Mavericks vs Clippers ADS 10/31/10

Mavericks 10/31/10
	FGM/A	ADS	ADS+
Ajinca	Inactive
Barea	2/6	15.8	15.8
Beaubois	Inactive
Butler	4/10	15.7	11.5
Cardinal	1/3	23.3	23.2
Chandler	2/2	1.5	1.3
Haywood	5/6	3.2	3.2
Jones	0/2	6	6
Kidd	3/8	15.4	13.
Mahinmi	0/1	1	1
Marion	6/11	8.8	9.5
Novak	Inactive
Nowitzki	7/14	16.2	15.2
Stevenson	0/0	/	/
Terry	6/14	14.1	13.2
Team Total	36/77	13.1	11.7

Clippers 10/31/10
	FGM/A	ADS	ADS+
Aminu	3/9	10.8	10.8
Bledsoe	3/5	15	15
Butler	0/6	23.8	20.6
Collins	0/0	/	/
Cook	DNP
Davis	3/10	14.2	14.2
Diogu	/	/	/
Foye	Inactive
Gomes	2/4	15.3	12.5
Gordon	2/9	21.4	17.7
Griffin	4/15	6.7	5.2
Jordan	4/6	1.3	1.3
Kaman	5/15	7.9	7.1
Smith	2/3	1	1
Warren	Inactive
Team Total	28/82	11.5	10.2

Thanks to Ted Miles for gathering all the data.

Tweets from World Series Game 3

bobanddan Bob Sturm
My pathetic effort at team spirit: http://yfrog.com/m94rtcj
13 hours ago Favorite Reply Delete

mark1k mark1k
by bobanddan
@bobanddan check out my Rangers jack o lantern. http://m.plixi.com/p/53967880
13 hours ago

bobanddan Bob Sturm
good time to replay the segment from spring when we marveled that they gave Colby a rotation spot in his deal. @tc1310 can you find it?
14 hours ago

jpfrasier Jason Frasier
by bobanddan@
@bobanddan 1st team from the state of Texas to win a world series game. Astros were swept in '05.
14 hours ago

JDtheDJ2004 James Baker
by bobanddan
@bobanddan Snack Time!!!!
14 hours ago

drovvningman D F
by bobanddan@
@bobanddan and the Game 5 ticket holders scream YES!!!!
14 hours ago

bobanddan Bob Sturm
Back in this!
14 hours ago

bobanddan Bob Sturm
Gas this punk and let's go have a snack.
14 hours ago

bobanddan Bob Sturm
Do not walk lead off man.
14 hours ago

bobanddan Bob Sturm
3 more outs. Easy, right?
14 hours ago

cwag13 Chuck Wagstaff
by bobanddan@
@bobanddan @tweetgrubes This Fall on Fox: 'The Great Debate' starring Ozzie Guillen vs. Michael Irvin
14 hours ago

bobanddan Bob Sturm
@
@injuryexpert and yet one of the better options out here. 140g with sub 2 era in Texas. He is good at his job IMO.
14 hours ago

TheGreatRG Jake Dobbs
by bobanddan
@bobanddan 9th + 1 dead chicken
14 hours ago

bobanddan Bob Sturm
Love ODay. He is worthy of trust, Wash.
14 hours ago

NickinDallas Nick Brown
by bobanddan@
@bobanddan Fingernails gone, working on bone.
14 hours ago

bobanddan Bob Sturm
Hold me. I'm so scared baby.
14 hours ago

tedprice Ted Price
by bobanddan
Oh no. Not the 8th inning. Anything but the 8th inning!!! #Rangers
14 hours ago

Rrreeeeeddd Michelle Martinez
by bobanddan@
@bobanddan "Fort Worth!" .... silence .... ("what do I know about Fort Worth"?) go to default: "Great part of the country!"
14 hours ago

jace_2476 Jason Davis
by bobanddan@
@bobanddan I'm playing space people in my head during all that ownership babble.
14 hours ago

bobanddan Bob Sturm
Hey! the Stockyards! Don't forget the Mustangs of Las Colinas! And Cavendar's Boot City!
14 hours ago

jeffarr07 Jeff Farr
by bobanddan
@bobanddan they get Tony Bennett and we get Martha Plimpton?!?!
14 hours ago

bobanddan Bob Sturm
That stinking Cody Ross. Conn blanking Smythe.
14 hours ago

knoxbeing Michael Hutchinson
by bobanddan
@bobanddan fan behind the plate has the best George Bush costume ever!
15 hours ago

TexBlueMoon J.M.
by bobanddan@
@bobanddan Next inning: the cast of Family Guy
15 hours ago

DeLaNate Nathan McLain
by bobanddan
@bobanddan Gary Pettis needs to hold onto Vlad's belt loop until it's okay for him to run!
15 hours ago

bobanddan Bob Sturm
“@Granbury_Rob_M: Traveling!!” >> Mike Young lifted his pivot foot. Ref! Blow the whistle!
15 hours ago

SoonerJDP Jim Piel
by bobanddan@
@bobanddan Think Dan knows the Rangers are up yet?
15 hours ago

bobanddan Bob Sturm
Wow. THE cast of Raising Hope! Fox is so Fox.
15 hours ago

natedouglas34 Nate Douglas
by bobanddan
@bobanddan Aggressnife
15 hours ago

bobanddan Bob Sturm
“@TheGreatRG: can Sanchez pitch a couple of more games please” >> scheduled for Game 7.
15 hours ago

bobanddan Bob Sturm
Boooooooom!!!!
15 hours ago

bobanddan Bob Sturm
“@dylan2872: fact of the night, you have more followers than Dirk @swish41” >> that won't last long. He just signed up and has awesome hair.
15 hours ago

Joelsherman1 Joel Sherman
by bobanddan
In 39 previous playoff games, Molina had drawn 2 unintentional walks in total or as many as he had in 2 PAs tonite #Giants, #Rangers
15 hours ago

bobanddan Bob Sturm
@
@whipstache it was in international waters. They couldn't prosecute.
15 hours ago

bobanddan Bob Sturm
Eat em up like Colbyashi. Yum yum yum yum.
15 hours ago

tywalkerticket Ty Walker
by bobanddan
There's alot of funny people...Tim McCarver isn't one of them.
16 hours ago

idiotbox_justin Justin M
by bobanddan
@bobanddan uh-oh. Gordo broke his twitter silence. Hope he doesn't jinx us yet again.
16 hours ago

harrisonmford Harrison Ford
by bobanddan
@bobanddan I got 99 problems, but Mitch ain't one!
16 hours ago

mrana85 Mithun Rana
by bobanddan@
@bobanddan Mitchapalooza!
16 hours ago

bobanddan Bob Sturm
There is our #9 hitter. Welcome to AL park, Yo.
16 hours ago

ShaneSeabolt Shane Seabolt
by bobanddan
@bobanddan If all Rangers had at bats like Moreland, oposing pitchers would never make it out of the 3rd (started this b4 homer).
16 hours ago

bobanddan Bob Sturm
Mitch did it. Yes!
16 hours ago

bobanddan Bob Sturm
“@texagjosh: for real scenic shots of Dallas, they should run clips from Robocop”
16 hours ago

jblasterii joe laster
by bobanddan@
@bobanddan Molina fit right in. Bet they could put the fear of god into a Golden Corral manager
16 hours ago

bobanddan Bob Sturm
Oh good. Don't forget the stereotypical bump shot with the steer!
16 hours ago

bobanddan Bob Sturm
These Giants look like they could knock out a buffet.
16 hours ago

Evan_P_Grant Evan Grant
by bobanddan
Does not look like ball will be carrying to left tonight. Vladimir Guerrero crushed a ball that died just in front of the left field wall.
16 hours ago

bobanddan Bob Sturm
Hold me now.
16 hours ago

bobanddan Bob Sturm
oh yeah: http://mlb.mlb.com/tex/fan_forum/pumpkin_stencils.jsp
17 hours ago

bobanddan Bob Sturm
“@ericspray: I have had "drop the claws, drop the antlers" in my head since wed... Excellent work.”>> thank you. Now claw me.
18 hours ago

MLB MLB
by bobanddan
#SFGiants lineup Torres CF, F. Sanchez 2B, Huff 1B, Posey C, Burrell LF, Ross RF, Uribe 3B, Sandoval DH, Renteria SS. J. Sanchez SP.
20 hours ago

Ken_Rosenthal Ken Rosenthal
by bobanddan
#Rangers lineup: Andrus, Young, Hamilton, Guerrero, Cruz, Kinsler, Francoeur, Molina, Moreland. #SFGiants #MLB
20 hours ago

bobanddan Bob Sturm
11/25/05 time capsule - Norm vs the Hammer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gPFy07g96WM good stuff...
20 hours ago

bobanddan Bob Sturm
“@Flyguyify:I just want to let you know that your Claw and Antlers song is being played amongst the masses in the ballpark parking lot.”YES!
21 hours ago

bobanddan Bob Sturm
“@YoureAThief: he's not a frontrunner, he just really likes Arlington *and* San Francisco… http://imgur.com/B24aa.jpg >> infuriating!

Cowboys Inactives

Cowboys Inactives -

Week	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8 (3rd QB)
Wk 1 @ Wash	B Williams	L Williams	B Church	S Young	K Kosier	M Colombo	S Lissemore	S McGee
Wk 2 vs Chi	B Williams	S Lee	D Anderson	S Young	R Brewster	P Costa	S Lissemore	S McGee
Wk 3 @ Hou	B Williams	S Lee	M Hamlin	S Young	R Brewster	P Costa	S Lissemore	S McGee
Wk 4 v Tenn	B Williams	C Gronkowski	M Hamlin	S Young	R Brewster	P Costa	S Lissemore	S McGee
Wk 5 @ Minn	B Williams	L Williams	K Ogletree	S Young	J Parnell	P Costa	S Lissemore	S McGee
Wk 6 vs NYG	J Williams	L Williams	K Ogletree	S Young	J Parnell	K Kosier	S Lissemore	S McGee
Wk 7 vs Jac	J Williams	C Gronkowski	K Ogletree	M Holland	J Parnell	K Kosier	J Hatcher	T Romo

HTML Tables

Mavericks vs Grizzlies ADS 10/29/10

Mavericks 10/29/10 FGM/A ADS ADS+ Barea 2/5 20.4 17.2 Butler 8/17 12.4 11.7 Chandler 0/1 1 1 Haywood 0/1 16 16 Jones 0/0 / 1 Kidd 3/9 23 20.8 Marion 4/11 9.8 9.1 Nowitzki 11/15 14.1 11.9 Terry 6/13 15.1 15.1 Team Total 34/72 14.6 13.1

Grizzlies 10/29/10 FGM/A ADS ADS+ Allen 4/5 6 4.6 Arthur 6/10 8.3 7.6 Conley 3/11 8.4 7.8 Gasol 2/5 3.8 2.8 Gay 9/19 15.3 13.9 Haddadi 0/1 7 7 Henry 1/6 11.5 8 Mayo 6/17 17.1 16.2 Thabeet 0/0 / 1 Law 0/2 17.5 17.5 Young 0/3 3.3 3.3 Team Total 31/79 11.7 10.1

What is ADS? Read the FAQ and find out.

Tweets from World Series Game 2

bobanddan Bob Sturm
"OK, I'm fine now: My team's in the World Series. Just time to hold serve." - Jamey Newberg. Well done, sir.
29 Oct Favorite Reply Delete

ontheRangers Brandon Wilson
by bobanddan
Who needed to take a sports walk around the neighborhood after that bad loss tonight, raise your hand? @bobanddan
29 Oct

bobanddan Bob Sturm
@
@BWalker_TX I was thinking this same thing as I am reading the "yankee years" right now.
28 Oct

KweenB78 KweenB
by bobanddan
Look what I did! HAHAHAHA!!!!! http://yfrog.com/ndx4nfj
28 Oct

P1Day1 Jarid
by bobanddan
@bobanddan Rangers 8th inning: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vdhftriXIrk
28 Oct

TicketRadio 1310 TheTicket Radio
by bobanddan
Hey @bobanddan. I need something to make me smile. I just found this: http://is.gd/gpUBS #stillfunny
28 Oct

bobanddan Bob Sturm
Diamond talk. Get it on.
28 Oct

bat44 Richard Bates
by bobanddan@
@bobanddan the Dunham and Miller World Series jinks strikes again I hope Gordo had the Grapes of Wrath for the 8th
28 Oct

M_Copeland Michael Copeland
by bobanddan
@bobanddan maybe the only way to rectify '06 is to go down 0-2 before sweeping to win the series
28 Oct

bobanddan Bob Sturm
Diamondspank starts at 10:40 or 10:45
28 Oct

bobanddan Bob Sturm
My beard is natural.
28 Oct

Gravypan Brandon
by bobanddan@
@bobanddan Belfour could drink 20 bottles of cough medicine, give 20 goals to Elias-Arnott-Sykora line, and it still wouldn't rival this.
28 Oct

BraenFoH Matthew Smith
by bobanddan@
@bobanddan Things were okay until an episode of Walker Texas Ranger broke out.
28 Oct

mww12776 MIchael Weaver
by bobanddan
@bobanddan Norms double play is this teams parade route.
28 Oct

bobanddan Bob Sturm
That 8th inning rivals any of the silliest moments in DFW sports history. McGrady could dunk on Bradley 100 times and not get to that.
28 Oct

ShAbts Shawn Abts
by bobanddan@
@bobanddan This gives new meaning to "wheels off"
28 Oct

Ticket1310P1 Ticket P1
by bobanddan
like @bobanddan said earlier on the ticket...Every loss feels like you will never win again, every win feels like you can't lose.
28 Oct

bobanddan Bob Sturm
Malcolm Gladwell could tell us whether Holland just choked or panicked. I'm not sure http://www.gladwell.com/2000/2000_08_21_a_choking.html
28 Oct

thesmokeysden Smokey
by bobanddan@
@bobanddan do we have Rick Ankiel 2.0? I can't take this.
28 Oct

Matt_JustMatt Matthew Herrington
by bobanddan@
@bobanddan ball 4. Ball 8. Ball 12. Holland with the Ricky Vaughan impersonation
28 Oct

bobanddan Bob Sturm
Watching Holland in a big spot = Watching Dampier at the Free Throw line in a tie game in final minute.
28 Oct

bobanddan Bob Sturm
@
RT @shawn_slocum So how does Sports Sturm rule on Justin Beeber wearing a Rangers jacket and Giants hat? >>> Take a Wild Guess!
28 Oct

bobanddan Bob Sturm
@
RT @TexBlueMoon Haven't felt this "sports low" since USA v. Algeria in injury time...>>> IF ONLY!
28 Oct

kehaml10 Keith Hamilton
by bobanddan@
@bobanddan We don't give up. We aren't the Yankees. Watch the Animal House speech.
28 Oct

luckyjak Jeff Klump
by bobanddan@
@bobanddan "Don't stop believing" http://www.metacafe.com/watch/sy-959746544/journey_dont_stop_believin_official_music_video/
28 Oct

bobanddan Bob Sturm
Feeling a little numb. Not going to lie to you. I could use a rather large dose of believe right now. Fight for that inch.
28 Oct

bobanddan Bob Sturm
I am positioned right now where Norm is offering commentary in my left ear and Tim McCarver in my right ear. I can't hear myself think.
28 Oct

dylan2872 Dylan Horner
by bobanddan@
@bobanddan your lucky shirt has its work cut out for it #willstinkforwins
28 Oct

bobanddan Bob Sturm
Hmm. This might be a difficult nut to crack.
28 Oct

lonestarball Adam J. Morris
by bobanddan
The decision to sit Vlad just saved the Rangers a run right there.
28 Oct

bobanddan Bob Sturm
“@BoiseFanInDFW: 6yr old daughter wonders what your logo pic is. guesses "lego guy" cuz hands”. Lego Star Wars character named "Jedi Bob"
28 Oct

bobanddan Bob Sturm
Treanor, Moreland, Wilson. Murderer's row? #reversejinxanyone?
28 Oct

bobanddan Bob Sturm
Command? I fell CJ may haz it.
28 Oct

bobanddan Bob Sturm
@
@gordonkeith focus. You need to do your part tonight. Don't screw this up.
28 Oct

ChadThorpe Chad Thorpe
by bobanddan
@bobanddan proof... Cain looks like a mix between Will Ferrell and John C. Riley from Stepbrothers... http://twitpic.com/31pllc
28 Oct

ptc7467 Tory Johnson
by bobanddan
@bobanddan why is the bad guy from the incredibles pitching in the World Series
28 Oct

bobanddan Bob Sturm
Let's go Rangers. Clap clap clap clap clap.
28 Oct

tweetsean sean walker
by bobanddan@
@bobanddan matt cain, dumb face candidate, class of 2010.
28 Oct

ShaneSeabolt Shane Seabolt
by bobanddan@
@bobanddan candles? check. Chicken, check. Pact signed in my own blood? Check.
28 Oct

bobanddan Bob Sturm
Lucky shirt? Check. Headache? Check. Totem? Check. Claw and antler? Check. Get it on.

Game Plan Friday: Offense vs Jacksonville

http://cowboysblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2010/10/bob-sturms-offensive-game-plan-2.html

ON OFFENSE: While you may have the option of allowing the World Series run of the Rangers to distract you from the impending doom of your Dallas Cowboys, I can assure you that the Dallas Coaching Staff have not been afforded that luxury. Jason Garrett and his coaches are trying to find a way to make sure what happened in 2008 doesn't happen again with this offense because in the 3 game stretch in 2008 without Tony Romo, the offense managed 232 yards per game. In the games with Romo in 2008, the Cowboys sat at 370 yards per game. So, with everything else the same, the Cowboys dropped from the ranks of the average offenses in the NFL to the absolute worst.

So, this week, the object of the game is to simply construct a game plan around what Jon Kitna does well. Since he is now 38 years old and since he has not really played meaningful football since 2007, we are going to depend on the ability of the coaches to evaluate what he has shown in practice to construct these ideas.

But, unlike Tampa Bay coming to town with Monte Kiffin's vaunted unit for Brad Johnson in 2008, the Jacksonville defense is very much the test you would love to start out with. Jacksonville's defense is just not very good.

No team has allowed more points than the Jacksonville Jaguars defense (202).

No team has allowed more touchdowns than the Jacksonville Jaguars defense (26).

Only 1 team allows more 3rd Down conversions than Jacksonville (46.8% success).

No team allows more 20 yard passes (28).

No team allows more yards per snap (6.41).

31st in 10+ yards plays allowed.

32nd in 20+ yard plays allowed.

32nd in opponents passer rating allowed (113).

And so on, and so forth.

Jacksonville is a bad defense by pretty much all metrics. It would be difficult for Jason Garrett to hand pick a more reasonable way to launch the Jon Kitna era than with a home game against a defense that has offered minimal resistance to its foes.

So, let's detail how this can be accomplished.

OFFENSIVE OBJECTIVES:

1) - Balance Up the Offense - When Tony Romo is your QB, there is a chance that you want to run an out of balance offense because you believe the object of the game is to score points and win - not run a 50/50 offense. But the Cowboys have, through 6 games, lost 5 and had the most out of balance offense in the NFL besides the Detroit Lions (also, 1-5). The 34%/66% run/pass split shows a team that cannot run the football and doesn't find it very important. That is right, with the millions spent on RT, RG, C, LG, LT, TE, FB, and TB, this team is telling us that they cannot run the football. After watching them ground and pound last year with the best in the league, I never saw this coming. But, now, there is a simple strategic objective in balancing up the offense. It is to give your passing game a chance to succeed. With no run threat on the early downs (Cowboys run plays called on 1st down are the lowest in the NFL) there is no reason for the defense to concern itself with anything other than pass rush and coverage. Confusing blitzes and exotic coverages to make sure that Miles, Dez, and Roy find no space. Without a balanced offense, there is little chance to have a prolific passing game unless you have a special QB. Tony Romo is that guy some Sundays. But, Jon Kitna has never been that guy. 46-69 as a starter, and has not had a winning record as a starter since 1999. 1999. the year Dez Bryant turned 11 years old. He has limited mobility and he is thought to have a limited arm. The only way that he can find success is for the Cowboys to run the football with some modicum of success as well. If you can get the LBs and Safeties thinking run, then you may have a chance to give Kitna a moment to find something. Otherwise, he may be tossed around by Aaron Kampman and his friends.

2) - Protect Phil Costa to Protect Kitna - I was trying to learn more about Phil Costa - the man who will start at Left Guard this week - and found his pre-draft bio online. Here it is: A converted guard, Costa spent his senior season at Maryland playing center, where he started all 12 games and played nearly every snap for a team that won only twice and had plenty of problems on offense. In 2009, the Terps were tied for 105th in the Football Bowl Subdivision in sacks allowed with 36 and ranked 106th in rushing offense with an average of 105.8 yards per game. Costa has decent size and strength, but doesn't have a particular skill he can perform better than the other centers in this draft class. He wasn't invited to the NFL scouting combine and isn't perceived as one of the elite centers, meaning he is a longshot to be selected. Yikes. I am sure the Cowboys personnel department doesn't draft guys based on bios that they google, but that hardly gives me great confidence. Anyway, Based on Barry Cofield's sack past Costa on Monday, I suggest the Cowboys will be sliding protection in his direction. Jacksonville has some strong interior line play led by rookie Tyson Alualu (a player the Cowboys had targeted in the draft) and Terrance Knighton, and they will be trying to stunt and blitz to isolate him on their way to Kitna. Help the young man.

3) - Treat the Jaguars Defense Like Everyone Else Does - I believe Sunday calls for a rather uptempo game plan with plenty of max-protect shots down the field. Jon Kitna will provide competitiveness and fire, anyone who knows the guy will tell you that much, so it is possible that the Cowboys can inspire their fans to get behind them provided they don't get rolling with 4 or 5 "3 and outs" in a row. The Jaguars are quite susceptible to the big play (actually from the numbers above, they seem susceptible to just about everything) and this goes back to getting the ball in the hands of your playmakers. I would expect a fair amount of smoke screens and quick outs to challenge the Jaguar corners (#27 Rashean Mathis and #21 Derek Cox) to tackle in the open field and with the change up of the double moves. But, it is all predicated on giving Kitna a chance and staying out of bad spots. It is interesting to note that Jacksonville is one of the few teams in the NFL that actually have less success with blitzing than the Cowboys do. I expect the game in Lambeau and Giants Stadium in a few weeks will be a blitz-fest, but since the Jaguars have the 31st best success rate with their blitz, they may drop more into coverage to challenge Kitna's accuracy and arm strength.

4) - Absolutely Positively No Minus Plays - Ok, this one is obvious, right? The Cowboys have been "good enough" at times to overcome some real brain dead mistakes. Well, come to think of it, they are 1-5, so maybe they haven't been "good enough" to overcome anything this season. Anyway, with a back-up QB and a team with what appears to be a lame duck coaching staff (although we shouldn't take that for granted, I suppose) it is vital that this team doesn't not further make things more difficult on itself with a return to unforced errors and penalties. The attention to detail by the offensive line in particular is going to have to be off the charts. At best, we should assume if everything goes right the Cowboys might be able to get to 17 or 21 points. But, a few bad moments and that can shrink quickly. To get wins now, everything is going to have to run smoothly. The obstacles are going to be tough enough without making things even worse.

Summary: Like I said, if you put all 31 potential opponents on a piece of paper and told Jason Garrett that he could hand pick 1 defense to play at home to nurse his backup QB up to speed, he might select Jacksonville. I think Kitna will be substantially better than Brad Johnson, but that is surely faint praise. The Cowboys and their fans need to drop all of the questions about what record would they need to get back into this and focus on the question of whether this team can get a win of any kind. It is way too early to focus on potential draft position and other big picture items as this is only game #7. Get a win and the attitudes in that locker-room can find a little optimism again. But, the margin for error is almost non-existent.

Bob Sturm is host of BaD Radio on The Ticket 1310 AM Mondays through Fridays at 12-3 p.m. He also hosts The Ticket's Cowboys pregame show. Follow Bob on Twitter at www.twitter.com/bobanddan Bob offers his exclusive analysis after games on SportsDayDFW.com

Read all of Bob's posts at this link:
http://cowboysblog.dallasnews.com/archives/bob-sturm

Game Plan Friday: Defense vs Jacksonville

http://cowboysblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2010/10/bob-sturm-if-cowboys-defense-h.html

ON DEFENSE: There is no bigger insult for a group of proud professional athletes than to be accused of giving up. But, many of us who watched that 3rd Quarter on Monday night did just that. And I hope those 11 guys - many of whom looked like they did not quite have the stomach to tackle Brandon Jacobs anymore (incidentally, the same team that this same defense appeared to quit against at Giants Stadium in 2008 ) - are interested in sticking up for themselves with a very workman like effort on Sunday against a team that will battle you, but is undermanned on both sides of the ball.

Jacksonville has already had 4 different QBs throw at least 19 passes, so forgive them if they don't feel great sympathy for the start of the Jon Kitna era. David Garrard, Todd Bouman, Trent Edwards (yes, that Trent Edwards), and Luke McCown. Garrard is apparently ready to go after his concussion against Tennessee and will get the start on Sunday at noon.

There isn't much to look at when you examine the Jacksonville offense. The fact is that they have the 28th most prolific pass offense, and yet somehow when they connect it usually is a healthy one. Somehow, they have 22 passes of over 20 yards, which ranks 7th in the entire NFL. Who knew?

They have an offense that is based on running the ball hard. They run the ball on a 60/40 split on 1st down and run at a 49/51 split in every situation. For those of you that are familiar with the Cowboys splits, you know just how old school that really is. The Cowboys defense has many difficult aerial attacks coming; Aaron Rodgers, Eli Manning, Peyton Manning, and Drew Brees all wait in the next month. But, Jacksonville tries to win with defense, special teams, and the ground and pound.


DEFENSIVE OBJECTIVES:

1) - Load Up To Stop The Run - OK, this is not a surprise to anyone who has seen Jacksonville play since Jimmy Smith and Keenan McCardell were catching passes from Mark Brunell in his prime, but the Jacksonville Jaguars do not accomplish a whole bunch through the air. They certainly can complete the occasional big pass - like the pass that set up the game winning FG against the Colts a few weeks back - but Mike Thomas, Mike Sims-Walker, and Tiquan Underwood are generally not enough to scare too many. The point to this exercise is that Jacksonville has been doing this for years, and they see that the Cowboys have been run on rather easily in 2010. Remember the streak without allowing a 100 yard rusher? Well, after Arian Foster, Chris Johnson, and Ahmad Bradshaw, the Cowboys have been sliced and diced like they are nothing that resembles the 2009 team that the opposition did not even bother running against. To make matters worse, they have already allowed 21 rushes of 10 yards or more. 21! They have only played 6 games. Shocking to say the least. This defense did not show me the proper amount of pride on Monday night, as if they were pretty sure that once Tony Romo was out, that the season was not worth fighting for. That is not a terribly respectable. Let's see that bag of hammers that once used to stuff the run.


2) - Protect The Perimeter - If there is one thing that all offensive coordinators can agree on these days, it is the best way to attack the Cowboys is on the edge. With each passing week we are seeing a myriad of attacks on the secondary on quick passes to the perimeter. Last week, Eli Manning closely resembled his big brother with his ability to diagnose the match-ups, get the indicators out to his troops, and then deliver a ball quickly and precisely. I am not here to suggest that David Garrard can in any way carry that model out to completion, but opponents want to see if Terence Newman, Mike Jenkins, and especially Orlando Scandrick can cover and tackle. And if the Cowboys are silly enough to not realize that they have no CBs on the field to cover Hakeem Nicks - so much the easier. But, the single play that should anger and alarm defenders of this defense was the quick screen to Mario Manningham. If I am the Jaguars, I go back to that well and see if the Cowboys safeties are any more interested in tackling than they were on Monday night.


3) - Turn the Ball Over - OK, finally we have a game where the Cowboys have an insane number of takeaways (5) which hasn't happened in years. But, before we call off the dogs and never mention it again, let's see them continue the trend a bit. With the 5 takeaways, the Cowboys grow their season total to 9. Guess what, that still ties them for last place in the entire NFC with New Orleans and Minnesota. Perhaps the Saints will remind us that turnover ability does not carry over from season to season since they rode 39 takeaways to the Super Bowl last year. Only 9 this year.
Anyway, back to our Cowboys; Jacksonville has been extremely generous with 17 giveaways in their 7 games, 2nd most in the AFC behind Norv Turner's Chargers. This team should be ripe to take the ball away, but can the Cowboys do it? This must remain a focus until they prove they can.

	Cowboys Turnovers			Opponents Turnovers
Game	Fumbles Lost	INTS	Giveaways	Fumbles Rec	INTS	Takeaways	+/-
L @ Wash	1	0	1	0	0	0	-1
L vs Chi	1	2	3	0	0	0	-3
W @ Hou	0	0	0	1	2	3	+3
L vs Ten	0	3	3	0	0	0	-3
L @ Min	0	2	2	1	0	1	-1
L vs NYG	2	0	2	2	3	5	+3
Totals	4	7	11	4	5	9	-2

Table Tutorial

4) - Linebackers In Space Vs MJD - A gigantic portion of the Jaguars ability to move the ball is in the form of Maurice Jones Drew. Now, much of that happens in his garden variety carries. They will pound the ball and that explains the focus on that objective back on point #1. But, one thing that should concern Wade Phillips is the Jaguars proficiency in the screen department. I really enjoy their ability to run the middle screen to Drew, or whoever his backup happens to be. It is clear that the offensive line is comfortable doing it against any opponent, and between Drew and Jennings (his normal backup - although he hasn't played in a few weeks) they have been able to roll up some reasonable yardage with the occasional middle screen. Now, if you are attacking the Cowboys, don't you test this ability against Brooking and James? I sure do. And, while I am at it - it would be the safety.

Please check out TC Fleming's piece where he examines the Garrard attack with his feet in great depth. I always enjoy these reviews, and I think you should enjoy it, too.

Summary: The bottom line is quite simply this - the Cowboys have all 11 starters on their defense in place. This is not a situation where they should be treating these games as optional. The Giants hung 500 yards on them last week. The idea of Wade Phillips being the architect of a great defense is somewhat comical at this stage.

You would think a home match-up with Jacksonville would be a situation where the Cowboys' defense would expect to seek and destroy. Will it be enough to win the game? That is not the defenses concern. They need to play for and with much pride right now as a defensive unit. Do you think you are dominant? Prove it.



Bob Sturm is host of BaD Radio on The Ticket 1310 AM Mondays through Fridays at 12-3 p.m. He also hosts The Ticket's Cowboys pregame show. Follow Bob on Twitter at www.twitter.com/bobanddan Bob offers his exclusive analysis after games on SportsDayDFW.com

Read all of Bob's posts at this link:
http://cowboysblog.dallasnews.com/archives/bob-sturm

The Football Laundromat: Jacksonville Jaguars Edition

Dziękuję, Readers. TC Fleming here. With the city buzzing about the impending arrival of the Jacksonville Jaguars for their game with the Cowboys, I figured it would be a great time to look at one aspect of the Jaguars offense.

It's kind of tough to talk about something concerning the Jaguars' offense, mainly because they don't have much of one. Maurice Jones-Drew is really awesome, but with defenses keying on him, his yards per carry has dipped to 3.8 this year. As for the passing element, they have had some reasonably efficient performances (In three of Garrard's six games, he has had a passer rating over 100). They are not willing, however, to rely on passing overly much. Garrard has averaged 21 attempts a game with a season high of 30. Garrard has missed a little time, but he has about 80 fewer throws this season than Romo, over 100 fewer than the league leader in the category, Drew Brees. Watching those attempts, they tend to be short and safe. There's not too much down-the-field passing in the Jaguars' offense. Given all that, I think we have a pretty clear case of the coaches not trusting the quarterback.

So what does a team do when they have a running game that draws the attention of the defense but a quarterback you don't trust to make opponents pay for it? Well, the first answer is that you suck, and the Jaguars do. Another answer is that you can make the quarterback a threat to run. If the opposing team becomes worried about the quarterback picking up yards with his feet, they are a little more hesitant to jump at the running back in the run game and a little more hesitant to just turn and run after receivers in the passing game.

Now, Garrard's not going to run for 100 yard or rush 10 or more times or anything like that. He's pretty consistently been a good bet to run four or five times for about 20 yards. Never more than 9 rushes for 60 yards or so. Garrard's rushing is not about moving the ball. They aren't going to string drives together based on his legs. It's about giving the defense something else to consider. It's a matter of getting the defense guessing when he's going to take off. Garrard is not necessarily fast, he has just enough speed to get this done. What he does have though is a little bit of wiggle to him. He doesn't have jukes or anything, but he makes guys miss. I think you'll be able to see what I'm talking about in the videos below.

The first way that Garrard runs from the quarterback position is the very conventional scramble when no passing options open up. For formations, the Jaguars seem to be very one thing or the other. They're either lined up in the I from 21 personnel or they're in the shotgun with three wide receivers. On this play, it's the former. The tight end, Marcedes Lewis, and both wide receivers, Mike Sims-Walker and Mike Thomas, go deep.

Tweets From World Series Game 1

tweetgrubes Michael Gruber
by bobanddan@
@bobanddan I have faith, but you might want to break out your smelly shirt tomorrow. Can't leave anything to chance!
27 Oct Favorite Undo Retweet Reply

edwinmarquez Edwin Marquez
by bobanddan
@bobanddan @gordonkeith this will help ease the pain... http://yfrog.com/ndjl4pj
27 Oct

bobanddan Bob Sturm
Let's look on the bright side. For those of us going to Game 5, the Rangers will not clinch on Sunday. Who is with me? Hello? Is this on?
27 Oct

bobanddan Bob Sturm
@
@Pokelahoma @theoldgreywolf that was a low blow.
27 Oct

bobanddan Bob Sturm
@
@TomTupa @gordonkeith oh my
27 Oct

howzball Mike
by bobanddan@
@bobanddan we've had a bad few days against Giants this week.
27 Oct

edwinmarquez Edwin Marquez
by bobanddan@
@bobanddan why don't we go to Mamsy pamsy land and find you some courage you jackwagon !!!!!!!!!
27 Oct

bobanddan Bob Sturm
And I guess that's why yellow makes me sad...
27 Oct

bobanddan Bob Sturm
@
@Pokelahoma I loved him on the Musers, but his sermon when Randy Moss faked mooning the crowd was as pretentious as it gets.
27 Oct

bobanddan Bob Sturm
I feel Joe Buck is just shaking with anticipation to use a Romo joke. Don't let me down, you condescending so and so.
27 Oct

bobanddan Bob Sturm
Aggresivesniff
27 Oct

bobanddan Bob Sturm
@
@gordonkeith absolutely right! How dare you!
27 Oct

Juice___ Justin Williams
by bobanddan
Drop the Claw, Drop the Antlers. OH OH, Drop the Antlers. @bobanddan #rangers
from Denton, TX
27 Oct

chadlmiles Chad Miles
by bobanddan
@bobanddan we need Ben Affleck to dust off his paddle to strike some fear into Tim Lincecum. http://plixi.com/p/53291713
27 Oct

bobanddan Bob Sturm
@dallas_stacy @gordonkeith he knows he is always on the site of Dallas sports disasters. Miami, anyone?
27 Oct

TBehmer214 Tim Behmer
by bobanddan
@bobanddan Feels like Dwyane Wade hit that homerun with Michael Strahan and Baron Davis on base.
27 Oct

KIYAY1 Justin Caillier
by bobanddan
@bobanddan New rule: No more Norm double plays for Dallas teams
27 Oct

bobanddan Bob Sturm
This is on Gordo. 2000 Stanley Cup Finals Game 1 all over again. What is he doing there?
27 Oct

send2michael Michael Lopez
by bobanddan@
@bobanddan On the bright side, Cliff hasn't raised his premium any more tonight.
27 Oct

timmytyper Tim Rogers
by bobanddan
Giants look like they washed their uniforms with one new pair of pink underwear.
27 Oct

b_woff Brad Wofford
by bobanddan@
@bobanddan Would be really nice if we could pitch to Teixeira right about now.
27 Oct

bobanddan Bob Sturm
This Torres Sanchez garbage is already annoying me.
27 Oct

brianbwatkins Brian Watkins
by bobanddan
@bobanddan in about two hours Dan is going to be really worried about Lee's pitch count.
27 Oct

bobanddan Bob Sturm
“@kyle_chester: think Michael Young could have gotten to that ball?” >> Not falling for your Juan Uribe hard count.
27 Oct

bobanddan Bob Sturm
Very high pitch count. 75 for 4 innings. Going to need some help tonight.
27 Oct

bobanddan Bob Sturm
Chad Ogea. Wellllllllllllll!!!!!
27 Oct

bobanddan Bob Sturm
That 3rd could have been way worse. 2-2.
27 Oct

Evan_P_Grant Evan Grant
by bobanddan
I think Lincecum has extensions tonight. Hair even longer.
27 Oct

lonestarball Adam J. Morris
by bobanddan@
@bobanddan The only game Joe Buck has called involving the Rangers was an exhibition game when he was doing the Cards' play by play.
27 Oct

cjconner1 Chris Conner
by bobanddan
Is this the most starters in a #worldseries that were signed during the same calendar year as the series? @bobanddan @TC1310 #ridiculous
27 Oct

bobanddan Bob Sturm
Just curious: Has Joe Buck ever seen the Rangers in person before?
27 Oct

bobanddan Bob Sturm
Good luck, Rangers. We're all counting on you.
27 Oct

tweetgrubes Michael Gruber
by bobanddan
Rangers World Series Songs are now posted at www.mp3twit.com/user.tweetgrubes ...scroll to the bottom and enjoy! (@bobanddan)
27 Oct

Sacks Vs Giants

http://cowboysblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2010/10/sturm-shotgun-not-helping-cowb.html

The Cowboys gave up 3 sacks on Monday night, but the biggest bust in pass protection did not result in a sack but rather a broken collarbone. So, I will reprint our analysis from that hit, first, and then get to the 3 sacks the Giants did record.

The Cowboys have surrendered 10 sacks this year, with 8 of them in Shotgun. This further cements my long held theory that Shotgun does not help pass protection like the conventional knowledge suggests. I contend that shotgun declares your intention to the defense - thus, encouraging more blitzes and more pass rushers. Also, 3rd and long doesn't help, either.

Keep in mind, without Hudson Houck or Jason Garrett sitting us down and pinning blame, we are left to speculation and best guests, and that is what I am doing. I get some of these wrong from time to time, but here is what I saw:

Reprinted from Decoding Garrett:

The Play:Play #13 - 2Q - 1/10/43 Romo hurt on completion to Austin



What Happened: OK, since you have seen this play 100 times already, I just want to discuss the idea of the check/release responsibility of Gronkowski on this play. Check/release means that his first job is to check the blitz, and if there is none to pick up, he releases into the flat to become a target for Romo. I assume that 59-Michael Boley dummied him and delayed his blitz before coming, but when you look at the replays, it appears that Boley did not really delay his blitz much at all. Gronkowski must decide if Boley is coming, and he obviously diagnoses the SAM LB as a coverage LB and gets it dead wrong. This happens all of the time in the NFL, and this is why many coaches hate to depend on rookies in the back field to get these diagnose plays right all of the time. Gronkowski appears to be in a hurry to get to the flat to make himself a target. Most coaches would remind him that his target in the flat will be Romo's last option, so be safe and just stay in and protect even if there is a small amount of doubt. He gets this dead wrong and while 95% of the time if you get your QB hit he gets up, this was not the case here. Chris Gronkowski may have a bright future in this league, but unfortunately, right now he is known as the guy who got Romo hurt.


SACKS

=================

Play # 19 - S11 - 3/10/D40 - SACK for Deon Grant



What Happened: Sometimes, the scheme the defense throws at you is just awesome. As I look at this, and consider the spot in the game - backup QB, no running game, no confidence in the offense, and no ability to move the ball - this almost seems unfair that Perry Fewell would throw this at the Cowboys. Under the best of circumstances, this particular blitz is tough to handle. The Cowboys have their hands full dealing with 4. 5 is difficult. 6 is next to impossible. And then 6, with a double blitz through the same hole is silly. Look at 91-Tuck. He is standing in pre-snap, showing that he might move before the snap, but then he makes sure that he starts over Leonard Davis and slants in to Gurode to take the RG and the Center out. Tuck is so good that I don't think Davis has any choice. Next, RT Colombo has his hands full with 90-Jason Pierre Paul, their 1st Round pick out of South Florida who almost gets Kitna off the edge. So, with Tuck and Pierre-Paul, the entire right side of the line has their hands full. Next, Michael Boley shoots that B Gap on the right and Marion Barber is right there to grab him, so the Cowboys are ok if that is it. But, then here comes blitzer number 6, timing his run perfectly right behind Boley, and Deon Grant gets there untouched. I have no idea who would get the blame here. I am going to say that the only chance to get Grant was on Leonard Davis, but I think it is unfair to lay this at his feet. But, because I have no other theory, Davis gets the bust. This is just too an awesome scheme from the Giants.



--------------------------------------------------

Play #34 - S11 3/10/D25 SACK for Boley



What Happened: Another sack that is not cut and dried on the blame game. Osi Umenyiora goes around Doug Free with relative ease and would have sacked Kitna if he did not go for the fumble. But, since he did go for the fumble, Free gets beat but does not technically give up the sack. Meanwhile, Boley does nothing besides clean up the scraps, and Barber had him in a good spot until Kitna runs up in the pocket. Again, this is subjective, but if I am grading the OL on this play, I must assign this sack to Doug Free.




---------------------------------------------------

Play #47 - S11 - 2/10/O45 SACK for Cofield



What Happened: OK, this one is easy. Phil Costa is in the game because Kosier and Holland are both out at Left Tackle. Phil is an undrafted rookie free agent and is trying to develop into a reasonable interior backup lineman for the Cowboys on the fly. Trouble is, he is not ready to deal with the NY Giants pass rushers just yet. Here, Barry Cofield makes extremely quick work of him and ends up getting the ball for the Giants as well. In a week of difficult sacks to find blame, Costa made this one clear. Since he could be starting Sunday, you can bet the Jaguars are looking to expose this.



Season To Date Sacks
----------------------------------------------------
The Rankings for the season in Sacks Allowed among the OL: Davis 3, Colombo 2, Coverage 2, Gurode 1, Free 1, Costa 1

Sack #	Down/Dist	Personnel	Sacker	Blame
1/1	2/10/D45	12	McIntosh	Gurode
4/1	3/10/D40	S11	Jones	Davis
4/2	3/8/O28	S11	Hope	Coverage
4/3	1/10/D29	21	Babin	Colombo
4/4	1/10/O34	S12	Jones	Davis
4/5	2/32/D44	S11	Babin	Colombo
4/6	3/3/O18	S11	Brown	Coverage/Witten
6/1	3/10/O40	S11	Grant	Davis
6/2	3/10/O25	S11	Boley	Free
6/3	2/10/O45	S11	Cofield	Costa

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Bob Sturm is host of BaD Radio on The Ticket 1310 AM Mondays through Fridays at 12-3 p.m. He also hosts The Ticket's Cowboys pregame show. Follow Bob on Twitter at
www.twitter.com/bobanddan Bob offers his exclusive analysis after games on SportsDayDFW.com

Read all of Bob's posts at this link
http://cowboysblog.dallasnews.com/archives/bob-sturm

Targets - Week 6 - New York

http://cowboysblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2010/10/bob-sturms-target-analysis-vs-1.html

Here we take a look where Cowboys' Quarterbacks were going with the football on Monday Night. As I mentioned on an earlier entry, I think it will be interesting to see how Jon Kitna throws the ball on Sunday against Jacksonville, because NFL opponents are going to be particularly interested in whether he will throw balls outside the numbers on the field. We see a giant night for Jason Witten against the Giants, and that is all well and good - but if you watch all of Kitna's completions, they were all to the middle of the field. Well, opponents are tracking this and if he cannot complete out routes and comebacks to the sidelines along with the occasional go routes down the sidelines, then the defense will compact the middle of the field and take away what he likes to do. When we say a QB can "make all of the throws" that means a 20 yard pass to the sideline from the middle of the field is merely a flick of the wrist. It is possible that Kitna still has that arm, but at 38, he is going to have to prove it.

And the reason this is so key? Brad Johnson could not make that throw anymore. And the Cowboys offense struggled to get to 14 points with him as a starter. Kitna will surely be able to do more, but he will need to prove it to Jack Del Rio early on Sunday to open things up.

Target Distribution: - Week 6 at New York

Name	Targets	Catches	Yards	FD/TD/INT	QB Rating
Austin	8	3	39	2/0/0	53.6
Bryant	7	4	54	1/2/0	121.4
Witten	13	9	95	3/1/0	115.8
Williams	3	0	0	0/0/0	39.5
Jones	3	3	26	2/0/0	102.7
Barber	1	1	7	0/0/0	95.8
Choice	0	0	0	0/0/0	0
Bennett	1	1	6	0/0/0	91.6
Gronkowski	1	0	0	0/0/0	39.5
Ogletree	0	0	0	0/0/0	0
Hurd	3	0	0	0/0/0	39.5
Totals	40	21	226	8/3/0	94.4

Table Tutorial

The 3rd and 4th Down performance on Monday was pretty much reduced to 1 positive play - #56 of 56. Without the 4th down Touchdown pass to Dez Bryant, there would be almost nothing but zeros here.

3RD/4TH Down Targets - Week 6 vs New York

Name	Targets	Catches	Yards	FD/TD	QB Rating
Austin	3	1	8	0/0/0	42.3
Bryant	3	2	20	0/1/0	125
Jones	0	0	0	0/0/0	0
Williams	1	0	0	0/0/0	39.5
Witten	1	0	0	0/0/0	39.5
Bennett	0	0	0	0/0/0	0
Hurd	1	0	0	0/0/0	39.5
Barber	1	1	7	0/0/0	95.8
Totals	10	4	35	0/1/0	83.3

Table Tutorial

An interesting trend is certainly emerging and quite surprising; Miles Austin started like a man possessed, but has had 2 extremely quiet games in a row and now has the 3rd highest passer rating amongst the WRs. Both Williams and Bryant have had more efficient performances for the season and that is likely a result of teams attempting to make Miles really work to get open in the spots of the field where he can do the most damage. Austin's QB Rating by game: 149.1 (Wash), 69.3 (Chi), 85.4 (Hou), 144.4 (Tenn), 47.9 (Minn), and 53.6 (NYG).

And now, your season in a nutshell:

Target Distribution - Season To Date

Name	Targets	Catches	Yards	FD/TD/INT	QB Rating
Austin	54	36	524	23/2/1	102.7
Witten	51	32	365	14/2/3	72.7
Bryant	35	22	264	11/3/0	114.5
Williams	34	21	314	10/5/1	119.3
Jones	22	21	144	5/0/0	93.9
Barber	10	7	28	0/0/0	72.9
Choice	4	3	5	0/0/0	77.1
Bennett	21	14	103	4/0/2	38.4
Ogletree	1	0	0	0/0/0	0
Hurd	6	3	22	2/0/0	59.0
Gronkowski	4	2	9	0/0/0	56.2
Totals	246	164	1781	69/13/7	93.6

Table Tutorial

All things considered, the season-to-date work of Tony Romo on 3rd Down is remarkably solid. Expect to see a significant drop now with Kitna/McGee watching the store.

3RD/4TH Down Targets - Season To Date

Name	Targets	Catches	Yards	FD/TD/INT	QB Rating
Austin	15	12	208	7/1/0	140.9
Bryant	15	10	128	5/2/0	132.7
Williams	8	5	83	4/1/0	136.9
Witten	15	5	83	2/0/3	13.3
Bennett	2	2	7	0/0/0	81.3
Choice	2	1	7	0/0/0	58.3
Jones	1	1	3	0/0/0	79.2
Barber	3	3	22	0/0/0	97.2
Hurd	2	1	11	1/0/0	66.6
Totals	63	40	522	19/4/3	90.8

Table Tutorial

===========

DB Targets vs New York

Tough to see any real patterns here, where we track which DBs the Cowboys were looking to attack. With the chaotic nature of the game, it looked like Thomas was the early target, but as the game went on, it was pretty evenly spread from side to side and DB to DB:

Targeted DB	Times
24 - Terrell Thomas	9
23 - Corey Webster	6
34 - Deon Grant	2
26 - Antrel Rolle	2

HTML Tables

Bob Sturm is host of BaD Radio on The Ticket 1310 AM Mondays through Fridays at 12-3 p.m. He also hosts The Ticket's Cowboys pregame show. Follow Bob on Twitter at www.twitter.com/bobanddan Bob offers his exclusive analysis after games on SportsDayDFW.com

Read all of Bob's posts at this link:
http://cowboysblog.dallasnews.com/archives/bob-sturm

RB Snaps - Week 6 - New York

http://cowboysblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2010/10/sturm-running-back-workload-mo.html

Checking the Week 6 RB work load summary since with Kitna in for Romo, this technically should be even more vital. More Felix, a fair amount of Marion, and no Tashard.

By the way, while we are ranting, what is the point of the ceremonial starting of Marion Barber? I understand his role as short yardage and change-up back, but I don't understand giving him the first two series just on principle or respect for his time served. If you feel Felix is your guy (and this chart shows that you obviously do) then let's get on with it from the opening kick.

TOTAL SNAPS FOR RBs vs New York (56 plays)

Half	24-Barber	28-Jones	23-Choice
1st	10	12	0
2nd	3	30	0
Total	13	42	0

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There was only 1 play without any RBs on the field.

TOTAL SNAPS FOR RBs SEASON TO DATE (388 Total Plays)

Half	24-Barber	28-Jones	23-Choice
WK 1	28	28	13
Wk 2	31	33	7
Wk 3	30	17	10
Wk 4	23	51	1
Wk 5	24	33	0
Wk 6	13	42	0
Total	149	204	31

HTML Tables

In case this is your first time to check these numbers, this is all about snaps on the field - not touches or run plays. This is merely intended to see who is on the field and who is on the sideline for the Cowboys offense.

Bob Sturm is host of BaD Radio on The Ticket 1310 AM Mondays through Fridays at 12-3 p.m. He also hosts The Ticket's Cowboys pregame show. Follow Bob on Twitter at www.twitter.com/bobanddan Bob offers his exclusive analysis after games on SportsDayDFW.com

Read all of Bob's posts at this link:
http://cowboysblog.dallasnews.com/archives/bob-sturm

Penalties - Week 6 - New York

http://cowboysblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2010/10/sturm-penalty-numbers-high-for.html

Time to look at the penalties again, and as Wade Phillips said this week: "We got that problem straightened out". He is right, for one night, at least.

One stat that some of you have pointed out to me is interesting to say the least. Despite the Cowboys huge total of penalties committed this season, their opponents in the same games have committed the 31st most (27) in the NFL through this point of the season. Only Buffalo's opponents have committed fewer penalties. And, of course, Buffalo (26) is the only winless team left in the NFL.

Why is this? I don't have a great theory. Some of you have said this proves the league wide conspiracy to keep the Cowboys down. Others might say that this says that it says something about your players in that teams don't have to cheat to contain them - whether they are pass protecting or trying to cover the Cowboys receivers.

I don't buy either, but it is a number we should track.

Week 6 vs New York Giants:

Wk	Q	Player	Penalty	Yards	Unit	FD
6	2	Jenkins	Pass Interference	7	Def	FD
6	2	Witten	False Start	5	Off
6	3	Davis	Holding	10	Off
6	4	Gurode	Unnecessary Roughness	15	Off
6	4	Free	False Start	5	Off

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Totals for New York: 5 Penalties for 42 yards. 4 Penalties for Offense, 1 for Defense, 0 for Special Teams for the first time this season.

Worst Offender: Nobody with more than one, but since Mike Jenkins now leads the NFL with 5 Pass Interference penalties...

Here are your season totals - Keep in mind, my totals include declined and offsetting penalties. For football reasons, they matter way more than just accepted penalties.

This is through Week 6:

OFFENSE

Player	Total	Hold	Presnap	Ill Block	Other
Austin	5	0	1	2	2
Gurode	5	3	1	0	1
Free	5	1	4	0	0
Colombo	4	0	2	0	2
Witten	4	0	3	0	1
Barron	3	3	0	0	0
Romo	3	0	1	0	2
Davis	2	1	1	0	0
Bryant	2	0	0	0	2
Bennett	1	0	0	1	0
Holland	1	0	1	0	0
Kosier	1	1	0	0	0
Jones	1	0	1	0	0
Totals	37	9	15	3	10

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Andre Gurode pulls even with Miles Austin for the offensive lead with his untimely 15 yarder in the 4th.

DEFENSE

Player	Total	Offside	Rough	Pass Inf	Other
Jenkins	6	0	0	5	1
Brooking	3	0	1	2	0
Olshansky	2	1	1	0	0
Ratliff	2	0	1	1	0
Spencer	2	2	0	0	0
Ware	3	3	0	0	0
Sensabaugh	1	0	0	0	1
Scandrick	1	0	0	1	0
Bowen	1	0	0	0	1
Totals	21	6	3	9	3

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Jenkins is trying to run away with the team lead and the defensive lead. I think his confidence returned somewhat on Monday night, but he is still in some sort of funk.

SPECIAL TEAMS

Player	Total	Offside	Rough	Ill Block	Other
Church	1	0	0	1	0
Buehler	1	0	0	0	1
Scandrick	1	1	0	0	0
Hamlin	1	0	0	1	0
L Williams	1	0	1	0	0
McBriar	1	0	0	0	1
Ball	1	0	0	0	1
Ladocuer	1	0	0	0	1
Totals	8	1	1	2	4

HTML Tables

Bob Sturm is host of BaD Radio on The Ticket 1310 AM Mondays through Fridays at 12-3 p.m. He also hosts The Ticket's Cowboys pregame show. Follow Bob on Twitter at www.twitter.com/bobanddan Bob offers his exclusive analysis after games on SportsDayDFW.com

Read all of Bob's posts at this link:
http://cowboysblog.dallasnews.com/archives/bob-sturm

Mavericks vs Bobcats 10/27/10

Mavericks 10/27/10 FGM/A ADS ADS+ Barea 4/9 7.9 7.9 Butler 5/16 13.1 11.8 Cardinal 0/1 23 23 Chandler 2/3 1 1 Haywood 1/2 .5 .5 Jones 1/2 14.5 14.5 Kidd 5/8 16 16 Marion 2/6 13.2 11.4 Nowitzki 11/13 12.7 10.5 Terry 10/15 14.3 14.3 Team Total 41/75 12.2 11.2

Bobcats 10/27/10 FGM/A ADS ADS+ Augustin 2/10 15.3 14 D. Brown 1/1 1 1 Diaw 5/12 16.3 16.3 Henderson 1/3 21.7 21.7 Jackson 4/8 16.9 15.1 Livingston 0/2 11 11 Mohammed 3/8 4.9 4.1 Thomas 8/15 8.8 7.9 Wallace 5/14 8.9 7.9 Team Total 29/73 11.9 10.8

What is ADS? Read the FAQ and find out.

Decoding Garrett: Game 6 vs NY Giants - Videos

http://cowboysblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2010/10/bob-sturms-decoding-jason-garr-6.html

Video Breakdowns:

I am not sure what sort of tone that "Decoding Garrett" is going to take for the next 6-8 weeks, but let's take it one game at a time. The Object of the two Decoding Garrett posts that appear normally on Tuesdays (this week Wednesdays) is to show you some things the offense is try to accomplish and evaluate whether it is working or not.

There wasn't a ton of good to look at from Monday Night, so this particular edition is going to analyze some of the negative.

5 plays this week, and hopefully starting next week we can see what they are hoping to do with Jon Kitna with a full week of preparation.

Thanks, Brian at DC Fanatic.com for his help in getting the videos posted.

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The Play:Play #7 - 1Q - S12 - 3/G/8 - INC to Austin



What Happened:We wonder how different this game would have potentially been if Austin makes this catch. We seldom see Miles Austin doing things of the negative variety, but Monday was not his best performance. When they say things happen more quickly in the red zone, this is what they mean. This is the only snap of S12 for the entire night. Bennett and Williams are on the right, Austin and Witten are on the left. The TE on each side runs a simple out pattern while Williams heads up the hash and Austin squares out at the goal-line. A very difficult throw and catch and the ball is on Austin before he is out of his break. The Giants are blitzing here, so Romo has to anticipate, and his default setting is to go to Miles because Austin has been so dependable. If Romo had made Williams his primary, he looks like he is wide open. But, Romo is dealing with a blitz and has to make a difficult throw. Close, but no cigar. And the Cowboys must settle for 3 points here after starting a possession at the Giants 18 after the Sensabaugh interception.



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The Play:Play #10 - 1Q -"22" - 1/10/46 - Jones left no gain



What Happened: Here in a nutshell is the Cowboys running game right now. They killed the Giants last season on "22" personnel, but those days are gone, it would appear. A very basic running play for the Cowboys with "22" (2 RB, 2 TE, 1 WR) where they go down, down, and around which means that LT, LG, and even C, are blocking down to their right, with Leonard Davis and the Fullback Gronkowski coming around the edge with Witten to get blocks in space and free the runner. As I can tell, Free, Gronkowski, and Witten have very little success, but Leonard Davis must get 53-Kevin Bullock when he comes around the corner. Davis has had a rough year and people are starting to talk about his diminishing skills. This play won't help that chatter because he doesn't even come close to getting Bullock. Davis dives on to the ground, and Bullock destroys the play. And as you can see, when Davis misses, then Witten has no chance at blocking 3 guys and it is a 0 yard gain on 1st down. Demoralizing but true.


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The Play:Play #13 - 2Q - 1/10/43 Romo hurt on completion to Austin



What Happened: OK, since you have seen this play 100 times already, I just want to discuss the idea of the check/release responsibility of Gronkowski on this play. Check/release means that his first job is to check the blitz, and if there is none to pick up, he releases into the flat to become a target for Romo. I assume that 59-Michael Boley dummied him and delayed his blitz before coming, but when you look at the replays, it appears that Boley did not really delay his blitz much at all. Gronkowski must decide if Boley is coming, and he obviously diagnoses the SAM LB as a coverage LB and gets it dead wrong. This happens all of the time in the NFL, and this is why many coaches hate to depend on rookies in the back field to get these diagnose plays right all of the time. Gronkowski appears to be in a hurry to get to the flat to make himself a target. Most coaches would remind him that his target in the flat will be Romo's last option, so be safe and just stay in and protect even if there is a small amount of doubt. He gets this dead wrong and while 95% of the time if you get your QB hit he gets up, this was not the case here. Chris Gronkowski may have a bright future in this league, but unfortunately, right now he is known as the guy who got Romo hurt.



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The Play: Play #20 - 2Q -"12" - 1/10/20 - Felix +17



What Happened: This is the Cowboys only successful run play for the week, and really, the only successful run play going back to the Tennessee game. "12" personnel, and with only a little over a minute to play in the half, you could assume that the Giants might be assuming a pass play here. Regardless, this does show Felix's ability to bounce things outside and make a few guys miss. The one miss that is key is 34-Deon Grant who flies in like a missile to hit Jones behind the line of scrimmage, but Jones makes him miss easily and gets 17 yards to the edge before he is body slammed by 24-Thomas. It is a weakside run with Montrae Holland pushing his man well downfield. The burst of speed is the key here, so you do wonder if Barber would have been able to get 4 yards on this play.


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The Play:Play #56 - 4Q - "S11" 4/1/15 - Dez Bryant TD



What Happened: And now, the final offensive snap of the game, and what this is a demonstration of the ability of Dez Bryant to slash through a secondary with his burst. As I mentioned in the "Data" post, Kitna completed all of his throws like this (shallow and inside the numbers) so it will be up to him to show the opponents that they must respect the whole field, otherwise things are going to get more congested in that high traffic area and his targets will become more difficult to hit. But, on this 4th down, Dez, is on the same side as Austin who clears out the safety and now Bryant can work past 23-Corey Webster and then hit the gas and he is gone. Kitna doing a nice job hitting his hot route in stride and this is some level of promise for next week. They assure us this is not another Brad Johnson situation, and I tend to believe them. But, it will depend on him showing that he can throw the ball to the flanks from time to time to keep the coverages honest.


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Tomorrow: Targets and Sacks for Week 6

Bob Sturm is host of BaD Radio on The Ticket 1310 AM Mondays through Fridays at 12-3 p.m. He also hosts The Ticket's Cowboys pregame show. Follow Bob on Twitter at
www.twitter.com/bobanddan Bob offers his exclusive analysis after games on SportsDayDFW.com

Read all of Bob's posts at this link
http://cowboysblog.dallasnews.com/archives/bob-sturm