This week I caught up with Joe Rodriguez of CowboysBlog.Net to talk about the Sunday night game in the Superdome. Many thanks to him for sharing some knowledge, and please check him out on twitter for all things Cowboys. We discuss Tony Romo’s reputation, Rob Ryan facing off against his old team, how big the return of DeMarcus Ware is and why the Cowboys’ defense is so bad among other things. Big thanks to Joe for taking the time. Enjoy!
The Saints Nation: Romo probably gets ripped more than anyone in the NFL, somehow. But he’s a great QB and he’s been playing ridiculously well. Why does Romo gets such heat? Is he as ripped locally as much as he is nationally? Seems pretty unfair.
CowboysBlog: Romo is arguably, the most debated person on the Cowboys. You have your supporters and your detractors. Being the QB for the Dallas Cowboys brings your career under great scrutiny and under the microscope more than any position on the team. Stat-wise, Romo has stats that compare to the best that have ever played the game; however, you have to win when it counts, and this is an obstacle that has haunted Romo since his fumble at Seattle a few years ago in the playoffs. The criticism is warranted, especially with the playoff drought the Cowboys are on. Every year its the same tragic ending, we can’t win in the clutch.
Looks like DeMarcus Ware will play. That’s obviously huge for you guys. Comments on that?
Ware creates headaches for any offensive line, so his presence will be needed on Sunday night. The defensive line has been decimated by a string of injuries and every bit will help. If we can’t get in Brees’ face, it’ll be a very long night. The injury I’m looking at is Hatcher, he has a shoulder stinger and is questionable for the game right now and that would be a huge loss up the middle for us.
The Cowboys are 31st on defense and getting roasted weekly. How fearful are you of the Saints’ offense given this?
The game tape doesn’t lie, and every top tier QB has had a field day against us, and I don’t see that changing Sunday night. The Cowboys will have their hands full with Jimmy Graham, and Sproles in the passing game will be quite troublesome for our linebackers.
Safe to say you wish you had kept Rob Ryan?
Not at all, the 3-4 never worked in Dallas. Every guru we had could not make it work, so the change to the 4-3 was a long time coming. Kiffin has changed the culture on defense, and Rod Marinelli has transformed alot of these no-name players into legitimate pass rushers. The biggest change has been our turnover differential, and under Kiffin it is right at the top with the Seahawks. The turnovers on defense have really kept the Cowboys in a lot of games even with all the yardage they are giving up. The team will flourish in 2014, but right now we’re riding out a rough transition due to so many injuries.
Jason Garrett… Happy with him? Do you see him sticking long term?
Besides Romo, Garrett is the other hotly debated person in Dallas. A lot of fans feel this is his last year to show us something. We want to see an upward trajectory, and it has not happened; nor just it look to be. At 5-4, we are hovering towards another 8-8 year, and a loss to the Sainst will put us at 5-5 and the talk of Garrett being replaced will ramp up again. His job is on the line this year. It doesn’t take a genius to recognize almost all of Gruden’s staff is onboard right now. Keep an eye on this as the season unfolds.
How do you beat the Cowboys? What gameplan do you come up with if you are the Saints?
You beat the Cowboys by taking Dez Bryant out of the game. Period. We know the Cowboys can’t run the ball, so that makes Dallas one dimensional, and doubling Dez will make the offense sputter that much more. If the Saints stop Dez and contain Witten, then it’ll be in the Saints favor. Getting in Romo’s face all day works well too, it worked well for the Chiefs. If anyone wants a blueprint follow Andy Reid, he knows the Cowboys offense inside and out, and they kept us in check all day.
Give me 2-3 names besides Ware, Murray, Romo and Bryant. Anyone else playing well?
For the Cowboys to get any offense going, I expect the Cowboys to use Terrance Williams more and Cole Beasley. Both have been making strides and have made some clutch plays in a lot of our games in recent weeks.
I saw the Cowboys called 54 pass plays and 9 running plays last week. Your balance is even worse than the Saints. Discuss.
The Cowboys don’t have a franchise back. We’ve been rolling the dice with mid tier running backs for a few years now, and its caught up to us. No one fears the Cowboys running backs. Coupled with some instability on the offensive line, the running game is non-existent. Losing Brian Waters at RG, has set the line back to pre-season form. Bernadeau is garbage at RG, and that sloppy play is effecting Doug Free at RT. I expect Ryan to attack that side of the line the most.
The Saints fans probably hate the Cowboys more than any team besides the Falcons. I think the reason why is so many locals rooted for you guys in the Aikman/Emmitt/Irvin era. The Saints were terrible back then, so many locals abandoned the Saints for the best. The diehards are insanely bitter about that. But you have much more history with the Skins, Giants and Eagles. Is this a one sided rivalry? What’s your opinion of the Saints?
I think there are teams that give the Cowboys fits every time they play. The Cardinals and Saints are the two teams that always bring it no matter what the records are and vice versa. Under Payton, the Saints are always going to be a disciplined and well coached team. To me the Saints are one of the elite teams in the NFL, so it’ll be a good test for the Cowboys, especially in hostile territory.
Score prediction please?
I don’t have an exact score to give, but I think it’ll be in the 30s for each team, and it’ll come down to a final drive. It can go either way, but in the end, it’ll probably be the Saints coming away with a win. Brees at home is might tall order for the Cowboys to overcome. Good luck Sunday night!
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