Ezekiel Elliott and three of his blockers may have been named to the 2020 Pro Bowl already, but the Cowboys still have plenty of business to attend to in the 2019 season. In fact, the team is still adding to their roster for the final two games and what they hope will be a strong postseason push.
Focus is starting to shift to this weekend’s showdown with the Eagles, but fans and media alike are still soaking in the decisive win last weekend against the Rams. As always, owner Jerry Jones had things to say, this time about Sean Payton and Troy Aikman and the hypothetical roles some are eyeing them for in Dallas. All that, plus sounds from the sideline and a peek inside the booth with Tony Romo. Here’s all the News and Notes.
Jerry Jones dispels Sean Payton rumors :: 105.3 The Fan
New Orleans Saints head coach Sean Payton used to be the offensive coordinator for the Dallas Cowboys under Bill Parcells. He’s also been extraordinarily successful in his current role as head coach of the New Orleans Saints. Even still, he’s long been rumored to be the apple of owner Jerry Jones’s eye. But on the record, Jones says there’s no fire coming from all that smoke.
–TT
Jones had plenty more to say about the hypothetical future of the Dallas franchise, this time about former playcaller Troy Aikman. In his current job as lead analyst for FOX Sports, Aikman has been critical of his former employer and the power structure that he intimated has hampered the team’s success since he retired after the 2000 season.
“He emptied the bucket just like I did to become a Cowboy,” Jones said on 105.3, as quoted in an exclusive recap by Mike Fisher. “I would wager that if he (’emptied the bucket’) to buy the team, he would do it exactly like I do it. I would wager that.”
Fisher points out that he believes Jones is referring to how involved Aikman would be as a team owner, not suggesting his style would be the same as Jones’s own.
Aikman has made no secret of his interest in perhaps one day being in a team’s front office. But he does not believe that opportunity will be in Dallas.
“I just don’t think Jerry Jones will bring in anyone that will serve in a role such as the one I would prefer,” Aikman has said.
–TB
Linebacker Malcolm Smith may not exactly be a household name, but he is a known commodity to Cowboys passing game coordinator Kris Richard. Oh, and he’s a Super Bowl MVP. The former Seahawk was signed by Dallas on Tuesday, adding sorely-needed depth to a linebacker corps that is suddenly without Leighton Vander Esch, Joe Thomas, and rookie sensation Luke Gifford.
Smith has spent time recently with New Orleans and Jacksonville, but saw little to no action with those clubs. The 30-year-old had the game of his life in Super Bowl XLVIII, notching 10 combined tackles (six solo), deflecting a pass, recovering a fumble, and returning an interception for a touchdown in the Seattle’s 43-8 victory over Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos.
–TB
Bill Parcells liked to profess, “You are what your record says you are.” To a certain extent, that’s true. But football is largely random. It’s the smallest sample size of any major sport. The ball is a weird shape and bounces funny. So while a team’s record is what determines their lot in life, there are far better predictors out there, one of which is EPA. In this metric, the 7-7 Cowboys are currently a top-five team and rank No. 2 offensively. That may not make fans feel any better, but it should. If Dallas is able to take the NFC East, they can be as formidable as anyone in the playoffs.
–TT
The Cowboys have lacked the kind of sideline juice that defines many success stories in the NFL. A year ago, wide receiver Amari Cooper provided exactly that. On Sunday against the Los Angeles, it was provided by seasoned veterans: linebacker Sean Lee and tight end Jason Witten. Lee chose to return to the Cowboys on a modified deal, eschewing more money and a chance at a starting job elsewhere to stay with the team that drafted him. Witten bounced back to Dallas after a dalliance with Monday Night Football. For one day at least, the two veterans provided the kind of boost the Cowboys sorely needed.
–TT
Ask Eagles defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz how he plans to slow down the Cowboys’ top-rated offensive attack on Sunday, and he’ll point to some of the usual things that all coaches harp on: stopping the run, playing clean football, defending well in the red zone, and winning third down battles.
But Schwartz is particularly worried about pursuit, an issue he says is different from poor tackling.
“When you’re pursuing well as a team, you don’t notice missed tackles,” he offered.
His unit let Adrian Peterson run away from them several times last week versus Washington. This week, they’ll be chasing guys like Dallas running back Ezekiel Elliott.
“He’s a strong, contact runner. We’re going to have to put a lot of hats on him,” Schwartz said. “It’s not going to be one-on-one tackling.”
–TB
The shrouds of mystery surrounding injuries to players on the Dallas Cowboys isn’t a new thing. Often, it seems both the organization and players are willing to forego immediate surgery in hopes that short-term rehabilitation can get the player back on the field. This offseason, Tyrone Crawford opted for the rehab route, which ultimately may have cost him the majority of the 2019 campaign.
–TT
Cowboys beat a winning team :: FOX Sports
If you can’t find humor in what’s been a disappointing season, then perhaps an evaluation of priorities are in order. The Cowboys finally got a win over a team with a record over .500 and, of course, that’s cause for celebration. Headphones are required for the video below.
–TT
Sounds from the Sideline :: The Mothership
It’s always more fun to listen to players on the sideline during a victory than it is during defeat. This is no exception. It’s rare to actually learn much from these videos, but there’s one new fact that all Cowboys fans will learn: what linebacker Sean Lee really has in his water bottle during games. After his eye-popping performance Sunday, maybe the entire team should follow his lead.
–TT
In an insightful peek behind the curtain, Richard Deitsch embedded with the A-team of CBS Sports during Week 14’s Chiefs-Patriots clash. Among the juicy tidbits for Tony Romo fans to savor? His hotel routine on gameday mornings, his drink of choice while calling the game of the week, and his pregame vocal warmups that include singing along (loudly) to a playlist featuring Lady Gaga, Bruce Springsteen, and U2. If Romo can hit Bono’s high notes in ‘Red Hill Mining Town,’ the former Cowboys quarterback knows he’s ready to take the mic for kickoff.
The article details the nuts and bolts of how the broadcast comes together and also touches on Romo’s future with the network. His contract expires at the end of this season, but his friend Jim Nantz hopes their partnership in the booth goes on for a long while.
“If we could get 15 years,” Nantz says, “that would be a career goal for me. That would cover five or six Super Bowls in that span. I am 60 and Tony is not even 40 yet. He turns 40 in April. He’s like three years younger than Tom Brady! At that point, I would be 75. How I would love to be able to play this out for a generation of games together.”
–TB
[vertical-gallery id=636536][vertical-gallery id=636168][lawrence-newsletter]
