| This site created and maintained by Jeremy Dunklin. cowboy-fan.com is in no way affiliated with the NFL or the Dallas Cowboys. All material on this site is copyrighted 2007 cowboys-fan.com |
 | |  | |  | |  | |  |
Latest News
2007 SCHEDULE
PRE-SEASON
Thu Aug 9 INDIANAPOLIS
(FOX) 7:00 pm
Sat Aug 18 DENVER (BSM)
7:00 pm
Sat Aug 25 @ Houston
(BSM) 7:00 pm
Thu Aug 30 @ Minnesota
(BSM) 7:00 pm
REGULAR SEASON
1. Sun, Sept. 9 NY GIANTS
(NBC) 7:15 pm
2. Sun, Sept. 16 @ Miami
(FOX) 3:05 pm
3. Sun, Sept. 23 @
Chicago (NBC) 7:15 pm
4. Sun, Sept. 30 ST. LOUIS
(FOX) Noon
5. Mon, Oct. 8 @ Buffalo
(ESPN) 7:30 pm
6. Sun, Oct. 14 NEW
ENGLAND (CBS) 3:15 pm
7. Sun, Oct. 21
MINNESOTA (FOX) Noon
8. Sun, Oct. 28 BYE WEEK
9. Sun, Nov 4 @
Philadelphia (NBC) 7:15
pm
10. Sun, Nov. 11 @ NY
Giants (FOX) 3:15 pm
11. Sun, Nov. 18
WASHINGTON (FOX) Noon
12. Thu, Nov. 22 NY JETS
(CBS) 3:15 pm
13. Thu, Nov. 29 GREEN
BAY (NFL) 7:15 pm
14. Sun, Dec. 9 @ Detroit
(FOX) Noon
15. Sun, Dec. 16 PHILLY
(FOX) 3:15 pm
16. Sat, Dec. 22 @
Carolina (NFL) 7:15 pm
17. Sun, Dec. 30 @
Washington (FOX) Noon
PRE-SEASON
Thu Aug 9 INDIANAPOLIS
(FOX) 7:00 pm
Sat Aug 18 DENVER (BSM)
7:00 pm
Sat Aug 25 @ Houston
(BSM) 7:00 pm
Thu Aug 30 @ Minnesota
(BSM) 7:00 pm
REGULAR SEASON
1. Sun, Sept. 9 NY GIANTS
(NBC) 7:15 pm
2. Sun, Sept. 16 @ Miami
(FOX) 3:05 pm
3. Sun, Sept. 23 @
Chicago (NBC) 7:15 pm
4. Sun, Sept. 30 ST. LOUIS
(FOX) Noon
5. Mon, Oct. 8 @ Buffalo
(ESPN) 7:30 pm
6. Sun, Oct. 14 NEW
ENGLAND (CBS) 3:15 pm
7. Sun, Oct. 21
MINNESOTA (FOX) Noon
8. Sun, Oct. 28 BYE WEEK
9. Sun, Nov 4 @
Philadelphia (NBC) 7:15
pm
10. Sun, Nov. 11 @ NY
Giants (FOX) 3:15 pm
11. Sun, Nov. 18
WASHINGTON (FOX) Noon
12. Thu, Nov. 22 NY JETS
(CBS) 3:15 pm
13. Thu, Nov. 29 GREEN
BAY (NFL) 7:15 pm
14. Sun, Dec. 9 @ Detroit
(FOX) Noon
15. Sun, Dec. 16 PHILLY
(FOX) 3:15 pm
16. Sat, Dec. 22 @
Carolina (NFL) 7:15 pm
17. Sun, Dec. 30 @
Washington (FOX) Noon
| Cowboy's Trivia Question of the Week! Who holds the Cowboys' single season passing yardage record? Last Week's Answer: Purdue |
The One That Got Away
By: Gary
First off, I believe that this past season, which ended with an early
exit from the playoffs and was highlighted by the Romo miscue, "is
not" the primary factor for Bill Parcells stepping down. I think the
single most defining factor was the thrashing that the master took
from the student, when New Orleans schooled the Cowboys.
It remains a fact that Sean Payton had a wealth of information to pull
from on the tendencies of Bill Parcells. Nothing of the sort existed
the other way around. When Bill went up against Sean, a lot of
people expected the master to school the student, no matter what,
including the master himself. So, I think when this game worked out
the way it did, I think it was the single most devastating loss in Bill's
career and he biggest reason he chose to retire.
Though you may have tendencies as a coach, you don't want
somebody to be able to find them easily, nor exploit them to the
point of embarrassment. What "self perceived" great coach would
want to have to deal with such a threat late in his career? That's
exactly what Bill found himself facing.
Now, to the true point of where this is going. How painful must it be,
among supposed football men (people in the know), to discover that
after all their years they still can't see a gem, or recognize it when
it's right in their camp and right before their eyes. Do you think the
Cowboys deal with this every day, since Sean got away from them?
I have a right to make a mistake and to have wondered about
Sean's capabilities. What the heck, he was demoted by the New
York Giants at one point for his play calling. This caused me to
always have doubts about Sean. I think I may still have some
doubts about his play calling ability, but his abilities as a coach
cannot be questioned.
I think it's safe to say that he understands, talks, and works with
people as effectively as any football man around. Something that
has become obvious about Sean is that he has a much healthier
respect/appreciation for blue collar work ethic. He has respected
that and has shown it by the brilliant acquisition of some of the
Cowboys best blue collar guys.
I believe we will begin to see a return to that useful kind of respect
and coaching with Wade Philips. So I do feel good about our
coaching change. It remains to be seen if Wade will ever manage
the clock as well as Sean did in his October 15th game against
Philadelphia. It's just another one of those things that proves
a very good one did get away.
By: Gary
First off, I believe that this past season, which ended with an early
exit from the playoffs and was highlighted by the Romo miscue, "is
not" the primary factor for Bill Parcells stepping down. I think the
single most defining factor was the thrashing that the master took
from the student, when New Orleans schooled the Cowboys.
It remains a fact that Sean Payton had a wealth of information to pull
from on the tendencies of Bill Parcells. Nothing of the sort existed
the other way around. When Bill went up against Sean, a lot of
people expected the master to school the student, no matter what,
including the master himself. So, I think when this game worked out
the way it did, I think it was the single most devastating loss in Bill's
career and he biggest reason he chose to retire.
Though you may have tendencies as a coach, you don't want
somebody to be able to find them easily, nor exploit them to the
point of embarrassment. What "self perceived" great coach would
want to have to deal with such a threat late in his career? That's
exactly what Bill found himself facing.
Now, to the true point of where this is going. How painful must it be,
among supposed football men (people in the know), to discover that
after all their years they still can't see a gem, or recognize it when
it's right in their camp and right before their eyes. Do you think the
Cowboys deal with this every day, since Sean got away from them?
I have a right to make a mistake and to have wondered about
Sean's capabilities. What the heck, he was demoted by the New
York Giants at one point for his play calling. This caused me to
always have doubts about Sean. I think I may still have some
doubts about his play calling ability, but his abilities as a coach
cannot be questioned.
I think it's safe to say that he understands, talks, and works with
people as effectively as any football man around. Something that
has become obvious about Sean is that he has a much healthier
respect/appreciation for blue collar work ethic. He has respected
that and has shown it by the brilliant acquisition of some of the
Cowboys best blue collar guys.
I believe we will begin to see a return to that useful kind of respect
and coaching with Wade Philips. So I do feel good about our
coaching change. It remains to be seen if Wade will ever manage
the clock as well as Sean did in his October 15th game against
Philadelphia. It's just another one of those things that proves
a very good one did get away.
Breakin' Down the Roster: Linebackers
The Cowboys have been investing valuable resources into their
linebacking corp for three years now. The tab now shows three 1st
round picks, a 2nd round pick, and two mid-priced free agents.
After all this spending, is linebacker finally going to be a strength of
this football team?
Barring any major surprises the answer should be a resounding
YES. The Cowboys will field one of the deepest and most talented
linebacking corps in all of football. This unit will go a long way in
determining how good our defense is going to be. Our secondary
and defensive line should be good, but the one unit that really has
a chance to be great is this one. Linebackers are the backbone of
any 3-4 defense and we are counting on these guys to make some
big plays.
At outside linebacker we have three good pass rushers. DeMarcus
Ware is one of the best pass rushers in the NFL. Greg Ellis is
coming off injury, but word from Dallas is he will be as good as new.
Add in 1st round pick Anthony Spencer and you have the makings
of the second best outside linebacker bunch in the NFL only trailing
the Patriots. My prediction for this spot is that Greg Ellis will start
the season as the starter, but by game six Anthony Spencer will
have the job one although all three guys will constantly be rotating
among the two spots in both the base and nickel defenses. All
Cowboys fans should hope Spencer beats out Ellis because it
means your team is improving. Ellis is obviously a capable guy, but
it would be best if the younger, more athletic first round draft pick
was able to come in and give even more production.
Inside linebacker is just as deep, but there isn't quite as much
excitement at the top of the list. Akin Ayodele and Bradie James
are serviceable, but neither are much of a playmaker. Like at
outside linebacker, our defense will be fine if both these guys start
again this season, but the best case scenario is having Kevin
Burnett or especially Bobby Carpenter beat one of the two out.
Burnett and Carpenter would give our defense a much needed
boost in athleticism because that isn't one of the strong points of
this defense. Ware was really our only outstanding athlete in our
front seven last season and it was very apparent in games like
against New Orleans that our defense simply wasn't quick enough
to cover people and make open field tackles consistently. The
perfect scenario would be Bobby Carpenter replacing Akin Ayodele
on the weak side. Carpenter is more athletic, better in coverage,
and he showed some playmaking ability late last season.
The first seven linebacker spots are pretty set with the guys
mentioned above. 3-4 teams usually keep eight linebackers so
only one spot is up for grabs unless a 9th really impresses on
special teams. With Burnett and Carpenter both being able to play
outside and inside, the 6th man could be at either spot. It will be a
toss up, but I will give the nod to former Oregon Duck Blair Phillips.
He is a hard nosed guy who should excel on special teams and he
would be a good fit for goal-line defense.
Overall, look for linebacker to be a position of strength for the
Cowboys this season. It should be, we've spent enough resources
on it so its time to get some serious production. Anthony Spencer
and Wade Phillips were the last pieces of the puzzle so we should
be set for dominant linebacker play for years to come.
The Cowboys have been investing valuable resources into their
linebacking corp for three years now. The tab now shows three 1st
round picks, a 2nd round pick, and two mid-priced free agents.
After all this spending, is linebacker finally going to be a strength of
this football team?
Barring any major surprises the answer should be a resounding
YES. The Cowboys will field one of the deepest and most talented
linebacking corps in all of football. This unit will go a long way in
determining how good our defense is going to be. Our secondary
and defensive line should be good, but the one unit that really has
a chance to be great is this one. Linebackers are the backbone of
any 3-4 defense and we are counting on these guys to make some
big plays.
At outside linebacker we have three good pass rushers. DeMarcus
Ware is one of the best pass rushers in the NFL. Greg Ellis is
coming off injury, but word from Dallas is he will be as good as new.
Add in 1st round pick Anthony Spencer and you have the makings
of the second best outside linebacker bunch in the NFL only trailing
the Patriots. My prediction for this spot is that Greg Ellis will start
the season as the starter, but by game six Anthony Spencer will
have the job one although all three guys will constantly be rotating
among the two spots in both the base and nickel defenses. All
Cowboys fans should hope Spencer beats out Ellis because it
means your team is improving. Ellis is obviously a capable guy, but
it would be best if the younger, more athletic first round draft pick
was able to come in and give even more production.
Inside linebacker is just as deep, but there isn't quite as much
excitement at the top of the list. Akin Ayodele and Bradie James
are serviceable, but neither are much of a playmaker. Like at
outside linebacker, our defense will be fine if both these guys start
again this season, but the best case scenario is having Kevin
Burnett or especially Bobby Carpenter beat one of the two out.
Burnett and Carpenter would give our defense a much needed
boost in athleticism because that isn't one of the strong points of
this defense. Ware was really our only outstanding athlete in our
front seven last season and it was very apparent in games like
against New Orleans that our defense simply wasn't quick enough
to cover people and make open field tackles consistently. The
perfect scenario would be Bobby Carpenter replacing Akin Ayodele
on the weak side. Carpenter is more athletic, better in coverage,
and he showed some playmaking ability late last season.
The first seven linebacker spots are pretty set with the guys
mentioned above. 3-4 teams usually keep eight linebackers so
only one spot is up for grabs unless a 9th really impresses on
special teams. With Burnett and Carpenter both being able to play
outside and inside, the 6th man could be at either spot. It will be a
toss up, but I will give the nod to former Oregon Duck Blair Phillips.
He is a hard nosed guy who should excel on special teams and he
would be a good fit for goal-line defense.
Overall, look for linebacker to be a position of strength for the
Cowboys this season. It should be, we've spent enough resources
on it so its time to get some serious production. Anthony Spencer
and Wade Phillips were the last pieces of the puzzle so we should
be set for dominant linebacker play for years to come.