Dallas Cowboys Team With Nike For Dez Bryant's Return From Injury
By Shawn S. Lealos
The Dallas Cowboys opened the season with wins over NFC East rivals New York Giants and Philadelphia Eagles, but then dropped three in a row to non-division rivals. Now, coming off their bye, Dallas has made some major changes on offense and look to get back on track with their second game against the Giants. Here is a look at the Cowboys top headlines heading into their big Week 7 game with the Giants and the possible return of one of their biggest stars.
Nike to Protect Dez Bryant's Foot
Dez Bryant is about to make his return to the field, and if it isn't this Sunday against the New York Giants, it will be soon. Luckily, when Bryant returns to the field, he has Nike ready to lend a hand. Bryant has a contract deal with Nike and they are creating a new pair of shoes for him. The right shoe is wider than the left one and has a plate built into the shoe to protect his broken foot from further injury. Bryant has been practicing with the shoe and word is that he will return no later than the Cowboys game with the Seattle Seahawks on Nov. 1.
Greg Hardy Wants to Bring the Pain
In Greg Hardy's first game with the Dallas Cowboys, he sacked Tom Brady twice and knocked him down five times. As a team, the Cowboys recorded five sacks in the first half of play after just recording six sacks the entire season up to that point. Hardy knows that this is how you beat a quarterback like Brady, and that is what he wants to do to Eli Manning on Sunday.
According to Hardy, his goal is to "make a quarterback feel pain." He explained that the only way to stop a quarterback like Manning is to make him scared to look downfield for too long, and his job is to make him always watch the pass rushers. It is a nice, refreshing sentiment from a Cowboys player after two years of a lackluster pass rush.
Christine Michael Dominates the News
Last week, head coach Jason Garrett announced that La'el Collins is the new offensive left guard and that Matt Cassel is the new starting quarterback coming out of the bye week for the Dallas Cowboys. However, one area he didn't really discuss much was running back, where Joseph Randle and Darren McFadden have been less than ordinary. However, with no news comes speculation that Christine Michael might get more touches, and even some who believe that Michael will become the new starter in Dallas. Michael is stronger than Randle and McFadden and fits better with the offensive line, but if he was that great, Seattle wouldn't have given him away for a late draft pick. Joseph Randle will likely remain the starter, but Michael will get a big look on Sunday.
Shawn S. Lealos is a freelance writer who graduated from the University of Oklahoma in 2000 with a Bachelor's Degree in Journalism. He writes for a variety of national publications and has over 15 years of sports journalism experience. Follow Shawn on Twitter @sslealos. Examiner.com.