Jerry Jones had great news for Dallas Cowboys’ head coach Jeff Garrett and horrible news for the fan uprising that wants him gone. When asked if Garrett’s job is in danger, Jones responded by saying, “No. We’re just getting started here.”

That will probably send many fans screaming to their keyboards in anger, demanding Garrett’s head and wishing Jones would just go away. The thing is it won’t happen. Jones is here to stay. He took over the team and fired a legendary head coach in 1989, bringing in a college coach to take his place. That coach exceeded all expectations and led Dallas to two Super Bowl victories.

When Jimmy Johnson left, the team fell short the next year and a new head coach, another former college coach, came in and brought in just the right replacements to win a third Super Bowl. Since Barry Switzer left, no one has been very successful in Big D.

Chan Gailey arrived and did decent but was cut loose too early and Dave Campo drove the team to the depths of the NFC. Troy Aikman retired and Dallas found no one worth taking his place. Bill Parcells came in and did a decent job but he couldn’t even bring them back. Wade Phillips did the best of any of them when he finally found a franchise quarterback in Tony Romo.

Then, in the middle of a disastrous season, Phillips was let go. I don’t know if he should have taken the responsibility for the season. Dallas was coming off their best season since the Super Bowl years and was playing with a backup quarterback. However, Phillips was gone and Jason Garrett took over. Garrett finished the season with a 5-3 record and came into 2011 as the new head coach.

Now, with Dallas sitting at 7-6 and tied for the lead in the NFL East, everyone wants Garrett fired and Tony Romo chased out of town. This could only happen in Dallas. If the Cowboys fall completely off the boat in the last three weeks and lose two of the three final games, Jones might change his tune. Otherwise, it is a wait and see attitude in Dallas right now.

Jason Garrett and Tony Romo have the Cowboys in position to fight for the NFC East title. The doomsday button should not be pushed yet.

Author Shawn S. Lealos has a bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of Oklahoma (2000) and has been a Dallas Cowboys’ fan since he was a child. His favorite players range from Roger Staubach and Tony Dorsett to the Triplets of the 90s and he enjoys talking about all Cowboys’ related news, good or bad

Source: NFL.COM

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While the
New York Giants
and
Dallas Cowboys
both lost last weekend, the damage by those defeats can easily be mitigated thanks to what’s at stake this weekend.

The Giants will try to end a four-game losing streak Sunday night on the road against the Cowboys as these rivals play for
the NFC East lead.

Dallas (7-5) leads New York (6-6) by one game. The Giants led the race by two before their slide.

The Cowboys had their four-game win streak snapped thanks to mistakes that included poor clock management in last Sunday’s
19-13 overtime loss at Arizona – a defeat that cost them a chance to clinch the division this weekend.

“Most importantly, we have to put this one to bed and go to the next one,” coach Jason Garrett said.

The Giants, meanwhile, seem buoyed despite last Sunday’s 38-35 last-second loss to Green Bay. After giving the unbeaten Packers
their toughest game, New York is looking forward to the chance to move back into first place.

“The mindset is looking ahead,” quarterback
Eli Manning
said. “It doesn’t matter what you’ve done last week or what your record is. It’s what you’re playing for, who you have this
week. And you have Dallas, Sunday night football, that’s a big one.”

These teams’ quarterbacks are having similar seasons. Manning has a 96.0 passer rating, 23 touchdowns to 11 interceptions
and 3,705 passing yards.
Tony Romo
owns a 97.3 rating with 22 touchdowns to nine interceptions and 3,325 yards through the air.

“I think everyone knows this is an important game and you have to play the best football this time of year,” Romo said. “We’re
going to go out there and give great effort and be ready for a great challenge in the Giants.”

Each passing game could get a boost Sunday.

Receiver
Mario Manningham
, out the last two games with a sore knee, could return for New York. Manningham has three touchdown catches in his last four
games against Dallas and would complement a group that includes
Hakeem Nicks
and
Victor Cruz
.

Cruz is fourth in the league with 1,076 receiving yards after three straight 100-yard efforts.

Cowboys star receiver
Miles Austin
and blocking fullback
Tony Fiammetta
returned to practice Wednesday and both are expected to play. That should provide help to an offense that has produced three
touchdowns over the last two games.

“We feel like we have a rejuvenated offense,” receiver
Laurent Robinson
said.

The Giants had some changes on their offensive line last week with
Kevin Boothe
replacing
David Baas
(neck) at center and
Mitch Petrus
entering at left guard. Dave Diehl had already replaced the injured
Will Beatty
at left tackle.

Diehl is accustomed to that spot from years past, and could renew his battle with linebacker
DeMarcus Ware
. Ware, who leads the NFL with 15 sacks, sat out practice Wednesday with a stinger.

“That has always been a great matchup and there have been some other ones all across the board on both sides of the ball,”
Garrett said. “That is certainly one of the subplots of the game and we are excited to see how it plays out.”

No NFC team has more sacks than the Cowboys’ 35, and the Giants are close behind with 33.

New York’s rushing defense is 23rd in the league, allowing 127.0 yards per game. The Giants will get their first look at Cowboys
rookie
DeMarco Murray
, who averaged 108.5 yards rushing during the win streak before being limited to 38 last Sunday.

“I think they are averaging 114 yards a game rushing,” Giants coach Tom Coughlin said. “They are doing some good things with
the run game.”

The Giants remain last in the league in rushing with 83.8 yards per game. They reached 100 for the first time in four games
last Sunday as
Ahmad Bradshaw
returned after missing four straight with a broken bone in his right foot.

New York’s depleted secondary received good news on safety
Kenny Phillips
, who left the Green Bay game with a knee sprain but could play.

These teams split notable meetings last season.

Romo’s season came to an early end with a broken collarbone due to a hit by
Michael Boley
in last year’s 41-35 home loss to New York – part of a 1-7 start that led to the dismissal of coach Wade Phillips.

Garrett had a memorable debut as interim coach, guiding Dallas to a 33-20 victory at New York in the last meeting Nov, 14.
2010.

Their upcoming clash Jan. 1 in the regular-season finale has the chance to be even more dramatic.

New York has won both previous matchups at Cowboys Stadium, where Manning has six touchdown passes, three interceptions, a
68.5 completion percentage and 636 passing yards.

While the
New York Giants
and
Dallas Cowboys
both lost last weekend, the damage by those defeats can easily be mitigated thanks to what’s at stake this weekend.

The Giants will try to end a four-game losing streak Sunday night on the road against the Cowboys as these rivals play for
the NFC East lead.

Dallas (7-5) leads New York (6-6) by one game. The Giants led the race by two before their slide.

The Cowboys had their four-game win streak snapped thanks to mistakes that included poor clock management in last Sunday’s
19-13 overtime loss at Arizona – a defeat that cost them a chance to clinch the division this weekend.

“Most importantly, we have to put this one to bed and go to the next one,” coach Jason Garrett said.

The Giants, meanwhile, seem buoyed despite last Sunday’s 38-35 last-second loss to Green Bay. After giving the unbeaten Packers
their toughest game, New York is looking forward to the chance to move back into first place.

“The mindset is looking ahead,” quarterback
Eli Manning
said. “It doesn’t matter what you’ve done last week or what your record is. It’s what you’re playing for, who you have this
week. And you have Dallas, Sunday night football, that’s a big one.”

These teams’ quarterbacks are having similar seasons. Manning has a 96.0 passer rating, 23 touchdowns to 11 interceptions
and 3,705 passing yards.
Tony Romo
owns a 97.3 rating with 22 touchdowns to nine interceptions and 3,325 yards through the air.

“I think everyone knows this is an important game and you have to play the best football this time of year,” Romo said. “We’re
going to go out there and give great effort and be ready for a great challenge in the Giants.”

Each passing game could get a boost Sunday.

Receiver
Mario Manningham
, out the last two games with a sore knee, could return for New York. Manningham has three touchdown catches in his last four
games against Dallas and would complement a group that includes
Hakeem Nicks
and
Victor Cruz
.

Cruz is fourth in the league with 1,076 receiving yards after three straight 100-yard efforts.

Cowboys star receiver
Miles Austin
and blocking fullback
Tony Fiammetta
returned to practice Wednesday and both are expected to play. That should provide help to an offense that has produced three
touchdowns over the last two games.

“We feel like we have a rejuvenated offense,” receiver
Laurent Robinson
said.

The Giants had some changes on their offensive line last week with
Kevin Boothe
replacing
David Baas
(neck) at center and
Mitch Petrus
entering at left guard. Dave Diehl had already replaced the injured
Will Beatty
at left tackle.

Diehl is accustomed to that spot from years past, and could renew his battle with linebacker
DeMarcus Ware
. Ware, who leads the NFL with 15 sacks, sat out practice Wednesday with a stinger.

“That has always been a great matchup and there have been some other ones all across the board on both sides of the ball,”
Garrett said. “That is certainly one of the subplots of the game and we are excited to see how it plays out.”

No NFC team has more sacks than the Cowboys’ 35, and the Giants are close behind with 33.

New York’s rushing defense is 23rd in the league, allowing 127.0 yards per game. The Giants will get their first look at Cowboys
rookie
DeMarco Murray
, who averaged 108.5 yards rushing during the win streak before being limited to 38 last Sunday.

“I think they are averaging 114 yards a game rushing,” Giants coach Tom Coughlin said. “They are doing some good things with
the run game.”

The Giants remain last in the league in rushing with 83.8 yards per game. They reached 100 for the first time in four games
last Sunday as
Ahmad Bradshaw
returned after missing four straight with a broken bone in his right foot.

New York’s depleted secondary received good news on safety
Kenny Phillips
, who left the Green Bay game with a knee sprain but could play.

These teams split notable meetings last season.

Romo’s season came to an early end with a broken collarbone due to a hit by
Michael Boley
in last year’s 41-35 home loss to New York – part of a 1-7 start that led to the dismissal of coach Wade Phillips.

Garrett had a memorable debut as interim coach, guiding Dallas to a 33-20 victory at New York in the last meeting Nov, 14.
2010.

Their upcoming clash Jan. 1 in the regular-season finale has the chance to be even more dramatic.

New York has won both previous matchups at Cowboys Stadium, where Manning has six touchdown passes, three interceptions, a
68.5 completion percentage and 636 passing yards.

By Ed Valentine

– Regional Editor

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Dec 8, 2011 – The New York Giants face a must-win Sunday night against the Dallas Cowboys in Texas. The Giants (6-6) trail the Cowboys (7-5) in the NFC East and have just four games remaining, two against Dallas. Let’s take a look at what the Cowboys are all about.

RECORD (7-5, first place in the NFC East)

Much like the Giants, the Cowboys have been all over the map this season. They started the season 3-4 but, following a lopsided 34-7 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles Dallas ran off four straight victories. Then, last week, is a game against a weak Arizona team, Dallas lost in overtime, 19-13. 

Which Dallas team is the real one? Maybe the answer is both, which makes largely identical to the Giants.

OFFENSE

Dallas, of course, is led by quarterback Tony Romo. The Cowboy quarterback has had a typical year statistically, completing 64.7 percent of his passes for 3,325 yards with 22 touchdowns and nine interceptions thus far. He has a passer rating of 97.3 and a QBR of 71.0, which is fourth in the league.

The Cowboys leading receiver is tight end Jason Witten, who has 61 catches. Since the start of the 2007 season, Witten leads NFL tight ends with 426 catches & 4,889 yards.

On the outside the Cowboys have Dez Bryant (46 catches and seven touchdowns) and Laurent Robinson (42 catches, seven touchdowns). They also expect to get Miles Austin, who has compiled more than 1,000 receiving yards in each of the past two seasons, back Sunday. Austin has played only six games this season due to a hamstring injury.

The Dallas running game is led by rookie third-round pick DeMarco Murray. He has 872 yards this season and is averaging 5.5 yards per carry. Felix Jones is the backup. The Cowboys could also be helped by the return of fullback Tony Fiammetta.

DEFENSE

For Dallas, linebacker DeMarcus Ware leads the league in sacks with 15 and will be matched up most of the time with Giants’ veteran offensive tackle David Diehl. That pair has locked horns for years, and Ware has generally gotten the better of the match-up. Second-year linebacker Sean Lee leads the Cowboys in tackles with 76. Nose tackle Jay Ratliff is another key defender for Dallas.

SPECIAL TEAMS

Dallas placekicker Dan Bailey is 29-of-32 on field goals this season. Punter Mat McBriar averages 45.2 yards per kick. Several players have shared kickoff and punt return duties. 

COACHING

Jason Garrett is in his first full season with the Cowboys. He is drawing some scrutiny after calling a timeout at the end of regulation Sunday against Arizona that would have won the game for Dallas in regulation. Bailey missed the subsequent re-kick and the Cowboys lost in overtime. Dallas is 12-8 since Garrett replaces Wade Phillips midway through last season.

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Rob Ryan has completely turned around the Dallas Cowboys’ offense. I can’t put my finger on what he has done, other than sending in exotic blitz packages, moving DeMarcus Ware(notes) all over the line and bringing out the best in Sean Lee(notes), but Ryan has done it.

It is even more impressive because Dallas fired head coach Wade Phillips, who then went down to Houston and turned them into one of the best defenses in the NFL. This is the same Houston team that has never won their division because their defense couldn’t stop anybody. Yet, Phillips couldn’t do it in Dallas.

But Rob Ryan has and that means he may not be there for long.

When Jacksonville fired Jack Del Rio, the list of coaching candidates went up. Rob Ryan’s name is on that list. He has the pedigree. His brother has taken the New York Jets to back-to-back AFC Championship games. His dad is Buddy Ryan, one of the most respected defensive coaches in the history of football.

Rob has been coaching a long time, as well. When I attended the University of Oklahoma as a journalism major, I covered Oklahoma Sooners football games for student publications. We had a tough-as-nails defensive coordinator named Rex Ryan. However, head coach John Blake was fired and Rex went with him in large part because Oklahoma couldn’t beat in-state rival Oklahoma State. The defensive coordinator of the Cowboys at that time was Rob Ryan.

Now, Ryan is working his way up the NFL ranks. He worked as the linebackers coach for the New England Patriots during two of their Super Bowl runs (2001, 2003). He moved to Oakland where he served as the defensive coordinator and then took over the role for two seasons at Cleveland. He is now in Dallas, where he has the Cowboys winning close games and fighting for the NFC East crown.

However, I don’t know if a team will take a chance on him. He has proven to be a winner. However, he has an attitude and arrogance that might be bigger than his brothers. He refuses to cut his hair and, at one time, said that if a team didn’t want him because he wouldn’t cut his hair, he didn’t want to work for them anyway. It is this attitude that will hold him back. However, no one can say he hasn’t earned it on the field.

Author Shawn S. Lealos has followed the Dallas Cowboys since he was a child, his favorite players range from Roger Staubach and Tony Dorsett to the Triplets of the 90s. Through the great years of the ’90s and the hard times of the ’80s, Shawn never turned his back on America’s Team.

Source: Dallas Cowboys

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