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Gosselin: Despite making Vikings QB look like a Pro Bowler, Cowboys get it done
Rick Gosselin rgosselin@dallasnews.com
Published: 03 November 2013 05:59 PM
Updated: 03 November 2013 08:32 PM
ARLINGTON — The excuses are aplenty if the Cowboys want them.
No DeMarcus Ware. No Anthony Spencer. No Morris Claiborne. No J.J. Wilcox. It’s difficult for any NFL defense to slam the door shut when a chunk of its starting lineup is standing on the sideline.
But the Cowboys don’t ask their defense for excuses. They ask for plays, regardless of who’s on the field. And it’s plays that makeshift unit delivered when it mattered most Sunday in a 27-23 victory over the Minnesota Vikings.
Defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin just plugs in no-names Kyle Wilber, Everette Brown, Jarius Wynn, Caesar Rayford, Drake Nevis, Jeff Heath and B.W. Webb … and off you go.
“We’re going to fight,” Cowboys linebacker Sean Lee said. “We’ve got a lot of guys with a ton of heart. We’re going to play 60 minutes with that heart, regardless who’s on the field. There’s a certain standard of effort you must have to play on this defense. No matter who it is, they go in and give it your all.”
That effort took the Cowboys where ability might not.
Yes, this unit was shoved around Sunday — again. The Vikings rolled up 393 yards on a Dallas defense that statistically ranks last the NFL. Adrian Peterson slapped the first 100-yard rushing game of the season on the Cowboys, muscling his way to 140 yards on 25 carries.
For the better part of the afternoon, the Cowboys couldn’t get the Minnesota offense off the field. The Vikings entered the game with the worst time of possession in the NFL at less than 25 minutes per game. But the Vikings controlled the clock for almost 32 minutes against the Cowboys.
And the Cowboys have an annoying weekly habit of turning NFL quarterbacks into Pro Bowl candidates. Sunday was no exception. This defense made Christian Ponder look like the reincarnation of Fran Tarkenton. Ponder rushed for one touchdown and threw his first TD pass since September.
But when the Cowboys needed game-changing and game-saving stops, they found them.
The first came early in the second quarter. With the score tied 3-3 and the Vikings at the Dallas 16, Minnesota decided to go for it on fourth-and-1. But Lee, Nick Hayden and Barry Church stacked up Peterson off right tackle for no gain.
The second stop came midway through the fourth quarter. The Vikings had just taken a 23-20 lead on a Peterson touchdown and three plays into the next Dallas possession, Tony Romo threw an interception near midfield.
“In our minds, we knew we had to get a stop,” end George Selvie said. “We were all on the same page. We knew we had to get the ball back to our offense as quickly as possible. And that’s what we did.”
Bruce Carter and Orlando Scandrick made tackles on second and third downs to force a three-and-out, returning the ball to the Cowboys at their 10 with 2:44 remaining. Romo promptly marched the Cowboys the length of the field in nine plays for the game-winning TD.
The third and final stop came on the final possession of the game. A week ago, the Cowboys failed to corral Detroit’s Matthew Stafford as he mounted a game-winning, 80-yard touchdown drive in the final minute.
Brown trotted onto the field for this last stand. He signed with the Cowboys on Tuesday. Joining him was Jarius Wynn, who signed with the Cowboys two weeks ago. Unheralded rookies Heath and Webb also took the field. You can bet the 85,360 in attendance Sunday were holding their collective breath.
But only 35 seconds remained, and Ponder is no Stafford. Brown contributed his first sack as a Cowboy, forcing a fumble and burning valuable time off the clock. A final desperation heave by Ponder fell short of the end zone.
“The bar is set high,” Cowboys corner Brandon Carr said. “It never changes. We expect guys coming in off the street to step in and contribute. It doesn’t take too long to acclimate guys to what’s going on. Our coaches do an excellent job of getting guys up to speed so fast.”
The Cowboys also scored their fourth defensive touchdown of the season on Minnesota’s first possession of the second half when Selvie stripped Ponder of the ball on an end zone sack. Hayden fell on it for the score.
This defense didn’t slam the door shut on anyone Sunday. But it did make the plays it needed to make to win the game
And that’s all that matters on Sundays in the NFL. Regardless who’s on the field.
Rick Gosselin rgosselin@dallasnews.com
Published: 03 November 2013 05:59 PM
Updated: 03 November 2013 08:32 PM
ARLINGTON — The excuses are aplenty if the Cowboys want them.
No DeMarcus Ware. No Anthony Spencer. No Morris Claiborne. No J.J. Wilcox. It’s difficult for any NFL defense to slam the door shut when a chunk of its starting lineup is standing on the sideline.
But the Cowboys don’t ask their defense for excuses. They ask for plays, regardless of who’s on the field. And it’s plays that makeshift unit delivered when it mattered most Sunday in a 27-23 victory over the Minnesota Vikings.
Defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin just plugs in no-names Kyle Wilber, Everette Brown, Jarius Wynn, Caesar Rayford, Drake Nevis, Jeff Heath and B.W. Webb … and off you go.
“We’re going to fight,” Cowboys linebacker Sean Lee said. “We’ve got a lot of guys with a ton of heart. We’re going to play 60 minutes with that heart, regardless who’s on the field. There’s a certain standard of effort you must have to play on this defense. No matter who it is, they go in and give it your all.”
That effort took the Cowboys where ability might not.
Yes, this unit was shoved around Sunday — again. The Vikings rolled up 393 yards on a Dallas defense that statistically ranks last the NFL. Adrian Peterson slapped the first 100-yard rushing game of the season on the Cowboys, muscling his way to 140 yards on 25 carries.
For the better part of the afternoon, the Cowboys couldn’t get the Minnesota offense off the field. The Vikings entered the game with the worst time of possession in the NFL at less than 25 minutes per game. But the Vikings controlled the clock for almost 32 minutes against the Cowboys.
And the Cowboys have an annoying weekly habit of turning NFL quarterbacks into Pro Bowl candidates. Sunday was no exception. This defense made Christian Ponder look like the reincarnation of Fran Tarkenton. Ponder rushed for one touchdown and threw his first TD pass since September.
But when the Cowboys needed game-changing and game-saving stops, they found them.
The first came early in the second quarter. With the score tied 3-3 and the Vikings at the Dallas 16, Minnesota decided to go for it on fourth-and-1. But Lee, Nick Hayden and Barry Church stacked up Peterson off right tackle for no gain.
The second stop came midway through the fourth quarter. The Vikings had just taken a 23-20 lead on a Peterson touchdown and three plays into the next Dallas possession, Tony Romo threw an interception near midfield.
“In our minds, we knew we had to get a stop,” end George Selvie said. “We were all on the same page. We knew we had to get the ball back to our offense as quickly as possible. And that’s what we did.”
Bruce Carter and Orlando Scandrick made tackles on second and third downs to force a three-and-out, returning the ball to the Cowboys at their 10 with 2:44 remaining. Romo promptly marched the Cowboys the length of the field in nine plays for the game-winning TD.
The third and final stop came on the final possession of the game. A week ago, the Cowboys failed to corral Detroit’s Matthew Stafford as he mounted a game-winning, 80-yard touchdown drive in the final minute.
Brown trotted onto the field for this last stand. He signed with the Cowboys on Tuesday. Joining him was Jarius Wynn, who signed with the Cowboys two weeks ago. Unheralded rookies Heath and Webb also took the field. You can bet the 85,360 in attendance Sunday were holding their collective breath.
But only 35 seconds remained, and Ponder is no Stafford. Brown contributed his first sack as a Cowboy, forcing a fumble and burning valuable time off the clock. A final desperation heave by Ponder fell short of the end zone.
“The bar is set high,” Cowboys corner Brandon Carr said. “It never changes. We expect guys coming in off the street to step in and contribute. It doesn’t take too long to acclimate guys to what’s going on. Our coaches do an excellent job of getting guys up to speed so fast.”
The Cowboys also scored their fourth defensive touchdown of the season on Minnesota’s first possession of the second half when Selvie stripped Ponder of the ball on an end zone sack. Hayden fell on it for the score.
This defense didn’t slam the door shut on anyone Sunday. But it did make the plays it needed to make to win the game
And that’s all that matters on Sundays in the NFL. Regardless who’s on the field.
