- Messages
- 5,432
- Reaction score
- 0
When adversity struck, Cowboys wore it down
Posted Sunday, Nov. 21, 2010
By Randy Galloway
rgalloway@ star-telegram.com
ARLINGTON -- Adversity knocked on the door, then banged on it, then attempted to kick it down.
Anyone who has followed the misadventures of the Dallas Cowboys this season knew how this story repeatedly ended.
That door was going to go ahead and blow, hinges and all.
Flashing back to the bad old days (like two weeks ago), the Cowboys vs. Adversity again became the emerging story line Sunday at the Big Yard.
"You could sense it even by halftime, that feeling in the building of 'here they go again,'" said linebacker Bradie James. "As a team, here we go again is what we had to change. It's the losers' mentality."
Bluntly, it was also once an accurate description. The Cowboys have been the poster boys for NFL losers.
This time, however, there was a different ending.
This time there was a victory in Arlington for the first time this season, four bleeping days before Thanksgiving.
And the final score, 35-19, doesn't come close, of course, to explaining this ongoing sweat for a W.
This time, the Cowboys finally beat adversity, and finally beat anybody on Jerry's sacred grounds. The anybody was the Detroit Lions, despite the Lions having a long and dominant stretch in this game of kicking local butt, meaning their defense on Cows offense.
For those who might downplay a win over the Lions, one word:
Don't.
The Lions play everyone hard, hang in games, and then find a way to lose, which is why the record is now 2-8, and the consecutive L string on the road is now 26 dating to 2007.
But to beat Detroit, you have to go take the game. The Lions don't quit, and they were leading 12-7 four minutes into the third quarter, while the Cowboys' offense was attempting to figure out where the next first down was coming from.
Speaking of the Lions-inflicted adversity, there was one stretch where Jon Kitna and Co. went two quarters and five possessions, and in only 12 snaps for Kitna, there were no first downs, one fumble (by Felix Jones) that set up a Detroit touchdown, and a safety (Leonard Davis holding in the end zone) for two more points.
From coach Jason Garrett: "It's not a question if adversity is going to happen. It's going to happen, and then there's how you respond to it individually, as a unit, and as a football team. Our guys are doing that week in and week out, and that's a good sign for our football team."
Easy, Jason.
Your guys have done it for two weeks, both on your brief head coach watch.
Let's call it a good start to erasing a season of despicable football behavior, and then see if this early trend continues Thursday when the Saints are in town.
Plus, let's also see if Garrett's little big man, Bryan McCann, can again keep Jason's hair red instead of gray. This free-agent rookie is Garrett's new best friend.
"My dad told me after last week that there was no way to go but down from here," said McCann, laughing.
Father did not know best.
The SMU product slapped jumper cables on a stalled Cowboys team by wisely picking up a tipped-but-still-live punt at the Dallas 3, and off he went the other way. Ninety-seven yards later, most all the journey spent tight-rope running down the sideline, McCann was in the end zone.
The Cowboys were behind 12-7 until then.
A week earlier, McCann had the 101-yard interception return for a touchdown against the Giants, the key play in that win.
"Real smart play by that rookie," James said. "He's an SMU grad. He's supposed to be smart. And he knew that ball was still live."
While SMU appreciates James' recognition of Hilltop academics, McCann said his education on that particular play came from special teams coach Joe DeCamillis. "I remembered Joe D stressing what to do on that kind of ball way back in training camp," he said.
See, all of Wade's easygoing training camp was not a waste.
Once McCann lit up a docile crowd of 80,000-plus with his return, good things happened quickly for the Cowboys. Rookie linebacker Sean Lee (the disappointment thus far as a second-round draft pick) took advantage of increased playing time since Garrett took over.
Lee delivered a hit on Lions fullback Jerome Felton and used his left hand to knock out the ball. It became a huge play when Jason Hatcher made the recovery at the Detroit 19.
Two plays later the Cowboys had their first first down since the five-minute mark of the first quarter.
Twenty-five minutes without an offensive first down. Figure that.
On the same possession, Kitna threw to Miles Austin in the end zone, a tricky 3-yard completion for both QB and receiver.
No, a 21-12 lead was not comfortable, but the Cowboys started to put together some offense after that, particularly after wearing down the Lions' two defensive tackles, Mr. Suh and Corey Williams.
Those two beasts had been the early story of the game as far as disrupting the Cowboys' offense.
"We just kept leaning on them and leaning on them," said center Andre Gurode. "Both are a heavy load. We had it going on the first drive (98 yards and a touchdown) and then we couldn't get anything going.
"But if you keep after it, good things can happen. We kept after it."
Overcoming adversity can happen. For a change this season, the Cowboys did the overcoming.
Randy Galloway can be heard 3-6 p.m. weekdays on Galloway & Co. on ESPN/103.3 FM.
Randy Galloway, 817-390-7697
Read more: http://www.star-telegram.com/2010/11/21/2649241/when-adversity-struck-cowboys.html#ixzz1626r6REE
Posted Sunday, Nov. 21, 2010
By Randy Galloway
rgalloway@ star-telegram.com
ARLINGTON -- Adversity knocked on the door, then banged on it, then attempted to kick it down.
Anyone who has followed the misadventures of the Dallas Cowboys this season knew how this story repeatedly ended.
That door was going to go ahead and blow, hinges and all.
Flashing back to the bad old days (like two weeks ago), the Cowboys vs. Adversity again became the emerging story line Sunday at the Big Yard.
"You could sense it even by halftime, that feeling in the building of 'here they go again,'" said linebacker Bradie James. "As a team, here we go again is what we had to change. It's the losers' mentality."
Bluntly, it was also once an accurate description. The Cowboys have been the poster boys for NFL losers.
This time, however, there was a different ending.
This time there was a victory in Arlington for the first time this season, four bleeping days before Thanksgiving.
And the final score, 35-19, doesn't come close, of course, to explaining this ongoing sweat for a W.
This time, the Cowboys finally beat adversity, and finally beat anybody on Jerry's sacred grounds. The anybody was the Detroit Lions, despite the Lions having a long and dominant stretch in this game of kicking local butt, meaning their defense on Cows offense.
For those who might downplay a win over the Lions, one word:
Don't.
The Lions play everyone hard, hang in games, and then find a way to lose, which is why the record is now 2-8, and the consecutive L string on the road is now 26 dating to 2007.
But to beat Detroit, you have to go take the game. The Lions don't quit, and they were leading 12-7 four minutes into the third quarter, while the Cowboys' offense was attempting to figure out where the next first down was coming from.
Speaking of the Lions-inflicted adversity, there was one stretch where Jon Kitna and Co. went two quarters and five possessions, and in only 12 snaps for Kitna, there were no first downs, one fumble (by Felix Jones) that set up a Detroit touchdown, and a safety (Leonard Davis holding in the end zone) for two more points.
From coach Jason Garrett: "It's not a question if adversity is going to happen. It's going to happen, and then there's how you respond to it individually, as a unit, and as a football team. Our guys are doing that week in and week out, and that's a good sign for our football team."
Easy, Jason.
Your guys have done it for two weeks, both on your brief head coach watch.
Let's call it a good start to erasing a season of despicable football behavior, and then see if this early trend continues Thursday when the Saints are in town.
Plus, let's also see if Garrett's little big man, Bryan McCann, can again keep Jason's hair red instead of gray. This free-agent rookie is Garrett's new best friend.
"My dad told me after last week that there was no way to go but down from here," said McCann, laughing.
Father did not know best.
The SMU product slapped jumper cables on a stalled Cowboys team by wisely picking up a tipped-but-still-live punt at the Dallas 3, and off he went the other way. Ninety-seven yards later, most all the journey spent tight-rope running down the sideline, McCann was in the end zone.
The Cowboys were behind 12-7 until then.
A week earlier, McCann had the 101-yard interception return for a touchdown against the Giants, the key play in that win.
"Real smart play by that rookie," James said. "He's an SMU grad. He's supposed to be smart. And he knew that ball was still live."
While SMU appreciates James' recognition of Hilltop academics, McCann said his education on that particular play came from special teams coach Joe DeCamillis. "I remembered Joe D stressing what to do on that kind of ball way back in training camp," he said.
See, all of Wade's easygoing training camp was not a waste.
Once McCann lit up a docile crowd of 80,000-plus with his return, good things happened quickly for the Cowboys. Rookie linebacker Sean Lee (the disappointment thus far as a second-round draft pick) took advantage of increased playing time since Garrett took over.
Lee delivered a hit on Lions fullback Jerome Felton and used his left hand to knock out the ball. It became a huge play when Jason Hatcher made the recovery at the Detroit 19.
Two plays later the Cowboys had their first first down since the five-minute mark of the first quarter.
Twenty-five minutes without an offensive first down. Figure that.
On the same possession, Kitna threw to Miles Austin in the end zone, a tricky 3-yard completion for both QB and receiver.
No, a 21-12 lead was not comfortable, but the Cowboys started to put together some offense after that, particularly after wearing down the Lions' two defensive tackles, Mr. Suh and Corey Williams.
Those two beasts had been the early story of the game as far as disrupting the Cowboys' offense.
"We just kept leaning on them and leaning on them," said center Andre Gurode. "Both are a heavy load. We had it going on the first drive (98 yards and a touchdown) and then we couldn't get anything going.
"But if you keep after it, good things can happen. We kept after it."
Overcoming adversity can happen. For a change this season, the Cowboys did the overcoming.
Randy Galloway can be heard 3-6 p.m. weekdays on Galloway & Co. on ESPN/103.3 FM.
Randy Galloway, 817-390-7697
Read more: http://www.star-telegram.com/2010/11/21/2649241/when-adversity-struck-cowboys.html#ixzz1626r6REE
