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Observations worth noting in Cowboys' win
Twitter: @MattMosley
August 12, 2011
COWBOYS MAKE THEIR 2011 DEBUT
Arlington, Texas – This may have been the most anticipated preseason game for the Dallas Cowboys in years, which isn't saying much. The lockout robbed us of breathless updates from minicamps and OTAS.
But on Thursday night, teams across the league actually took the field to run a few live plays.
If you blinked, you missed appearances from the first-team offense and defense.
In defensive coordinator Rob Ryan's debut on the sideline, the Cowboys breathed life into the Broncos' anemic running game. You've heard the rumors about Denver running back Knowshon Moreno possibly being cut, but on this night, he looked nimble in racing for 23 yards on four carries.
The Cowboys' second-team defense faced a remarkably accurate Tim Tebow, who was 6 of 7 for 91 yards. This is not a man who produces spirals on a consistent basis, but he showed a lot of poise in leading the Broncos offense.
Oh, and the Cowboys won the game, 24-23, with a stirring comeback engineered by third-string quarterback Stephen McGee.
The slimmed down version of Felix Jones was impressive
Jones broke three tackles on an 18-yard run he cut back to the left side. Then he looked extremely quick on a 16-yard screen pass. Left tackle Doug Free and rookie left guard David Arkin both made nice blocks on the play.
There's no way the out-of-shape Montrae Holland makes that block in space.
"He looked pretty solid to me," Free said of Arkin.
Jones added weight last season and he appeared to lose his burst. He shed at least six or seven pounds this offseason and looks a lot more explosive.
If Jones can stay healthy, he'll have plenty of opportunities in this offense.
This secondary is a work in progress
Rob Ryan wasn't afraid to blitz early in this game, and the Broncos took advantage of that.
Cowboys cornerback Orlando Scandrick blitzed from the slot on a third-and-6, and Kyle Orton connected with Erick Decker for 29 yards. Safety Gerald Sensabaugh didn't react quickly on the play, which led to the big gain.
In the second quarter, Tim Tebow hit Matthew Willis for a 43-yard gain. Safety Barry Church, who'd been very impressive in San Antonio, completely bit on the play-action fake and cornerback Bryan McCann couldn't handle Willis on his own.
It was the type of play that doomed this defense last season, and the Cowboys coaches had to be disappointed by Church's decision.
Even when cornerback Alan Ball picked off a Tebow pass in the first quarter, McCann was penalized for tackling a Broncos receiver.
The Cowboys should be much better at safety, but they're once again thin at the cornerback spot.
Former seventh-round pick Sean Lissemore is going to play a lot this season
Lissemore could become one of the most versatile players on defense. He played several snaps at defensive end before moving inside to nose tackle.
He and veteran Igor Olshansky worked out together during the lockout. Lissemore only weighs 305 pounds, but he did a really nice job of taking on double teams against the Broncos, allowing linebackers to make plays.
New defensive line coach Brian Baker wants his players to be more aggressive in the pass rush, and Lissemore could end up having a major impact in that process.
Rob Ryan shows inspirational video
Several players told me that Rob Ryan showed a video Thursday afternoon featuring clips of Muhammad Ali, Michael Jordan and some former Cowboys.
Ryan also gave his players some bullet points of exactly what he expected from them against the Broncos.
He made it clear he expected them to win the game.
Veteran safety Abe Elam, who played for Ryan in Cleveland, said the assistant coach almost never runs out of motivational tools.
But maybe he should've saved Ali for at least the third preseason game.
Kenwin Cummings is going to make this roster
The former Jets linebacker made a big hit on special teams early in the game and added three more tackles.
With the lack of depth at inside linebacker and Cummings' knack for big collisions, he has a great opportunity to make the final roster.
First-round pick Tyron Smith has a solid debut
Starting right tackle Tyron Smith made some mistakes Thursday, but he held up pretty well against the Broncos.
He failed to pick up the blitz in the second quarter, which led to a sack of Stephen McGee. But for the most part, he did a nice job of giving the quarterbacks time in the pocket.
Once he gets his enormously long arms on a defensive end, it's over.
As he becomes more familiar with the offense, you'll see him play a lot faster.
Sean Lee needs to slow down a little bit
One scout told me Lee's missed tackles Thursday came from trying to race to the football instead of taking his time and diagnosing plays.
The Cowboys think he'll eventually be a star player, but he was in too much of a rush against the Broncos.
Maybe Dwayne Harris can put a little pressure on Kevin Ogletree
Ogletree will likely be the third receiver by default, but sixth-round pick Dwayne Harris out of East Carolina had a big debut Thursday.
Harris did a nice job of finding a soft spot in the Broncos' zone coverage for a 26-yard catch. Then he made the play of the night by catching a short pass from McGee in the flat and racing for a 76-yard touchdown. It was obviously busted coverage by the Broncos, but Harris made them pay with his speed.
Ogletree had an up-and-down camp in San Antonio, and he's not as consistent as he needs to be. Perhaps Harris' play will light a fire underneath him.
Clifton Geathers hopes to perfect the "human forklift" move
Cowboys coaches have been very impressed with defensive end Clifton Geathers throughout this training camp.
When Victor Butler couldn't finish off Tebow, it was the 6-foot-7, 316-pound Geathers who collected the sack.
He was drafted by the Browns out of South Carolina, but didn't make the team. Ryan wanted to give him a second chance with the Cowboys.
He's the nephew of former NFL defensive tackle Jumpy Geathers and the brother of Robert Geathers, who currently plays for the Bengals.
Clifton said that Jumpy's been teaching him how to use a "rip" move to reach under a shorter offensive tackle and throw him into the quarterback. Jumpy called this the "human forklift," and he believes his nephew will one day be able to execute the move.
"I need to get a little stronger to be able to pull it off," said the younger Geathers, who demonstrated the move on a reporter. "But it could be a weapon for me."
First, Geathers needs to worry about making this roster.
Twitter: @MattMosley
August 12, 2011
COWBOYS MAKE THEIR 2011 DEBUT
Arlington, Texas – This may have been the most anticipated preseason game for the Dallas Cowboys in years, which isn't saying much. The lockout robbed us of breathless updates from minicamps and OTAS.
But on Thursday night, teams across the league actually took the field to run a few live plays.
If you blinked, you missed appearances from the first-team offense and defense.
In defensive coordinator Rob Ryan's debut on the sideline, the Cowboys breathed life into the Broncos' anemic running game. You've heard the rumors about Denver running back Knowshon Moreno possibly being cut, but on this night, he looked nimble in racing for 23 yards on four carries.
The Cowboys' second-team defense faced a remarkably accurate Tim Tebow, who was 6 of 7 for 91 yards. This is not a man who produces spirals on a consistent basis, but he showed a lot of poise in leading the Broncos offense.
Oh, and the Cowboys won the game, 24-23, with a stirring comeback engineered by third-string quarterback Stephen McGee.
The slimmed down version of Felix Jones was impressive
Jones broke three tackles on an 18-yard run he cut back to the left side. Then he looked extremely quick on a 16-yard screen pass. Left tackle Doug Free and rookie left guard David Arkin both made nice blocks on the play.
There's no way the out-of-shape Montrae Holland makes that block in space.
"He looked pretty solid to me," Free said of Arkin.
Jones added weight last season and he appeared to lose his burst. He shed at least six or seven pounds this offseason and looks a lot more explosive.
If Jones can stay healthy, he'll have plenty of opportunities in this offense.
This secondary is a work in progress
Rob Ryan wasn't afraid to blitz early in this game, and the Broncos took advantage of that.
Cowboys cornerback Orlando Scandrick blitzed from the slot on a third-and-6, and Kyle Orton connected with Erick Decker for 29 yards. Safety Gerald Sensabaugh didn't react quickly on the play, which led to the big gain.
In the second quarter, Tim Tebow hit Matthew Willis for a 43-yard gain. Safety Barry Church, who'd been very impressive in San Antonio, completely bit on the play-action fake and cornerback Bryan McCann couldn't handle Willis on his own.
It was the type of play that doomed this defense last season, and the Cowboys coaches had to be disappointed by Church's decision.
Even when cornerback Alan Ball picked off a Tebow pass in the first quarter, McCann was penalized for tackling a Broncos receiver.
The Cowboys should be much better at safety, but they're once again thin at the cornerback spot.
Former seventh-round pick Sean Lissemore is going to play a lot this season
Lissemore could become one of the most versatile players on defense. He played several snaps at defensive end before moving inside to nose tackle.
He and veteran Igor Olshansky worked out together during the lockout. Lissemore only weighs 305 pounds, but he did a really nice job of taking on double teams against the Broncos, allowing linebackers to make plays.
New defensive line coach Brian Baker wants his players to be more aggressive in the pass rush, and Lissemore could end up having a major impact in that process.
Rob Ryan shows inspirational video
Several players told me that Rob Ryan showed a video Thursday afternoon featuring clips of Muhammad Ali, Michael Jordan and some former Cowboys.
Ryan also gave his players some bullet points of exactly what he expected from them against the Broncos.
He made it clear he expected them to win the game.
Veteran safety Abe Elam, who played for Ryan in Cleveland, said the assistant coach almost never runs out of motivational tools.
But maybe he should've saved Ali for at least the third preseason game.
Kenwin Cummings is going to make this roster
The former Jets linebacker made a big hit on special teams early in the game and added three more tackles.
With the lack of depth at inside linebacker and Cummings' knack for big collisions, he has a great opportunity to make the final roster.
First-round pick Tyron Smith has a solid debut
Starting right tackle Tyron Smith made some mistakes Thursday, but he held up pretty well against the Broncos.
He failed to pick up the blitz in the second quarter, which led to a sack of Stephen McGee. But for the most part, he did a nice job of giving the quarterbacks time in the pocket.
Once he gets his enormously long arms on a defensive end, it's over.
As he becomes more familiar with the offense, you'll see him play a lot faster.
Sean Lee needs to slow down a little bit
One scout told me Lee's missed tackles Thursday came from trying to race to the football instead of taking his time and diagnosing plays.
The Cowboys think he'll eventually be a star player, but he was in too much of a rush against the Broncos.
Maybe Dwayne Harris can put a little pressure on Kevin Ogletree
Ogletree will likely be the third receiver by default, but sixth-round pick Dwayne Harris out of East Carolina had a big debut Thursday.
Harris did a nice job of finding a soft spot in the Broncos' zone coverage for a 26-yard catch. Then he made the play of the night by catching a short pass from McGee in the flat and racing for a 76-yard touchdown. It was obviously busted coverage by the Broncos, but Harris made them pay with his speed.
Ogletree had an up-and-down camp in San Antonio, and he's not as consistent as he needs to be. Perhaps Harris' play will light a fire underneath him.
Clifton Geathers hopes to perfect the "human forklift" move
Cowboys coaches have been very impressed with defensive end Clifton Geathers throughout this training camp.
When Victor Butler couldn't finish off Tebow, it was the 6-foot-7, 316-pound Geathers who collected the sack.
He was drafted by the Browns out of South Carolina, but didn't make the team. Ryan wanted to give him a second chance with the Cowboys.
He's the nephew of former NFL defensive tackle Jumpy Geathers and the brother of Robert Geathers, who currently plays for the Bengals.
Clifton said that Jumpy's been teaching him how to use a "rip" move to reach under a shorter offensive tackle and throw him into the quarterback. Jumpy called this the "human forklift," and he believes his nephew will one day be able to execute the move.
"I need to get a little stronger to be able to pull it off," said the younger Geathers, who demonstrated the move on a reporter. "But it could be a weapon for me."
First, Geathers needs to worry about making this roster.
