9 Things To Consider Against The Saints
I thought it was all over with last week when Joseph Randle ran for his second touchdown. We had not seen that type of explosive output from the Cowboys offense all season, and the offensive line was providing exactly what Randle needed.
Then all the things I said leading into the game came to fruition.
Suddenly we were expecting the Cowboys No. 2's to play like No. 1's AND be better than the Falcons No. 1's. That wasn't fair of fans to raise the expectations that high. Would it be nice to have depth like that? Yes and I believe at some point the Cowboys will develop that type of depth, but it's not quite there yet. And man I didn't expect them to miss Mincey that much.
With that being said, I give you 9 Things To Consider Against the Saints
1. I thought the progressions of Brandon Weeden were a smart decision by Jason Garrett. Maybe I am thinking a little too broadly here, but confidence is a huge thing for any player, and Brandon Weeden has confidence in himself that he CAN check down and still get big gains. The Falcons play to give you soft spots in their zones underneath and Lance Dunbar exposed those. Weeden now has what a weekly rhythm. He has a mental clock of real in game movement. Before, it was practice, and to be thrust into a game and not really have a feel for the speed is unfair to expect too much. He throws two-three interceptions and now you've lost confidence and he's pressing every time he throws. I bet in film study, Garrett and Linehan are looking at the Saints and saying "Okay you know you can make these throws, you got the vibe of the game, here is where you can make these." They are giving him the vision to imagine hitting those targets, and I bet we see some nice completions against the Saints.
2. He needs to trust his receivers. There were a few opportunities for Weeden to drive one into the hands of a receiver who had a small window to make a catch in a 1-on-1 situation. But if every time a throw to Terrance Williams it bounces off his hands and flies into the sky for a potential pick 6, I'm gonna stick to the safe bets of a wide open Dunbar. There are two sides to that dagger, the receivers must gain his trust and you heard Williams say that this week, AND Weeden must be willing to pull the trigger after he allows that trust.
3. One of the things I liked last week, and have liked of late is the time Romo and Weeden had to stand tall in the pocket and make good throws. Rob Ryan likes to try to create pressure and get after the QB and you know he'll cue up everything in his power to do that against the Cowboys, but if he can get pockets like these Weeden will have a nice day.
4. If the Saints leave the middle of the field this open, I hope the Cowboys expose them. I understand this was a 2-minute drill situation and the Saints were working the sidelines, but Jameis Winston delivers down the middle for 23 yards to Louis Murphy.
On the very next play with 16 seconds left, he hits Vincent Jackson for a 15 yard TD right down the left seam.
If the Cowboys have the clock late in either half, I feel really comfortable with Cole Beasley, Jason Witten and Gavin Escobar picking up big gains down the middle.
5. No offense to La'el Collins he did a good job and is becoming more confident by the game. But I am going to be happy to see Ron Leary back out on the field. The confidence to run right or left is huge for Linehan and Randle. There is simply a trust factor with having your guys out there. The Saints haven't given up a 100-yard rusher yet and I don't know if this will be the week it finally happens for Randle, but I feel confident the Cowboys running game will keep the offense balanced.
6. I can't tell you how many times I thought to myself, Ken Bishop is Nick Hayden and Ryan Russell is not Jeremy Mincey. I go back to the No. 1's being No. 1's and the No. 2's being No. 2's theory. The team is very reliant on roles being played and guys doing their jobs. There were times when some of the backups looked a little lost whether its instinct or their technique it's simply different having those guys on the field.
7. Where to watch Sunday's games. Only one place of course. The K&C Masterpiece will be at Dave & Busters watching football on massive big screen TV's with epic stadium sound. I usually get lost playing the Terminator game or shooting the basketballs. Also, the person who brings the biggest party gets to shoot my co-host Kevin Hageland in the face with a T-Shirt Cannon! It's my favorite part of the day! Join us before kickoff and party all night long.
8. The more you watch last week's game the more you ask yourself what exactly went wrong. Well, a lot. There were a number of guys to blame across the board for little mistakes here and there. And untimely penalties didn't help the game plan of trying to pick up a third down and six with Dunbar because it was typically a third and 15. Overall, that was a bad team effort. I think the Cowboys can get after Luke McCown and force some turnovers more than they could Matt Ryan. If a couple of tiny things get corrected this team can be 3-1 heading into week 5 against the Patriots.
9. Lastly, Tony Romo on the sidelines is not fun. But watching him continue to lead in his Tony Romo way is fine for me if he isn't playing. He is smart and knows he has to try to help the team in some way and right now his brain is the only thing that can functionally help. I loved hearing Stephen Jones say "We aren't trying to stay afloat, we're trying to win games." And I hope when Romo comes back they have meaningful games for him to win too.
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