Dallas defense hurting coming into Miami
By Scouts Inc
Wednesday, September 12, 2007
Why To Watch
Both teams are under the leadership of new head coaches, but both feel like they are legitimate playoff contenders and they don't want to let any teams get a big lead on them in the standings. Miami is already trailing the Patriots after a Week 1 loss to Washington and must rebound with a win in Week 2, while Dallas and Washington both sit at 1-0 in the NFC East and the Cowboys want a win that will put them ahead of the Redskins or at least keep them even.
When the Cowboys have the ball
Rushing: The Cowboys put up a very respectable 142 rushing yards against the Giants in Week 1, and with both Julius Jones and Marion Barber III gaining better than 60 yards the Dolphins will have to prepare for two different running styles this week. No matter who has the ball the Cowboys' massive offensive linemen can zone block effectively and wear a defense down by the fourth quarter, and New York's defensive linemen were certainly gasping for air late. Miami, on the other hand, gave up a lot more yards than it wanted to in the loss to the Redskins and will have to find a way to stop the leaking. The Dolphins gave up 4.7 yards per carry to Washington, which is a lot more than any defensive coordinator would like, and the defensive front is getting on in years and has only one 300-pounder in Keith Traylor. They will be severely outweighed by the Dallas offensive line, but MLB Zach Thomas will need more help from the front in keeping blockers off him as many of the tackles he made last week came after siginificant games.
Passing: Tony Romo led all quarterbacks in passer rating and total yards after Week 1, and while it is too early to call him the next Troy Aikman those numbers do command some attention. Romo threw for over 200 of those yards in the second half and hit WR Terrell Owens on crossing routes behind the linebackers that forced safeties Gibril Wilson and James Butler to get involved in coverage and exposed both. The Dolphins played respectable pass defense against the Redskins and got sacks from both Thomas and DE Jason Taylor, and expect them to get more pressure on Romo than the Giants were able to generate. The secondary will also do a better job of jamming and re-routing Owens as he runs those crossing patterns in order to throw the timing off. The biggest factor should be Miami's ability to apply pressure by rolling their DEs in and out to keep them fresh.
When the Dolphins have the ball
Rushing: The Dolphins have a future star in third-year RB Ronnie Brown, who rushed for over 1,000 yards in 2005 and just missed that mark last season but is averaging better than 4.0 yards per carry for his career. As the offensive line settled down last year the Dolphins did a much better job of opening running lanes and it looks like a similar scenario is playing out this season. Brown averaged a meager 2.9 yards per carry against Washington, and if Miami is not able to run on one of the weaker rushing defenses in the league they could have a tough time against the relatively strong Cowboys. Dallas gave up 124 yards to the Giants on Sunday and can't feel real good about that as much of that yardage came on carries by journeyman backup Derrick Ward. Losing NT Jason Ferguson for the season to a torn biceps tendon will also be a source of concern heading into this game.
Passing: When the Dolphins signed QB Trent Green away from Kansas City and TE David Martin away from Green Bay they thought they had a potent combination to add to holdover WRs Marty Booker and Chris Chambers and No. 1 draft pick Ted Ginn. While the yardage total was decent in Week 1 the passer rating is not what they hoped for and there just was not enough explosiveness in the passing game. Chambers accounted for 92 yards but backup TE Jason Peele caught Green's only touchdown pass, which went for only one yard. Maimi needs to hey need to find a way to challenge secondaries deep. Dallas gave up over 300 yards to the Giants, though, and did not get enough help from safeties Roy Williams and Ken Hamlin. Corners Anthony Henry, Nathan Jones, Evan Oglesby and Jacques Reeves struggled against bigger WRs Plaxico Burress and Amani Toomer, and while Booker and Chambers don't have the same kind of size they do have more than enough speed to challenge the secondary deep. Getting starting CB Terence Newman is a big concern for the Cowboys.
Special Teams
Dolphins special teams coach Keith Armstrong is one of the better coaches in terms of devising coverages and finding blocking lanes his units can take advantage of. Punt returner Ted Ginn also handled kickoff returns against the Redskins and is an explosive athlete who is definitely be a home run threat. He was pretty pedestrian against the Redskins, though, while the Dallas tandem of Patrick Crayton on punts and Tyson Thomspon on kickoffs was better than anticipated. The biggest advantage Dallas will enjoy on special teams will come from punter Mat McBriar, who averaged an impressive 54 yards per punt (47.5 net) and can definitely put an opponent in a hole.
Wednesday, September 12, 2007
Why To Watch
Both teams are under the leadership of new head coaches, but both feel like they are legitimate playoff contenders and they don't want to let any teams get a big lead on them in the standings. Miami is already trailing the Patriots after a Week 1 loss to Washington and must rebound with a win in Week 2, while Dallas and Washington both sit at 1-0 in the NFC East and the Cowboys want a win that will put them ahead of the Redskins or at least keep them even.
When the Cowboys have the ball
Rushing: The Cowboys put up a very respectable 142 rushing yards against the Giants in Week 1, and with both Julius Jones and Marion Barber III gaining better than 60 yards the Dolphins will have to prepare for two different running styles this week. No matter who has the ball the Cowboys' massive offensive linemen can zone block effectively and wear a defense down by the fourth quarter, and New York's defensive linemen were certainly gasping for air late. Miami, on the other hand, gave up a lot more yards than it wanted to in the loss to the Redskins and will have to find a way to stop the leaking. The Dolphins gave up 4.7 yards per carry to Washington, which is a lot more than any defensive coordinator would like, and the defensive front is getting on in years and has only one 300-pounder in Keith Traylor. They will be severely outweighed by the Dallas offensive line, but MLB Zach Thomas will need more help from the front in keeping blockers off him as many of the tackles he made last week came after siginificant games.
Passing: Tony Romo led all quarterbacks in passer rating and total yards after Week 1, and while it is too early to call him the next Troy Aikman those numbers do command some attention. Romo threw for over 200 of those yards in the second half and hit WR Terrell Owens on crossing routes behind the linebackers that forced safeties Gibril Wilson and James Butler to get involved in coverage and exposed both. The Dolphins played respectable pass defense against the Redskins and got sacks from both Thomas and DE Jason Taylor, and expect them to get more pressure on Romo than the Giants were able to generate. The secondary will also do a better job of jamming and re-routing Owens as he runs those crossing patterns in order to throw the timing off. The biggest factor should be Miami's ability to apply pressure by rolling their DEs in and out to keep them fresh.
When the Dolphins have the ball
Rushing: The Dolphins have a future star in third-year RB Ronnie Brown, who rushed for over 1,000 yards in 2005 and just missed that mark last season but is averaging better than 4.0 yards per carry for his career. As the offensive line settled down last year the Dolphins did a much better job of opening running lanes and it looks like a similar scenario is playing out this season. Brown averaged a meager 2.9 yards per carry against Washington, and if Miami is not able to run on one of the weaker rushing defenses in the league they could have a tough time against the relatively strong Cowboys. Dallas gave up 124 yards to the Giants on Sunday and can't feel real good about that as much of that yardage came on carries by journeyman backup Derrick Ward. Losing NT Jason Ferguson for the season to a torn biceps tendon will also be a source of concern heading into this game.
Passing: When the Dolphins signed QB Trent Green away from Kansas City and TE David Martin away from Green Bay they thought they had a potent combination to add to holdover WRs Marty Booker and Chris Chambers and No. 1 draft pick Ted Ginn. While the yardage total was decent in Week 1 the passer rating is not what they hoped for and there just was not enough explosiveness in the passing game. Chambers accounted for 92 yards but backup TE Jason Peele caught Green's only touchdown pass, which went for only one yard. Maimi needs to hey need to find a way to challenge secondaries deep. Dallas gave up over 300 yards to the Giants, though, and did not get enough help from safeties Roy Williams and Ken Hamlin. Corners Anthony Henry, Nathan Jones, Evan Oglesby and Jacques Reeves struggled against bigger WRs Plaxico Burress and Amani Toomer, and while Booker and Chambers don't have the same kind of size they do have more than enough speed to challenge the secondary deep. Getting starting CB Terence Newman is a big concern for the Cowboys.
Special Teams
Dolphins special teams coach Keith Armstrong is one of the better coaches in terms of devising coverages and finding blocking lanes his units can take advantage of. Punt returner Ted Ginn also handled kickoff returns against the Redskins and is an explosive athlete who is definitely be a home run threat. He was pretty pedestrian against the Redskins, though, while the Dallas tandem of Patrick Crayton on punts and Tyson Thomspon on kickoffs was better than anticipated. The biggest advantage Dallas will enjoy on special teams will come from punter Mat McBriar, who averaged an impressive 54 yards per punt (47.5 net) and can definitely put an opponent in a hole.
posted by The Gryphon at 6:36 PM
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