Recapping Week 15: The NFC Playoff Picture and Why the Redskins Will Win the East

The NFC at this point is a bit more wide open than the AFC. Three of the four divisions in the AFC have already been spoken for, and one more is on the verge of being claimed as early as this weekend.

The NFC is a different story, with just half of the playoff spots being taken after 15 weeks and only two division titles have been claimed.

In the South, Atlanta already had the division down a couple of weeks ago but are now just one win away (possibly this coming Saturday against Detroit?) from claiming the top seed in the NFC. A convincing 24-0 shutout of the contending New York Giants (8-6) has shown that Matt Ryan's Falcons are still the team to beat in the conference and are two wins ahead of the next team in line, San Francisco (10-3-1).

Here are the headlines from this past weekend in the NFC...

Packers Fend off Bears for NFC North Title; Chicago and Minnesota jockey for playoff spot

At 10-4, Aaron Rodgers and his Packers have taken home the division title for the second consecutive season. With games against Tennessee and Minnesota still left on the schedule, it's possible that the Pack could beat out the Niners for the second seed and a first round bye if the Niners lose to both the Seahawks and Cardinals.

The Bears have hit a sudden wall and, after starting the season at 7-1 and one of the top contenders in the conference, have fallen in 5 of its last 6 games. Now on the outside looking in on the NFC postseason (Chicago and Minnesota are both 8-6, but Vikings hold tiebreaker), the Bears are in dire need of a couple of victories. In order to have a shot, the Bears will need to win both remaining games on the schedule (Detroit and Arizona) and hope the Vikings do not win out.

That will be tough, however, as Adrian Peterson has put the Vikings on his back and carried them to victories despite an underachieving quarterback in Christian Ponder and losing wideout Percy Harvin for the remainder of the season. The Texans and Packers will be seeing a heavy dose of Peterson over the final two weeks and will need to hold him to under 294 yards if they would like to keep him from breaking the single-season rushing record (set by Eric Dickerson in 1984). I'll be looking closer into Peterson's record-breaking chase sometime in the next day or so.

49ers @ Seahawks: Week 16 Game to Watch

Lucky for us, the primetime Sunday night game this weekend will be between the two teams duking it out for the NFC West title. Normally the chase for the Western division title in the NFC is a pretty bland battle, with the winner finishing around 9-7, 10-6. But this year we've seen two young quarterbacks take over the reins and dazzle opponents, making for an unusual exciting finish out West.

Second-year quarterback Colin Kaepernick took over for the concussed Alex Smith in San Fran, and hasn't looked back since. In his first five professional starts, the 25-year old Kaepernick has posted a 4-1 record with 7 TDs, 2 INTs and over 1,200 yards. He's pulled off victories against teams such as Chicago, New Orleans and, most recently, the 10-win Patriots on Sunday night, putting up 41 points against one of the AFC's best teams.

The rookie signal caller in Seattle, Russell Wilson, has established himself as the Seahawks' future and is a dark horse candidate for Offensive Rookie of the Year this season. Carrying Pete Carroll's 'Hawks to a 9-5 record, Wilson has a shot at once again silencing his critics on Sunday night if he can pull off a victory over the Niners. If the Seahawks win on Sunday, they can clinch a playoff spot. Even if they lose, they can still clinch if the Bears, Vikings and Redskins all lose.

Washington, Dallas Victories, Giants loss means a 3-way tie in East

Did I not tell you this would happen? I believe I did a couple of weeks ago. The "Giant" collapse in New York continued with a 24-0 shutout against the Falcons. Their fourth loss over the last six weeks puts them near the bottom of the list of "in the hunt" teams, at No. 9, while the second Redskins' rookie signal caller came out a victor in his first career start. Dallas' Tony Romo kept his 'Boys in the hunt with a 27-24 overtime victory over Big Ben's Steelers, but it will be Washington that ends up coming out a winner.

The Giants will get a Baltimore team sitting on a 3-game losing streak this Sunday, but with Ray Lewis expected to return I can see the Baltimore defense coming into the game hungry. Very hungry. Another Giants loss and the Cowboys facing the Saints, I believe it will be the Skins who pull out ahead in Week 16, defeating the Eagles in Robert Griffin III's return to action.

At 9-6, it will come down to a Cowboys/Redskins grudge match at Fedex Field in Week 17, a match-up in which the Skins will win, completing the season sweep and wrapping up the NFC East. It's a tough pill to swallow for the Giants, likely finishing out the second half of the season with a 3-5 record and completing 2012 with a 9-7 record. But Eli Manning's inconsistency has held back a team that very easily could be at 10-11 wins right now.

NFC Playoff Scenarios

*Falcons clinch first round bye and No. 1 seed with a win. Can clinch first round bye with a win OR a loss by Green Bay OR a loss by San Francisco.
*49ers clinch NFC West with a win over Seattle. Can clinch first round bye with a win AND the Packers lose.
*Seahawks can clinch a playoff spot with a win over San Francisco.
*Redskins can clinch a playoff spot with a win over Philadelphia AND losses by Giants, Bears and Vikings.
*Giants can clinch a playoff spot with a win over Baltimore AND losses by Redskins, Cowboys, Bears and Vikings.

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Thanksgiving Day Recap: What Have we Learned?

Unfortunately I was unable to post a preview of the three Turkey day games (happy belated Thanksgiving, by the way!). But I happened to go 3-0 on the day in terms of picking the games, so that's a positive––check out the "picks" tab if you don't believe me.

Thanks to some interesting football games, there is plenty that Thanksgiving day taught us and there's so much to take away from what we witnessed. Here's a start:

Parity, Parity, Parity

The 12:30 pm ET game between Houston and Detroit has proven even further that the National Football League is full of parity this season. This has made it extra tough to pick out a true No. 1 team in the league.

Early on, the Houston Texans were without a doubt the clear No. 1 team coming out of the AFC. Starting the season 5-0 and not allowing a team to put up any more than 25 points, Houston appeared to be on its way to an easy division title. They have continued to pull away with victories and are 10-1 on the season, but injuries to the defensive squad (Brian Cushing has been out for the season since Week 5; Johnathan Joseph missed Thursday's game due to hamstring injury) have exposed them.

The Texans' lone loss came at home against the Packers, a game in which Houston 427 yards and 42 points. The last two weeks, including Thursday, resulted in two overtime victories––43-37 over Jacksonville and 34-31 over Detroit––but very easily could have put Houston at 8-3 and just two games ahead of the Indianapolis Colts in the AFC South.

Despite being the first team in the league to reach 10 wins, the Texans' defense has been exposed and could be in trouble when they get around to preparing for the 8-3, high-flying offense of the New England Patriots on Monday night, December 10. Keep your eye on the AFC South over these last 5 weeks of the season, especially considering Houston still has three division games remaining.

Ndamukong Suh has yet to change his style of play

I'm not saying whether or not it was on purpose, but the fact that it was Ndamukong Suh who happened to be the Detroit Lion defensive lineman that kicked Houston's quarterback Matt Schaub in the family jewels on Thursday seems a little fishy to me.

It appeared to be an accident, in my opinion, but the league has decided to review the play and decide whether it warrants a fine or not. If you're going to suspend Ed Reed for three safety rules violations over three seasons (though the 1-game suspension was reduced to a $50,000 fine), then why not suspend Suh for a game if the commish finds this to be a dirty play?

I'm just throwing ideas out there. It's one thing to play until you hear the whistle and play aggressively, but I would consider Suh's actions over-aggressive and unneeded. Suh, 25, is now in his 3rd NFL season and, as of last December, had been flagged for 9 personal fouls for his over-aggressive style of play and exactly one year ago today (on Thanksgiving vs. Packers) Suh stomped on Green Bay's offensive lineman Evan Dietrich-Smith. He was suspended two games for the act.

In his first year and a half in the league he had been fined a total of $42,500 by the league. To top it all off, the a players' poll conducted by The Sporting News revealed Suh to be the league's dirtiest player. After 2+ seasons of this, he has clearly yet to change his attitude. At this point, I don't think he will ever change. It makes for interesting football, that's for sure.

NFC East will come down to the wire: Does Dallas still have a shot at the playoffs?

A 28-3 halftime lead for the Skins seemingly put the game away for Washington, until Dallas' Tony Romo came out in the 2nd half and put up 28 points. The deficit, however, was too large for the Cowboys, who ran for just 35 yards on the day. The Washington victory tied them with Dallas for second in the NFC East at 5-6.

Robert Griffin III continues to impress for the Skins, and is in the heart of the Offensive Rookie of the Year award. But with three more divisional match-ups and a tough game in Baltimore remaining on its schedule, the road to a postseason appearance looks to be rocky.

Clearly the East is still up for grabs as they are both just a half game behind the 6-4 Giants, but at this point the Cowboys, surprisingly, look to have the best shot at capturing the East. Despite the loss to Washington at home, the 'Boys have the easiest remaining schedule (vs. Philly, @ Cincy, vs. Pitt, vs. NO, @ Wash.). Philadelphia, Cincinnati and Washington are all win-able games for Dallas if their offense shows up and, depending on whether Pittsburgh has Ben Roethlisberger or not, they can compete with both the Steelers and Saints.

As for the Giants, they are already on a two game losing streak prior to the Week 11 bye and they still have a tough road ahead of them: vs. Green Bay (primetime), @ Washington (primetime), vs. New Orleans, @ Atlanta, @ Baltimore, vs. Philadelphia.

But, these are the Giants, you can never count them out of it in December. Not to mention the Cowboys and Skins have both been somewhat inconsistent this season. So this is clearly anyone's division, even the 3-7 Eagles have a slim shot at turning things around (doubtful). But my money is on the Cowboys getting things together down the stretch.

The Patriots once again have the scariest offense in NFL; Jets are done

I was expecting a rout of the Jets, but not on the defensive side of the ball. In New England's 49-19 embarrassment of the New York Jets on Thanksgiving night, New England put up 14 points on defensive touchdowns while forcing a season-high 5 turnovers and sacking Mark Sanchez twice.

Tom Brady and the offense put up staggering numbers too, of course, against New York's 14th-ranked scoring defense. The offense's 323 passing yards, 3 TDs and 152 rushing yards, 2 TDs was enough for a 30-point victory over the division rival. With 407 points in 11 games is an NFL-best, with the 2nd-ranked Texans putting up only 327 on the season.

The Patriots will get the chance to insert its dominance of the AFC in two weeks when they take on 10-1 Houston in primetime on Monday night. It will once again be up to the defense to step it up and make plays if they wish to make a Super Bowl run down the stretch. The offense is right where it's been for years.

As for the now-4-7 Jets, they've gone so far as to embarrass the infamous fan "Fireman Ed" so much that he left the game at halftime and deleted his Twitter account, according to ESPN. Wow, is the only word that can clearly describe the Jets' current state. Fans have been calling for Tim Tebow to take over the starting role, but Mark Sanchez isn't anywhere near the only problem with New York's squad.

My suggestion to New York: clean house after the season. Rex Ryan has had his chance and hasn't gotten the job done. I think it's time for a huge change within the Jets' organization and it all starts with Ryan.

Week 12 action is sure to reveal many more lessons:

*How will rookie signal caller Andrew Luck react to last week's beating. If he is able to bounce back against the Bills, he can savor his chances of winning OROY and stay in the hunt for Wild Card.

*Is starting Chad Henne going to save the rest of the Jags' season?

*Can Pittsburgh win with Charlie Batch under center, and what impact will the Plaxico Burress signing have?

*After last week's loss to San Fran's Colin Kaepernick, can Chicago's defense bounce back against the league's leading rusher (Adrian Peterson)?

*Is Tampa a contender coming out of the NFC South? They will get their shot at proving they belong with a chance to upset the 9-1 Falcons.

*49ers @ Saints: Rematch of last year's NFC Divisional showdown.

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Baltimore's Narrow Victory over Dallas Comes with a Huge Price

Despite allowing the now 2-3 Dallas Cowboys to posses the ball for 40 minutes and running the ball for 227 yards and a touchdown, the Baltimore Ravens captured a 31-29 victory on Sunday afternoon and improved to 5-1.

The victory, coming after Dallas kicker Dan Bailey missed a late 51-yard field goal, was Baltimore's 15th consecutive win in front of the home crowd at M&T Bank Stadium. Heading in to the matchup, Baltimore's already banged up defensive unit was ranked 22nd against the run (No. 8 overall).

After allowing 481 yards and 30 first downs against Tony Romo's offense, more importantly the 5.4 yards per carry average on 42 rushing attempts, Baltimore's struggles have been put on full blast.

Baltimore's apparent defensive weakness, Dez Bryant's three drops (leads league) and Jacoby Jones' 108-yard kickoff return for a touchdown (tied for longest of all-time) was all overshadowed by three key injuries that could have a huge impact on how the remainder of the season plays out.

We'll know more on the extent of the injuries by the time Monday afternoon rolls around, but it's sure not looking good. Baltimore cornerback Lardarius Webb went down with a right knee injury, and it has been speculated that he has torn his ACL. A torn ACL would likely mean season-ending knee surgery.

The captain and the heart and soul of the Baltimore defense, linebacker Ray Lewis, left the game with an apparent triceps injury.

Neither returned to the game after suffering their respective injuries, and head coach John Harbaugh already stated that he expects Webb to be out for the remainder of the season. It almost seems inevitable for him at this point. As for Lewis, Harbaugh and the team have speculated that he has suffered a torn triceps.

While a torn triceps may not exactly end Lewis' 2012 season, it would at the very least keep him out a couple of months.

Nose tackle Haloti Ngata, while he finished the game, was said to have suffered a sprained knee during the matchup as well. He entered the game with an ailing shoulder but, after suffering the knee sprain, was shown favoring his left leg a little more than his right leg in between plays.

I wouldn't expect Ngata's knee injury to hold him back too much and we wont know all the gory details of the extent of Webb and Lewis' injuries until they undergo their scheduled MRIs on Monday.

Either way, Baltimore should be concerned after narrowly escaping Dallas––you can thank a couple of key dropped passes and 13 penalties on Dallas' part––and allowing teams to put up 200 rushing yards in back-to-back weeks for the first time in franchise history.

All Pro linebacker Terrell Suggs (achilles) isn't even expected to return to action until at least after the team's Week 8 bye. With the 5-1 Houston Texans playing host to Baltimore next weekend and 3+ playmaking defenders expected to be out of the lineup, Baltimore will need Joe Flacco's no-huddle offense to be in tip-top shape.

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Season Opener is here: Cowboys vs. Giants Preview

The day we've all been waiting for has finally arrived, the 2012 NFL season opener. The defending Super Bowl champion New York Giants will host its fierce NFC East rivals in the Dallas Cowboys. Perfect matchup to kick the season off with.

Yes, I know I know. I have yet to post my final season preview (decked out with division outlooks, playoff/SB predictions and regular season awards, etc.), but I can assure you those will be on the way tomorrow. Unfortunately I've been a bit caught up with the second week of classes, but thanks to just one morning class tomorrow I will have all Thursday afternoon to touch up my final predictions and post them.

But for now, I'll give you a full preview of tonight's matchup, which is set to kick-off at 8:30 pm ET on NBC. Pre-game coverage includes Football Night in America and musical performances by Mariah Carey and No Doubt.

Eli vs. Romo

New York's Manning backed up his 2011 offseason "elite" talk by capturing his second Super Bowl championship in the last four seasons, both against the New England Patriots. His postseason success, in my opinion, has allowed him to surpass his older brother Peyton in that category. For now, anyways.

Romo, on the other hand, is looking at what I would think as a "do or die" season. Romo has had great regular season success and is, in fact, currently second on the all-time passer rating list (96.9) just behind none other than the reigning MVP Aaron Rodgers.

There's no doubt (ha, get it?!) that Romo's regular season success has been there–47-30 record as starter–but in the postseason Romo is a different quarterback. And not in a good way. He's taken Dallas to the playoffs on three separate occasions, but has posted a 1-3 record and, due to not coming up in the clutch, Romo has been labeled by some as an overrated quarterback.

I think Romo is a great quarterback, and I can back that up, but he will need to prove it by taking the 'Boys back to the postseason and stepping his game up a couple of levels this season.

Recently Manning has owned Romo and his Cowboys, winning both division match-ups late last season and he has the targets to continue that streak again tonight.

Defense

Both sides have playmakers (Ware in Dallas; Tuck, JPP and Umenyiora in New York), but New York's front seven, which appears to be fully healthy, will be putting the pressure on Tony tonight. If they can shut down DeMarco Murray early it will force Romo to make some big plays and turn the 'Boys one-dimensional, which they appeared to be for most of last season anyways.

Coaching

Tom Coughlin has demonstrated his ability to keep a squad together in two of the last four seasons, keeping a struggling Giants franchise together for a full 17 weeks, plus postseason. I'd take the proven, experienced Coughlin over the inexperienced Jason Garrett (13-11 coaching record in two seasons at the helm for Dallas) any day of the week.

Fantasy Update

Who to start:

Eli Manning--if he's your primary quarterback, of course. If he's your backup, clearly you should keep him on your bench if you have a top five guy such as Brady, Rodgers or Brees. Duh.

Tony Romo--whether Dallas wins or loses (I'm expecting a NYG victory), Romo will rack up some points. New York's front seven will undoubtably knock him on his backside five to six times (at least), but the yards and a couple of touchdowns will still be there.

Victor Cruz--Cruz will be just fine. For those wondering if he'll have an off year just because he's coming off his break-out season, you're only going to end up looking silly. Of all the Giants players, I feel as though Cruz is most excited for 2012.

Dez Bryant/Miles Austin--Romo's numbers will be there, meaning his two top targets in Austin and Bryant will have big nights. I'm not completely sold on Bryant this season yet, and they are both listed as probable for tonight. But I don't expect them to be effected by their respective injuries, and we could see both as 100-yard receivers tonight with a TD catch each.

Who to sit:

Ahmad Bradshaw--he's listed as probable (hand) and will likely start for New York tonight at RB, but I'm not expecting him to have a huge game. If he's your third back, I'd probably take a chance on him, but I'm just waiting for Manning to come out gunning and Bradshaw to see limited carries with a low effect on Dallas' run defense.

Jason Witten--clearly this is an injury issue. Though he's a game-time decision (spleen), he's last been listed as doubtful and I expect him not to play just in case he isn't fully recovered quite yet. Witten is a no-no at TE this week.

Final take

This will be a close game down to the wire, but New York will prevail in the first official game of the season. Cruz will get to do his salsa dance on two separate occasions as New York captures a thriller at home, 28-17.

Just an fyi: I will be posting my complete Week 1 game picks in the next couple of days (probably Friday or Saturday, after my season preview of course). They will also be available for viewing in the "Game Picks" tab at the top of the page as the season progresses

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Jared Allen, DeMarcus Ware: Is a 25-sack Season Possible?

Business in the front, party in the back. That's just how Minnesota's Jared Allen likes it.

And although he no longer sports his stylish mullet, he still lives by that motto while on the football field. He's all fun and games until it's time to get down to business, and he's in the business of sacking quarterbacks.

While these same quarterbacks he's been sacking were out making headlines by passing for 5,000 yards (three accomplished this rare feat in 2011), he quietly came just one sack away from breaking the single-season sack record.

Personally, I just like to believe that the record is 22–not 22.5 like the record books say. Michael Strahan, the actual sack king according to the books, earned his record-breaking sack back in his 2001 All Pro season. The final game of the regular season, a 34-25 loss to the Packers, Strahan surpassed Mark Gastineau in the record books when Strahan's good buddy Brett Favre practically fell at his feet.

In my own personal NFL record books I would like to say I'd place an asterisk next to Strahan's name, meaning the Jets' Gastineau (22 sacks in 1984) still holds the single-season record. That is, until this season of course. In a season he failed to win the NFL's Defensive Player of the Year award (Baltimore's Terrell Suggs won the honor instead), Allen recorded a personal-best 22 sacks on his way to his fourth career Pro Bowl.

Why have I brought this to everyone's attention today? Well, first off because not too many people really gave him much recognition for it during the season because it appeared to fly under the radar, but also because Allen has opened up about his eye-popping, yet disappointing season.

The mullet-less Allen spoke to Minnesota media today and discussed the possibility of someone one day hitting 25 sacks. Now, considering that's not only beyond the single-season record by 2.5 sacks but also the fact that no one player has ever had two 20+ sack seasons in history (as Allen points out), it seems a bit of an outrageous claim.

But, hey, if the workhorse Jared Allen thinks it can be done, it can be done, right?

“Before you get that close, you’re not really sure if it’s attainable. You think it is, because you always think if someone did it, I could do it. But being right there and actually leaving some stuff on the field — they took the one away in Green Bay, they gave it a team sack — and there were a couple in my arms that I didn’t get it. Or the ones that I was that close. The ones at the end of the year… It was kinda like, ‘Ah, bummed out. Now I’m 23 away again, versus one away.’ But when you start working out again, it’s motivation. How can I push myself just a little further?

I think 25 is possible. I think someone will eventually get it. Look at some of the athletes, the DeMarcus Ware's of the league and the matchups he creates as a 3-4 guy on a running back or something. I think it’s possible. Then again, no one’s ever had two 20-sack seasons in their career in the history of the NFL. So, someone’s gotta do that first. Like I said, I believe 25 is a number that will get hit one year. But when, I don’t know?”

First of all, I love the fact that he acknowledges DeMarcus Ware's presence in Dallas. I always ranked Ware above Allen in the pass-rushing category, perhaps because of his versatility at the outside linebacker position. Ware poses a problem to each offense he lines up against and has a rare combination of size and speed coming from the outside.

Allen, too, is a freak of nature, but lets not forget that this season Ware was just a half a sack shy of becoming the first player to accomplish two 20-sack seasons. The six-time Pro Bowler has averaged 14.2 sacks/season over his seven professional seasons in Dallas and has failed to reach double-digits just once. 


So there's no doubt I completely agree with Allen that a 25 sack season is very possible, and almost sure to happen in the future. But, then again, I don't believe it will be Allen that accomplishes this feat. If anyone, DeMarcus Ware will beat Allen to the punch in Dallas.


Who knows, maybe you will find this on my BOLD predictions list in August: Ware breaks Strahan's 11-year old sack record.


Note: I do not own the above images, and the quotes were found and borrowed from NFL.com (Ian Rapoport). No copyright infringement intended.

True or False: "Window of Opportunity Closing" in Dallas?

On Tuesday, during the owners meetings in Atlanta, Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones claimed in an interview that he believes his team's window of opportunity (to win a Super Bowl) is closing.

He stated that his players are in the prime of their careers and will need to start winning soon.

Now, is it just me, or is that complete B.S.??

Has he lost his mind, or has he just lost all confidence in his team's ability?

I mean, yeah, sure, Dallas has struggled over the past several seasons, winning just one postseason game during the Tony Romo-era (1-4 in four postseasons since 2003) and posting a combined 14-18 record over the last two regular seasons.

But if anything, Mr. Jones should be excited about the coming season and have nothing but hope and positive vibes coming from the Dallas front office. Five of eight losses in 2011 were by six points or less, and had they posted a better division record (2-4) they could have easily found themselves atop the NFC East and in the postseason this past season.

Tony Romo was back to his elite form for a majority of the season in addition to a fantastic rookie performance from the third round pick DeMarco Murray before he went down with a season-ending injury in a Week 14 matchup with the Giants. With his 164 carries, the 24-year old Murray accumulated 897 rushing yards and two TDs, allowing the offense to be two-dimensional.

Romo, 32, and wideouts Miles Austin, 27, and Dez Bryant, 23 are in the prime of their careers right now. Well, technically Bryant's is just taking off, finishing his second professional season with a 928 yard-9 TD season in 2011. Tight end Jason Witten (79 receptions, 942 yards, 5 TD) continues to be one of the top receiving tight ends in the game.

On offense, Dallas will be just fine. I really don't see them having too much trouble keeping up with the offenses in the East, including defending champion New York Giants. As long as Romo limits his mistakes, we could see a high-flying/scoring offense in Dallas this season.

As for the defensive unit, the front office designated linebacker Anthony Spencer as the franchise player, locking him up for at least another season after his 51 tackle, 6.0 sack season. All Pro linebacker DeMarcus Ware completed his sixth consecutive double-digit sack season (19.5 in 16 games), further proving why he's the top pass rusher in the game.

When you add the highly underrated inside linebacker Sean Lee in to the mix, you get one of the most dangerous linebacking corps in the league. Lee, 25, led the team with 69 solo tackles and four interceptions this past season.

Jay Ratliff anchors a defensive line that ranked seventh against the run last season, allowing 4.1 yards per carry and under 100 yards a game.

It was the secondary that gave Dallas a hard time in its 2011 campaign, but the front office did what they could to address that issue so far this offseason. The aging, inconsistent cornerback Terence Newman was released on March 13 (later to be signed by Cincinnati) and will be replaced with sixth overall draft pick in April, Morris Claiborne, out of LSU.

Claiborne will make an immediate impact and hopefully assist a defense that ranked in the bottom half in forced turnovers last season.

In all, Dallas has plenty of youth on its roster to compete not just this season, but in the next 4-5 seasons. Why Jerry Jones felt the need to publicly announce his skepticism, and possibly add unneeded pressure to his squad, is beyond me.

If one thing's for certain, it's that there will be no shortage in drama (once again) for the Dallas Cowboys this season. Drama seems to follow Mr. Jones every where he goes. Personally, I think he secretly enjoys creating it.

Answer to the question: No, Jerry!

Note: I do not own any of the above images

Dallas Looking to Make Statement Saturday Night vs. Tampa Bay

On the verge of falling out of the NFC playoff picture, the Atlanta Falcons got back in the thick of things with a convincing 41-14 Thursday night win over the struggling Jaguars, improving to 9-5 on the season.

Tonight, in the season's first Saturday night matchup, the Dallas Cowboys are looking to make a similar statement on the road against the 4-9 Buccaneers.

Tony Romo, as we are all well-aware, has a history of falling apart in the month of December. This year has been no exception as his 'Boys are riding a two-game losing streak with back-to-back defeats to Arizona and NFC East counterpart Giants.

Sitting at 7-6 (2-4 on the road), Dallas is tied atop the East with the Giants–well, not quite, New York owns the tiebreaker. So if Jason Garrett expects to make a playoff push they will need to win out, including a victory over New York (Week 17) to clinch the division.

Over the last two weeks, Romo has played great according to the box score. He hasn't turned the ball over and threw for a combined 620 yards and five touchdowns, but did not receive much help from the rest of his team.

Against Arizona, Dallas averaged under four yards per carry (75 yards on 20 carries) and allowed five sacks of Romo. Against New York, the offense did its job in putting up 34 points on the board, but the defense struggled to put pressure on Eli Manning up front and allowed 400 yards through the air as well as 37 points. New York scored 15 points in the final three minutes of the game to complete a late 12-point comeback.

I've heard numerous arguments against Romo over this two-game stretch and I don't quite understand how you can solely put the blame on him. Yes, I would agree to a certain extent that he doesn't always show the strongest leadership abilities on the field, but he orchestrated two quick scoring drives late in the game–one from 80 yards, and one from 49. Dan Bailey missed what would have been a game-tying 51 yard field goal with under a minute to play to end the game for Dallas' offense.

How can this possibly mean Romo is to blame for Dallas' two-game skid? He has played near-perfect football, protecting the ball and getting his offense in the end zone time after time while his defense gives up 56 points over that span.

Even just "looking at the box score" would do Romo justice. You can avoid actually watching the game and instead checking the numbers and you can basically get the whole story. Now, I'm not saying that's what I did, because I did actually watch him play. I'm just saying the box score explains everything and it's tough to argue against his four-touchdown, 321 yard, 141.3 QBR game against New York.

As for tonight against Tampa Bay, I don't think he'd have any trouble continuing his recent success through the air. Tampa Bay is ranked 27th against the pass in terms of yardage, in the bottom five in rushing yards allowed and has allowed the most (19) touchdowns on the ground as well. So even without rookie DeMarco Murray the 'Boys are expected to have great success on the ground tonight. Felix Jones racked up 106 yards against NY last week, and I would expect a heavy dosage again tonight.

This means it will be tough for Tampa to make Dallas' offense one-dimensional. Big day offensively for the Cowboys, I can feel it.

My Prediction: Dallas 31, Tampa Bay 10

Photo credit

Tony Romo: Tom Pennington/Getty Images

LeGarrette Blount: Grant Halverson/Getty Images

Q&A Session with 11-time Pro Bowl guard Larry Allen

A couple of weeks ago I had the opportunity to have about a 10 minute conversation with former Dallas and San Francisco's All Pro guard Larry Allen about his NFL career, what he did to keep up with the younger guys and about his Super Bowl pick this year.

Here's how the conversation went:

All-out Blitz: Hey Larry, how are you?

Larry Allen: I'm doing good, Ben.

AB: Good to hear, let me just get right into it. Schoolofthelegends.com (new interactive website) is a great way for fans and players (past and present) to keep in touch with one another. What has been the biggest upside in you joining the site, and where do you see it going in the future? Do you have any ideas of how they can improve the site and add to the experience?

LA: I actually just signed up for it a couple of weeks ago. I don’t know too much about it right now, I’m just trying to get the hang of it. But so far I think it’s a great site for players and fans to keep in touch.

AB: You played 14 pro seasons (197 starts) at one of the more physically demanding positions. What was the key to staying healthy and having such a long career?

LA: The weight room and eating healthy are the two key things. I think they were the main things I did to stay around for so long.

AB: You will be eligible for the Hall of Fame in 2013. When voted in, which do you think would be a bigger deal to you: winning a Super Bowl, being inducted in to the Hall or being voted as the 95th best player in NFL history by NFL Network?

LA: They’re obviously all great accomplishments, but I think I will say Hall of Fame would be most important to me.

AB: Which players did you enjoy watching play growing up, and do you have any favorites in the game today?

LA: I grew up watching Tony Dorsett Roger Staubach and Jackie Slater...I grew up in LA as a Cowboys fan. I really like how Jason Witten, Tyron Smith, Dez Bryant and Demarcus Ware have been playing this season. They’ve done a great job.

AB: Did you ever pride yourself in being one of the strongest players in NFL history?

LA: Oh yeah, definitely. That was one of my greater individual accomplishments I think.

AB: What was the toughest part about the transition from college to the pros?

LA: I think the speed of the game and the crowd. I came from a small school so there was only a couple thousand at my games. Then I came to the NFL and there were much bigger crowds.

AB: Do you still closely follow the NFL? If so, who do you think will be playing in the Super Bowl?

LA: Yes, I do. As long as the Cowboys get there I will be happy. If they make it to the Super Bowl I will hopefully be in attendance.

AB: Thank you very much for your time, Mr. Allen.

This is now the third interview I have been fortunate enough to conduct with a former NFL player. For the other two–former Super Bowl champion safety Steve Atwater and current BAL assistant offensive line coach Todd Washington–can be found in the archives.

There will likely be more to come in the near future, so be sure to check back for additional interviews with current or former players/coaches.

Also, as of Thursday December 22nd I will be co-hosting an NFL podcast with former fullback Fred McCrary (played 10 NFL seasons w/  PHI, NO, SD, NE, ATL and SEA). It can be heard on blogtalkradio.com, or I will likely be posting it here on the blog as well. More details to come in the next few weeks, hopefully. Thanks!

Note: I do not own the above photo, no copyright infringement intended

Video of the Day (2/23/11): Spellman Battling Bipolar Disorder

This 10 minute video clip from a piece on former Chicago Bears, Dallas Cowboys, Detroit Lions and brief AFL (Las Vegas Gladiators) defensive end talks about how Alonzo Spellman has battled with a major case of Bipolar Disorder throughout his life.

The disorder effected his playing career greatly, and ended up cutting it short. As you watch the video you will discover that he even served jail time because of his manic episodes.

Spellman served jail time again, in 2008, after this documentary was created and shown on television.

Very strong stuff.

Pats, Jets Improve to 9-2; Saints Edge 'Boys on Turkey Day

What am I thankful for? Thanksgiving football, of course!

And my family and friends as well, can't forget them.

But, the big news today is that both the New York Jets and New England Patriots survived their respective Turkey Day matchups. What exactly does this mean? Well, it means that next Monday we will be witnessing a heavy-weight AFC East showdown between the 9-2 Patriots and 9-2 Jets. As if that isn't already incentive enough to tune in, it's a primetime game and will be played in Gillette Stadium. December games in Massachusetts always means there's a pretty good chance that snowfall may play a role as well.

Scarily enough, Tom Brady looked nearly flawless, passing for 341 yards and four touchdowns. New England got off to a slow start, struggling with stopping Shaun Hill's short passing game and former Seattle Seahawk Maurice Morris, who was a threat both on the ground and through the air.

Detroit simply didn't show up for all 60 minutes of the ball game, blowing its 17-10 halftime lead as the two teams were in a 24-24 deadlock at the end of the third quarter of play. That was when Tom Brady really turned up the heat on Detroit's pass defense, throwing two touchdown passes (22-yarder to Deion Branch and 16-yarder to Wes Welker) in the final quarter of play. Ben Jarvus Green-Ellis capped off the 21-point fourth quarter with a one-yard touchdown run just before the two minute warning.

Branch, Welker and Green-Ellis all had two touchdowns each as the Pats put up 45 points at Ford Field.

Phil Simms' (CBS) All-Iron Award winner: Tom Brady--21/27, 341 yards, 4 TDs, 158.3 QB rating

Game two of the full, three-game slate was much more anticipated back in April when the schedules came out. Now that the Cowboys got off to a slow, 2-8 start which brought about the firing of Wade Phillips, this matchup may not have been seen as much of a heavy-weight battle. But much like the early game, the ending was well worth the ugly first half of play.

New Orleans' took control early as the Cowboys struggled to hold on to the ball and convert first downs. Dallas failed to convert a fourth down inside the red zone early in the game, which may have come back to haunt them. New Orleans went in to the locker room at the half with a 20-6 lead after Dallas' kicker David Buehler kicked a career-high 53-yard field goal as the time on the game clock expired.

Dallas came out ready to play in the second half, cutting the lead to 20-13 just one minute in to the third quarter as WR Miles Austin took an end around 60 yards for the score. A Garrett Hartley field goal (28 yards) was the only points of the quarter for New Orleans as the 'Boys put up another seven when Marion Barber III capped a scoring drive with a one-yard run, putting Dallas within three.

Another one-yard run in the final quarter, Tashard Choice this time, gave Dallas a four-point lead with about six minutes to play. Dallas had the chance to put the game away but on a long 47-yard catch and run by receiver Roy Williams, New Orleans cornerback Malcolm Jenkins stripped Williams of the ball, giving the Saints another shot. Drew Brees wasted no time, hitting Lance Moore in stride just five plays later. The 12-yard touchdown strike put the Saints up 30-27. Jon Kitna led a strong, 9-play drive in an attempt to get the lead back, but David Buehler's missed 59-yard field goal spoiled the Cowboys' comeback bid.

New Orleans improved to 8-3 which, for the moment, puts them in second place in the NFC South, ahead of the 7-3 Buccaneers and just behind the 8-2 Falcons. Dallas falls to 3-8, still last place in the NFC East.

Fox's Galloping Gobbler winner: Drew Brees--23/39, 352 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT, 86.7 QB rating

Carson Palmer continues to show why he is one of the most overrated quarterbacks in the league. He has numerous weapons to get the ball to yet hasn't been able to win games (2-9 on the season). His inability to stay healthy also gets some blame, but it's mainly just because of the fact that he has been erratic with the football in his hands.

Jets' cornerback Darrelle Revis was able to contain future Hall of Famer Terrell Owens (3 rec., 17 yards) and New York's fifth-best run defense shut down Cedric Benson, therefore limiting Palmer's pass attack even more. Mark Sanchez threw for just 166 yards and one touchdown, but he really didn't have to do much other than just managing the game, especially with his run game--and defense--working so well.

Wide receiver Brad Smith's 53-yard touchdown run early in the third quarter, giving New York a 10-7 lead, proved to be the game-winner. But, he wasn't done there. After Cincinnati's Aaron Pettrey kicked a 28-yarder between the uprights to put the Bengals within a touchdown early in the fourth, Smith sealed the deal with an 89-yard kickoff return for the touchdown.

A Trevor Pryce sack, and safety, of Carson Palmer capped off the Jets' 26-point performance and finally put any hope the Bengals had to bed. The loss was Cincinnati's eighth-straight as New York captured its fourth straight victory and a 4-2 record at home.

NFL Network's Pudding Pie winners: Darrelle Revis--limited T.O. to 3 rec., 17 yards; Brad Smith--two touchdowns (53-yard run, 89-yard KO return)

Photo Credit

Wes Welker: AP Photo

Drew Brees: AP Photo/Mike Fuentes

Antonio Cromartie: AP Photo/Mike Koustroun

Clay Matthews, Packers' Defense Unblockable in Big Win over Big D

Things just haven't been going Dallas' way this season, and Green Bay's 45-7 shellacking of Jerry Jones' 'Boys tonight have just made matters worse.

Not only was Green Bay's Aaron Rodgers-led offense spot on, but so was the ball-hawking defense of Clay Matthews, Charles Woodson and A.J. Hawk.

Aaron Rodgers threw for nearly 300 yards and three TDs while Green Bay's defense scored two more times, once on a fumble returned by Nick Collins and the other a 62-yard interception return by Matthews. Kitna was pressured all night long and just couldn't seem to get much of anything going, unless of course he was throwing to rookie wideout Dez Bryant, who caught nine passes for 86 yards and the team's only touchdown.

Green Bay doubled Dallas' total yards, 415-205, as the Cowboys rushing attack struggled dearly, running for a mere 39 yards on 14 carries (2.8 YPC).

Jerry Jones has a Texas-sized problem out in Big D, but it isn't likely that he will be firing the 63-year old despite the team's 1-7 record this season.

What else have I learned from this game? Green Bay is a top five team. The last time I posted a top 10 (Oct. 30) I had the Pack at No. 9, but after this week they will certainly crack the top five considering the Pats and Chiefs both lost earlier today.

Photo Credits

John Kuhn: AP Photo/Jeffrey Phelps

Recapping Thursday's Action

Last night there were six teams in action to kick off week one of the NFL preseason.

To some fans preseason doesn't mean anything and they may not enjoy it because they don't know who most of the players are. But to me, preseason is much more than that.

Not only does it mean the return of football, which also means we are that much closer to those lovely Sunday afternoons in the fall, but it also gives us fans a chance to spot out which teams have hidden talents on the bench. Which is always fun to do in my opinion.

The stars are certainly still the focal point, but it's nice to see those other guys get a chance.

The most exciting of the three games was between the defending champion Saints and Tom Brady's Patriots. New England and New Orleans both saw their backup quarterbacks have solid games. Patrick Ramsey (Saints) went 7/11 with 111 yards, the 24-year old Brian Hoyer (Patriots) went 8 of 13 for 106 yards. Neither threw any touchdown passes, but they did lead the team down the field a couple of times and stayed mistake-free, which is always something coaches love to see.

Coming off a season in which he started just five games (only 14 starts in four NFL seasons with New England), Laurence Maroney ran the ball well, gaining 30 yards and two TDs on eight carries.

Welker-esque Julian Edelman caught six passes for 90 yards while second-year receiver of the Saints, Adrian Arrington caught four passes which went for a total of 87 yards.

All in all, a great game to watch especially for the preseason. Very little mistakes committed on both sides of the field. Zero turnovers and a total nine penalties. Can't argue with that.

The other two games (Panthers@Ravens, Raiders@Cowboys) didn't quite matchup but it was hard-hitting football nevertheless.

In Dallas, Tony Romo's offense struggled throughout the game. Again, it's only preseason, but it's never good to see names such as Marion Barber, Felix Jones and Tashard Choice get gobbled up in the backfield by 2009's 29th ranked rushing defense. The Barber/Jones/Choice trio combined for 21 yards and zero TDs on 10 attempts. The leading rusher? Romo's backup Stephen McGee. Yes, a quarterback, who gained 15 yards on two scramble attempts.

The kicking game looked good as the 23-year old David Buehler went three for three, scoring all nine of Dallas' points.

Kyle Boller's 148 yards and one TD, journeyman RB Michael Bennett's 68 yards on the ground and Oakland's six sacks as a team led to a 17-9 victory over the 'Boys.

Rookie quarterback Jimmy Clausen looked solid in his Carolina Panthers debut, with the only dark spot coming on an interception thrown to Baltimore's Tom Zbikowski. Flacco looked great, though newly acquired Ravens Anquan Boldin and Donte' Stallworth didn't have much of a chance to show off their skills, catching just one pass each. If Flacco's 120 yards on just eight completions are any indication, though, I doubt Baltimore will have much trouble getting by with the passing game this season.

Despite limited playing time from the first team defense, Baltimore sacked Carolina's quarterbacks seven times and forced two turnovers.

Six more teams (Bills@Redskins, Jaguars@Eagles, Chiefs@Falcons) will be facing off tonight as the rest of the 10 week one games will be played out from Saturday through Monday night.

Stay tuned for more preseason recaps/thoughts.

News and Notes from the First Football Game of the Season

With seven new players being inducted in to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, OH on Saturday, and the 2010 preseason kicking off on Sunday, this weekend was a huge success for football fans everywhere.

You no longer have to watch countless hours of football on Hulu, or even resort to watching baseball games, to pass the time until the season kicks off in September: the preseason is here.

The Dallas Cowboys and Cincinnati Bengals faced off in Canton's Fawcett Stadium for the annual "Hall of Fame Game."

The biggest headline was, of course, seeing Terrell Owens in a Bengals uniform for the first time. Not all that surprising, quarterback Carson Palmer seemed to be favoring Owens over Cincy's No. 1 wideout Chad Ochocinco.

Owens caught two passes in the first two series on offense, and was thrown to a couple of other times. Ochocinco didn't catch any passes in his only quarter of play. I doubt anyone really thought this was a big deal at all, because it really isn't. But if this is a sign of things to come then we may run in to some problems later on down the road.

Other news from Cincinnati is that Adam "Formerly Pacman" Jones played very well in his debut, making two tackles and playing solid coverage on the opposing receivers.

Despite seeing an impressive performance from rookie linebacker Brandon Sharpe (6-yard interception returned for a touchdown in fourth quarter), and the Cowboys' 16-7 victory, not all was well in Dallas. Second-year tight end John Phillips, who caught four passes for 60 yards in the game, suffered a season-ending ACL tear in his right knee.

Luckily, with that being the only big blow for Dallas, head coach Wade Phillips can be relatively happy with his team's performance. We all got to see impressive performances from Tashard Choice, Stephen McGee and the defensive reserves, who sacked the quarterback four times and intercepted three passes.

All in all, great first preseason performances from many guys looking to impress the coaches.