Tag: Zack Martin

News: Dez Bryant works out at Star, Jourdan Lewis switching numbers

The Cowboys are tops in home attendance, no rest for defensive linemen, the one trade Dallas needs most, and a new number for Jourdan Lewis.

Despite a disappointing season, the Cowboys are well-represented in a couple of best-of lists from the 2019 campaign, in terms of both players and the fans that come watch them at home. But the focus has already turned to 2020, most notably for the new coaching staff and fans trying to peg their tendencies early. One player is even shedding 2019’s bad mojo by donning a new number next season.

All that, plus forecasting the one big trade that could put Dallas over the hump, guessing where one Cowboys receiver will be playing, and wondering if another will be coming back. Here’s the News and Notes.

The top 101 players from the 2019 NFL season :: Pro Football Focus

By not being one of the twelve teams to make the 2019 postseason, the Cowboys were not in the top 37.5% of the NFL, at least according to pure mathematics. But math also says nearly five percent of the league’s best players suit up in Dallas blue and silver.

Pro Football Focus has released its list of the top 101 players from the 2019 campaign, and the Cowboys are represented by a quintet of stars. Offensive line is still considered the team’s strong suit, as guard Zack Martin ranks 35th and tackle La’el Collins misses the top 40 by one spot. DeMarcus Lawrence is the only Dallas defensive player on the countdown, at 55. Wideout Amari Cooper comes in at 64, and quarterback Dak Prescott sits at 93.

Cowboys lead 2019 attendance rankings :: @SNFonNBC (Twitter)

America’s Team, indeed. The Cowboys led the league in average home attendance over the 2019 season, putting 12,000 more butts in seats than the second-place team.

Jim Tomsula & the Cowboys’ DL rotation :: The Mothership

Great in-the-building insight from David Helman as he explores how the new defensive line coach in Dallas intends to move his chess pieces around on the field. While the personnel is obviously in flux this early in the offseason, Jim Tomsula implies that DeMarcus Lawrence and Co. should plan on fewer breathers.

Helman points out that under Rod Marinelli, Lawrence and Robert Quinn “played 65% and 68% of the defensive snaps, respectively, ceding the field to backups in key situations.”

“The goal is to have as many guys as you can playing and go. But if there’s a dropoff, then we’ve got problems,” the former 49ers staffer says of his philosophy. “That crew in San Francisco, the first couple years, there was no rotation. I told them, ‘If you tap your helmet, I’m turning my head.'”

Eagles, Bills among potential landing spots for Amari Cooper :: NFL.com

First things first. No, Cowboys fans did NOT miss the announcement of a total breakdown in talks between the team and its leading receiver, Amari Cooper. So when former pro quarterback and current network analyst David Carr puts out a list of the teams the free agent could eventually sign with, take solace in the Cowboys’ place atop the pile. Carr even admits that, “From a pure football standpoint, Cooper being in Dallas makes the most sense.”

But that headline doesn’t exactly generate a lot of clicks. So Carr theorizes about four other teams who would obviously love to swoop in and lure Cooper away if the Joneses decide to get overly thrifty with the Pro Bowler after just a season and a half.

Dez Bryant works out in Frisco, lobbies for situational role :: @DezBryant (Twitter)

Former Cowboys wideout Dez Bryant continues to tantalize fans with thoughts of a return to Dallas. On Thursday, he tweeted his willingness to not be his next team’s top option at receiver.

Then Bryant posted some practice videos… that just happened to take place at the Star in Frisco.

Training with wide receiver coach David Robinson, Bryant can be seen running routes, hauling in passes, and throwing up the X for the camera as his 2020 comeback bid continues.

2020 Draft: Identifying college spigots Mike McCarthy, Mike Nolan tap most :: Cowboys Wire

Certain franchises sometimes seem to draft from a particular school over and over. It’s hard to not believe that Jason Garrett’s staff had a stronger-than-average affinity for Boise State guys, given the number of Broncos on the roster over the years. But do new head coach Mike McCarthy and new defensive coordinator Mike Nolan have any notable go-tos when it comes to plucking college kids for the pros?

Maybe. While the list of schools they’ve most often drawn from closely mirrors the overall makeup of the league in regard to alma maters, history shows that Golden Domers may have a slight statistical edge when the 2020 Cowboys are on the clock. And fans coveting a certain safety from LSU may find some small bit of encouragement in how many Bayou Bengals McCarthy and Nolan have drafted.

The ideal offseason trade scenario for every NFL team :: Bleacher Report

Every team wants to believe they are just one roster move away from a championship. In that spirit, Brent Sobleski examines each NFL roster and theorizes the one best trade each franchise could make this offseason- either to acquire or ship off a single player- that gets them closer.

Granting the ultimate wish of many a Cowboys fan, he suggests the Cowboys trade for Jets safety Jamal Adams. While that deal fell apart in 2019 and Adams now hints that he’ll stay put in New York, it’s still possible that the Joneses pony up to bring Adams back to his native Texas and that he wears the star in 2020. Sobleski muses that it would cost the Cowboys a first- and a third-round draft pick.

Jourdan Lewis changing jersey number :: The Mothership

When the new-look Cowboys defense takes the field in 2020, cornerback Jourdan Lewis will have a new look, too.

The team website notes that No. 26 became available when safety Josh Jones was released near the end of the 2019 season.

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Zack Martin passes on Pro Bowl, undergoes ankle surgery

The 6-time Pro Bowler will watch someone else take his spot as he recovers from minor ankle surgery, according to the Cowboys.

Guard Zack Martin earned his sixth Pro Bowl trip for the 2020 all-star game, one for each year he’s been in the league. This time around, though, he’ll have to watch from the couch as someone else takes his place.

Martin underwent “minor clean-up surgery” on his ankle this week, the team says. The 29-year-old Notre Dame product was bothered at times this season by ankle and back ailments; the back issue kept him out of the majority of training camp.

But 2014’s 16th overall draft selection started every game in 2019 en route to another All-Pro nod, and has missed just two games in his stellar career. The club expects Martin to be back at full strength for the team’s offseason program.

Larry Worford of the New Orleans Saints will take Martin’s place along the NFC’s offensive line in Orlando, alongside Cowboys Tyron Smith and Travis Frederick.

Irish in the NFL: Jaylon Smith Headed to Pro Bowl

Smith had his best year as a pro as he racked up a team-high 142 tackles as well as nine pass break ups, 2.5 sacks and a pair of forced fumbles.

Perhaps its not the way he drew it up but former Notre Dame linebacker Jaylon Smith is headed to his first Pro Bowl.

Because of an injury to Panthers linebacker Luke Kuechly, Smith will represent the Dallas Cowboys on January 26 in Orlando.

It’s been a long time coming for Smith, who suffered the infamous knee injury in the 2016 Fiesta Bowl that prevented him from being a likely top-10 draft pick.

Smith had his best year as a pro as he racked up a team-high 142 tackles as well as nine pass break ups, 2.5 sacks and a pair of forced fumbles.  He also recorded his first career interception by picking off a Case Keenum pass in Week 17 against Washington.

Smith is one of now six Dallas Cowboys in the Pro Bowl.  He and wide receiver Amari Cooper who was announced to replace Mike Evans today, joins running back Ezekiel Elliott and offensive linemen Tyron Smith, Travis Frederick and Notre Dame product, Zack Martin.

Irish in the NFL: Quenton Nelson’s Historic Start

It was the second time in Nelson’s two year NFL career that the former sixth overall draft pick of the Indianapolis Colts has been named a First-Team NFL All-Pro.

The news of Quenton Nelson being named an NFL All-Pro (along with two other former Notre Dame offensive linemen) earlier Friday afternoon put him in some very rare air where only the most-elite of NFL players have gone in recent memory.

It was the second time in Nelson’s two year NFL career that the former sixth overall draft pick of the Indianapolis Colts has been named a First-Team NFL All-Pro.

Who else has ever accomplished that?

Since the AFL-NFL merger in 1971 here is the list:

Earl Campbell
Eric Dickerson
Devin Hester
Keith Jackson
Barry Sanders
Lawrence Taylor

And now add in Quenton Nelson.

That’s it.  That’s the list.

Campbell, Dickerson, Sanders and Taylor are not only in the Pro Football Hall of Fame but also regarded in the short list of best ever for the positions each played.

Hester isn’t in the Hall of Fame yet but was the greatest return man in the history of the NFL and by a wide margin.

Keith Jackson never wound up in Canton, Ohio but still had a tremendous nine year NFL career that saw him selected to five Pro Bowls and three times an All-Pro.

Nelson’s trajectory doesn’t just put him on a pace to one day make the Hall of Fame, but be one of the absolute best to ever play his position in doing so.

Perhaps he and fellow All-Pro Zack Martin (six times) will one day go in as members of the same class.

Three Notre Dame Products Named to AP NFL All-Pro First-Team

No school had more players named than the Fighting Irish, who take up three of the five spots on the First-Team offensive line, none of which come as a surprise.

The NFL announced their annual All-Pro Teams on Friday with Notre Dame being very-well represented.

How represented?

No school had more players named than the Fighting Irish, who take up three of the five spots on the First-Team offensive line, none of which come as a surprise.

Ronnie Stanley was named the left tackle after having a monster year for the Baltimore Ravens, who hold the No. 1 seed in the AFC.  It is Stanley’s first time being an All-Pro.

Joining him are guards Zack Martin of the Dallas Cowboys and Quenton Nelson of the Indianapolis Colts.

This is Martin’s sixth appearance as an All-Pro while it is the second time in two years Nelson receives the honor.

All three played at Notre Dame during Harry Hiestand’s time at the school, something we discussed earlier this week on Fighting Irish Wire.

You can find the rest of the first and second AP All-Pro teams here.

 

Zack Martin, lone Cowboys player named to either AP All-Pro team

Right Guard Zack Martin was the only Cowboys player to be selected onto 2019’s All-Pro team.

For the fourth time in six seasons, Cowboys guard Zack Martin earned first team All-Pro honors. He was the only Dallas player among this year’s selections

Martin nearly played every offensive snap for the Cowboys in 2019, continuing his elite level of play. A Pro Bowler each year he’s been in the league, Martin is an instrumental part this Dallas roster, and represents an overwhelmingly successful first-round draft pick from 2014. This fourth All-Pro selection pads his resume, and also marks the first time in Martin’s career he’s earned the award in back-to-back seasons.

The sole All-Pro selection is the fewest the Cowboys have had since 2013, when Tyron Smith was their lone representative. The teams are assembled by a panel of 50 national media members who vote on the best player at each position in a given season. Other Dallas players to receive votes this year include Smith (one), La’el Collins (one), and Travis Frederick (two). Jaylon Smith (one) was the only defensive player for the Cowboys to earn a vote,

Possible snubs include DE Robert Quinn, who earned 11.5 sacks in 14 games, and New York Jet K Brett Maher. Although Maher’s tenure in Dallas came to an unceremonious end, he is the only kicker in NFL history with more than two 62+ yard field goals in his career, and set the Cowboys franchise record for longest field goal made this season. An All-Pro vote would’ve just added to the legend.

‘We’re clicking:’ Cowboys RBs look to carry momentum into Philadelphia

Ezekiel Elliott and Tony Pollard combined for a monster game versus the Rams and hope their two-headed beast keeps rolling against Philly.

e Dallas Cowboys enjoyed their best game of the season on Sunday, thoroughly thumping the defending NFC champions from Los Angeles as they fought for their playoff lives. While highlights like Jason Witten making a one-handed grab and Tavon Austin finding himself all alone on a long touchdown pass made for fun television, it was largely a ground-based attack that propelled the team to a 44-21 win and a renewed sense of hope regarding a second straight division title.

The Cowboys ran for 263 yards against the Rams, their best effort of 2019 and highest single-game rushing total since 2017. Ezekiel Elliott logged 117 yards on 24 carries and found the end zone twice, while rookie Tony Pollard had his most productive day as a pro, racking up 131 yards on just 12 carries. The notion of the pair being a lethal double-headed backfield beast has tantalized fans ever since the club drafted the speedy Pollard out of Memphis and then cemented Elliott’s place on the team with a lucrative contract extension. Sunday felt like the first real unleashing of that monster, and it makes this Cowboys squad perhaps the scariest 7-7 team in memory as they ratchet up their ground game for a late December surge toward the postseason.

“We know how good our offensive line is,” Elliott said after Sunday’s win. “When we go out there and handle our business, when we go out there and execute, we’re hard to stop.”

“How many rushing yards did we have today? Like, 300? Close to it?” Elliott asked after the Week 15 win. “We ran the ball really well today. The O-line, I don’t know what they ate for breakfast, but they did a hell of a job and made it easy on us backs.”

Three-fifths of that offensive line- center Travis Frederick, guard Zack Martin, and tackle Tyron Smith- were just named to the 2020 Pro Bowl, along with Elliott.

“It starts up front,” quarterback Dak Prescott said in his postgame remarks Sunday. “Communicating. Those guys coming off the ball was beautiful. And then you look at the runners, the way they did. Broke tackles, made people miss. Both of those guys. That was so impressive.”

But Elliott may actually want to investigate what his line ate for breakfast last week and order it in bulk for Sunday. Up next for the group is a Philadelphia Eagles front that ranks third in the league in run defense, allowing an average of just 90.4 yards per game. They’ve given up over 100 rushing yards just four times all year. One of those instances, however, came against Dallas in their Week 7 meeting, when the Cowboys as a team rolled for 189 yards on the ground.

Now the Cowboys’ rushing attack will look to build off last Sunday’s 263-yard outing in the Philadelphia rematch that would award Dallas the NFC East crown with a victory.

“It’s great to know that a single win gets us in there, but that’s not our goal,” Elliott said. “Our goal isn’t just to make the playoffs. We want to keep this thing rolling, we want to ride this momentum.”

“Momentum is a dangerous thing,” Prescott echoed. “And it’s about getting it on our side.”

The acquisition and development of Pollard cannot be understated when reflecting on the 2019 season. The 22-year-old was selected in the fourth round of April’s draft. The speedster’s skills at returning kicks was documented, but it was hoped that he could be a potent change of pace to Elliott in the Dallas backfield, too.

Pollard’s usage has been up and down this season, but maybe he’s suddenly getting some of that momentum his quarterback mentioned. Against the Rams, Pollard logged double-digit carries for the first time since Week 3. That game saw the team rush for 235 yards as a whole, their previous top performance before this past Sunday. Granted, it’s a small sample size, but good things seem to happen when both Elliott and Pollard are heavily involved.

Prescott has definitely noticed the electrifying jolt his first-year weapon brings to the offense. He marveled of Pollard, “He’s just something else. Arm tackles and all that stuff, he’s just getting through it. He continues to make plays anytime the ball’s in his hands, and he’s a special player. Thankful we have him.”

“Seeing him just become a better player is kind of crazy,” Elliott said of Pollard. “I remember his first OTA, he was kind of a little timid and not really running as hard. We didn’t have on pads. But just to see him from there to now, it’s awesome. He’s a smart player, but also very skilled. He has a very bright future.”

For his part, the rookie has embraced the mentorship that the two-time league rushing champ has offered.

“He’s been like a big brother since I got here,” Pollard said of Elliott. “Taking me under his wing. Showing me, teaching me things that I didn’t know at first. He’s done a great job of that.”

And when both of them are ripping off hundred-yard days, it’s good to be a Cowboy: offense, defense, or otherwise.

“It’s just fun,” Pollard said of the team’s dominance on the ground on Sunday. “It just keeps the sideline excited, me and him talking… it’s just a good feeling: both guys clicking, the O-line’s clicking, the defense is rolling, special teams.”

“That’s what we’re built for. We’re built to be a balanced team,” Tyron Smith said of the Week 15 win, the first time since October 2018 that the Dallas ground game has outrushed Prescott’s passing totals. “I think the identity has always been there. It’s just, for us, doing it as a team, knowing what we’ve got to get done.”

Now they’ll have to get it done against the Eagles, a team they’ve beaten in each of their last four meetings. And they’ll have to get it done in Philly’s own house, a trip that coach Jason Garrett’s squads typically do well with.

“It’s a playoff game,” Prescott said of Sunday’s showdown. “Obviously, simple as that: it’s a playoff game. It’s a rival, it’s a team in the division, it’s a must-win game. We have to approach it as a playoff game, and that’s the way we will.”

The Cowboys’ prolific rushing attack was a revelation against the Rams in Week 15. Week 16 should prove to be more challenging, with an even tougher opponent versus the run and a divisional crown on the line.

Elliott knows what he and Pollard did last week obviously won’t count at Lincoln Financial Field, but it just might have helped give the team a good running start.

“I think we did set up some momentum. But we’ve still got a lot of work to do, got lot of work to do this season. And we’re just getting started.”

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Cowboys’ Elliott, trio of his blockers named to 2020 Pro Bowl

Ezekiel Elliott was named to his third Pro Bowl on Tuesday; he’ll be joined in Orlando by a trio of teammates all making a return trip.

He may not win his third rushing title this season, but Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott will showcase his skills as one of the best in the game at this year’s Pro Bowl. And he’ll have some familiar faces clearing a path for him.

Elliott was named to the league’s all-star game on Tuesday, along with center Travis Frederick, guard Zack Martin, and tackle Tyron Smith. They will be the Dallas representives for the NFC in Orlando on January 26, provided they don’t have a bigger game to prepare for in Miami the following week.

For Elliott, it’s his third Pro Bowl selection in four seasons as a pro. Frederick makes his fifth appearance to the Pro Bowl roster, a remarkable capping achievement to his first year back from Guillain-Barre Syndrome. Martin has been named to the Pro Bowl every single year he’s been in the league; this is his sixth selection.

Smith earns his seventh trip to the all-star affair.

As the Pro Bowl draws nearer, there is a good chance that several other Cowboys will be added to the lineup as alternates, to fill in for players who are injured or otherwise unavailable.

Notre Dame Football: Four Former Domers Headed to Pro Bowl

Finally, Ronnie Stanley who we discussed more thoroughly just a few days ago because of his truly elite pass blocking grades is headed to his first ever Pro Bowl. 

Tuesday night brought news of the 2020 Pro Bowl rosters in the NFL and as a surprise to none, Notre Dame was well-represented as four former Fighting Irish football players were named to the NFL All-Star rosters.

Perhaps the least surprising news is that three of the four players to earn a berth to the Pro Bowl make their living on the offensive line.

It’s becoming a late December tradition but Nick Martin, right guard of the Dallas Cowboys was named to his sixth straight Pro Bowl on Tuesday.  Martin has made the game each of his six years in the league.

Joining him at the guard position will be Quenton Nelson of the Indianapolis Colts. Nelson has transformed the Colts from having one of the poorest offensive line units in the league to one of the better ones and will be participating in his second Pro Bowl of his two-year NFL career.

Finally, Ronnie Stanley who we discussed more thoroughly just a few days ago because of his truly elite pass blocking grades is headed to his first ever Pro Bowl.  He is one of a record 12 Baltimore Ravens to be selected for the game, a game he very well could miss since his Ravens appear to be the best thing going in the NFL right now and could very well be getting ready for the Super Bowl on Pro Bowl Sunday.

And defensively Harrison Smith of the Minnesota Vikings is headed to the Pro Bowl for the fifth season in a row.  Smith has again been a bright spot on a Vikings team that has seen the rest of it’s secondary begin to a look a little long in the tooth this season.  Smith has picked off three opponents passes this season while forcing and recovering a couple of fumbles each as well.

The 2020 Pro Bowl will take place at Camping World Stadium in Orlando on January 26.

News: Vander Esch ‘week-to-week’, Gallup ‘No.1 receiver’, Belichick calls Dak ‘super impressive’

Previewing Sunday’s showdown between Dak Prescott and Tom Brady, outsmarting Bill Belichick, and cashing in on Dak’s pregame dance moves.

So much to discuss as Sunday’s showdown draws ever nearer. The Cowboys look like they’ll be dealing with a surprise scratch in the middle of the defense, while there’s plenty of talk about the two quarterbacks this game will feature. Everyone is trying to predict what Patriots coach Bill Belichick will or won’t do, and what the Cowboys should or shouldn’t do in this one… all while one of the player units in Dallas suggests it’s all just business as usual.

All of that, plus an early look ahead at running back contracts and unrestricted free agents for 2020, breakdowns of both the Dallas offense and defense, and the perfect holiday gift for the Cowboys fan who’s still trying to learn “How to Dak.” That’s ahead in this edition of News and Notes.

Sources: Cowboys LB Leighton Vander Esch (neck) out vs. Patriots :: ESPN

Updating Thursday night’s big news, linebacker Leighton Vander Esch is expected to miss Sunday’s matchup with New England.

“Vander Esch’s injury flared up in practice, which led to an MRI. He will have another MRI in three weeks, according to a source,” reports ESPN’s Todd Archer. Also citing sources, Archer says the second-year star is now considered “week-to-week.”

Longtime veteran Sean Lee will take over for Vander Esch as the team’s weakside linebacker. Joe Thomas is slated to move into Lee’s spot on the strong side, but he has missed two practices this week with an illness.

–TB

Brady vs. Prescott: A one-sided battle is on tap in Cowboys-Pats :: Cowboys Wire

Metrics nerds, get your popcorn ready. Travis Somers presents all kinds of graph goodness in this look at the two quarterbacks who will lead their teams against one another at Foxboro Stadium on Sunday.

Come for the visual eye candy of data plotted out on an X/Y grid and all the pretty colors; stay for the eye-opening conclusion about how the Cowboys’ young star actually compares to the most decorated passer in league history.

–TB

Belichick: Prescott is ‘Super Impressive’

Not much else to say here but watch the reverence  (second vid) the Patriots head coach has for the Cowboys QB ahead of Sunday’s matchup.

— KD

Tom Brady: I’ve disliked the Dallas Cowboys since birth :: Boston Herald

As a San Francisco kid who grew up during the 49ers’ dynasty of the 1980s and saw Dwight Clark make “The Catch” in person as a four-year-old, Tom Brady was perhaps genetically hardwired to hate America’s Team.

“I’ve really not liked the Cowboys since coming out of the womb,” the Patriots quarterback said this week.

“They’ve actually had a great, winning organization, and have got a lot of great players in their history,” Brady said. “Guys that I, just as a Niner fan, you know — you play the Cowboys and every time they’d hand it to Emmitt Smith, it’d be a 5-yard gain. And you’d pull your hair out.”

Brady is 4-0 in his playing career against Dallas.

–TB

Cowboys not changing mentality for defending champ Patriots :: The Mothership

For all the hype and hoopla surrounding Sunday’s showdown with the New England Patriots, the guys in the trenches say they’re approaching this week’s game like any other.

On the Miller Lite Cowboys Hour, offensive linemates Zack Martin and Travis Frederick dispelled any notion that they’re changing their mentality for Week 12 simply because they’ll be squaring off against the defending Super Bowl champions.

–TB

Examining what the Cowboys are up against in Bill Belichick’s singular coaching mind :: The Athletic

“Take away what they do best,” they say. Well, no one’s better at it than New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick, who has been making winning look easy for going on two decades. The Cowboys offense will present a unique challenge in Foxborough, but here’s a look at what has made things in New England so different for so long.

–TT

Should the Cowboys focus on blitzing Tom Brady? :: Blogging the Boys

The Patriots do just about everything well, but if there’s a weakness to be found, it may in Tom Brady’s performance when under duress.

Connor Livesay writes: “Heading into last week’s matchup against the Eagles, Tom Brady ranked 28th in yards per attempt (4.0), 27th in passer rating (47.9), a 4:3 TD:INT ratio, and is only completing 34% of his passes when under pressure.”

Harassing Brady will be of critical importance, but only if the Cowboys can do it without sending too many blitzers. That’s because one of Brady’s strengths is utilizing screen passes to backs James White, Rex Burkhead, and Sony Michel… and unfortunately, stopping the screen attack hasn’t been something the Dallas defense has excelled at in 2019.

–TB

Classic matchup: Dallas Cowboys’ ‘America’s Team’ vs. New England’s ‘We are all Patriots’ :: ESPN

A comparison between two of the best runs in NFL history, the Dallas team that garnered the “America’s Team” moniker and the Bill Belichick version of the New England Patriots. There’s a trip down memory lane, an NFL record that’s on the brink, and a look at the animosity that the two teams’ success has wrought over the years.

–TT

Amari Cooper confident in WR depth vs. Pats :: The Mothership

Given the Patriots knack for shutting down the thing that’s working best for their opponent, it’s fair to say that keeping wideout Amari Cooper in check will be a priority for the New England secondary. That unit “has been outstanding, ” team staff writer David Helman notes, “anchored by strong play from Stephon Gilmore and Jason McCourty, and nabbing 19 interceptions on the year.”

Cooper himself, though, thinks that strategy is a double-edged sword. “We have a lot of guys that can make plays, so if they try to take me away and just focus on me, I don’t think that’d be the wisest approach,” he said. “You saw what Gallup and Cobb did last week, going for over 100 yards. If they do try to take me away, we have other guys that can make plays.”

–TB

2 under-the-radar keys to Cowboys finding weakness in Belichick’s defense :: Cowboys Wire

Joey Ickes breaks down a favorite New England technique for negating an opponent’s primary receiver and offers a pair of strategies that Kellen Moore could use in response.

The entire article is worth the read, but one of those tactics has been screamed at the TV by every Cowboys fan out there at some point this season: let Dak Prescott use his running ability.

The second ploy involves a few names that the casual fan- and hopefully the Patriots- might not expect. And a former New England assistant confirms that this particular plan of attack hits one of Belichick’s personal bugaboos.

–TB

All the NFL running backs who could get paid in 2020, and why recent deals look like disasters :: ESPN

Ezekiel Elliott’s is among the running backs’ deals examined in this piece by ESPN’s Bill Barnwell, and the results aren’t pretty. Elliott is very good, but he hasn’t recaptured that dynamic play that he flashed throughout his rookie season when he took the league by storm. This year, the new rookie in town, Tony Pollard, has made the Cowboys more efficient when he spells Elliott. Caveat: sample size.

Elliott isn’t holding the Cowboys back by any means, but they have actually been slightly more efficient on offense with backup Tony Pollard on the field than him. Elliott has been on the field far more frequently, but the offense has generated 0.21 points of additional expected points per play with Pollard on the field and 0.17 points with Elliott in the lineup.

–TT

Decoding Kellen Moore: Explosive passes become routine as Cowboys offense transforms before our eyes :: The Athletic

A team’s record has the capacity to make the general NFL fan either overestimate or underestimate a team on that fact alone. This is certainly the case with the Dallas Cowboys, whose offense is as good as any in the league. Offensive coordinator Kellen Moore and quarterback Dak Prescott have their half of the team rolling in terms of explosive plays and third down conversion. That and more in Bob Sturm’s weekly breakdown of the offense.

–TT

The Richard Report: Cowboys defense allows Detroit a worrisome number of big plays :: The Athletic

It takes two to tango, and in Week 11 the defense failed to hold up their end of the bargain. As explosive as the offense has been, the defense let a backup quarterback match them in that regard. That kind of performance is the exact opposite of the “bend but don’t break” approach that’ s been preached for years in Dallas.

–TT

Top 50 pending NFL unrestricted free agents for 2020 :: The Athletic

The Cowboys dominate this list of upcoming free agents with five players listed on it. Two of them, Dak Prescott and Amari Cooper, are guaranteed to continue their careers in Dallas, but the others on the list have futures that are up in the air, including one of the newest members of the team.

–TT

‘How to Dak’ shirts now available :: Cowboys Pro Shop

Nobody knows how to push their brand quite like Jerry Jones. First, it was the “Zeke Who?” shirts that poked fun at the owner’s perceived slight of Ezekiel Elliott during the star running back’s holdout. Then it was the fun the team had with the black cat who appeared during the Week 9 win over the Giants, even putting him on the stadium’s video screen during player intros the following week.

Now it’s Cowboys Nation’s ongoing love affair with quarterback Dak Prescott’s pregame warmup routine.

The 100% cotton tee is available in all sizes for both men and women, and features the above graphic on the back. On the front, the Cowboys star and Prescott’s jersey number appear above the left breast. The shirt sells for $24.99.

–TB

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