Williams: Cowboys didn’t miss Dez Bryant ... for at least one game

Cotton

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Cowboys didn’t miss Dez Bryant ... for at least one game

BY CHAREAN WILLIAMS
cjwilliams@star-telegram.com

SANTA CLARA, Calif. The Cowboys didn’t have Dez Bryant, but they did have Brice Butler, Terrance Williams and Cole Beasley. On Sunday against the 49ers, the Three Musketeers left Bryant celebrating on the sideline.

Dez Bryant on his fellow Cowboys receivers

“They did outstanding,” Bryant said. “It’s just amazing how much excitement is always there. Everybody wants to eat. Everybody is hungry. That’s exactly what we need around here. We keep each other lifted. That’s what we’re going to continue to keep doing. That’s how you win. You stay ready, so we don’t have to get ready.”

Butler caught a 4-yard touchdown pass; Williams caught a 20-yard touchdown pass; and Beasley had a 47-yard catch-and-run late in the fourth quarter that sealed the victory. The three combined for 12 catches, 151 yards and two touchdowns.

“We talked about it earlier in the week,” Butler said. “We’re going to be ready to go. … I feel like everybody stepped up and did what they were supposed to do and expected them to do.”

Bryant could miss two more weeks while the hairline fracture in his right knee heals. While he was out seven games last season, the Cowboys’ offense sputtered.

On Sunday, without Tony Romo and Bryant, the Cowboys gained 428 yards and scored 24 points. Rookie Dak Prescott passed for 245 yards, spreading it around to seven receivers with Beasley’s 66 yards a game high.

Forty-seven of Beasley’s yards came on a receiver screen with 1:45 remaining to ice the game.

Cole Beasley on his game-sealing catch-and-run

“I think it’s safe because it’s like a run play for a receiver,” Beasley said. “It’s a high-percentage toss, and I’ve got [Jason Witten] protecting the throw. The only bad thing that could happen on the play is if I fumble, just like a running back when he’s running the ball. So it was a good call, and second down was probably the best time to call that.”

The Cowboys had faith in their outside receivers, too, with Butler catching five passes for 41 yards and a touchdown and Williams catching four passes for 44 yards and a score.

Butler did have a drop on a fade for a touchdown, and a 15-yard taunting penalty cost the Cowboys valuable field position in the fourth quarter.

“I was competing,” Butler said of the penalty. “I was in the heat of the moment. I was looking at him. I rolled the ball, and [the official] got me.”

The Cowboys still contend they miss Bryant.

“Dez will never be that player that you can just go on without him,” Williams said. “But I think from a receiver standpoint, that we just manned up and decided we were going to have his back. We practiced our butts off. Didn’t anybody give us a chance except him.”

“When you have a guy like that who’s that impactful that can just keep talking to you, keeping you in the game, that’s the biggest thing for us, just keep talking to us, keeping us in the game to where our guys don’t wander. Dez does a great job of that. Dez was a big part of this win just like we were catching the ball.”
 

Cowboysrock55

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All of this sounds great but I think long term we need Dez. You can survive a week or two without him but ultimately defense will figure that out.
 

GForce78NJ

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i think its becoming apparent we need to draft a WR early next year - 1st or 2nd round. TWill is unreliable and beasley needs to stay in the slot. Dez is also injury prone
 

NoDak

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i think its becoming apparent we need to draft a WR early next year - 1st or 2nd round. TWill is unreliable and beasley needs to stay in the slot. Dez is also injury prone
I hope we don't, unless a guy that's considered a can't miss generational type guy falls in our lap. I hope we target defense, defense, and more defense. I'm not saying we should completely disregard offense, but that player better be unquestionably better for me to consider it.

I agree that we need WR help. But not as much as we need defensive help.
 

NoDak

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I don't agree that we didn't miss Dez.
I agree. Defenses roll their coverages to wherever he is, and it opens things up for the others in both the passing and running game.

Yesterday, the niners were doubling Beasley. :lol
 

ravidubey

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i think its becoming apparent we need to draft a WR early next year - 1st or 2nd round. TWill is unreliable and beasley needs to stay in the slot. Dez is also injury prone
People laughed when I said Dez was breaking down ahead of schedule because of his physical style, but it's never been more apparent. Cowboys need new life here, and frankly could use top-end speed.

Williams is good but not worth a serious investment. He needs to be on the field as much as possible to so we can at least pretend to stretch the defense.

Butler has potential if given opportunities.
 

Jiggyfly

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People laughed when I said Dez was breaking down ahead of schedule because of his physical style, but it's never been more apparent. Cowboys need new life here, and frankly could use top-end speed.

Williams is good but not worth a serious investment. He needs to be on the field as much as possible to so we can at least pretend to stretch the defense.

Butler has potential if given opportunities.
And they are still laughing.

Anybody else would have been out for the year after what happened with that Knee let alone come back and play.
 

Simpleton

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We will need Bryant against better teams. I would go WR early next year but only if they're the clear BPA, I would take a similarly rated defensive player over a WR, any position except maybe CB.
 

Cotton

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People laughed when I said Dez was breaking down ahead of schedule because of his physical style, but it's never been more apparent. Cowboys need new life here, and frankly could use top-end speed.

Williams is good but not worth a serious investment. He needs to be on the field as much as possible to so we can at least pretend to stretch the defense.

Butler has potential if given opportunities.
Let's not act like he didn't get his knee bent in half... the wrong way. After seeing the replay, I seriously thought he might be done for the season because it looked so bad.
 

Cowboysrock55

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We will need Bryant against better teams. I would go WR early next year but only if they're the clear BPA, I would take a similarly rated defensive player over a WR, any position except maybe CB.
I don't know, I mean with Jaylon Smith coming next year, I don't know if I'd be taking a LBer in the first. In reality what we all want are impact D-lineman. But if that doesn't line up correctly I'm fine with an offensive or defensive player. And when I say offensive I really mean WR. Lets face it, we don't need an O-lineman, RB or QB in the first. And I sure as shit am not taking a TE in the first unless Witten is retiring after this year, which he won't.
 

Simpleton

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I don't know, I mean with Jaylon Smith coming next year, I don't know if I'd be taking a LBer in the first. In reality what we all want are impact D-lineman. But if that doesn't line up correctly I'm fine with an offensive or defensive player. And when I say offensive I really mean WR. Lets face it, we don't need an O-lineman, RB or QB in the first. And I sure as shit am not taking a TE in the first unless Witten is retiring after this year, which he won't.
Unless I get confirmation that Smith is back to 100% health I'd go LB in the 1st if the choice is down to an equally rated WR or a 3-down LB. Sure, you can argue if Smith comes back 100% he forms a great combination with Lee, but you can just as easily argue that Lee is a ticking time-bomb (who will be 31 at the start of next season by the way) and Smith may never be the same.
 

22cowboysfan22

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Let's not act like he didn't get his knee bent in half... the wrong way. After seeing the replay, I seriously thought he might be done for the season because it looked so bad.
Yup, any athlete who had their knee take the amount of torque that Bryant's did on that play would have gotten injured. Has nothing to do with his body breaking down. If anything, Bryant is a freak for not having any suffered any ligament damage.
 

Cowboysrock55

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Unless I get confirmation that Smith is back to 100% health I'd go LB in the 1st if the choice is down to an equally rated WR or a 3-down LB. Sure, you can argue if Smith comes back 100% he forms a great combination with Lee, but you can just as easily argue that Lee is a ticking time-bomb (who will be 31 at the start of next season by the way) and Smith may never be the same.
I'm not saying I'd necissarily bypass a LBer. Because like you mention, if there is a true stud LBer you just pair him with Jaylon and move on from Lee. But I'd just consider WR to be a bigger need. Meaning we probably lose Williams after this year and could seriously use a second WR. It wouldn't hurt to have someone a little more dominant given Dez's injuries.
 

Simpleton

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I'm not saying I'd necissarily bypass a LBer. Because like you mention, if there is a true stud LBer you just pair him with Jaylon and move on from Lee. But I'd just consider WR to be a bigger need. Meaning we probably lose Williams after this year and could seriously use a second WR. It wouldn't hurt to have someone a little more dominant given Dez's injuries.
Yea, I mean I'd lean a little towards LB but they're comparable as far as need. I'm not a big fan of the WR's this year either so that's probably playing into it too.
 

Cowboysrock55

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Yea, I mean I'd lean a little towards LB but they're comparable as far as need. I'm not a big fan of the WR's this year either so that's probably playing into it too.
I haven't really looked at it yet. It's not likely we will have a shot at a top 10 guy. So it's hard to know who will even be left by the time we pick.
 

boozeman

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Yea, I mean I'd lean a little towards LB but they're comparable as far as need. I'm not a big fan of the WR's this year either so that's probably playing into it too.
I lean away from WR mainly because, well, they are fickle as shit and half the time you don't know what kind of headcase you have.
 

dallen

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I think you always need good WRs in this league, but if we aren't mainly focused on improving the defense in the offseason we are failing
 

Simpleton

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I lean away from WR mainly because, well, they are fickle as shit and half the time you don't know what kind of headcase you have.
True, and while things will obviously greatly change between now and the draft, I'd much rather get a guy like Corey Davis in the 2nd-3rd than a guy like Smith-Schuster in the 1st.

I think we can all agree that DL, whether it's DT or DE, is the top need and from the looks of it this will be a good year to go DL in the 1st, so most of this conversation will probably be moot. I'm loving Derek Barnett as a possible 1st rounder right now.
 
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