2012 Season Game Threads Mega-Merge

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Irving Cowboy

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Two 3-5 teams? Doesn’t matter: Fox will put ‘A Team’ on Cowboys-Eagles
By Barry Horn / Reporter
5:53 pm on November 9, 2012

Such is the majesty of the Cowboys and the NFL East that Fox will have its “A Team” at Sunday’s matchup of Valley Ranch’s 3-5 team at the 3-5 Philadelphia Eagles.

Granted announcing assignments are made weeks in advance, but an audible here would have appeared smart. Wouldn’t the undefeated Atlanta Falcons at the New Orleans Saints have been a more logical destination for Joe Buck, Troy Aikman and Pam Oliver? Couldn’t that game have been flexed from noon to the high-dollar 3:25 p.m. time slot?

The answers are yes and yes.

Note: Cowboys-Eagles will be broadcast to 85 percent of the country while Fox sends St. Louis Rams-San Francisco 49ers, also at 3:25 p.m., to 13 percent. That makes Cowboys-Eagles as close to a national broadcast as Fox has to offer. No other Fox broadcast comes close to 85 percent penetration.

Cowboys losses do not deter networks. While Cowboys ratings are down considerably locally, they remain strong nationally. Next week, CBS has the Cleveland Browns-Cowboys scheduled to go to 60 percent of the country at noon. That may not sound like a lot but consider that CBS has four games in the time slot, the Cowboys will have a losing record and the Browns, coming off a bye, will be 2-7.

After the Browns, the Cowboys have their nationally televised Thanksgiving date with the Washington Redskins on Fox.

And then comes Eagles-Cowboys II, a post-Thanksgiving rematch, scheduled to go nationwide on a Sunday night on NBC.

(Keep in mind the Cowboys’ last two games — vs. the Giants (Fox) and Falcons (NBC) — both losses, were national broadcasts.)

If conditions don’t drastically improve for both teams, it has great potential to be a game meaningful only in the race for a more attractive first-round draft choice. Meanwhile, Seattle Seahawks-Chicago Bears is scheduled to languish at noon on Fox.

Would the NFL flex Eagles-Cowboys to noon and move Seahawks-Bears (both Cowboys conquerors this season) to prime time?

The correct answer is: “No.” A network official laughed when I broached the subject this week.

In 2010, he reminded, the Cowboys were 4-8 going into a game against the 8-4 Eagles on NBC in prime time. Turned out it attracted the largest audience in the then five-year history of SNF on NBC — 25.73 million viewers.
 
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Charlie Peprah set to make debut for Cowboys on Sunday at Philadelphia
By Brandon George / Reporter
1:48 pm on November 9, 2012

IRVING — It appears to be time for the debut of Plano East product Charlie Peprah.

The former Green Bay safety is set to make his debut for the Cowboys on Sunday at Philadelphia, according to defensive coordinator Rob Ryan.

Peprah has been inactive for his first two games with the Cowboys the last two weeks against the Giants and at Atlanta.

“Charlie’s going to play a lot this week,” Ryan said Friday afternoon. “Once we get these guys in here, catch them up to speed, we’re going to play them.”
 
Irving Cowboy

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Losing not an option for Cowboys
Fight for survival against crumbling Eagles means one season will be left in ruins
Updated: November 9, 2012, 9:28 AM ET
By Jean-Jacques Taylor | ESPNDallas.com

IRVING, Texas -- Dallas Cowboys coach Jason Garrett can't stand the word "desperation." You can add "worry," "frustration" and "pressure" to the list of words for which he has no regard.

Garrett detests the message those words convey. Worthless emotions, he says.

"I just don't like the word at all," Garrett said of the Cowboys being desperate. "We're desperate? That means you start doing some things that are out of character and random, and there's no method to your madness.

"'Urgency' is a much better word. 'Focus' is a much better word. We have a plan. We understand what we need to do. We understand the steps we need to take to win. We know we need to stay in the short term and focus on today and focus on this week. I just like that mentality much better."

Well, that's all good but those words will continue to swirl around his football team like crows circling roadkill unless the Cowboys beat the Philadelphia Eagles.

The loser falls to 3-6, making the playoffs a pipe dream.

A loss ensures Andy Reid, who's 16-11 against the Cowboys, will get fired at the end of the season, based on his owner's preseason mandate. Garrett's future is murkier.

But if the Cowboys miss the playoffs for the fourth time in five seasons, and Sean Payton doesn't sign a new contract with the New Orleans, then Garrett could be gone.

Payton, suspended by the league this season because of his role in the bounty scandal, had his contract extension voided. He can sign a contract with any team, though the Saints have been given permission to negotiate with him.
For the first time since he took over for Wade Phillips nine games into the 2010 season, every aspect of Garrett's regime is under scrutiny.

Play-calling. Discipline. Game management. All of it.

Garrett won 12 of his first 19 games with the Cowboys. Since, he's 4-9.

Not good enough.

And the team's penchant for penalties, sloppy play and end-of-game disasters gives the impression the Cowboys are poorly coached.

This week, Garrett's answered questions about speculation Payton could replace him and responded to comments from his mentor, former Cowboys coach Jimmy Johnson, about a country-club atmosphere at the team's Valley Ranch training complex.

A loss Sunday will only intensify the noise surrounding the coach. Garrett knows this. So does Jerry Jones. Tony Romo, too.

Just so you know, the Cowboys have never made the playoffs after starting 3-5. Still, the soft part of the Cowboys' schedule is only a week away, but they must win Sunday for it to matter.

The best news for the Cowboys is that the Eagles are a mental and physical wreck.

They've lost four consecutive games and four starters on the offensive line. Most of the discussion surrounding the team this week has revolved around whether Jon Gruden or some other hot name will coach the Eagles next season.

That is, of course, unless they're talking about when -- not if -- Michael Vick gets benched. This team is so ready to be put out of its misery, just like the Cowboys were when Green Bay delivered a 45-7 beatdown in what wound up being Phillips' last game.

Philadelphia is in the same mental state. All the Cowboys have to do is hit them hard.

They will crumple-fall. No doubt.

This is a game the Cowboys must be amped up to play from the start. If the Eagles get behind early, their crowd will boo them into the Schuylkill River, as a friend said this week.

They will surrender, and Cowboys will be 2-0 in "must-win" games this season, since they beat Carolina 19-14 under similar circumstances.

But if the Cowboys play a raggedy first quarter like they did against the New York Giants or the Seattle Seahawks, it's going to be a long, sad plane ride home.

"It's definitely time for us to play our best football game against an opponent that we obviously didn't play great against last year," Romo said. "It'll be a tough environment. It's an important game for them. And we need to play our best football."
If they don't, the Eagles will beat them -- and it might not be close. After all, 11 of Andy Reid's 16 wins against the Cowboys have been by 10 points or more.

He has won five by more than 20 and four by more than 30.

Wow.

So Reid's team will start the game confidently. The Cowboys must snatch it from them.

No second chance exists.

Either the Cowboys win this game, or it's time to focus on the draft. And, maybe, Garrett's replacement.
 
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Lineup Twist to Watch: Will Cowboys CB Brandon Carr see snaps at safety?
By Rainer Sabin / Reporter
3:00 pm on November 10, 2012

Brandon Carr’s versatility has helped add a new dimension to the Cowboys’ defense. And it will be interesting to see how he is deployed this Sunday against Philadelphia. While it’s certain that Carr will line up at cornerback, he could also be used frequently at safety, the position where he has occasionally moonlighted when Dallas has rolled out its dime package.

The fact that Philadelphia features DeSean Jackson and Jeremy Maclin, two speedy receivers who can stretch the field, could lead to defensive coordinator Rob Ryan giving Carr more opportunities at safety. After all, Jackson has already made six receptions of 25 yards or more and Carr played 15 snaps at safety against the New York Giants, a team that habitually throws deep.

Against Philadelphia, Carr could give the Cowboys some added security on the back end in passing situations.
 
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A look at the keys to victory for the Cowboys in their game against the Eagles
By Rainer Sabin / Reporter
2:00 pm on November 10, 2012

The Cowboys and Eagles have a lot in common. Their offenses can move the ball but struggle to score points. They both have committed turnovers at a high rate. And each team has been woeful in the red zone. Oh, there is one more thing: They are both 3-5 and find themselves in the same precarious position halfway through the season. The team that loses Sunday’s showdown at Lincoln Financial Field will have its playoff hopes virtually extinguished. Here is a look at the Cowboys’ keys to victory:

Attack Vick
Michael Vick has been on the run for much of the season. As the Eagles offensive line has been decimated by injuries, Vick has been exposed to punishment. This season, Vick has been sacked 27 times – the third-highest total in the league. Vick’s play seems to have been affected by the pressure he’s faced and the abuse he’s taken. He has thrown only 10 touchdown passes and nine interceptions, posting a mediocre quarterback rating of 77.7. The Cowboys need to attack Vick and continue to make him uncomfortable in the pocket.

Win in the red zone
The Cowboys don’t have a problem moving the ball. But they have struggled to score points, producing fewer than 25 NFL teams after nine weeks. One of the reasons for their meager output is their inefficiency in the red zone. Once they have crossed the opponent’s 20-yard line, they have made it to the end zone only 11 times. As a result the Cowboys’ have the sixth-worst red zone touchdown inefficiency in the league. That needs to improve against Philadelphia, a team that has also been plagued by red-zone woes.

Control McCoy
In the Cowboys’ last trip to Philadelphia, LeSean McCoy ripped through Dallas’ defense like a wrecking ball. In the Eagles’ 27-point victory last October, he rushed for 185 yards and two touchdowns on 30 carries. It was a tour de force performance by a tailback who would make his first Pro Bowl in 2011. McCoy has continued to perform well despite the fact that the offensive line in front of him hasn’t been sturdy. He is ranked 10th in the league in rushing and is producing an average of 4.3 yards per carry. The Cowboys need to make sure they corral McCoy.

Speed up tempo
It’s not certain that the no-huddle offense would work over the course of an entire game. But the Cowboys have shown they can move the ball effectively and score points when they have pushed the tempo. Against Atlanta, the Cowboys’ lone touchdown came when they were in hurry-up mode. They quickly covered 78 yards in six plays, beating a Falcons defense that seemed to have been caught off guard. The Cowboys should try a similar tack against Philadelphia.
 
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A look at how the Cowboys and Eagles match up
By Rainer Sabin / Reporter
1:02 pm on November 10, 2012

The Cowboys and Eagles have a lot in common. Their offenses can move the ball but struggle to score points. They both have committed turnovers at a high rate. And each team has been woeful in the red zone. Oh, there is one more thing: They are both 3-5 and find themselves in the same precarious position halfway through the season. The team that loses Sunday’s showdown at Lincoln Financial Field will have its playoff hopes virtually extinguished. Here is a look at how the Cowboys and Eagles match up:

When the Cowboys run
Only once this season has a Cowboys player rushed for 100 or more yards in a game. That occurred in the opener, when DeMarco Murray gained 131 yards in a surprising victory over the Giants. Following that impressive debut, Murray’s productivity began to decline before he suffered a sprained left foot that caused him to miss the last three games. With Murray not available to play again this Sunday, the Cowboys’ ground attack remains suspect. Philadelphia is allowing an average of 4.23 yards per carry. But can Dallas take advantage of the Eagles’ vulnerable run defense?
Edge: Eagles

When the Cowboys pass
Last Sunday, Tony Romo enjoyed perhaps his best performance since the season opener. Against the Falcons, he threw for 321 yards, posted a quarterback rating of 109.3 and seemed to operate at his best when he was making the calls in a hurry-up, no-huddle mode. This week Romo should be able to attack a Philadelphia defense that has struggled to generate pressure and has been exposed in the secondary. This season the Eagles have collected only 11 sacks and allowed 229.4 yards per game through the air – the 15th-lowest average in the NFL.
Edge: Cowboys

When the Eagles run
Last season, Philadelphia scored the second-most rushing touchdowns in the NFL. This season, only three teams have produced fewer than the Eagles. An offensive line in tatters has contributed to the downturn in the ground attack’s output. Still, LeSean McCoy has accumulated 623 rushing yards, the tenth-highest total in the league entering Week 10. And the Cowboys’ run defense sans linebacker Sean Lee has looked susceptible. Dallas surrendered 123 yards on the ground to the Falcons last week.
Edge: Eagles

When the Eagles pass
Michael Vick’s season has been a forgettable one thus far. He has thrown nine interceptions, has a quarterback rating of 77.7, and has been sacked 27 times. Philadelphia is still averaging 243.3 yards through the air per game but only Jacksonville has scored fewer points than the Eagles have this season. The Cowboys’ pass defense, which stymied Giants quarterback Eli Manning but struggled to limit the Falcons’ Matt Ryan, has conceded 205.5 yards per game – the fifth-lowest average in the NFL.
Edge: Cowboys

Special teams
This season, Philadelphia has allowed four kickoff returns of 40 or more yards. The Cowboys have produced only one of that distance or greater. Recently, however, Lance Dunbar has given Dallas a jolt on kickoffs. Dwayne Harris has done the same on punts. Against the Falcons, each player had a return that exceeded 35 yards. That’s been a positive development for the Cowboys. On the other side, Philadelphia kicker Alex Henery has made all but one of his 15 field-goal attempts this season.
Edge: Cowboys

Intangibles
Last season, when both teams finished with identical records, the Eagles dominated the Cowboys, outscoring Dallas 54-14 in two games. This year, both teams find themselves in a similar position again. They’re 3-5 and desperately trying to save themselves from quick extinction. This has all the makings of a taut, tense affair. And those games usually favor the home team.
Edge: Eagles
 
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Bengals up 24-6, halfway through the third.

We beat Philly, and believe it or not, we're right back in the division race.
:awkward
 
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