bbgun
every dur is a stab in the heart
- Joined
- Apr 9, 2013
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by Clarence Hill
Why didn’t rookie RB Tony Pollard get more touches?
One week after Ezekiel Elliott and Tony Pollard both topped the 100-yard barrier on the ground in a victory against the Dolphins, prompting proposed nicknames for the two-headed rushing attack, Elliott was the workhorse in a failed ground game against the Saints. He rushed 18 times for 35 yards. He had six catches for 30 yards.
Pollard’s stat line was blank _ no carries and no receptions. He did draw a pass interference penalty on his lone opportunity.
“We had limited opportunities in the game,” Garrett said. “We wanted to have Tony be a part of it like he’s been in the last couple weeks, but I think we had prior to that last drive we had 48, 49 plays in the game and we had a couple of three and outs, they were on the field for a long time. So Zeke really wasn’t tired. It’s not like you needed to pull him out because he’s had all these snaps in a row, all these carries in a row. We like Tony. We want to get him out there. We want to give him opportunities. He’s done a good job for us.”
Did the Saints provide a blueprint on defending Cowboys offense?
This is a copy cat league and there is no question future opponents will study what the Saints did to slow down quarterback Dak Prescott and the Cowboys’ big play attack.
The Saints were able to stop the run with their front seven and play a Cover 2 zone on the back end to limit the big play and force Prescott to throw underneath.
“It’s hard for us to address that most teams have a certain identity on each side of the ball and in the kicking game and stuff that they do, certainly the best teams do that,” said coach Jason Garrett in an attempt to be coy. “There’s certainly a copy-cat element to things if you struggle with something or if a play isn’t very effective against your defense, you typically see that. For the most part, the best teams really are who they are with some wrinkles as they go. Give the Saints defense credit, they did a good job, they did a good job up front, they did a good job eliminating our opportunities over the course of the ballgame and we’ll continue to strive to get better and better.”
The Cowboys also seemed to be more conservative in their play calls against the Saints. They called more first down runs than the had in three previous games and they used less play action passes, which had led to many of their big plays.
Garrett blamed the Saints defense for limiting their opportunities and their offense.
“Play action has been a big part of what we do, typically we’re going to run the ball and we’re going to try and run the ball inside and outside and drop back and throw it, throw it quick, play action, movement all of that stuff,” Garrett said. “It’s typically part of what we do and unfortunately we had limited opportunities in the game . We couldn’t get into a rhythm to get into some of the things we wanted to get into throughout the game.”
Who replaces injured left tackle Tyron Smith?
The Cowboys offensive line is coming off it’s worst performance of the season after being handled physically by the Saints defensive front.
To make matters worse, the Cowboys must move forward for at least one game without Pro Bowl left tackle Tyron Smith, who is week-to-week with a high ankle sprain.
Coach Jason Garrett said Cam Fleming will start in Smith’s place against the Green Bay Packers and the team may consider using guards Zack Martin and Connor Williams as swing tackle options if they sustain another injury at the position.
Fleming started three games in place of Smith last season and the Cowboys went 3-0, compared to 2017 when the Cowboys he missed all or parts of four games and the Cowboys were 1-3 in those contests.
“Well I think Cam Fleming has done a good job for us,” Garrett said. “That’s one of the reasons we went out and got him. He’s a veteran player, an experienced player, and he’s done a good job when he’s had opportunities to play in this league. He did a good job for us last year. He’s the guy that went in and played. He’s a smart football player. He’s a tough football player. He scratches and claws and finds a way to get the job done. He played in I think eight plays in the game last night. He did a good job standing in there in some challenging circumstances. He’ll be the guy who has the opportunity to go and replace Tyron. But again, we’ll take Tyron’s situation day by day leading up to the ball game this week.”
What did officials tell Jason Garrett about questionable Zeke Elliott fumble?
Cowboys coach Jason Garrett refused to blame the officials for the 12-10 loss to the Saints.
But there were a number of curious calls that raised his eyebrows _ most notably on the likely game deciding drive near the end of the first half.
Down 6-3, Garrett decided to go for it on 4th and 1 from the Cowboys 43 with 1 minutes, 36 seconds left in the second quarter. Running back Ezekiel Elliott go the first down with a 2-yard run but the ball was knocked out and awarded to the Saints. A number of replays showed Elliott’s elbow down before the fumble but the officials upheld the ruling on the field on replay.
“They didn’t have definitive enough evidence. It wasn’t clear and obvious in their mind,” Garrett said when asked what he was told by the officials.
Fast forward eight plays later and the Saints are facing a 1st and goal at the 1 with :04 left. An incomplete pass from Teddy Bridgewater to Jared Cook came next with an incredulous :02 expiring on the play, giving the Saints time to kick a field goal and take a 9-3 lead into the half.
Replays showed the ball still in Bridgewater’s hand as he dropped back to pass with the clock still on :04.
“Yeah, there were four seconds before the play and it was one of the fastest plays in NFL history,” Garrett said facetiously
How great has defensive end Robert Quinn been?
The Cowboys acquired defensive end Robert Quinn in the off-season in a trade with the Miami Dolphins for a sixth-round pick.
Quinn was supposed to be insurance for suspended Randy Gregory.The deal has been a home run so far, despite missing the first two games under NFL suspension for a banned substance.
He has three sacks in two games and 11 quarterback pressures.Quinn was an absolute terror against the Saints last Sunday, abusing Pro Bowl tackle Terron Amstead with his relentless pressure. He had two sacks, four quarterback hits, a pass deflection and three tackles. Another sack was nullified by a penalty down the field.
“Robert was fantastic,” coach Jason Garrett said. “He was around the quarterback all night. Very active, chasing them down. Multiple sacks in the game. He made a number of big plays. Both in the run game and going and get the quarterback. When he didn’t sack him he was around him, affecting him. Certainly had an impact in the game.”
Why didn’t rookie RB Tony Pollard get more touches?
One week after Ezekiel Elliott and Tony Pollard both topped the 100-yard barrier on the ground in a victory against the Dolphins, prompting proposed nicknames for the two-headed rushing attack, Elliott was the workhorse in a failed ground game against the Saints. He rushed 18 times for 35 yards. He had six catches for 30 yards.
Pollard’s stat line was blank _ no carries and no receptions. He did draw a pass interference penalty on his lone opportunity.
“We had limited opportunities in the game,” Garrett said. “We wanted to have Tony be a part of it like he’s been in the last couple weeks, but I think we had prior to that last drive we had 48, 49 plays in the game and we had a couple of three and outs, they were on the field for a long time. So Zeke really wasn’t tired. It’s not like you needed to pull him out because he’s had all these snaps in a row, all these carries in a row. We like Tony. We want to get him out there. We want to give him opportunities. He’s done a good job for us.”
Did the Saints provide a blueprint on defending Cowboys offense?
This is a copy cat league and there is no question future opponents will study what the Saints did to slow down quarterback Dak Prescott and the Cowboys’ big play attack.
The Saints were able to stop the run with their front seven and play a Cover 2 zone on the back end to limit the big play and force Prescott to throw underneath.
“It’s hard for us to address that most teams have a certain identity on each side of the ball and in the kicking game and stuff that they do, certainly the best teams do that,” said coach Jason Garrett in an attempt to be coy. “There’s certainly a copy-cat element to things if you struggle with something or if a play isn’t very effective against your defense, you typically see that. For the most part, the best teams really are who they are with some wrinkles as they go. Give the Saints defense credit, they did a good job, they did a good job up front, they did a good job eliminating our opportunities over the course of the ballgame and we’ll continue to strive to get better and better.”
The Cowboys also seemed to be more conservative in their play calls against the Saints. They called more first down runs than the had in three previous games and they used less play action passes, which had led to many of their big plays.
Garrett blamed the Saints defense for limiting their opportunities and their offense.
“Play action has been a big part of what we do, typically we’re going to run the ball and we’re going to try and run the ball inside and outside and drop back and throw it, throw it quick, play action, movement all of that stuff,” Garrett said. “It’s typically part of what we do and unfortunately we had limited opportunities in the game . We couldn’t get into a rhythm to get into some of the things we wanted to get into throughout the game.”
Who replaces injured left tackle Tyron Smith?
The Cowboys offensive line is coming off it’s worst performance of the season after being handled physically by the Saints defensive front.
To make matters worse, the Cowboys must move forward for at least one game without Pro Bowl left tackle Tyron Smith, who is week-to-week with a high ankle sprain.
Coach Jason Garrett said Cam Fleming will start in Smith’s place against the Green Bay Packers and the team may consider using guards Zack Martin and Connor Williams as swing tackle options if they sustain another injury at the position.
Fleming started three games in place of Smith last season and the Cowboys went 3-0, compared to 2017 when the Cowboys he missed all or parts of four games and the Cowboys were 1-3 in those contests.
“Well I think Cam Fleming has done a good job for us,” Garrett said. “That’s one of the reasons we went out and got him. He’s a veteran player, an experienced player, and he’s done a good job when he’s had opportunities to play in this league. He did a good job for us last year. He’s the guy that went in and played. He’s a smart football player. He’s a tough football player. He scratches and claws and finds a way to get the job done. He played in I think eight plays in the game last night. He did a good job standing in there in some challenging circumstances. He’ll be the guy who has the opportunity to go and replace Tyron. But again, we’ll take Tyron’s situation day by day leading up to the ball game this week.”
What did officials tell Jason Garrett about questionable Zeke Elliott fumble?
Cowboys coach Jason Garrett refused to blame the officials for the 12-10 loss to the Saints.
But there were a number of curious calls that raised his eyebrows _ most notably on the likely game deciding drive near the end of the first half.
Down 6-3, Garrett decided to go for it on 4th and 1 from the Cowboys 43 with 1 minutes, 36 seconds left in the second quarter. Running back Ezekiel Elliott go the first down with a 2-yard run but the ball was knocked out and awarded to the Saints. A number of replays showed Elliott’s elbow down before the fumble but the officials upheld the ruling on the field on replay.
“They didn’t have definitive enough evidence. It wasn’t clear and obvious in their mind,” Garrett said when asked what he was told by the officials.
Fast forward eight plays later and the Saints are facing a 1st and goal at the 1 with :04 left. An incomplete pass from Teddy Bridgewater to Jared Cook came next with an incredulous :02 expiring on the play, giving the Saints time to kick a field goal and take a 9-3 lead into the half.
Replays showed the ball still in Bridgewater’s hand as he dropped back to pass with the clock still on :04.
“Yeah, there were four seconds before the play and it was one of the fastest plays in NFL history,” Garrett said facetiously
How great has defensive end Robert Quinn been?
The Cowboys acquired defensive end Robert Quinn in the off-season in a trade with the Miami Dolphins for a sixth-round pick.
Quinn was supposed to be insurance for suspended Randy Gregory.The deal has been a home run so far, despite missing the first two games under NFL suspension for a banned substance.
He has three sacks in two games and 11 quarterback pressures.Quinn was an absolute terror against the Saints last Sunday, abusing Pro Bowl tackle Terron Amstead with his relentless pressure. He had two sacks, four quarterback hits, a pass deflection and three tackles. Another sack was nullified by a penalty down the field.
“Robert was fantastic,” coach Jason Garrett said. “He was around the quarterback all night. Very active, chasing them down. Multiple sacks in the game. He made a number of big plays. Both in the run game and going and get the quarterback. When he didn’t sack him he was around him, affecting him. Certainly had an impact in the game.”