Parcells not thrilled with formation, but it's a good fit for Romo

By Andy Targovnik on November 14, 2006 12:44 AM

The mission was clear. After suffering as gut-wrenching a defeat that a team can possibly undergo, the Dallas Cowboys had to beat a horrible Arizona Cardinals team Sunday - no ifs, ands or buts.

Had they lost, a very talented team might have come apart at the seams. But the Cowboys were never threatened and matter-of-factly beat the Cardinals, 27-10. And unlike last week, Terrell Owens played well, Mike Vanderjagt didn't miss a field goal and Bill Parcells never came close to looking at his two-point conversion chart.

Even the non-marquee players made you forget about the stars they were replacing. Patrick Crayon played wonderfully in place of Terry Glenn with 104 yards receiving and a touchdown. And Tony Romo? He's been better than even his staunchest supporters could have ever believed.

So it should have been a celebratory flight back to Dallas. Not only had the New York Giants and Atlanta Falcons lost their respective games, but the Cowboys have five out of their last seven games at home and appear to have a big-time quarterback.

But Murphy's Law is a famous adage for a reason.

In the third quarter of yesterday's game, outside linebacker Gregg Ellis was carted off the field when he felt a pain he described as "being kicked." While everybody was concerned at the time, there was no real thought of what would become reality, just a little while later. "I have to see the film but I thought he was all right," Parcells said shortly after the game. The 65-year-old head coach was wrong - very wrong.

After tearing his left Achilles' tendon, Ellis' year is over.

With everything apparently coming together, the Cowboys now have a huge hole to fill. Ellis, who ironically was unhappy about being moved from his familiar defensive end position to outside linebacker, had really made the transition well. Coming into yesterday's game, the 31-year-old veteran was tied for the team lead with 4½ sacks. As a matter of fact, he and DeMarcus Ware were the only consistent pass rushers the Cowboys had.

"We're going to miss him a lot," Ware couldn't have put it more aptly.

So, what now?

Enter the highly touted linebacker from Ohio State University, Bobby Carpenter, to the scene. Carpenter, who was the 18th overall pick in this year's draft, was supposed to compete for a starting position. But his performance hasn't lived up to his hype. Not only hasn't Carpenter gotten much playing time, but he's been inactive for three games. And when he has seen the field, it's been mainly on special teams.

But that all changes, starting immediately. The Cowboys will depend on him to pick up some of the pass-rush slack that Ellis is leaving behind. And unfortunately for Carpenter, there's no honeymoon period like a lot of other first-round draft picks get. Errors that Mario Williams and A.J. Hawk make are often overlooked because their respective teams aren't thought of as contenders.

The Cowboys, on the other hand, were put together to win now. And while nobody expects Carpenter to be perfect, his mistakes won't be dismissed as easily as some of his rookie brethren.

So here is Parcells' chance to have the last laugh over the skeptics (me included), who were critical of his decision to draft a position where the Cowboys already appeared to have an abundance of talent. But as we learn every week, there is no such thing has having too much depth in the NFL.