FanNation

Don't worry about Roy

Dallas Cowboys safety Roy Williams has gone from fan favorite to most hated. So many fans are calling for him to be cut or traded. So many have already written him off. Why? Because he is a liability in coverage? Because he takes bad angles on plays? Or maybe because there has been a lack of his signature big hits? I agree, Roys game has diminished in recent years. I can't remember the last time he layed someone out, or stopped a RB benind the line of scrimmage. His confidence is shaky at best. Call me crazy, but I still believe he is the Cowboys best option at safety. I believe he has something to prove this year, and we will all see a rejuvinated Roy Williams this year. Here are 4 reasons why......

READ THIS WADE PHILLIPS!

    Ok, the Cowboys are 6-1 going into their bye week, awsome! Greg Ellis finally returned to the starting lineup, wonderful! Their #2 reciever Terry Glenn has a good shot at coming back for their next game after the bye, terrific! Anthony Henry also is looking like he may be ready to return to action against the Eagles, incredible! But why is Julius Jones still the starting running back for the Dallas Cowboys when Marion Barber is clearly the better running back?

    Don't get me wrong, I believe Julius is an exceptional running back when used in the right situations. His speed and shiftiness are more suited for toss plays and sweeps, where he can use his vision and speed to get the the edges quickly. I know you can't run on the edges all day against fast defenses, but what about throwing a screen his way, and getting him in some open space where he can use his strengths to gain yards? Instead, all I see is Julius running up the middle for minimal gains.

    On the other hand we have Marion Barber, who seems to be able to do it all. He is an incredible inside runner-probably one of the hardest runing backs to tackle. His ability to lower his shoulder and shed tackles on the outside make him very difficult for defensive backs to handle. His ability to catch out of the backfield and punish defenders in the open field makes him a threat every down. So why is Marion on the bench at the beginning of the game?

    Now some of you might say, "don't fix it if it aint broke." But this running game is "broke." It's broke because you have a backup running back with 4 less carries but 125 more yards than the starter. Barber's recieving stats are almost double of what Jones has put up so far. And with the Cowboys struggling in the first quarter these past 7 games, you almost wonder if Barber's spark could ignite the Cowboys stale 1st quarter offense. It could be my imagination, but it seems to me that opposing defenses relish the times that Barber is on the sideline. At least they won't have the unenviable task of stopping #24 on that play.

    Even though I believe Barber to be the better running back, starting him won't fix all the Cowboys run defects. Jason Garrett is going to have to start calling plays that suit Julius' running style:  more sweeps, more screens, less dives up the middle. It is going to take both Barber and Jones playing to their strengths if the Cowboys have any chance at winning their 6th Super Bowl title.   

Let's be realistic

    I will be the first to admit the better team won Sunday afternoon. The Dallas Cowboys had no answer to Tom Brady and the New England Patriots recievers. 12 penalties for 98 yards sure didn't help either. But after spotting the Patriots 14 points in the first quarter, Dallas came back to gain the lead early in the third quarter. That lead was short lived though, thanks to Tom Brady completing one of his five touchdown passes. It was all downhill from there for the Cowboys. But let's be realistic about this game. Everyone in the national media has already crowned the Patriots Superbowl champs and started to draw comparisons to some of the NFL's greatest teams. Is it just me or are we still in week 6? Don't get me wrong, The Patriots have been good, really good. But there is plenty of football to play, and since when does the best team in October always win the Superbowl, or even make it to the Superbowl? Just ask the San Diego Chargers about that one.

Rookie kicker goes balls deep

An unexpected hero emerged out of Monday nights game for the Dallas Cowboys. It certainly wasn't Tony Romo or Terrell Owens either. Nick Folk, a rookie kicker out of Arizona stole the game away from Buffalo with not one but two 53 yard kicks as time expired. It's about time the Cowboys have had some stability at the kicker position. In recent years the Cowboys kicking game has struggled at the least. After going out and spending top dollar for Vanderjag last year it seemed this trend might be turning around. But after struggling throughout preseason and the regular season Vanderjag was relseased midseason and replaced by journeyman kicker Martin Gramatica. Gramatica did a decent job for the Cowboys, but was replaced by rookie kicker Nick Folk due to an injury at the start of the season. Since then Folk has made 10 out of 11 attempts, with his only miss being blocked by the Bears in week 3. Folks most noticable kicks came this past monday night versus the Bills. After the Cowboys were unsuccessful in converting their 2 point conversion it all came down to their rookie kicker executing a perfect onside kick. After Dallas recovered thanks to WR Sam Hurd and TE Tony Curtis, it came down to Folk again, and again this rookie delivered two amazing 53 yard fieldgoals thanks to the Bills questionable last second timeout. I know it is only week six, but kickers are judged by not only the ability to make kicks, but also how they perform in clutch situations. So far this rookie has shown poise beyond his years. Only time will tell how Nick Folks career unfolds, but for a team with Superbowl asperations it sure is comforting knowing when the game is on the line Nick folk can deliver.

Romomentum stalled but not dead

Tony Romo may have had the worst night of his career this past monday night versus the Buffalo Bills, throwning 5 interceptions and fumbling once, but this guy isn't done winning games for the Dallas Cowboys. We are talking about an undrafted QB who has gone 11-4 in his first 15 starts. This is the same guy who took the cowboys to the playoffs last year before suffering that heartbreaking loss to Seattle. Many speculated Romo would not be the same after that botched field goal in Seattle, but what does he do? Romo leads the Cowboys to 4 straight wins rather impressively. Before Monday nights game Romo had thrown for 11 touchdowns and only 3 interceptions, putting up a QB rating of 112.9. After Monday's game his QB rating fell to 93.9, still not bad. His 13 touchdown passes still leads the NFC, four more than Brett Favre. These stats don't happen by accident. Romo is no stranger to bad games either. In his first game last year Romo was thrown into the spotlight after Bill Parcells pulled Drew Bledsoe at halftime. Romo went on to throw 3 interceptions, the last interception was ran back for a touchdown, sealing the game for the New York Giants. Romo came back though.  In the first start of his career Romo went on the road to Carolina to play the Panthers. Romo lead the Cowboys to 25 straight fourth quarter points to edge out the Panthers 35-14. The undrafted fourth year QB from E.Illinois went on to impress many others with 5 touchdown passes on Thanksgiving day versus Tampa Bay, and outplaying Payton Manning in Texas Stadium November 19, 2006, handing the Colts their first loss of the season. I'm not saying we should induct him into the Hall of Fame just yet, but this guy has proven he can win. Not since 1983 have the Dallas Cowboys been 5-0.  We can at least thank Tony for four of those.