Saturday, July 25, 2009

Don’t Fret Cowboy Fans - No T.O., No Problem

By Patrick Sells

It seems like no matter where you go, or who you talk to, the Cowboys are said to be “doomed” without Terrell Owens. Um, not exactly. While you can’t deny the receiver’s ridiculous ability to stretch the field and make big plays, he wasn’t a one man show.

Yes, his ability to get open and catch the deep ball did scare defensive coordinators and cause them to shift a safety over to help the corner over the top. And yes, that did allow players like Jason Witten, and Patrick Crayton to get open a little easier. But that doesn’t mean that he was the key to the Cowboys success.

Come on!!! Last year the Cowboys were considered a “shoe in” to make the SuperBowl. They were almost unanimously considered the best team in the NFC before the season. And until Tony Romo was injured in Arizona, you could make the argument that they were.

Now all of the sudden the general consensus is that the Cowboys are lucky to make 8-8. Is he that good? Is anybody that good? That would be like saying well if Randy Moss left the Patriots they wouldn’t be any good.

Ok, enough of that. I’ve got one name, one that everyone has seemed to have forgotten. Felix Jones. That’s right, my solution for the departure of T.O. is a healthy Felix Jones. Skeptical? Lets evaluate what he can do.

First and foremost he is a running back. And as a running back he had 30 carries for 266 yds, and 3 touchdowns. Oh for those counting that is 8.9 yds per carry, which is unheard of.

Second, he is the definition of an electrifying kick returner. He returned 16 kicks for 434 yds and 1 crucial TD. Oh by the way, that’s 27.1 yds per attempt.

This guy has the potential to score, every time he touches the ball. And by splitting him out wide it will cause opposing coaches to do something that no team wants to do, and that is put a cornerback on a running back. By dedicating a cornerback, to a running back that is split out wide, it creates passing lanes for the other receivers to get open.

So forget about all of the Roy Williams, and Miles Austin talk. Pay attention to Felix Jones. He is the player that is going to make defenses respect the Cowboys offense, as they did with T.O.