|
Those two-minute defensive meltdowns were developing into a nasty habit for the Cowboys.
In each of their first five games, Dallas' situational defenders yielded points at the end of regulation or at the close of the first half. That's a recipe for disaster, costing the Cowboys victories against the Giants and Broncos.
Make a play or two at a critical juncture and Dallas could be unbeaten right now.
"That's the case, definitely," Nickel linebacker Bobby Carpenter says.
Those shortcomings were addressed during the bye week with long hours on the practice field, dealing with issues like getting personnel on and off the field quicker and striving to make more plays. The Cowboys were confident that the situation would improve, starting last Sunday at home against Atlanta.
"It's been something week after week," coach/defensive coordinator Wade Phillips says. "We have to do better."
Here's a look at the last-minute defensive woes that have bedeviled the Cowboys:
Week One
The Cowboys had the game in hand late in the fourth quarter, but the Buccaneers still went 72 yards in 11 plays over 2:29 for a touchdown. Dallas won 34-21, so not much was said afterward about Tampa Bay's late drive against a soft defense designed to help run out the clock.
Week Two
The Cowboys assumed a 31-30 lead on Felix Jones' touchdown run with 3:40 left in the nationally-televised opener of the new stadium. It seemed that Dallas was about to go 2-0, if only the defense could get a stop. Eli Manning and the Giants took possession on their 15, and the Cowboys only needed to make a play or two to beat a hated division rival.
But Manning and the Giants' receivers methodically worked downfield, reaching the Dallas 21 to set up Lawrence Tynes' game-winning field goal as time expired.
Week Three
Dallas' two-minute defense faltered at the end of the second quarter against Carolina, creating some anxious moments in the Cowboys' halftime locker room. The Panthers took possession at their 10 and needed only 1:45 to advance the length of the field, capping the drive with a 25-yard touchdown pass from Jake Delhomme to Dante Rosario for a 7-0 lead.
But the Cowboys took late control of the game, building a 14-point lead. Still, Delhomme had the ball on his own 20 with 5:07 left and drove the Panthers to the Dallas 28 where the quarterback was sacked by rookie linebacker Victor Butler. Delhomme fumbled, Jason Hatcher recovered at the Dallas 32 with a minute left, and the Cowboys survived, running out the clock.
Week Four
The game at Denver was tied at 10 with 2:47 left when the Broncos assumed possession at their 27. Kyle Orton needed only three plays and 1:01 to give the Broncos the lead on a 51-yard pass to Brandon Marshall.
Dallas still had a chance to push proceedings into overtime, using 10 plays to drive to the Denver four. But Tony Romo was unable to work the ball into the end zone on a couple of last-second pass attempts to Sam Hurd, and the Cowboys absorbed their second loss of the season.
Week Five
The Cowboys were in front of the Chiefs 20-13 with 2:16 left on Miles Austin's 59-yard catch-and-run for a touchdown.
Kansas City's offense had shown little spark all afternoon, but Matt Cassel moved the Chiefs down the field from their 26 in 10 plays on a drive capped by the quarterback's 16-yard touchdown pass to Dwayne Bowe with 29 seconds left.
The Cowboys won in overtime on Austin's 60-yard score, but the inability of their two-minute defense to close out the contest in regulation was a nagging issue heading into the bye week.
While the game was already well in hand, Dallas did surrender a touchdown to the Falcons with just over five minutes remaining. Certainly, the sense of urgency with the game on the line is difficult to simulate on the practice field.
"It's really tough to duplicate in practice because in the game everybody's highly stressed, calls coming in late," Carpenter says. "But we try to replicate that as much as possible to help put us in a good situation. We're trying to get the calls in late in practice, trying to make it as close to a game situation as possible.
"It's something we've been working on. Obviously, if we take care of the two-minute situation, we're going to win a lot of games. Hopefully that will help."
Essentially, there's little structural difference between the two-minute defense and the Nickel and Dime packages that the Cowboys have on the field for the rest of the game. Overall, after six games, Dallas opponents had converted only 25 of 75 third-down chances.
It's just that there's more pressure at the end of the half, and in end-of-game situations.
"Your two-minute defense is really just an extrapolation of your third-down defense, and we've been extremely good on third down," Carpenter says. "But for some reason we've had a problem getting off the field in the two-minute situation. The more you do it, the better you get at it. When you look at it, it's been one play here or there. It's everybody executing their assignment and knowing what to do. When you get in the hurry-up tempo, sometimes you tend to make a mistake."
Some maintain that the Cowboys have been overly tentative with games on the line, that a more aggressive approach is needed. More blitzing was one suggestion.
"It's not that (worrying about making a mistake). Our defense has a lot of confidence that we can stop anyone," Carpenter says.
Says linebacker Keith Brooking: "We focus on it. We continue to focus on it. We have to make plays when the time comes to make them. It's hard to put your finger on. Maybe it's a little bit of guys pressing and trying to do too much. Nobody's being tentative. Maybe we're trying to do too much on particular plays.
"Great defenses, you've got to be aggressive, no doubt about that, but you can't do more than your job. Take care of your job, your responsibility. If you have all 11 guys doing that, you're going to put yourself in good situations to get yourself off the field."
Another theory: the defense is worn down at the end of a half or the close of a game. Brooking isn't buying that notion.
"I think we're in very good shape as a team," Brooking says. "Our offseason conditioning was excellent. We had a lot of participation here. Training camp was one of the toughest I've been through. So I don't think it has anything to do with being tired. Our offense has had long, sustaining drives to where we're on the sidelines drinking Kool-Aid and going over adjustments. So that's not an issue at all."
Of course, the best way for a defense to close out a first half, or a game, is with an interception or fumble recovery.
"We're always looking for more (turnovers)," outside linebacker DeMarcus Ware says. "You can never have too many turnovers. For us to get a turnover, it's like a touchdown for us. And that can ultimately turn into three points or even a touchdown so we're really trying to create more this season."
Turnovers are a mindset.
"First of all you have to make the play," Ware says. "And if you're not going to make the play, at least try for the ball. The main thing is making the tackle first and trying to knock out the ball second."
And so, the quest for last-minute defensive dominance goes on.
"It's a work in progress," safety Patrick Watkins says.
| Home | Email | Print | Register for New Alerts | RSS |
|
