Dallas Cowboys Loading Their Six-Shooters; Preparing To Hunt Wounded Panthers

Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones will be insisting on a win from his Boys when they host the Carolina Panthers on prime time, Monday night.

The new $1.15 billion Cowboy Stadium will be rocking and surely filled to capacity in excess of 100,000 people tonight.

Though the 12th man wasn’t able to push the Boys over the top last week against their bitter rival, the New York Giants, the Boys may not need them to do anything other than cheer them on, drink beer, and buy Cowboys merchandise, while they pad their stats against the weak Panthers.

This season, the Cowboys have yet to register a sack which must be a sore spot, after recording the most in the league last year with 59. The Panthers RT Jeff Otah and LT Jordan Gross are both injured, and LB DeMarcus Ware who had 20 sacks last year, must be licking his chops.

Last year, LB Bradie James and NT Jay Ratliff combined for 15.5 sacks and will be looking to get on the board as well.

As we all know, Jake Delhomme isn’t the most mobile guy. He will surely find himself on his back a lot if he has to hang in the pocket waiting for wounded receivers, Muhsin Muhammad and Steve Smith, to get open.

While the ‘Boys have been unable to get to opposing QB’s, they have only allowed Tony Romo to be sacked once. Panthers DE, Julius Peppers, who had 14.5 sacks last year to lead his team, will try to reverse that trend and will need to if Carolina hopes to stop the prolific ‘Boys offense.

Cornerbacks Chris Gamble (6’1″) and Richard Marshall (5’11″) will be matched up on the outside with wide receivers Patrick Crayton (6’0″) and Roy Williams (6’2″). I would expect Gamble to cover Williams because of the height and speed mismatch were it to be reversed.

This leaves Romo’s favorite target, TE Jason Witten, who led the team in receptions last year, in position to have a big day with the absence of Carolina LB Na’il Diggs (Rib, Out).

In order for the Panthers to be able to win this game, star RB DeAngelo Williams will have to set the tone to compensate for the injured receiving corps. He will have a hard time running with injured tackles on each end, despite the fact that the ‘Boys rank 23rd against the rush, which is actually their best defensive stat.

They also rank dead last in passing yards allowed at 303 per game and in overall yards allowed at 438.5 per game.

The only true injury that may affect Dallas, is to their running back Marion Barber who was limited in practice and is nursing a sore thigh; but Dallas is still deep at this position with second year men in Tashard Choice and Felix Jones; so they shouldn’t falter in the running game.

If Carolina can fight through their injuries and put up some points, they may hang around against a fairly weak defense in this game. But the crowd and the Cowboys will to win in the prime time spotlight overseen by Jerry Jones, should overpower Carolina in the end after wearing on the nagging injuries.

Too many guns for the cats to elude in the end!

Dallas wins 31-20.

Read more NFL news on BleacherReport.com

Greg Blache Unveils a Softer, Gentler Approach To Defending Rookie QB’s

Following one of the most embarrassing losses in recent franchise history Redskin nation will be looking many places to heap the blame.  Coach Jim Zorn and quarterback Jason Campbell will probably bear the majority of it.

While they certainly played their parts in Sunday’s debacle, the person that deserves the most blame is defensive coordinator Greg Blache.

For a person who has such a good coaching resume and led the defense to a very good showing last year, he really showed an amazing lack of understanding of basic football concepts.

Greg Blache gave rookie quarterback Matthew Stafford the time to gain confidence.  Every basic coaching course will teach that the best game plan to use against an inexperienced quarterback is to bring heavy blitzes and force him into making a mistake.

Greg Blache must have skipped the introductory coaching classes.

Most coaches will study game film to determine what formations have been most effective against the Lions this year.  New Orleans and Minnesota certainly provided enough of a blueprint.  They pressured Stafford into five interceptions and allowed only one touchdown pass.

Greg Blache must have skipped the film session.

Instead he decided that playing prevent defense the entire game would be more effective.  He was right.  His scheme certainly prevented a Redskin victory.

This may have been the worst defensive coaching job I have ever witnessed.  He rushed four people almost the entire game.  He had speed rusher Brian Orakpo playing coverage over 60 percent of the game, including the critical 24-yard pass play on the Lions’ last drive that helped them seal the victory.

He had the cornerbacks playing eight to 10 yards off of the receivers on several 3d-and-2 situations.  How does that make any sense to anyone?

The Lions were certainly grateful.  When Stafford saw the amount of space that the Redskins were giving on these plays he checked down to easy three-yard button hook pitch and catches.

I have never witnessed a defense play as conservative against a rookie quarterback in my life.  The Redskins never came close to getting any pressure on Stafford with just four pass rushers.  As a result, Stafford had time to find the seems in the secondary.

I don’t care if you drop back 11 players into coverage.  A professional wide receiver will eventually get open, and a professional quarterback will eventually find him.

Greg Blache wasn’t the only person who was at fault yesterday.  He was just the most glaring reason for this loss.  Here is a list of (dis)honorable mentions.

 

Fred Smoot

You should be ashamed of yourself.  You were scared to hit a rookie quarterback! 

On a 3rd-and-13 on the Lions’ first scoring drive Smoot had a perfect shot to tackle Stafford short of the marker and force a field goal.  Instead he threw a timid alligator armed attempt at a tackle with his eyes closed that I had previously only seen performed by wide receivers who are scared to catch a pass over the middle.

The result was that Stafford flew by him and Detroit scored a touchdown later in the drive.

Smoot and fellow cornerback DeAngelo Hall bear a striking resemblance to Deion Sanders (minus the interception returns for touchdowns).  This leads to a question that is equally as confusing as the question of why a coach wouldn’t blitz a rookie quarterback.

Why do you play defense if you are scared to hit someone?

 

Clinton Portis

Hey Clinton, the game was yesterday, in case you forgot.

I know that the offensive line isn’t opening up holes very well and that Portis isn’t being called on very much.  But when he did get carries he showed no burst or power.

The Clinton Portis that I am used to seeing is a player who excels at getting underneath tacklers and falling forward for four yards even when no hole is open.  That guy didn’t play yesterday.

From his body language to his facial expressions it was very evident that Portis is very angry with the coach, the scheme, and his reduced role in the offense.  It is clearly affecting the way he plays.

I’m not sure which reality is correct, but either choice is a bad one for the Redskins.  The choices are either that Portis is disgruntled and playing without heart, or that age and wear are finally catching up to him.

Either way, I wouldn’t be surprised if the Redskins go in another direction at running back next year.  The 1,400 rushing yards Portis needs to become the all-time Redskins rushing leader are looking like a pipe dream.  That in itself is an amazing testament to how low this team’s expectations have become.

 

Jim Zorn

Decisions, decisions.

It’s amazing how often early coaching mistakes come back to haunt a team later in a game.  If you take back Zorn’s decision to go for it on the first drive instead of kicking a field goal and his decision to accept a penalty instead of making Detroit attempt a 50-yard field goal the Redskins win the game.

Zorn’s two crucial errors cost the Redskins seven early points.  They lost by five.  You do the math.

 

Ladell Betts

How does a player who gets paid millions of dollars to spend his life concentrating on being the best football player he can be not understand basic football concepts?

Like getting out of bounds to preserve time during end of game scenarios!

Betts did this not once, but twice.

The first time was during the Redskins’ final scoring drive.  Betts caught a pass near the sidelines, had the first down, but decided to turn up field to gain one extra yard instead of getting out of bounds.  As a result, roughly 30 critical seconds were lost.

The second play occurred at the end of the game.  Betts caught a lateral, ran beyond the first down marker, and had time to step out of bounds with two seconds left.  Instead, he ran right into the waiting arms of two Detroit defenders.

I know the second situation was a tough play to make, but good players make those smart decisions.  The ones who can’t usually end up as backups on a 1-2 team that looks to be one of the league’s worst.

Read more NFL news on BleacherReport.com

Greg Blache Unveils a Softer, Gentler Approach To Defending Rookie QB’s

Following one of the most embarrassing losses in recent franchise history Redskin nation will be looking many places to heap the blame.  Coach Jim Zorn and quarterback Jason Campbell will probably bear the majority of it.

While they certainly played their parts in Sunday’s debacle, the person that deserves the most blame is defensive coordinator Greg Blache.

For a person who has such a good coaching resume and led the defense to a very good showing last year, he really showed an amazing lack of understanding of basic football concepts.

Greg Blache gave rookie quarterback Matthew Stafford the time to gain confidence.  Every basic coaching course will teach that the best game plan to use against an inexperienced quarterback is to bring heavy blitzes and force him into making a mistake.

Greg Blache must have skipped the introductory coaching classes.

Most coaches will study game film to determine what formations have been most effective against the Lions this year.  New Orleans and Minnesota certainly provided enough of a blueprint.  They pressured Stafford into five interceptions and allowed only one touchdown pass.

Greg Blache must have skipped the film session.

Instead he decided that playing prevent defense the entire game would be more effective.  He was right.  His scheme certainly prevented a Redskin victory.

This may have been the worst defensive coaching job I have ever witnessed.  He rushed four people almost the entire game.  He had speed rusher Brian Orakpo playing coverage over 60 percent of the game, including the critical 24-yard pass play on the Lions’ last drive that helped them seal the victory.

He had the cornerbacks playing eight to 10 yards off of the receivers on several 3d-and-2 situations.  How does that make any sense to anyone?

The Lions were certainly grateful.  When Stafford saw the amount of space that the Redskins were giving on these plays he checked down to easy three-yard button hook pitch and catches.

I have never witnessed a defense play as conservative against a rookie quarterback in my life.  The Redskins never came close to getting any pressure on Stafford with just four pass rushers.  As a result, Stafford had time to find the seems in the secondary.

I don’t care if you drop back 11 players into coverage.  A professional wide receiver will eventually get open, and a professional quarterback will eventually find him.

Greg Blache wasn’t the only person who was at fault yesterday.  He was just the most glaring reason for this loss.  Here is a list of (dis)honorable mentions.

 

Fred Smoot

You should be ashamed of yourself.  You were scared to hit a rookie quarterback! 

On a 3rd-and-13 on the Lions’ first scoring drive Smoot had a perfect shot to tackle Stafford short of the marker and force a field goal.  Instead he threw a timid alligator armed attempt at a tackle with his eyes closed that I had previously only seen performed by wide receivers who are scared to catch a pass over the middle.

The result was that Stafford flew by him and Detroit scored a touchdown later in the drive.

Smoot and fellow cornerback DeAngelo Hall bear a striking resemblance to Deion Sanders (minus the interception returns for touchdowns).  This leads to a question that is equally as confusing as the question of why a coach wouldn’t blitz a rookie quarterback.

Why do you play defense if you are scared to hit someone?

 

Clinton Portis

Hey Clinton, the game was yesterday, in case you forgot.

I know that the offensive line isn’t opening up holes very well and that Portis isn’t being called on very much.  But when he did get carries he showed no burst or power.

The Clinton Portis that I am used to seeing is a player who excels at getting underneath tacklers and falling forward for four yards even when no hole is open.  That guy didn’t play yesterday.

From his body language to his facial expressions it was very evident that Portis is very angry with the coach, the scheme, and his reduced role in the offense.  It is clearly affecting the way he plays.

I’m not sure which reality is correct, but either choice is a bad one for the Redskins.  The choices are either that Portis is disgruntled and playing without heart, or that age and wear are finally catching up to him.

Either way, I wouldn’t be surprised if the Redskins go in another direction at running back next year.  The 1,400 rushing yards Portis needs to become the all-time Redskins rushing leader are looking like a pipe dream.  That in itself is an amazing testament to how low this team’s expectations have become.

 

Jim Zorn

Decisions, decisions.

It’s amazing how often early coaching mistakes come back to haunt a team later in a game.  If you take back Zorn’s decision to go for it on the first drive instead of kicking a field goal and his decision to accept a penalty instead of making Detroit attempt a 50-yard field goal the Redskins win the game.

Zorn’s two crucial errors cost the Redskins seven early points.  They lost by five.  You do the math.

 

Ladell Betts

How does a player who gets paid millions of dollars to spend his life concentrating on being the best football player he can be not understand basic football concepts?

Like getting out of bounds to preserve time during end of game scenarios!

Betts did this not once, but twice.

The first time was during the Redskins’ final scoring drive.  Betts caught a pass near the sidelines, had the first down, but decided to turn up field to gain one extra yard instead of getting out of bounds.  As a result, roughly 30 critical seconds were lost.

The second play occurred at the end of the game.  Betts caught a lateral, ran beyond the first down marker, and had time to step out of bounds with two seconds left.  Instead, he ran right into the waiting arms of two Detroit defenders.

I know the second situation was a tough play to make, but good players make those smart decisions.  The ones who can’t usually end up as backups on a 1-2 team that looks to be one of the league’s worst.

Read more NFL news on BleacherReport.com

Movers and Shakers: Ranking The NFL’s Top 10

Three weeks are in the books on this young 2009 NFL season, and already we are beginning to see some patterns and stroy lines take shape for the rest of this season.

The Steelers and Patriots are not as good as in year’s past. Both teams look really, really, really old. The Ravens, Saints and Jets look like the real deal so far, and the brothers Manning, i.e. the Colts and Giants are still the kings of the show.

By the way, how about dem Lions! No I am not crazy enough throw Detroit into a top 10 or 15 list, but, this maybe my last chance to give the Lions some kudos before their next 19 game losing streak.

Begin Slideshow

Movers and Shakers: Ranking The NFL’s Top 10

Three weeks are in the books on this young 2009 NFL season, and already we are beginning to see some patterns and stroy lines take shape for the rest of this season.

The Steelers and Patriots are not as good as in year’s past. Both teams look really, really, really old. The Ravens, Saints and Jets look like the real deal so far, and the brothers Manning, i.e. the Colts and Giants are still the kings of the show.

By the way, how about dem Lions! No I am not crazy enough throw Detroit into a top 10 or 15 list, but, this maybe my last chance to give the Lions some kudos before their next 19 game losing streak.

Begin Slideshow

Bye Week Alternatives—Week Four

Week Four Byes:  Atlanta, Arizona, Carolina, Philadelphia

 

High-end Alternatives:
Jay Cutler—Possibly your starter, but if he’s not you’ll want to play him against Detroit
Carson Palmer—Same boat, only against Cleveland

Solid Alternatives:
Mark Sanchez—Rookie will have to air it out to keep up with New Orleans.
Trent Edwards—Matchup isn’t great against Miami, but a decent option.
Brett Favre—Green Bay comes to town. Enough said.
Shaun Hill—Hill has the luxury of facing St. Louis.
Kyle Orton—Orton will have to throw to hang with Dallas.
Joe Flacco—Flacco will have to make some plays against New England.
Jason Campbell—Tampa’s D is pretty bad. Could have another decent one.

Running Backs
Michael Turner, Brian Westbrook, and DeAngelo Williams present the biggest challenge to replace. Jonathan Stewart, Beanie Wells, and Tim Hightower are flex guys or RBs that you’d like to use in bye weeks. LeSean McCoy and Jerious Norwood likely aren’t being counted on, but worth mentioning.

High-end Alternatives:
Cedric Benson—Benson makes a strong play against Cleveland.

Solid Alternatives:
Jamal Lewis—Lewis should be able to produce against Cincinnati if healthy.
Julius Jones—Jones should find room to run against Indy.
Willis McGahee—New England is not the defense it once was.
LenDale White—Perhaps LenDale can get going against Jacksonville.
Marshawn Lynch/Fred Jackson—We get to see how this situation plays out.
Knowshon Moreno/Correll Buckhalter—Both could be counted on against Dallas.
Leon Washington—The Jets will need their playmakers against New Orleans.
Felix Jones—Too explosive to stay on the sidelines.
Glen Coffee—With Gore out, Coffee should be brewing against St. Louis.

Desperation Time:
Donald Brown—Could get his opportunity against Seattle.
Ahmad Bradshaw—If the Giants bury Kansas City, he could close it out.
Chester Taylor—You can hope Favre hits him on a screen he takes to the house.

Wide Receivers 
Larry Fitzgerald, Anquan Boldin, Roddy White, Steve Smith, and DeSean Jackson present the biggest challenge. Steve Breaston and Muhsin Muhammad are depth guys that limit your alternatives.

High-end Alternatives:
Steve Smith/Mario Manningham—Could already be your starters, but should have nice game against Kansas City.
Patrick Crayton—Not a bad play against Denver.
Bernard Berrian—Favre may go to the deep pass more often after his heroic victory.

Read more NFL news on BleacherReport.com

Bye Week Alternatives—Week Four

Week Four Byes:  Atlanta, Arizona, Carolina, Philadelphia

 

High-end Alternatives:
Jay Cutler—Possibly your starter, but if he’s not you’ll want to play him against Detroit
Carson Palmer—Same boat, only against Cleveland

Solid Alternatives:
Mark Sanchez—Rookie will have to air it out to keep up with New Orleans.
Trent Edwards—Matchup isn’t great against Miami, but a decent option.
Brett Favre—Green Bay comes to town. Enough said.
Shaun Hill—Hill has the luxury of facing St. Louis.
Kyle Orton—Orton will have to throw to hang with Dallas.
Joe Flacco—Flacco will have to make some plays against New England.
Jason Campbell—Tampa’s D is pretty bad. Could have another decent one.

Running Backs
Michael Turner, Brian Westbrook, and DeAngelo Williams present the biggest challenge to replace. Jonathan Stewart, Beanie Wells, and Tim Hightower are flex guys or RBs that you’d like to use in bye weeks. LeSean McCoy and Jerious Norwood likely aren’t being counted on, but worth mentioning.

High-end Alternatives:
Cedric Benson—Benson makes a strong play against Cleveland.

Solid Alternatives:
Jamal Lewis—Lewis should be able to produce against Cincinnati if healthy.
Julius Jones—Jones should find room to run against Indy.
Willis McGahee—New England is not the defense it once was.
LenDale White—Perhaps LenDale can get going against Jacksonville.
Marshawn Lynch/Fred Jackson—We get to see how this situation plays out.
Knowshon Moreno/Correll Buckhalter—Both could be counted on against Dallas.
Leon Washington—The Jets will need their playmakers against New Orleans.
Felix Jones—Too explosive to stay on the sidelines.
Glen Coffee—With Gore out, Coffee should be brewing against St. Louis.

Desperation Time:
Donald Brown—Could get his opportunity against Seattle.
Ahmad Bradshaw—If the Giants bury Kansas City, he could close it out.
Chester Taylor—You can hope Favre hits him on a screen he takes to the house.

Wide Receivers 
Larry Fitzgerald, Anquan Boldin, Roddy White, Steve Smith, and DeSean Jackson present the biggest challenge. Steve Breaston and Muhsin Muhammad are depth guys that limit your alternatives.

High-end Alternatives:
Steve Smith/Mario Manningham—Could already be your starters, but should have nice game against Kansas City.
Patrick Crayton—Not a bad play against Denver.
Bernard Berrian—Favre may go to the deep pass more often after his heroic victory.

Read more NFL news on BleacherReport.com

Internal Memo: WTF?

Okay, seriously guys, what the f*ck?

This is a joke, right? I mean really? We let a team win 19-14 when they haven’t won a game in 19 tries in our head coach’s 19th game?

Ha, ok guys, you can put the new score on the board now: 73-0 Redskins. You guys really had me fooled. LOL 😛

Okay, so this is totally uncool. I, like many of you, am trying to figure out what happened. And I think I know what the problem was. It’s totally my fault;I should have seen this coming. I feel like such an idiot.

I wasn’t close enough to the team. Not in a relationship sense, but on the field.

I should have been on the sideline giving them a pep talk. Campbell throws a pick? I really wanted to talk to him and say “Hey brosef, don’t worry about it. You’ll get it next time.” I know my presence really motivates these guys.

Zorn’s playcalling? Again, my fault. I just wasn’t there to offer my suggestions. Remember that play to Santana Moss for the touchdown? We should have just called that every play. We would have scored every time :D!

There are so many things about this team that would just be better off if I were more involved. All the newspapers are saying I should be less involved now, but if something’s wrong, isn’t it my responsibility to fix it?

I know! Did you ever see “Little Big League?” It’s a baseball movie where a 12-year-old inherits the Minnesota Twins, then he appoints himself as manager. The team goes from  being terrible to being a playoff team! Then at the end, the kid says, “I’m stepping down as manager” and everybody is sad. Then he says “Don’t worry, I’ll still own the team” and everybody loves him. If a kid can do it with a baseball team, I can totally do it with a football team.

So, we’ll let Zorn have a few more games, then, just when things look to be at their worst, Dan Snyder to the Rescue!!

So until then, I’ll raise parking prices (if I’m gonna be owner AND coach I need double the salary) or something. Everybody, be prepared to sell this plan. And can we get Albert Haynesworth a raise? He’s such a trooper for coming back into the game after looking like he was seriously hurt! $100 million was such a steal 😉

Yours,

-Danny

Read more NFL news on BleacherReport.com

Dwight Freeney Injury Update: Status Uncertain After Injuring Right Quad

Two weeks in a row I have idiotically picked against the Indianapolis Colts. And two weeks in a row the Colts have made me look like an idiot.

After dismantling Miami in the Dolphins’ home opener last Monday night—despite having the ball on offense for less than 15 minutes—the Colts took the Arizona Cardinals to the woodshed last night on Sunday Night Football, winning 31-10.

The win could come with a price, however, if Dwight Freeney’s right quadriceps injury turns out to be serious.

The latest injury update on Dwight Freeney is that he “heard something pop” and is awaiting the results of an MRI.

None of the reports about Freeney’s injury seem particularly positive or negative, so Colts fans will just have to wait until later today or tomorrow to see how their dominating rush end is doing.

Freeney has four sacks on the season and has led the Colts’ defense to three pretty solid performances with strong safety Bob Sanders out of the lineup.

I’ll update this post as soon as I hear anything further.

Read more NFL news on BleacherReport.com

Dwight Freeney Injury Update: Status Uncertain After Injuring Right Quad

Two weeks in a row I have idiotically picked against the Indianapolis Colts. And two weeks in a row the Colts have made me look like an idiot.

After dismantling Miami in the Dolphins’ home opener last Monday night—despite having the ball on offense for less than 15 minutes—the Colts took the Arizona Cardinals to the woodshed last night on Sunday Night Football, winning 31-10.

The win could come with a price, however, if Dwight Freeney’s right quadriceps injury turns out to be serious.

The latest injury update on Dwight Freeney is that he “heard something pop” and is awaiting the results of an MRI.

None of the reports about Freeney’s injury seem particularly positive or negative, so Colts fans will just have to wait until later today or tomorrow to see how their dominating rush end is doing.

Freeney has four sacks on the season and has led the Colts’ defense to three pretty solid performances with strong safety Bob Sanders out of the lineup.

I’ll update this post as soon as I hear anything further.

Read more NFL news on BleacherReport.com

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