Dallas verse Chicago: Pregame analysis
Cowboys at Bears
Sunday, 8:15 p.m. ET (NBC), Soldier Field
www.sportingnews.com
The Edge
Quarterback: Advantage Dallas
Running backs: Advantage Chicago
Receivers: Advantage Dallas
Offensive line: Advantage Dallas
Defensive line: Advantage Chicago
Linebackers: Advantage Chicago
Secondary: Advantage Chicago
Pass rushers: Advantage Chicago
Special teams: Advantage Chicago
Depth: Advantage Dallas
Coaching: Advantage Dallas
Prediction Dallas 24 Chicago 35
Cowboys Keys For Success
1. Get Terrell Owens involved early. Owens led the NFL in receiving touchdowns with 13 last season, and he already has three more to start this season. The Bears, with their front-seven play, will stuff the running game early, so the Cowboys must once again get their passing game going first to set up the run. Owens needs to line up in different spots and sometimes be in motion so the Bears are never sure where he is going. Keeping Owens on short, quick slant routes will make it difficult for the Bears to cover him in either man-to-man or zone coverage. Big and physical, Owens plays much better over four quarters when he touches the ball early. His early success would loosen up the Bears' defense, opening up running lanes for Julius Jones and Marion Barber III. Once the Bears double-team Owens, it also will open up routes for complementary wideouts Patrick Crayton and Sam Hurd. If the Cowboys can get the Bears worrying about the pass early, it will allow Dallas' running game to get on track and provide a balanced attack.
2. Gang tackle Cedric Benson. The Bears have put their offense on their new feature back. Benson has realized this responsibility and sometimes tries too hard to carry that load. This has led to him fumbling. The Cowboys need to hit him with a few tacklers on every running play and try to force a takeaway or two. Benson was not a full-time back last season, and he still must prove that he has the durability and consistency to be that player this season. The Bears are gambling on this, otherwise the burden to carry the offense falls on Rex Grossman, and that's the last thing the Bears want. The Cowboys have a fast, swarming defense up front with outside linebacker DeMarcus Ware and ends Marcus Spears and Chris Canty. Benson struggled against the Chargers' similar 3-4 in Week 1 with only 42 yards on 19 carries. Limiting Benson to fewer than 75 total yards will put the Bears' offense in the unfavorable position of playing catchup with Grossman.
3. Find and throw to tight end Jason Witten. Witten has had 165 total receptions against conference opponents since 2004, most by an NFC tight end during that span. The Bears are missing top strong safety Mike Brown for the season, and with Owens, Jones, Barber III, Crayton and Hurd all needing attention, the Cowboys should make good use of Tony Romo's favorite target. Witten can slip off a chip block and find room down the middle of the defense. He also can line up out wide or in the slot and create a difficult one-on-one matchup. Covering the tight end has been a problem for the Bears the past two weeks as they have drawn two similar athletic types in Antonio Gates and Tony Gonzalez.
Bears Keys For Success
1. Pound away with Benson. Big and physical, Benson is starting to feel secure in his position as a primary ball-carrier and needs to carry the Bears' offense. As he churns out yardage on first and second down, it keeps Grossman from needing to make low-percentage pass plays to move the chains. This week, the Bears must run the ball between the tackles behind center Olin Kreutz, especially with the Cowboys missing top nose tackle Jason Ferguson for the season. Having Adrian Peterson to spell Benson helps. Once the running game is established, the play-action pass and the decreased pressure on Grossman will benefit the Bears. The Bears need to run well inside to keep Ware, Spears and Canty from disrupting running plays with their speed.
2. Throw several short passes. Once Chicago has established the running game, Grossman needs to loosen up the Cowboys' defense with some short passes off play-action. Muhsin Muhammad is a tall, position receiver who should be able to work effectively when single covered by cornerback Anthony Henry, who had two interceptions in Miami last week. Tight end Desmond Clark will give Grossman a quick, easy target to exploit the Cowboys' secondary on quick slants and rollout passes. Grossman doesn't want to be a stationary target on a dropback pass; the Cowboys' defense is too fast and capable of making Grossman make errant throws from a deep drop inside the pocket. Mixing the running game with the short passing game will keep the Cowboys guessing and allow the Bears to control the clock and help keep Dallas' potent offense off the field.
3. Pressure Tony Romo. Romo is growing increasingly comfortable with operating the Cowboys' offense. That means he's also willing to take more chances and is susceptible to misreading more defensive looks. If the Cowboys fall behind, Romo likely will press and force passes that could lead to interceptions. The Bears have a very strong defensive line led by tackle Tommie Harris and pass-rushing end Mark Anderson. In Lovie Smith's "inside-out defense", Harris can break off the ball and shoot the gap against the Cowboys, while Anderson will bring some heat off the edge.
Sunday, 8:15 p.m. ET (NBC), Soldier Field
www.sportingnews.com
The Edge
Quarterback: Advantage Dallas
Running backs: Advantage Chicago
Receivers: Advantage Dallas
Offensive line: Advantage Dallas
Defensive line: Advantage Chicago
Linebackers: Advantage Chicago
Secondary: Advantage Chicago
Pass rushers: Advantage Chicago
Special teams: Advantage Chicago
Depth: Advantage Dallas
Coaching: Advantage Dallas
Prediction Dallas 24 Chicago 35
Cowboys Keys For Success
1. Get Terrell Owens involved early. Owens led the NFL in receiving touchdowns with 13 last season, and he already has three more to start this season. The Bears, with their front-seven play, will stuff the running game early, so the Cowboys must once again get their passing game going first to set up the run. Owens needs to line up in different spots and sometimes be in motion so the Bears are never sure where he is going. Keeping Owens on short, quick slant routes will make it difficult for the Bears to cover him in either man-to-man or zone coverage. Big and physical, Owens plays much better over four quarters when he touches the ball early. His early success would loosen up the Bears' defense, opening up running lanes for Julius Jones and Marion Barber III. Once the Bears double-team Owens, it also will open up routes for complementary wideouts Patrick Crayton and Sam Hurd. If the Cowboys can get the Bears worrying about the pass early, it will allow Dallas' running game to get on track and provide a balanced attack.
2. Gang tackle Cedric Benson. The Bears have put their offense on their new feature back. Benson has realized this responsibility and sometimes tries too hard to carry that load. This has led to him fumbling. The Cowboys need to hit him with a few tacklers on every running play and try to force a takeaway or two. Benson was not a full-time back last season, and he still must prove that he has the durability and consistency to be that player this season. The Bears are gambling on this, otherwise the burden to carry the offense falls on Rex Grossman, and that's the last thing the Bears want. The Cowboys have a fast, swarming defense up front with outside linebacker DeMarcus Ware and ends Marcus Spears and Chris Canty. Benson struggled against the Chargers' similar 3-4 in Week 1 with only 42 yards on 19 carries. Limiting Benson to fewer than 75 total yards will put the Bears' offense in the unfavorable position of playing catchup with Grossman.
3. Find and throw to tight end Jason Witten. Witten has had 165 total receptions against conference opponents since 2004, most by an NFC tight end during that span. The Bears are missing top strong safety Mike Brown for the season, and with Owens, Jones, Barber III, Crayton and Hurd all needing attention, the Cowboys should make good use of Tony Romo's favorite target. Witten can slip off a chip block and find room down the middle of the defense. He also can line up out wide or in the slot and create a difficult one-on-one matchup. Covering the tight end has been a problem for the Bears the past two weeks as they have drawn two similar athletic types in Antonio Gates and Tony Gonzalez.
Bears Keys For Success
1. Pound away with Benson. Big and physical, Benson is starting to feel secure in his position as a primary ball-carrier and needs to carry the Bears' offense. As he churns out yardage on first and second down, it keeps Grossman from needing to make low-percentage pass plays to move the chains. This week, the Bears must run the ball between the tackles behind center Olin Kreutz, especially with the Cowboys missing top nose tackle Jason Ferguson for the season. Having Adrian Peterson to spell Benson helps. Once the running game is established, the play-action pass and the decreased pressure on Grossman will benefit the Bears. The Bears need to run well inside to keep Ware, Spears and Canty from disrupting running plays with their speed.
2. Throw several short passes. Once Chicago has established the running game, Grossman needs to loosen up the Cowboys' defense with some short passes off play-action. Muhsin Muhammad is a tall, position receiver who should be able to work effectively when single covered by cornerback Anthony Henry, who had two interceptions in Miami last week. Tight end Desmond Clark will give Grossman a quick, easy target to exploit the Cowboys' secondary on quick slants and rollout passes. Grossman doesn't want to be a stationary target on a dropback pass; the Cowboys' defense is too fast and capable of making Grossman make errant throws from a deep drop inside the pocket. Mixing the running game with the short passing game will keep the Cowboys guessing and allow the Bears to control the clock and help keep Dallas' potent offense off the field.
3. Pressure Tony Romo. Romo is growing increasingly comfortable with operating the Cowboys' offense. That means he's also willing to take more chances and is susceptible to misreading more defensive looks. If the Cowboys fall behind, Romo likely will press and force passes that could lead to interceptions. The Bears have a very strong defensive line led by tackle Tommie Harris and pass-rushing end Mark Anderson. In Lovie Smith's "inside-out defense", Harris can break off the ball and shoot the gap against the Cowboys, while Anderson will bring some heat off the edge.
posted by The Gryphon at 10:00 PM
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