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Looking Ahead
Nick Eatman
DallasCowboys.com Staff Writer
(Editor's Note: While there may be uncertainty surrounding the NFL this offseason, the regular-season schedule remains intact. With that, DallasCowboys.com will preview each game in a 16-part series profiling the Cowboys' 2011 opponents - their offseason outlook, a projected key match-up for the game, draft news, along with the recent and overall history between the two. Today, we'll start off with Game 1 against the New York Jets.)
WHAT: Dallas Cowboys at NY Jets
WHEN: Sunday, Sept. 11, 7:20 p.m. (CT)
WHERE: New Meadowlands Stadium, East Rutherford, N.J.
SERIES: Cowboys lead series 7-2
Storylines:
• The season opener usually sells itself, but it doesn't hurt that the Cowboys will get the first Sunday night game of the season against the Jets, played at the New Meadowlands Stadium on the 10th year anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. The Cowboys can find out right off the bat how much improvement has been made from the 6-10 season of 2010 when they face a Jets squad that finished 11-5 last year and has made two straight AFC Championship Games.
• Only the season opener can trump the Ryan vs. Ryan showdown that will take place between Jets head coach Rex Ryan and Cowboys defensive coordinator Rob Ryan, who will make his Cowboys debut.
• In his first game without the interim label, head coach Jason Garrett returns to the site of his first-ever head coaching experience. Garrett led the Cowboys to a stunning upset over the Giants at New Meadowlands Stadium back on Nov. 14, just six days after Wade Phillips was fired after the Cowboys' 1-7 start to the season.
• Assuming Jets' seventh-round pick Greg McElroy Jr. makes the Jets' roster, it would pit the rookie quarterback from Alabama against the team that employs his father. Greg McElroy Sr. is currently the Cowboys' vice president of sales and marketing.
Match-Up Worth Watching:
Despite the uncertainty on the rosters right now, a few things are clear. For the Jets, cornerback Darrelle Revis will try and lock down the Cowboys' best receiver. While Miles Austin has led Dallas in receiving each of the last two years, there's a chance the Jets might enter the game thinking Dez Bryant is the team's most dangerous weapon. Currently, New York has Antonio Cromartie on the other side, but he could be a free agent. However it shakes out, the Jets have some talent at cornerback to try and slow down the Cowboys' wide receivers of Bryant, Austin and possibly Roy Williams.
Jets' Draft Review:
The Jets landed Temple defensive tackle Muhammad Wilkerson with the 30th overall pick late in the first round. In fact, the Cowboys were believed to have some interest in a pair of defensive tackles late in the first and considered trading back into the round. One of those players included Wilkerson, along with Ohio State's Cameron Heyward. The Jets also drafted a few other players the Cowboys brought in for pre-draft visits, including Hampton DT Kenrick Ellis, Louisville RB Bilal Powell and TCU's Jeremy Kerley, who worked out at Cowboys Stadium at Dallas Day.
Last Meeting:
The Cowboys and Jets were on opposite ends of the spectrum the last time they met in a lopsided Thanksgiving Day game affair at Texas Stadium in 2007. En route to an NFC-East winning 13-3 season, the Cowboys steamrolled the outmanned Jets, 34-3. It was a balanced day for the home team, led by Marion Barber's 103 rushing yards, while Jason Witten and Terrell Owens each caught a touchdown pass. Terence Newman scored on an interception return, the first of his career. Quarterbacked by Kellen Clemens, the Jets managed just nine first downs and 180 total yards of offense. The game featured brothers Julius Jones and Thomas Jones as the starting running backs.
One To Remember:
The last time the NFL had a work stoppage like this occurred in 1987, when the league used replacement players, also known as "scabs" to fill in for three games. The first game the Cowboys played with the scabs occurred in Giants Stadium against the Jets. Kevin Sweeney threw three touchdowns for the Cowboys, including two to Kelvin Edwards, who like Sweeney, stayed on the roster for the rest of that season. The Cowboys won the game, 38-24, and went 2-1 in the three weeks of replacement players.
Nick Eatman
DallasCowboys.com Staff Writer
(Editor's Note: While there may be uncertainty surrounding the NFL this offseason, the regular-season schedule remains intact. With that, DallasCowboys.com will preview each game in a 16-part series profiling the Cowboys' 2011 opponents - their offseason outlook, a projected key match-up for the game, draft news, along with the recent and overall history between the two. Today, we'll start off with Game 1 against the New York Jets.)
WHAT: Dallas Cowboys at NY Jets
WHEN: Sunday, Sept. 11, 7:20 p.m. (CT)
WHERE: New Meadowlands Stadium, East Rutherford, N.J.
SERIES: Cowboys lead series 7-2
Storylines:
• The season opener usually sells itself, but it doesn't hurt that the Cowboys will get the first Sunday night game of the season against the Jets, played at the New Meadowlands Stadium on the 10th year anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. The Cowboys can find out right off the bat how much improvement has been made from the 6-10 season of 2010 when they face a Jets squad that finished 11-5 last year and has made two straight AFC Championship Games.
• Only the season opener can trump the Ryan vs. Ryan showdown that will take place between Jets head coach Rex Ryan and Cowboys defensive coordinator Rob Ryan, who will make his Cowboys debut.
• In his first game without the interim label, head coach Jason Garrett returns to the site of his first-ever head coaching experience. Garrett led the Cowboys to a stunning upset over the Giants at New Meadowlands Stadium back on Nov. 14, just six days after Wade Phillips was fired after the Cowboys' 1-7 start to the season.
• Assuming Jets' seventh-round pick Greg McElroy Jr. makes the Jets' roster, it would pit the rookie quarterback from Alabama against the team that employs his father. Greg McElroy Sr. is currently the Cowboys' vice president of sales and marketing.
Match-Up Worth Watching:
Despite the uncertainty on the rosters right now, a few things are clear. For the Jets, cornerback Darrelle Revis will try and lock down the Cowboys' best receiver. While Miles Austin has led Dallas in receiving each of the last two years, there's a chance the Jets might enter the game thinking Dez Bryant is the team's most dangerous weapon. Currently, New York has Antonio Cromartie on the other side, but he could be a free agent. However it shakes out, the Jets have some talent at cornerback to try and slow down the Cowboys' wide receivers of Bryant, Austin and possibly Roy Williams.
Jets' Draft Review:
The Jets landed Temple defensive tackle Muhammad Wilkerson with the 30th overall pick late in the first round. In fact, the Cowboys were believed to have some interest in a pair of defensive tackles late in the first and considered trading back into the round. One of those players included Wilkerson, along with Ohio State's Cameron Heyward. The Jets also drafted a few other players the Cowboys brought in for pre-draft visits, including Hampton DT Kenrick Ellis, Louisville RB Bilal Powell and TCU's Jeremy Kerley, who worked out at Cowboys Stadium at Dallas Day.
Last Meeting:
The Cowboys and Jets were on opposite ends of the spectrum the last time they met in a lopsided Thanksgiving Day game affair at Texas Stadium in 2007. En route to an NFC-East winning 13-3 season, the Cowboys steamrolled the outmanned Jets, 34-3. It was a balanced day for the home team, led by Marion Barber's 103 rushing yards, while Jason Witten and Terrell Owens each caught a touchdown pass. Terence Newman scored on an interception return, the first of his career. Quarterbacked by Kellen Clemens, the Jets managed just nine first downs and 180 total yards of offense. The game featured brothers Julius Jones and Thomas Jones as the starting running backs.
One To Remember:
The last time the NFL had a work stoppage like this occurred in 1987, when the league used replacement players, also known as "scabs" to fill in for three games. The first game the Cowboys played with the scabs occurred in Giants Stadium against the Jets. Kevin Sweeney threw three touchdowns for the Cowboys, including two to Kelvin Edwards, who like Sweeney, stayed on the roster for the rest of that season. The Cowboys won the game, 38-24, and went 2-1 in the three weeks of replacement players.