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Looking Ahead
Rob Phillips
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 preview Game 2 against the San Francisco 49ers.)
WHAT: Dallas Cowboys at San Francisco 49ers
WHEN: Sunday, Sept. 18, 3:05 p.m. (CT)
WHERE: Candlestick Park, San Francisco, Calif.
SERIES: 49ers lead series, 16-15-1
Storylines:
•Battle of first-year head coaches. San Francisco's Jim Harbaugh is running his first NFL team following a highly successful stint at Stanford. Jason Garrett's transition is a bit easier, having coached the Cowboys on an interim basis for eight games last season. Both coaches will run their respective offenses, but both are installing new defensive coordinators: Rob Ryan in Dallas and Vic Fangio in San Francisco. Fangio interviewed with Garrett before deciding to follow Harbaugh from Stanford.
•Special history. Like Patriots-Colts today, the league's preeminent rivalry in the 1990s was Cowboys-49ers. Going further back, who could forget "The Catch" in 1981? Cowboys fans try. What about way back to 1970 and 1971, when Dallas beat San Francisco twice to reach two straight Super Bowls? From Montana, Young and Rice to Aikman, Smith and Irvin, these games featured some of the best players and teams the league has ever seen. Unfortunately, the 49ers have made the playoffs only twice since 1998 and the Cowboys just recently snapped a 13-year postseason victory drought.
•Crabtree vs. his hometown team. The Dallas native and Carter High star hasn't met his first-round expectations yet, catching 103 passes for 1,366 yards and eight touchdowns in his first 27 NFL games, but he should be a tough cover for the Cowboys' secondary.
•Who's their QB? Never a necessary question in the '80s and '90s, the 49ers now have uncertainty at the most important position. Alex Smith? Second-round rookie Colin Kaepernick? The answer probably won't come until sometime in preseason. Meantime, the Cowboys will happily get Tony Romo back from last year's season-ending shoulder injury.
Match-Up Worth Watching:
Defending Vernon Davis. Inconsistent early in his career, Davis has become one of the league's most dynamic tight ends, and the highest-paid at his position. Davis has scored 20 touchdowns over the past two seasons, and he averaged 16.3 yards per catch in 2010. He's trouble for linebackers and safeties, and the Cowboys' coverage problems last season are well documented.
49ers' Draft Review:
San Francisco had 10 total selections, including Missouri pass rusher Aldon Smith at No. 7 overall. Smith will transition to outside linebacker in the 49ers' 3-4 scheme, which tied for 14th in sacks last year (36). Kaepernick might not be ready to start by Week 2, but the 49ers clearly view him as their future starting quarterback. His arm strength and mobility made him a coveted Round 2 selection. Fourth-round running back Kendall Hunter might be tiny, but he made a big impression at the Senior Bowl and could eventually settle in as Frank Gore's backup.
Last Meeting:
In 2008, the Cowboys won easily, 35-22, at Texas Stadium thanks to a prominent former Niner. Terrell Owens, who vented about his lack of involvement in Garrett's offense during an NFL Network interview earlier that week, exploded for seven catches, 213 yards and a touchdown - easily his most productive game of the season and the second-highest yardage total of his career (283 yards vs. Chicago, 2000). It marked only the seventh 200-yard receiving game in team history. In his second game back from a fractured right finger, Romo completed 23 of 39 passes for a season-high 341 yards and three touchdowns. The defense held San Francisco to 150 total yards after the first quarter, and Dallas scored 14 points off a blocked-punt-turned-safety and four Nick Folk field goals.
One To Remember:
So many to choose from. Although the 49ers would win the third of three straight NFC title games in 1994, the Cowboys' 1992 conference championship signaled a changing of the guard. The Cowboys upset the elder, more accomplished 49ers, 30-20, to reach their first Super Bowl since 1978 - the start of three titles in four years. Troy Aikman led the way with 322 passing yards and two touchdowns, and Emmitt Smith added 114 rushing yards and a touchdown at Candlestick Park.
Rob Phillips
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 preview Game 2 against the San Francisco 49ers.)
WHAT: Dallas Cowboys at San Francisco 49ers
WHEN: Sunday, Sept. 18, 3:05 p.m. (CT)
WHERE: Candlestick Park, San Francisco, Calif.
SERIES: 49ers lead series, 16-15-1
Storylines:
•Battle of first-year head coaches. San Francisco's Jim Harbaugh is running his first NFL team following a highly successful stint at Stanford. Jason Garrett's transition is a bit easier, having coached the Cowboys on an interim basis for eight games last season. Both coaches will run their respective offenses, but both are installing new defensive coordinators: Rob Ryan in Dallas and Vic Fangio in San Francisco. Fangio interviewed with Garrett before deciding to follow Harbaugh from Stanford.
•Special history. Like Patriots-Colts today, the league's preeminent rivalry in the 1990s was Cowboys-49ers. Going further back, who could forget "The Catch" in 1981? Cowboys fans try. What about way back to 1970 and 1971, when Dallas beat San Francisco twice to reach two straight Super Bowls? From Montana, Young and Rice to Aikman, Smith and Irvin, these games featured some of the best players and teams the league has ever seen. Unfortunately, the 49ers have made the playoffs only twice since 1998 and the Cowboys just recently snapped a 13-year postseason victory drought.
•Crabtree vs. his hometown team. The Dallas native and Carter High star hasn't met his first-round expectations yet, catching 103 passes for 1,366 yards and eight touchdowns in his first 27 NFL games, but he should be a tough cover for the Cowboys' secondary.
•Who's their QB? Never a necessary question in the '80s and '90s, the 49ers now have uncertainty at the most important position. Alex Smith? Second-round rookie Colin Kaepernick? The answer probably won't come until sometime in preseason. Meantime, the Cowboys will happily get Tony Romo back from last year's season-ending shoulder injury.
Match-Up Worth Watching:
Defending Vernon Davis. Inconsistent early in his career, Davis has become one of the league's most dynamic tight ends, and the highest-paid at his position. Davis has scored 20 touchdowns over the past two seasons, and he averaged 16.3 yards per catch in 2010. He's trouble for linebackers and safeties, and the Cowboys' coverage problems last season are well documented.
49ers' Draft Review:
San Francisco had 10 total selections, including Missouri pass rusher Aldon Smith at No. 7 overall. Smith will transition to outside linebacker in the 49ers' 3-4 scheme, which tied for 14th in sacks last year (36). Kaepernick might not be ready to start by Week 2, but the 49ers clearly view him as their future starting quarterback. His arm strength and mobility made him a coveted Round 2 selection. Fourth-round running back Kendall Hunter might be tiny, but he made a big impression at the Senior Bowl and could eventually settle in as Frank Gore's backup.
Last Meeting:
In 2008, the Cowboys won easily, 35-22, at Texas Stadium thanks to a prominent former Niner. Terrell Owens, who vented about his lack of involvement in Garrett's offense during an NFL Network interview earlier that week, exploded for seven catches, 213 yards and a touchdown - easily his most productive game of the season and the second-highest yardage total of his career (283 yards vs. Chicago, 2000). It marked only the seventh 200-yard receiving game in team history. In his second game back from a fractured right finger, Romo completed 23 of 39 passes for a season-high 341 yards and three touchdowns. The defense held San Francisco to 150 total yards after the first quarter, and Dallas scored 14 points off a blocked-punt-turned-safety and four Nick Folk field goals.
One To Remember:
So many to choose from. Although the 49ers would win the third of three straight NFC title games in 1994, the Cowboys' 1992 conference championship signaled a changing of the guard. The Cowboys upset the elder, more accomplished 49ers, 30-20, to reach their first Super Bowl since 1978 - the start of three titles in four years. Troy Aikman led the way with 322 passing yards and two touchdowns, and Emmitt Smith added 114 rushing yards and a touchdown at Candlestick Park.