sbk92
2
- Messages
- 12,134
- Reaction score
- 6
JEAN-JACQUES TAYLOR / The Dallas Morning News
jjtaylor@dallasnews.com
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. – For the first time in four games, the Cowboys played as hard as they could for as long as they could.
It’s about time.
Obviously, that’s supposed to happen each week, but anyone who’s been watching this team knows that’s not the case.
Their reward: a hard-fought 33-20 win over the New York Giants accompanied by feelings of euphoria and relief .
They deserved to celebrate after a tumultuous week that saw their string of sorry performances cost Wade Phillips his job and provide Jason Garrett with a promotion.
Since Tony Romo broke his collarbone in the second quarter against these same Giants four games ago, the Cowboys had been outscored 114-39, culminating with last week’s 45-7 debacle at Green Bay.
A team with a different mindset took the field Sunday, and left with their first win in 48 days.
Each time the Cowboys had an opportunity to quit against the Giants, they played even harder.
Lord knows we haven’t seen that this season.
No one would have raised a collective eye brow – not after what we’ve seen – if they had laid down during the long stretch with Bryan McCann and Orlando Scandrick at cornerback because Terence Newman (ankle) and Mike Jenkins (neck) were hurt.
Or when they were shuttling a couple of dudes named Jimmy Sadler-McQueen and Jeremy Clark in and out of the game because injuries have depleted their defensive line. Or when the Giants seemed poised to rally in the fourth quarter.
“One of the things we try to get our players to understand is that adversity is part of the game – it’s really part of life – and it’s certainly part of football," Garrett said. "Guys get hurt and different things happen throughout the course of a game. It’s how you respond.
“Ultimately, it’s about mental toughness. Individual mental toughness, the mental toughness of each unit, and the football team in general. All the good teams have it. All the good players have it. We gotta keep developing it. I think it was on display today.”
No doubt.
McCann displayed it in the second quarter, returning an interception 101 yards for a touchdown, giving Dallas a 16-3 lead, just two plays after Jenkins left the game.
Bradie James showed it in the fourth quarter, when he dropped Brandon Jacobs, stopping the Giants on fourth-and-one from the Dallas 42 with 10:22 left. And Alan Ball showed it in the fourth quarter, intercepting a pass at the Dallas 6 with about three minutes left.
Good things often happen when 45 guys play as hard as they can for 60 minutes. Effort never guarantees a win, but a lack of effort always results in a loss, which the Cowboys have discovered this season.
The players even made each other accountable this week.
Jason Witten yelled at rookie fullback Chris Gronkowski on the sideline after the first series. Terence Newman and Gerald Sensabaugh fussed at each other after a fourth0-quarter play, forcing the Cowboys to use a time-out.
“When you’re 1-7, you’re practicing in pads two days this week and you’ve been blown out on national TV, it can’t get any worse,” DeMarcus Ware said. “Our backs were pushed against the wall, and we decided to push back.
“We’ve been through the worst a team can go through. There was no lag today. We left it all out there.”
It was evident just like it was clear these Cowboys hadn’t played as hard as they could the past two games.
Jason Garrett deserves credit for transforming the soft culture around the club’s Valley Ranch training complex in less than a week.
The cosmetic changes such as having the players wear coats and ties when travelling and having physical practices on Wednesdays are easy to recognize. Changing this team’s mentally-fragile psyche is a lot more challenging.
Much work remains, but the new coach is off to a good start. He has this team playing hard.
jjtaylor@dallasnews.com
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. – For the first time in four games, the Cowboys played as hard as they could for as long as they could.
It’s about time.
Obviously, that’s supposed to happen each week, but anyone who’s been watching this team knows that’s not the case.
Their reward: a hard-fought 33-20 win over the New York Giants accompanied by feelings of euphoria and relief .
They deserved to celebrate after a tumultuous week that saw their string of sorry performances cost Wade Phillips his job and provide Jason Garrett with a promotion.
Since Tony Romo broke his collarbone in the second quarter against these same Giants four games ago, the Cowboys had been outscored 114-39, culminating with last week’s 45-7 debacle at Green Bay.
A team with a different mindset took the field Sunday, and left with their first win in 48 days.
Each time the Cowboys had an opportunity to quit against the Giants, they played even harder.
Lord knows we haven’t seen that this season.
No one would have raised a collective eye brow – not after what we’ve seen – if they had laid down during the long stretch with Bryan McCann and Orlando Scandrick at cornerback because Terence Newman (ankle) and Mike Jenkins (neck) were hurt.
Or when they were shuttling a couple of dudes named Jimmy Sadler-McQueen and Jeremy Clark in and out of the game because injuries have depleted their defensive line. Or when the Giants seemed poised to rally in the fourth quarter.
“One of the things we try to get our players to understand is that adversity is part of the game – it’s really part of life – and it’s certainly part of football," Garrett said. "Guys get hurt and different things happen throughout the course of a game. It’s how you respond.
“Ultimately, it’s about mental toughness. Individual mental toughness, the mental toughness of each unit, and the football team in general. All the good teams have it. All the good players have it. We gotta keep developing it. I think it was on display today.”
No doubt.
McCann displayed it in the second quarter, returning an interception 101 yards for a touchdown, giving Dallas a 16-3 lead, just two plays after Jenkins left the game.
Bradie James showed it in the fourth quarter, when he dropped Brandon Jacobs, stopping the Giants on fourth-and-one from the Dallas 42 with 10:22 left. And Alan Ball showed it in the fourth quarter, intercepting a pass at the Dallas 6 with about three minutes left.
Good things often happen when 45 guys play as hard as they can for 60 minutes. Effort never guarantees a win, but a lack of effort always results in a loss, which the Cowboys have discovered this season.
The players even made each other accountable this week.
Jason Witten yelled at rookie fullback Chris Gronkowski on the sideline after the first series. Terence Newman and Gerald Sensabaugh fussed at each other after a fourth0-quarter play, forcing the Cowboys to use a time-out.
“When you’re 1-7, you’re practicing in pads two days this week and you’ve been blown out on national TV, it can’t get any worse,” DeMarcus Ware said. “Our backs were pushed against the wall, and we decided to push back.
“We’ve been through the worst a team can go through. There was no lag today. We left it all out there.”
It was evident just like it was clear these Cowboys hadn’t played as hard as they could the past two games.
Jason Garrett deserves credit for transforming the soft culture around the club’s Valley Ranch training complex in less than a week.
The cosmetic changes such as having the players wear coats and ties when travelling and having physical practices on Wednesdays are easy to recognize. Changing this team’s mentally-fragile psyche is a lot more challenging.
Much work remains, but the new coach is off to a good start. He has this team playing hard.
