Monday replay: Cowboys shut down deep threat

Let’s take a look at Monday night’s matchup in Dallas.

Defending Smith

APTerence Newman was part of a Cowboys plan to neutralize Panthers receiver Steve Smith.

If you watched the game, you noticed that the Cowboys’ defensive plan was specifically designed to take Carolina WR Steve Smith out of the game. I’m not very high on Wade Phillips’ play calling, but he got it right by playing 2-Man over the top of Smith. What this entailed was Cowboys CB Terence Newman playing a trail-man technique — protecting any inside breaking route — and playing to the safety help he had over the top of any vertical release down the field. You’ll see this throughout the rest of the season for teams such as Carolina — because when you only have one playmaker, such as Smith, 2-Man basically eliminates any down-the-field routes.

The results were in the numbers. Smith finished with 38 yards on four receptions — and I don’t know how this is going to change because outside of Smith, Carolina lacks a deep threat. The Panthers are too easy to defend right now.

Romo plays well enough

Sure, Tony Romo didn’t fill up the stat column, but if he continues to play like he did Monday night — without a turnover — this team will be competitive throughout the season. The offense has clearly changed without Terrell Owens at wide receiver, and the deep ball has been replaced by the running game. I wouldn’t call Romo a “game manager” just yet, but when he plays within the system, this team wins.

Delhomme’s night

Outside of the two-minute drill that produced a touchdown in the first half, Carolina QB Jake Delhomme was again average — even below average when the night was over. But let’s not give this guy the full responsibility for the loss. The running game has disappeared in Carolina (73 yards as a team), and when Smith is taken out of the game like we’ve already discussed, what options does Delhomme have? Mushin Muhammad? No, he’s not a deep-ball guy, no matter what he says. Muhammad is a guy who can make plays in the short-to-intermediate passing game, and he isn’t explosive off the line of scrimmage. The slant route that sealed the win for the Cowboys was an example of a receiver breaking off his route because Newman was playing inside leverage man, and Smith converted the route. It’s on both Smith and Delhomme, but like we’ve said, when he’s your only playmaker, the ball will be forced into coverage in the hope that he can make a play.

Delhomme isn’t anywhere near efficient enough for this team to win, but the collective offense isn’t either.

Witten vs. the Tampa 2

APJason Witten helped set up Dallas' running game by keeping the Carolina defense honest.

The ultimate weapon in challenging the Tampa 2 defense is the tight end position. It’s no different than the way San Fran used TE Vernon Davis on Sunday in Minnesota. There’s a void underneath the Mike backer — who is running the middle of the field — that requires the Will and Sam backer to break to the tight end and close the hole. But with any threat to the flat, they are pulled from the middle of the field, leaving a soft zone for Witten to sit down in. It’s easy, and with Witten’s ability to break tackles, it’s a high-percentage play that QB Tony Romo could rely on all night. Witten didn’t have a night of big plays, but he caught nine passes for 77 yards and helped set up the run by using what the defense gave him.

The Cowboys running game vs. the Tampa 2

No Marion Barber? No problem for the Cowboys with Felix Jones and Tashard Choice. Just as the Tampa 2 has holes in the passing game (as every defense eventual does), it’s a nightmare defending the run if your linebackers can’t make plays — because it’s only a seven-man front. I thought the Cowboys utilized the draw game with Jones very effectively, and when Choice came in, they attacked the Panthers downhill. Carolina has some work to do in the film room after the ‘Boys went for 212 yards on the ground.

Dallas and the goal line

Does anyone else feel that Cowboys offensive coordinator Jason Garrett was forcing the issue on the goal line last night with a 10-7 lead? Considering that we just talked about the 212 yards the Boys racked up on the ground, why throw two fade routes to the corner of the end zone from the 1-yard line? From my perspective, this is a case of trying to work Roy Williams into the game plan and an offensive coordinator getting greedy. Run the ball in that situation and worry about making sure everyone gets to touch the ball during practice the next week.

The Cowboys D shows up

Through the first two weeks of the season, the Dallas defense had registered zero turnovers and zero sacks — which isn’t good for a defense that’s considered a high-risk scheme. They live off of the big play, and they win or lose depending on how much pressure they can generate on the quarterback. Monday night: three turnovers and three sacks. The Dallas defense will have to play like this to compete in NFC East games.

Carolina tackling

Even with the deficiencies we’ve already talked about with the Tampa 2 defense against the Cowboys’ game plan, if Carolina tackles better, it’s in position to win this game. When they go back and watch the film today, the defense will see how many times they could have gotten off the field on third down by making tackles in the open field. Missing tackles at this level loses games.

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