Archer: Cowboys pay respect to Tom Landry in win

[Cotton]

Cowboys pay respect to Tom Landry in win
September, 29, 2014

By Todd Archer | ESPNDallas.com

IRVING, Texas – The Dallas Cowboys paid homage to Hall of Fame coach Tom Landry at the end of their 38-17 win Sunday against the New Orleans Saints.

Lined up in a victory formation, the linemen and tight ends Jason Witten and Gavin Escobar rose quickly before setting their hands in the ground, like the way the Cowboys’ offenses did for years under Landry.

They did not do it in their victory formation look at the end of their Week 3 win against the St. Louis Rams and only did it in the first of Tony Romo’s three kneeldowns against the Saints on Sunday.

“There’s great history and tradition in this organization, and obviously the greatest coaches, the greatest players, some of the greatest teams ever,” coach Jason Garrett said. “That’s something we embrace, and our players embrace it. A lot of our players weren’t alive when some of those things were going on, but I think they know the history and they know the tradition and they embrace that tradition.

“That’s one of the signature things of the Coach Landry teams, was the offensive line coming to the line of scrimmage and doing that when Roger (Staubach) said, ‘Shift,’ and the backs would shift behind him. That’s an image that we all have. I think it’s an iconic image in football, and every Saturday morning we do this victory formation, our players do that. Somehow, someway, they communicated with each other to take it to the game, and it was fun to see.”

 

[boozeman]

Rob Ryan did the flex tribute a couple of years ago.

But hey, Garrett is a real Cowboy and stuff.

 

[Cotton]

Cowboys’ Homage To Landry Was A Player Decision

Posted 35 minutes ago

David Helman
DallasCowboys.com Staff Writer

IRVING, Texas – The Cowboys caught plenty of attention Sunday night for a play that is typically among the least-noteworthy in football.

Holding a 38-17 against New Orleans, the Cowboys went into the ubiquitous “Victory” formation – a quarterback kneel that effectively kills the remaining seconds on the clock. The play is usually a formality, as it is only used when the game has essentially been decided.

But the Cowboys’ shift against the Saints during the play didn’t go unnoticed.

Before setting itself for the snap, the Dallas offensive line shifted itself upright and settled back down – an homage to Cowboys teams of the 1960s and 1970s, under the guidance of former coach Tom Landry and quarterback Roger Staubach.

“That’s one of the signature things of the Coach Landry teams, was the offensive line coming to the line of scrimmage and doing that when Roger said ‘Shift,’ and the backs would shift behind him,” said Cowboys coach Jason Garrett. “That’s an image that we all have. It’s an iconic image in football.”

Garrett said at his Monday afternoon media session that the Cowboys offense works on the “Victory” formation on Saturday mornings during walkthrough. The incorporation of the Landry Shift is something typically done only in practice as a nod to the past.
“There’s great history and tradition in this organization – obviously, the greatest coaches, the greatest players, some of the greatest teams ever,” Garrett said. “It’s something we embrace and our players embrace.”

On this particular occasion, the Cowboys used the shift during live action. Garrett said that wasn’t a decision made by the coaching staff, but by the players on the field.

“Somehow, some way they communicated with each other to take it to the game, and it was fun to see,” he said.

Ironically, the Cowboys’ focus on revamping their offensive line dates the homage ever further. Only one of the team’s current starting offensive line, eighth-year veteran Doug Free, was even born when Landry still coached the Cowboys. Tyron Smith, Ronald Leary, Travis Frederick and Zack Martinwere all born after Landry’s tenure ended.

“A lot of our players weren’t alive when those things were going on, but I think they know the history and they know the tradition and they embrace that tradition,” Garrett said.

 

[Cotton]

Rob Ryan did the flex tribute a couple of years ago.

But hey, Garrett is a real Cowboy and stuff.

Don't shit on it. It was a really cool thing to do, and turns out it was the players decision to do it, not Garrett.

 

[boozeman]

Don't shit on it. It was a really cool thing to do, and turns out it was the players decision to do it, not Garrett.

I thought it was cool as well. It is just idiotic to figure it was Garrett.

 

[ravidubey]

I thought it was cool as well. It is just idiotic to figure it was Garrett.

Garrett himself says the players decided to do it on the field after having done so in practice.

 

[Hawkeye19]

Love this little tribute by the players. Shows class and a respect for the legacy of this franchise and the history of the game.

 

[boozeman]

 

[Genghis Khan]

Really cool.

 

[jootep]

So, 5 more times then.

 

[superpunk]

pretty hokey and lame

but whatever

 

[Angrymesscan]

I actually like that

 

[Landry]

pretty hokey and lame

but whatever

Don't be so hard on yourself.

 

[superpunk]

nice one

 

[P_T]

I would shit myself if they could pull this off at FedEx Field. Just to see the look on all of the old school Redskins' fans faces would be priceless.

 

[boozeman]

Don't be so hard on yourself.

Semi active poster with the expertly timed slam.

Well played, well played.

 

[boozeman]

I wasn't all sniveling into my hanky about it...in fact, I didn't even notice during the game.

But it is kind of a cool little thing to do, especially if we it a lot going forward.

 

[dallen]

I wasn't all sniveling into my hanky about it...in fact, I didn't even notice during the game.

But it is kind of a cool little thing to do, especially if we it a lot going forward.

I didn't notice it either, and honestly I'm not old enough to remember the Landry teams. But I still think it is really cool

 

[jsmith6919]

I thought it was cool as well. It is just idiotic to figure it was Garrett.

Turns out it was Callahan

Quarterback Tony Romo said the idea originated from offensive coordinator Bill Callahan. The play, where the linemen raise up and then go back into their stance before the ball is snapped, is something Tom Landry employed during his time as the Cowboys head coach.

“The day before games we kind of started that and the O-Line does a pretty good job with that,’’ Romo said of the routine in Saturday’s walk-through. “I think it’s a great thing, an ode to a lot of great players and obviously a great coach before us.

“We understand the history around here. That was a neat thing.’’

http://cowboysblog.dallasnews.com/2014/10/mystery-solved-cowboys-coordinator-bill-callahan-behind-the-landry-hitch.html/