Arguably the fiercest rivalry in NFL history reconvenes tonight in the nation’s capital, when the Dallas Cowboys take on the Washington Redskins in a matchup of teams headed in two very different directions. Last weekend, the Cowboys wielded some major demons by physically dominating the previously undefeated New Orleans Saints in the Superdome and pulling off a big win in December.
Going into that game, the Cowboys were in the midst of their annual December swoon, losing back-to-back games against the Giants and Chargers. In danger of falling out of the playoff picture, Dallas put up what was its best performance of the season. With that win, Dallas now occupies one of the two remaining wild-card spots. Meanwhile, the Washington Redskins find themselves at the opposite end of the fortune spectrum, in the midst of an utterly disappointing season that recently saw them beaten by the Giants at home on Monday Night Football.
It was the worst home loss in franchise history, as new General Manager Bruce Allen saw his new team look as lifeless as possible. Washington’s season is over, but they have a chance to play the spoilsport role for their hated enemies. Dallas needs the game, too, so expect a tough game, as their previous meeting this season showed, where the Cowboys came back to win a grueling 6-3.
What the Dallas Cowboys accomplished last weekend against the Saints was nothing short of a miracle. They were chastised all week for their habit of fading out during the stretch of the season, particularly in the month of December, and earned just about their most significant win of the season. The Cowboys handled the Saints to a 24-17 victory that came close in the fourth quarter. Now, one could argue that all that victory did was keep them in the wild-card race, but the significance of what that victory meant to them on a psychological level was monumental. He injected confidence into this group, which last time we checked, is very talented.
In particular, quarterback Tony Romo, who has simply played tough the last three games, if not the entire season. In 2009, Romo threw for 3,886 yards, 23 touchdowns, and just seven interceptions, while running the third most prolific offense in the league, producing an average of 394.5 yards per game. The pairing of Marion Barber and Felix Jones has been very productive so far, and it took center stage against New Orleans as they combined for 120 yards and two rushing touchdowns. The offensive line remains one of the most massive in the league, and is capable of creating wide-open holes for either back to exploit. In the receiving game, receiver Miles Austin and tight end Jason Witten have been the top targets, as the former leads the team with 1,138 yards while the latter has posted a team-best 82 receptions.
Defensively, Dallas got a big boost from star pass-rusher DeMarcus Ware, who made life miserable for New Orleans quarterback Drew Brees all night despite spraining his neck the week before. Ware has 11 sacks on the season, and he had two of them against New Orleans, while his counterpart Anthony Spencer also had a pair. Wade Phillips’ team had a Saints offense that has been a machine all year with season lows of 17 points and 336 yards. It should be noted that most of those yards came in the fourth quarter when they were already down 24-3. Dallas’ run defense ranks sixth overall as they are limiting teams to 97.7 yards per game. Washington will try to run the ball tonight to keep quarterback Jason Campbell from diving for the passer, but Dallas has shown they can take it from just about any team, making their opposition one-dimensional, which will be the game plan tonight.
In the midst of a very forgettable season that saw the Washington Redskins rack up just four wins, the loss to the New York Giants last week on Monday Night Football must have been like hitting rock bottom. At least that’s what it seemed. Washington seemed uninspired throughout the game, as the Giants quickly took a 21-0 lead before the half. At one point, the ‘skins only accounted for three plays midway through the second quarter, when the Giants finished with a 45-12 rout. However, what exactly do the Redskins have to play for? Their head coach has been a lame duck since the third week of the season, their quarterback has struggled to play behind a decimated offensive line, while productive players like Clinton Portis and Chris Cooley have been out for more than the half of the campaign.
The playoffs haven’t been a possibility as another lost season is about to end, with a host of changes surely on the horizon. Well, though, they still have a rivalry with the Dallas Cowboys, and they can still play the spoilsport role that might be enough to get these guys up on a Sunday for a change. As we said earlier, the aforementioned Campbell has struggled, throwing for 3,138 yards, 18 touchdowns and 14 interceptions, but has had to play without the benefit of a cohesive offensive line, which has started ten different players this season, two of whom they are unrecruited rookies. Help in the backfield has been hard to come by, as head coach Jim Zorn is on his third starting running back, while the receiving corps has once again underperformed (as if that were any surprise).
The defense in the hand has been some of the best in the NFL, despite being on the field too often. Defensive ends Andre Carter and rookie Brian Orakpo have been tenacious, each recording 11 sacks, while huge nose tackle Albert Haynesworth has performed very well, despite playing through a lingering ankle injury. The problem here is that this unit just hasn’t taken the ball away, forcing just 15 turnovers so far, which is tied for last in the league. As much heat as they put on the quarterback, they don’t make a lot of plays on the back end. To successfully spoil their nemesis’ playoff momentum, they have to find a way to make plays on defense, because God knows they haven’t been able to on the other side of the ball.
