Cowboys: Trouble around the corner
by Tom Orsborn
San Antonio Express-News
Dallas Cowboys coach Wade Phillips says injured cornerback Terence Newman should be ready to play in the season opener against the New York Giants on Sept. 9.
Given the lack of depth at the position, the Cowboys better have their fingers crossed Phillips is right.
"We had problems at corner tonight," Phillips understated Saturday after Dallas' 28-16 loss to the Houston Texans. "We didn't get much help."
The Cowboys could keep as many as six corners. Behind Newman, Anthony Henry and Aaron Glenn are an undistinguished collection of youngsters that includes Roosevelt graduate Quincy Butler.
Glenn, 35, has started the past two games in place of Newman, who also is expected to miss Thursday's preseason finale at Minnesota. Newman, considered one of the league's top cover corners, is suffering from plantar fasciitis in his right foot.
Spurs fans are all too familiar with the injury. Tim Duncan suffered from it in 2005-06. Although he played with the ailment, he really wasn't himself until the next season and only after a summer of rest.
With Newman out, Phillips turned the Houston game into an audition for Jacques Reeves, Joey Thomas and seventh-round pick Alan Ball. But all three came up short.
Thomas missed an open-field tackle. Reeves misread a rollout by quarterback Matt Schaub that resulted in a touchdown pass to rookie Jacoby Jones late in the first half. And late in the fourth quarter, Ball gave up a TD pass to David Anderson from backup Sage Rosenfels.
Reeves also was part of the special-teams unit that allowed Jones to return a punt 91 yards for a touchdown early in the game.
The youngsters weren't the only ones who struggled. Glenn, who stands 5-foot-9, had his hands full with the 6-3 Andre Johnson, who had four catches for 39 yards, including a 6-yard TD on a slant route early in the second quarter.
Although the game could be viewed as a case-closed argument against any theory the defense could thrive without Newman, Glenn says there's no reason to worry.
That could be viewed as a curious stance coming from a member of a defense that allowed Schaub to pass for two TDs en route to a sterling 132.6 quarterback rating and running back Ahman Green to rip off a 46-yard gain in which he steamrolled safety Roy Williams and bounced off Glenn.
"I'm not concerned at all," Glenn said. "We have some good corners, good guys that are going to be good players in this league. I think as they continue to grow and mature, they'll get better."
But does Dallas have time to wait? In their first six games, the Cowboys face at least two quarterbacks almost guaranteed to post big numbers against a Newman-less secondary: St. Louis' Marc Bulger and New England's Tom Brady.
The corner auditions will continue in Minneapolis against the Vikings with at least one new candidate, Butler, getting a chance to show what he can do.
The former TCU standout missed the first two preseason games with a pulled hamstring and was limited to special teams against the Texans.
San Antonio Express-News
Dallas Cowboys coach Wade Phillips says injured cornerback Terence Newman should be ready to play in the season opener against the New York Giants on Sept. 9.
Given the lack of depth at the position, the Cowboys better have their fingers crossed Phillips is right.
"We had problems at corner tonight," Phillips understated Saturday after Dallas' 28-16 loss to the Houston Texans. "We didn't get much help."
The Cowboys could keep as many as six corners. Behind Newman, Anthony Henry and Aaron Glenn are an undistinguished collection of youngsters that includes Roosevelt graduate Quincy Butler.
Glenn, 35, has started the past two games in place of Newman, who also is expected to miss Thursday's preseason finale at Minnesota. Newman, considered one of the league's top cover corners, is suffering from plantar fasciitis in his right foot.
Spurs fans are all too familiar with the injury. Tim Duncan suffered from it in 2005-06. Although he played with the ailment, he really wasn't himself until the next season and only after a summer of rest.
With Newman out, Phillips turned the Houston game into an audition for Jacques Reeves, Joey Thomas and seventh-round pick Alan Ball. But all three came up short.
Thomas missed an open-field tackle. Reeves misread a rollout by quarterback Matt Schaub that resulted in a touchdown pass to rookie Jacoby Jones late in the first half. And late in the fourth quarter, Ball gave up a TD pass to David Anderson from backup Sage Rosenfels.
Reeves also was part of the special-teams unit that allowed Jones to return a punt 91 yards for a touchdown early in the game.
The youngsters weren't the only ones who struggled. Glenn, who stands 5-foot-9, had his hands full with the 6-3 Andre Johnson, who had four catches for 39 yards, including a 6-yard TD on a slant route early in the second quarter.
Although the game could be viewed as a case-closed argument against any theory the defense could thrive without Newman, Glenn says there's no reason to worry.
That could be viewed as a curious stance coming from a member of a defense that allowed Schaub to pass for two TDs en route to a sterling 132.6 quarterback rating and running back Ahman Green to rip off a 46-yard gain in which he steamrolled safety Roy Williams and bounced off Glenn.
"I'm not concerned at all," Glenn said. "We have some good corners, good guys that are going to be good players in this league. I think as they continue to grow and mature, they'll get better."
But does Dallas have time to wait? In their first six games, the Cowboys face at least two quarterbacks almost guaranteed to post big numbers against a Newman-less secondary: St. Louis' Marc Bulger and New England's Tom Brady.
The corner auditions will continue in Minneapolis against the Vikings with at least one new candidate, Butler, getting a chance to show what he can do.
The former TCU standout missed the first two preseason games with a pulled hamstring and was limited to special teams against the Texans.
posted by The Gryphon at 7:46 PM
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