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Texas Ace

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I don't like this game. Pittsburgh is a different team at home. And they kind of need a win. Difficult circumstances.
Yup.

I fully expect a very tough game and for that offense to be clicking.

I'll be very impressed if we get a win out there, 4-4 record be damned.
 

Cotton

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We've put ourselves in a wonderful situation where we can afford to lose a game like this. Do I want to lose? No. But its a lot better when your facing 7-2 rather than 4-5 or 3-6, which is normally the case
It's a good feeling, for sure.
 

L.T. Fan

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It should be a close, competitive game. I just think this is a game where the Cowboys O out-performs the Steelers O.

The Steelers have a very shaky secondary. This could be the week where we see Dak go for over 300 yards through the air. Their run defense has been solid, however they did allow Ajayi to torch them, so they're certainly not the Steel Curtain of yesteryear.
How are they at putting pressure on the QB? In past years they were aggressive to the point of trying to injure the opponents QB. I know Dallas touts a strong offensive line but I have some reservations about Sunday.
 

1bigfan13

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How are they at putting pressure on the QB? In past years they were aggressive to the point of trying to injure the opponents QB. I know Dallas touts a strong offensive line but I have some reservations about Sunday.
Pretty average from what I've seen.

They're more of a read and react/zone team these days. A far cry from the Lebeau defenses.
 
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ravidubey

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Pretty average from what I've seen.

They're more of a read and react/zone team these days. A far cry from the Lebeau's defenses.
Ironically their best rusher is still James Harrison. He is persistent as Hell even at his age,

HGH is an amazing thing.
 

Cotton

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Bud Dupree resumes practicing, hoping for Week 11 return

Posted by Darin Gantt on November 10, 2016, 9:25 AM EST

Bud Dupree hasn’t made the impact he or the Steelers were hoping for so far. But he’s at least back on the practice field.

Via Ralph Paulk of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, the 2015 first-rounder returned to the practice field Wednesday, as he begins the process of coming back from groin surgery.

The Steelers used their one designated for return slot on the outside linebacker, who had groin surgery and missed the entire preseason. He knows he won’t be ready to play this week against the Cowboys but hopes he can get back for the Week 11 game against the Browns.

“I did a couple of things to get back into the groove,” Dupree said. “Each day I’ll do more, but I’m excited to be back on the field.”

The Steelers could use any shot of energy they can find on defense, as they’ve struggled to get off the field even against some less-than-spectacular offenses.

Dupree had 4.0 sacks as a rookie, so he’d add some needed rush behind James Harrison and Jarvis Jones. As a team, they have just 11.0 sacks, and Harrison had a pair of those last week.
 

Cotton

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Cotton

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Cowboys defense preparing to stop Pittsburgh's explosive offense
11:57 AM CT
Jean-Jacques Taylor
ESPN Staff Writer

The Dallas Cowboys have no idea which Pittsburgh Steelers offense they'll see Sunday at Heinz Field.

Will it be the explosive unit that creatively mixes the run and pass with big plays that has scored 38, 24, 43 and 31 points in Pittsburgh's four victories this season? Or will it be the mistake-prone unit that has scored 3, 15, 16 and 14 points in its four losses?

As you would expect, the Cowboys are preparing to get the best the Steelers have to offer, especially because Pittsburgh has lost three in a row.

Pittsburgh has pretty much everything you want in an offense. Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, running back Le'Veon Bell and receiver Antonio Brown are among the game's best at their respective positions.

The Steelers should provide the most difficult test to date for the Cowboys defense.

Then again, we thought that would be the case when Dallas faced the Cincinnati Bengals' high-powered offense, but the Cowboys shut the Bengals out until midway through the fourth quarter in the Week 5 matchup.

And we thought the Aaron Rodgers-led Green Bay passing attack would trouble the Cowboys, but they held the Packers to 16 points in Week 6.

We spend so much time focused on Dallas' dynamic offense that we haven't paid adequate attention to its defense.

The Cowboys don't force many turnovers or accumulate a lot of sacks, but they tackle well, don't make many mental mistakes and have a knack for making plays at winning time.

It helps that the Cowboys' offense leads the league in time of possession at 34 minutes, 4 seconds per game, which is why the Cowboys have been on the field for just 79 possessions this season, the league's lowest total.

All of that allows the defense to play with the speed and relentless effort coordinator Rod Marinelli demands. The Cowboys have allowed only 140 points this season and have not allowed more than 23 in a game.

"We just play," defensive end Tyrone Crawford said. "We play hard, we play fast and we hit.

"We're not trying to prove anything except to Marinelli that we can get some turnovers. That's it."

Stopping the Steelers starts with containing Roethlisberger, who completed 23 of 45 passes for 264 yards with a touchdown and an interception in a loss to Baltimore in Week 9.

The 34-year-old missed Pittsburgh's previous game while recovering from a knee injury, and it showed.

"He's a big-time player and has been for long time, especially extending plays," Cowboys coach Jason Garrett said. "He's so big in the pocket that it's hard to get him down.

"He can throw with people around him. He can throw from funny body positions, and he can throw it all over the field. It's hard to get him down, so you have to stay with your man through the down, and sometimes the down lasts a long time."

Brown, one of the game's best receivers, has been targeted at least 11 times in five of the Steelers' games.

He has three 100-yard games but is averaging just 12.3 yards per catch. Bell, meanwhile, had 144 yards in Week 4, his first game back after a four-game suspension for violating the league's substance-abuse policy.

He has not gained more than 81 yards in the four games since.

"He has no weakness and he has unbelievable cutting ability," Cowboys linebacker Sean Lee said of Bell. "He's as explosive and as complete a back as you'll find. The margin for error for him is extremely small."

These Cowboys are the only team in the league that hasn't allowed a 100-yard rusher or receiver this season.

If that streak remains intact after Sunday's game, it'll be another indication these Cowboys are different from every other team Garrett has coached.
 

L.T. Fan

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Now that Romo is cleared to play, I'd start him this week.

Boom.

:tippytoe
I definitely would have him in pads and ready to go in if needed. The stakes are too high now to leave anything to chance. If Dak is injured the game still needs to be won. If Dak puts it away then use the opportunity to get Romo some playing time.
 

Cowboysrock55

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I definitely would have him in pads and ready to go in if needed. The stakes are too high now to leave anything to chance. If Dak is injured the game still needs to be won. If Dak puts it away then use the opportunity to get Romo some playing time.
Yeah, I see no reason to not suit him up and have him as our number 2 QB. But who knows, this franchise does things ass backwards sometimes.
 

1bigfan13

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I'm not sure why the coaches won't even allow him to suit up this week. Call me crazy but if Dak goes down on Sunday I'd rather see Romo out there than Dirty Sanchez. I think even Sanchez's parents would agree with that.

Hopefully they're not as wishy-washy behind the scenes as they are publicly. They need to put this thing to bed as quickly as possible and make a decision on one guy so that the team can move forward.

Hopefully they've already done that, but I doubt they have.
 
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L.T. Fan

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I'm not sure why the coaches won't even allow him to suit up this week. Call me crazy but if Dak goes down on Sunday I'd rather see Romo out there than Dirty Sanchez. I think even Sanchez's parents would agree with that.

Hopefully they're not as wishy-washy behind the scenes as they are publicly. They need to put this thing to bed as quickly as possible and make a decision on one guy so that the team can move forward.

Hopefully they've already done that, but I doubt it has.
Been saying this for a while. It is a gamble to go this way but it doesn't have to be.
 

Cowboysrock55

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I'm not sure why the coaches won't even allow him to suit up this week. Call me crazy but if Dak goes down on Sunday I'd rather see Romo out there than Dirty Sanchez. I think even Sanchez's parents would agree with that.

Hopefully they're not as wishy-washy behind the scenes as they are publicly. They need to put this thing to bed as quickly as possible and make a decision on one guy so that the team can move forward.

Hopefully they've already done that, but I doubt it has.
If the Cowboys don't have Romo active at this point then I really have to start to wonder if the team isn't afraid to admit that Romo is healthy and Dak is the starter. It's really a ridiculous reason not to have the very best backup option on game day but if the guy is cleared and he is practicing I have no other good explanation.
 

Texas Ace

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If the Cowboys don't have Romo active at this point then I really have to start to wonder if the team isn't afraid to admit that Romo is healthy and Dak is the starter. It's really a ridiculous reason not to have the very best backup option on game day but if the guy is cleared and he is practicing I have no other good explanation.
Yea, it doesn't make sense that he would be medically cleared to play, participate in full practice, and then not be activated for the game.

It leads me to believe that Dak is the guy they're going with, but even then, why is he not active?

We all know the Cowboys don't always do things logically, so this may just be another example of a head-scratching decision by them.
 

Cotton

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I'm not sure why the coaches won't even allow him to suit up this week. Call me crazy but if Dak goes down on Sunday I'd rather see Romo out there than Dirty Sanchez. I think even Sanchez's parents would agree with that.

Hopefully they're not as wishy-washy behind the scenes as they are publicly. They need to put this thing to bed as quickly as possible and make a decision on one guy so that the team can move forward.

Hopefully they've already done that, but I doubt they have.
:lol
 

Cotton

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BTW, where is all this Romo isn't going to be active coming from? I haven't seen them say either way. Did I miss it?
 

1bigfan13

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If the Cowboys don't have Romo active at this point then I really have to start to wonder if the team isn't afraid to admit that Romo is healthy and Dak is the starter. It's really a ridiculous reason not to have the very best backup option on game day but if the guy is cleared and he is practicing I have no other good explanation.
That's my gut feeling as well.

Romo's not the kind of guy who will publicly make a big stink out of being Wally Pipped, and I don't think he'd make any waves in the locker room. So I'm not sure why there's such a hesitation to make a decision one way or the other. Hell, even Dak has said form the start that it's Romo's job and that he'd gladly step aside once Romo is healthy.

The media and a large portion of the fan base will rake them over the coals for the decision, but internally I don't think there would be any issues.
 

1bigfan13

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BTW, where is all this Romo isn't going to be active coming from? I haven't seen them say either way. Did I miss it?
Schefter tweeted it plus there's as SI.com article on it as well.
 
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