Romo needs to make plays
Friday, November 17, 2006
Take 2: Colts vs. Cowboys
By Scouts, Inc.
The key for success for the Cowboys is going to be how well they run the ball and how much time off the clock they can consume, keeping the Colts' offense off the field. The Cowboys will need to do a good job on first down of getting at least four yards a play to get them into second and short.
They will have to expect the Colts to play an eight-man front on first down, giving Tony Romo a chance to audible at the line to throw a quick pass.
• The Cowboys are a heavy running team on first down (61.6 percent). Look for the Cowboys to go away from their tendency this week and play action pass on first down to see if they can catch the Colts' secondary off guard. They could find single coverage on the outside lanes that their receivers could exploit against a banged up Colts' secondary.
Romo will attack undersized Colts' corner Jason David. David has been worked on by opposing teams and this week he will get no rest.
• Colts' offensive coordinator Tom Moore and his staff do an excellent job of self scouting themselves to spot any glaring tendencies they might have. The Colts have a balanced attack on first down, with a slight favor to run the ball. This balanced approach keeps defenses guessing as they can not defend both the run and the pass with a high percentage of success.
First down is the down that Manning likes to use play action and, depending on the coverage, work the middle of the field. This is why the Colts are second in the NFL in average gain per pass play, gaining 9.28 yards on first down.
• This game feartures the top two offenses on third down, with the Colts converting 55.8 percent of the time, followed by the Cowboys at 49.2 percent. The key for such a high conversion rate is the fact that both teams do an excellent job of gaining positive yards on first down, giving them more play calling options on second down.
Unfortunately for the Colts, their defense is second to last in the league at stopping teams on third down. Romo is second in the NFL behind Manning with a third down passer rating of 113 and is completing an impressive 73 percent of his passes. Manning's rating is 130 and he is completing 65 percent of his passes.
• The Colts' offense is all about starting fast and scoring points at the beginning of a game. Indianapolis has scored 31 points on its first possessions, with four touchdowns, one field goal and four punts. The key stat is that the Colts have not turned the ball over yet on any of their firsts possession.
If you thought the Colts were good at the beginning of games, they are even better with their first possession coming out after halftime. They have scored 42 points, with six touchdowns, two punts and one missed field goal, the best in the league by a wide margin.
• Cowboys' defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer will play more coverage oriented defenses this week to help his corners out. By playing more two-deep zones and three-deep man coverages, he will let his corners get jams on Marvin Harrison and Reggie Wayne.
If will be important for his outside linebackers to also get a jam on the tight end or No.2 receiver to give the inside linebacker a chance to read out of the play fake and get to the deep middle. Manning is great at faking the ball and will try to hit tight end Dallas Clark down the seam off play action.
Cowboys' Safeties Roy Williams and Keith Davis need to do a better job at getting their eyes out of the back field and on to the coverage keys, so as not to get fooled by the play action fake.
Special Teams
The Colts have two good return units, led by top returner Terrence Wilkins, who is averaging 10.3 yards per punt return and 24.9 yards per kickoff return. Both these units are ranked in the top half of the league with the kickoff return ranked 6th.
The Cowboys have the second best kickoff cover unit in the league, allowing 18.7 yards a return and will need to maintain lane discipline and shed blocks to keep Wilkins in check. Matt McBriar is one of the better punters in the league, but his net punt average has gone down due to poor punt coverage.
With all the team speed the Colts have, they are not very good at covering punts and kicks. They are ranked dead last in both categories. It is not that surprising because most of the special teams players come from their defense, a unit that historically has not been very good. Their punt team is allowing 16.8 yards a return, while their kickoff team is allowing 25.8 yards per return. Both units have given up one touchdown each this year.
The good news is they are facing a Cowboys' team that is not good at returning at all and has had a revolving door as they search for a punt returner. The Cowboys are averaging 7.3 yards a return and have had four different returners thoughout the year.
Matchups
• Indianapolis RDE Dwight Freeney vs. Dallas LOT Flozell Adams
• Dallas WR Terrell Owens vs. Indianapolis CB Jason David
• Dallas RB Julius Jones vs. Indianapolis MLB Gary Brackett
• Indianapolis QB Peyton Manning vs. Dallas Safeties Roy Williams and Keith Davis
• Indianapolis WR Marvin Harrison vs. Dallas CB Terence Newman
Scouts' Edge
This game has all the makings of a high-scoring game with the potential of these two offenses. Peyton Manning and the Colts are looking to remain undefeated and stretch their winning streak to 10 games by beating the Cowboys at home. Tony Romo has been playing great for Dallas since he became the starter and has provided a spark to this team. Romo and the Cowboys offense will score enough points in the end to upset the Colts and give them their first defeat in a close game that could go down to the wire.
Prediction: Cowboys 31, Colts 30
Take 2: Colts vs. Cowboys
By Scouts, Inc.
The key for success for the Cowboys is going to be how well they run the ball and how much time off the clock they can consume, keeping the Colts' offense off the field. The Cowboys will need to do a good job on first down of getting at least four yards a play to get them into second and short.
They will have to expect the Colts to play an eight-man front on first down, giving Tony Romo a chance to audible at the line to throw a quick pass.
• The Cowboys are a heavy running team on first down (61.6 percent). Look for the Cowboys to go away from their tendency this week and play action pass on first down to see if they can catch the Colts' secondary off guard. They could find single coverage on the outside lanes that their receivers could exploit against a banged up Colts' secondary.
Romo will attack undersized Colts' corner Jason David. David has been worked on by opposing teams and this week he will get no rest.
• Colts' offensive coordinator Tom Moore and his staff do an excellent job of self scouting themselves to spot any glaring tendencies they might have. The Colts have a balanced attack on first down, with a slight favor to run the ball. This balanced approach keeps defenses guessing as they can not defend both the run and the pass with a high percentage of success.
First down is the down that Manning likes to use play action and, depending on the coverage, work the middle of the field. This is why the Colts are second in the NFL in average gain per pass play, gaining 9.28 yards on first down.
• This game feartures the top two offenses on third down, with the Colts converting 55.8 percent of the time, followed by the Cowboys at 49.2 percent. The key for such a high conversion rate is the fact that both teams do an excellent job of gaining positive yards on first down, giving them more play calling options on second down.
Unfortunately for the Colts, their defense is second to last in the league at stopping teams on third down. Romo is second in the NFL behind Manning with a third down passer rating of 113 and is completing an impressive 73 percent of his passes. Manning's rating is 130 and he is completing 65 percent of his passes.
• The Colts' offense is all about starting fast and scoring points at the beginning of a game. Indianapolis has scored 31 points on its first possessions, with four touchdowns, one field goal and four punts. The key stat is that the Colts have not turned the ball over yet on any of their firsts possession.
If you thought the Colts were good at the beginning of games, they are even better with their first possession coming out after halftime. They have scored 42 points, with six touchdowns, two punts and one missed field goal, the best in the league by a wide margin.
• Cowboys' defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer will play more coverage oriented defenses this week to help his corners out. By playing more two-deep zones and three-deep man coverages, he will let his corners get jams on Marvin Harrison and Reggie Wayne.
If will be important for his outside linebackers to also get a jam on the tight end or No.2 receiver to give the inside linebacker a chance to read out of the play fake and get to the deep middle. Manning is great at faking the ball and will try to hit tight end Dallas Clark down the seam off play action.
Cowboys' Safeties Roy Williams and Keith Davis need to do a better job at getting their eyes out of the back field and on to the coverage keys, so as not to get fooled by the play action fake.
Special Teams
The Colts have two good return units, led by top returner Terrence Wilkins, who is averaging 10.3 yards per punt return and 24.9 yards per kickoff return. Both these units are ranked in the top half of the league with the kickoff return ranked 6th.
The Cowboys have the second best kickoff cover unit in the league, allowing 18.7 yards a return and will need to maintain lane discipline and shed blocks to keep Wilkins in check. Matt McBriar is one of the better punters in the league, but his net punt average has gone down due to poor punt coverage.
With all the team speed the Colts have, they are not very good at covering punts and kicks. They are ranked dead last in both categories. It is not that surprising because most of the special teams players come from their defense, a unit that historically has not been very good. Their punt team is allowing 16.8 yards a return, while their kickoff team is allowing 25.8 yards per return. Both units have given up one touchdown each this year.
The good news is they are facing a Cowboys' team that is not good at returning at all and has had a revolving door as they search for a punt returner. The Cowboys are averaging 7.3 yards a return and have had four different returners thoughout the year.
Matchups
• Indianapolis RDE Dwight Freeney vs. Dallas LOT Flozell Adams
• Dallas WR Terrell Owens vs. Indianapolis CB Jason David
• Dallas RB Julius Jones vs. Indianapolis MLB Gary Brackett
• Indianapolis QB Peyton Manning vs. Dallas Safeties Roy Williams and Keith Davis
• Indianapolis WR Marvin Harrison vs. Dallas CB Terence Newman
Scouts' Edge
This game has all the makings of a high-scoring game with the potential of these two offenses. Peyton Manning and the Colts are looking to remain undefeated and stretch their winning streak to 10 games by beating the Cowboys at home. Tony Romo has been playing great for Dallas since he became the starter and has provided a spark to this team. Romo and the Cowboys offense will score enough points in the end to upset the Colts and give them their first defeat in a close game that could go down to the wire.
Prediction: Cowboys 31, Colts 30
posted by The Gryphon at 6:36 PM
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