, but even he seemed content to sit back and let the bus swerve off the road instead of taking a stand and demanding more effort and discipline to avoid said car wreck.

Last year, the Cowboys were without a leader both on the coaching staff, and without one on the field. 

They were, by all regards and definitions, the first tangible example I can remember of a Hobbesian State of Nature.  Surprisingly enough, the ramifications of such a state that Hobbes predicted hundreds of years ago were surprisingly accurate, and most, if not all, came to pass on the 2008 Dallas Cowboys.

As Thomas Hobbes believed, without a strong and capable central leader (or “Leviathan” to use Hobbesian terms), these causes of hostility propel man into a perpetual state of warfare due to the natural equality in both mind and body of every man in existence.

This might seem like a stretch, but, to paraphrase, Hobbes attributes the equality of strength to the fact that the weakest of men can always kill the strongest of men through either “secret machination or confederacy.” 

In other words, any pipsqueak can place a land mine in the entry way of any World’s Strongest Man contestant’s doorway, or gather up 50 other pipsqueaks to take the behemoth down by force.

He also argues that all men are more or less equally wise, because wisdom is a function of experience and time, and time is something that is bestowed roughly to all men equally. 

This gives all men an equal amount of experience on this Earth, which equates to equal amounts of wisdom in Hobbes’ eyes.

An equality of strength among men will lead to an equality of fear of being overtaken and a doubt in one’s ability to defend himself, and he will therefore be forced to take the offensive and take out his competition before they choose to turn on him.

Therefore, because there is no leader in a State of Nature, this equality in strength and wisdom will lead any society into a perpetual state of warfare where the arts, sciences, and culture in general can never be realized.

All of the above came to fruition in the debacle that was the 2008 Dallas Cowboys’ season.

The first Hobbesian qualification for a disaster in the State of Nature would be equality in strength and wisdom.  This situation is not true on many NFL rosters given the age difference of teams simultaneously starting rookies and 10 year veterans, but this applies amazingly well to the Dallas Cowboys, who were a team of talented and accomplished veterans with similar amounts of experience who wanted the ball.

Was T.O. a better wide receiver than Marion Barber was a running back?  It’s an understandably touch question to answer, but that is exactly the point.  Hobbesian equality of all members of any given societal group will eventually, given the competitive nature of man, lead to hostility and warfare.

On the 2008 Dallas Cowboys, the elephant in the room for the entire season was how to get T.O. the ball, and trying to figure out why T.O. wasn’t producing at the level fans have become so accustomed to.

This leads to the second Hobbesian qualification of perpetual warfare: diffidence i.e. inner insecurities about one’s own abilities to defend himself against equally matched opponents, causing him to go on the offensive before he let’s himself be attacked.

On the Cowboys, concerns over T.O.’s production led to concerns that Romo was forcing the ball to Witten too much.  This led to concerns that the running backs were getting too many touches, or not enough touches depending on who you asked.  This led to finger pointing at the offensive line for committing too many penalties or messing up the pass protection schemes.

As Hobbes correctly predicted, without a leader to reign in all the fingerpointing and accusations, the 2008 Dallas Cowboys ridiculously descended into a perpetual state of warfare against each other, choosing to offensively attack other equally skilled veterans at other positions instead of focusing on making themselves better and wait to have the metaphorical finger pointed at them.

Jason Witten was unequivocally the strongest part of Dallas’ offense last year.  As things started to unwind, this led to a “confederacy” of the slightly weaker producers of T.O., Roy Williams, and Patrick Crayton, who planned to address this slight inequity with “secret machinations” such as meeting with coordinator Jason Garrett to discuss Romo’s possible secret meetings with Witten to work the other receivers out of the gameplan.

All of this contention was a result of the third component of perpetual warfare in a Hobbesian State of Nature: the quest for glory.

All of the Cowboys’ immensely talented offensive components wanted the ball, wanted more touches, wanted to win, ultimately because of the glory inherent in all those things. 

It was when this supposed glory started to slip from the horizon that what should have been a Super Bowl contending team slipped into a Hobbesian State of Nature which only a capable and respected leader could have brought them out of.

One of the most beautiful quotes from The Leviathan directly addresses why there will always be bickering for touches on a leaderless team with as much talent as the Dallas Cowboys:

“For such is the nature of men that howsoever they may acknowledge to be more witty, or more eloquent or more learned, yet they will hardly believe there be so many as wise as themselves; for they see their own wit at hand, and other men’s at a distance.”

Marion Barber will never say T.O. is a bad receiver.  Roy Williams will never say that Jason Witten is a bad tight end.  But it is the “nature of men” to recognize the best skills in others, but refuse to admit that those skills are more effective or more productive than the very ones they themselves possess.

All the components on the roster are there.  There isn’t any glaring weakness on the offensive or defensive side of the ball on this squad, as evidenced by the Cowboys being more than content to not have a draft pick until the third round this year.

However, when the alleged glory that was so prematurely bestowed upon this Cowboys squad started to falter last year, the locker room erupted into a perpetual state of warfare that didn’t end until the 44-6 drubbing at the hands of the Eagles that sent them home for the season and made all the bickering and fighting 100% irrelevant.

As Hobbes so eloquently states:

“Hereby it is manifest that without a common power to keep them all in awe, they are in a condition called war; and such a war as is of every man against every man.”

The Cowboys need a leader to unite that locker room, because the NFL is by nature a perpetual state of warfare itself.  Anybody who has seen a Cowboys game in Philadelphia and had beer dumped on them or been denied access to the restroom by Eagles fans will gladly agree with this statement.

However, this needs to be a war of team vs. team, and not teammate vs. teammate.

The Cowboys have all the components in place to be great.  No longer should they be contented to watch so many teams with so much less do so much more.

However, like many of the great heroes and heroines of ancient Greek mythology confined to the depths of hell to perform tortuously redundant and repeated tasks for all of eternity, until someone in that locker room decides to step up and unite this team of warring but talented athletes, the Cowboys will be condemned to the Hell of their recliners at the end of each season, damned to watch leader after leader attain the glory they thirst for so greatly for countless Januaries to come.

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