Williams gives Dallas more talent than ‘07 Patriots
By Albert Breer - SportingNews
Jerry Jones had a sideline view of what the 2007 Patriots offense was last Oct. 14.
The word, at that point, would be “unstoppable.”
His defense corralled the likes of Randy Moss, and so Donte’ Stallworth and Wes Welker were each sprung for over 100 yards receiving as the Patriots slapped Jones’ boys around in their own house, to the tune of a 48-27 final. That loss motivated the owner in several ways.
First, it showed the need to upgrade at corner, and the Cowboys did that in trading for Adam “Pacman” Jones, and preparing contingency options—bet he’s glad he did that now—by drafting Mike Jenkins and Orlando Scandrick.
Second, it was that day that his desire to add a “Wow factor” to his offense was born. Drafting the electric Felix Jones was just the start. On Tuesday, he completed a trade for Lions receiver Roy Williams.
And now, believe or not, he’s got an offense that, on paper, rivals the talent of the 2007 Patriots. In fact, if you go position-by-position, you could easily make the case that Dallas’ weaponry is even stronger. Here’s how that goes:
QUARTERBACK
‘08 COWBOYS: Tony Romo
‘07 PATRIOTS: Tom Brady
THE MATCHUP: There’s no question Romo has proven to be worth every penny of the $66 million Jones forked over to him last year. Through 32 starts, this is Romo’s average game: 21-of-32 for 267 yards, two touchdowns and a pick. Pretty good, as is his career completion percentage of 64.6 and QB rating of 97.8.
But he’s up against one of the five best of all-time here, and if we’re talking about the Brady of 2007, it might be the greatest quarterbacked season of all-time. It isn’t a slight against Romo to say this one isn’t close. It’s a credit to Brady.
EDGE: Considerable, to Patriots
RUNNING BACK
‘08 COWBOYS: Marion Barber, Felix Jones, Tashard Choice
‘07 PATRIOTS: Laurence Maroney, Sammy Morris, Kevin Faulk
THE MATCHUP: This one isn’t all that close either. Maroney and Morris were good in 2007, but the running game’s failings rendered the Patriots one-dimensional at times on offense. Faulk’s versatility should not be overlooked here—You can argue he was the difference in the AFC Championship Game.
But Barber is a true bellcow, something that the Patriots didn’t have on a consistent basis in 2007, and should wind up in 1,200-1,300-yard range on the ground, while also being a more than effective option in the passing game (see: Last week). Jones’ presence, and his absurd 8.9-yard average, makes this one academic, even if he will be on the shelf for a few weeks. And Choice is capable, as we’ll find out with Felix out.
EDGE: Considerable, to Cowboys
WIDE RECEIVER
‘08 COWBOYS: Terrell Owens, Roy Williams, Patrick Crayton, Miles Austin
‘07 PATRIOTS: Randy Moss, Wes Welker, Donte’ Stallworth, Jabar Gaffney
THE MATCHUP: Very close, and particularly hard to judge since Terrell Owens hasn’t quite been his out-of-this-world self thus far. Moss of 2007 has to get the edge there, at this point, and pretty easily.
Williams is the X-factor. He’s clearly capable of things Welker isn’t, and poses an enormous matchup problem because of his size-speed ratio. But the Patriots’ slot machine has been more consistent. They bring completely different things to the table, so Welker gets a slight edge, based on game-to-game production.
Further down the depth chart, the bullet-fast Stallworth is clearly the biggest threat of the remaining receivers, though Crayton has been productive.
EDGE: Slight, to Patriots
TIGHT END
‘08 COWBOYS: Jason Witten, Martellus Bennett, Tony Curtis
‘07 PATRIOTS: Ben Watson, Kyle Brady, David Thomas
THE MATCHUP: The biggest blowout on the board. Witten is the best all-around tight end in the game, and the most consistent offensive weapon the Cowboys have, a chain-mover capable of making plays downfield while remaining an excellent blocker. Bennett has flashed potential, and should become more of a factor later in the season, and Curtis is steady in the run game.
The Patriots, meanwhile, had problems through 2007, after losing Thomas for all but two games. Watson was a spare part in the offense, and isn’t near the player Witten is, and there was a revolving door from there.
EDGE: Enormous, to Cowboys
OFFENSIVE LINE
‘08 COWBOYS: LT Flozell Adams, LG Kyle Kosier, C Andre Gurode, RG Kyle Kosier, RT Marc Colombo, G Cory Procter
‘07 PATRIOTS: LT Matt Light, LG Logan Mankins, C Dan Koppen, RG Stephen Neal, RT Nick Kaczur, C/G Russ Hochstein
THE MATCHUP: By the numbers, the Patriots’ offensive line was top-notch in the passing game, and a little inconsistent in the run game. But there’s this caveat—No quarterback in football helps his protection like Tom Brady does. And this one—that line was turned to Swiss cheese by the Giants. Overall, Brady often makes a pretty good line look great.
The Cowboys, like the Patriots did, have three Pro Bowlers up front. While Andre Gurode and Flozell Adams are fighting through injury right now, you could argue that those two and Leonard Davis are among the very best at their positions. Top-to-bottom, the Cowboys’ group is more physical, more athletic and more talented.
EDGE: Considerable, to Cowboys
THE VERDICT
From a production standpoint, though, it’s hard to imagine that if the Cowboys get back to full-strength, which (injury-permitting) will happen in mid-November, that they’ll be as prolific for a stretch like the Patriots were in early ‘07. The primary reason is the excellence of Brady and Moss during that time.
But what’s scary is that Dallas now has a chance to be in that ballpark.
Jerry Jones had a sideline view of what the 2007 Patriots offense was last Oct. 14.
The word, at that point, would be “unstoppable.”
His defense corralled the likes of Randy Moss, and so Donte’ Stallworth and Wes Welker were each sprung for over 100 yards receiving as the Patriots slapped Jones’ boys around in their own house, to the tune of a 48-27 final. That loss motivated the owner in several ways.
First, it showed the need to upgrade at corner, and the Cowboys did that in trading for Adam “Pacman” Jones, and preparing contingency options—bet he’s glad he did that now—by drafting Mike Jenkins and Orlando Scandrick.
Second, it was that day that his desire to add a “Wow factor” to his offense was born. Drafting the electric Felix Jones was just the start. On Tuesday, he completed a trade for Lions receiver Roy Williams.
And now, believe or not, he’s got an offense that, on paper, rivals the talent of the 2007 Patriots. In fact, if you go position-by-position, you could easily make the case that Dallas’ weaponry is even stronger. Here’s how that goes:
QUARTERBACK
‘08 COWBOYS: Tony Romo
‘07 PATRIOTS: Tom Brady
THE MATCHUP: There’s no question Romo has proven to be worth every penny of the $66 million Jones forked over to him last year. Through 32 starts, this is Romo’s average game: 21-of-32 for 267 yards, two touchdowns and a pick. Pretty good, as is his career completion percentage of 64.6 and QB rating of 97.8.
But he’s up against one of the five best of all-time here, and if we’re talking about the Brady of 2007, it might be the greatest quarterbacked season of all-time. It isn’t a slight against Romo to say this one isn’t close. It’s a credit to Brady.
EDGE: Considerable, to Patriots
RUNNING BACK
‘08 COWBOYS: Marion Barber, Felix Jones, Tashard Choice
‘07 PATRIOTS: Laurence Maroney, Sammy Morris, Kevin Faulk
THE MATCHUP: This one isn’t all that close either. Maroney and Morris were good in 2007, but the running game’s failings rendered the Patriots one-dimensional at times on offense. Faulk’s versatility should not be overlooked here—You can argue he was the difference in the AFC Championship Game.
But Barber is a true bellcow, something that the Patriots didn’t have on a consistent basis in 2007, and should wind up in 1,200-1,300-yard range on the ground, while also being a more than effective option in the passing game (see: Last week). Jones’ presence, and his absurd 8.9-yard average, makes this one academic, even if he will be on the shelf for a few weeks. And Choice is capable, as we’ll find out with Felix out.
EDGE: Considerable, to Cowboys
WIDE RECEIVER
‘08 COWBOYS: Terrell Owens, Roy Williams, Patrick Crayton, Miles Austin
‘07 PATRIOTS: Randy Moss, Wes Welker, Donte’ Stallworth, Jabar Gaffney
THE MATCHUP: Very close, and particularly hard to judge since Terrell Owens hasn’t quite been his out-of-this-world self thus far. Moss of 2007 has to get the edge there, at this point, and pretty easily.
Williams is the X-factor. He’s clearly capable of things Welker isn’t, and poses an enormous matchup problem because of his size-speed ratio. But the Patriots’ slot machine has been more consistent. They bring completely different things to the table, so Welker gets a slight edge, based on game-to-game production.
Further down the depth chart, the bullet-fast Stallworth is clearly the biggest threat of the remaining receivers, though Crayton has been productive.
EDGE: Slight, to Patriots
TIGHT END
‘08 COWBOYS: Jason Witten, Martellus Bennett, Tony Curtis
‘07 PATRIOTS: Ben Watson, Kyle Brady, David Thomas
THE MATCHUP: The biggest blowout on the board. Witten is the best all-around tight end in the game, and the most consistent offensive weapon the Cowboys have, a chain-mover capable of making plays downfield while remaining an excellent blocker. Bennett has flashed potential, and should become more of a factor later in the season, and Curtis is steady in the run game.
The Patriots, meanwhile, had problems through 2007, after losing Thomas for all but two games. Watson was a spare part in the offense, and isn’t near the player Witten is, and there was a revolving door from there.
EDGE: Enormous, to Cowboys
OFFENSIVE LINE
‘08 COWBOYS: LT Flozell Adams, LG Kyle Kosier, C Andre Gurode, RG Kyle Kosier, RT Marc Colombo, G Cory Procter
‘07 PATRIOTS: LT Matt Light, LG Logan Mankins, C Dan Koppen, RG Stephen Neal, RT Nick Kaczur, C/G Russ Hochstein
THE MATCHUP: By the numbers, the Patriots’ offensive line was top-notch in the passing game, and a little inconsistent in the run game. But there’s this caveat—No quarterback in football helps his protection like Tom Brady does. And this one—that line was turned to Swiss cheese by the Giants. Overall, Brady often makes a pretty good line look great.
The Cowboys, like the Patriots did, have three Pro Bowlers up front. While Andre Gurode and Flozell Adams are fighting through injury right now, you could argue that those two and Leonard Davis are among the very best at their positions. Top-to-bottom, the Cowboys’ group is more physical, more athletic and more talented.
EDGE: Considerable, to Cowboys
THE VERDICT
From a production standpoint, though, it’s hard to imagine that if the Cowboys get back to full-strength, which (injury-permitting) will happen in mid-November, that they’ll be as prolific for a stretch like the Patriots were in early ‘07. The primary reason is the excellence of Brady and Moss during that time.
But what’s scary is that Dallas now has a chance to be in that ballpark.
posted by The Gryphon at 6:00 PM
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