One of the biggest question marks during the offseason last year was what would come of the Dallas Cowboys defense after the midseason dismissal of head coach Wade Phillips. The defensive secondary was the biggest concern on the defensive side of the ball, along with some aging linebackers, Bradie James and Keith Brooking.

Defensive Coordinator: Rob Ryan

Head coach Jason Garrett hired the flamboyant coach Rob Ryan to run the defense, changing not only the schemes employed by Phillips, but transforming the personality of the defense as well. While Phillips has long been considered a defensive guru in the NFL, his defense could be characterized as bend-but-don’t-break, containment style. By comparison, new defensive coordinator Rob Ryan has employed a Katy-bar-the-door attacking defense. This style has helped cover up some of the problems in the secondary.

In the early part of the season, Dallas’ rushing defense ranked near the top in spite of a record of three wins and three losses at the time. After meeting the Philadelphia Eagles in their seventh game, however, this ranking dropped significantly as quarterback Michael Vick and Eagles running back LeSean McCoy ripped through the Rob Ryan defense for 235 rushing yards. Vick also passed for 279 yards and two touchdowns in the game, spanking the Cowboys 34-7. Currently, the Dallas defense ranks eighth against the rush.

The bright spot on the Cowboys defense continues to be the play of DeMarcus Ware, who ranks second in sacks with 12. The Cowboys rank eighth in the NFL with 22 sacks overall.

Defensive Discipline

While the offense ranks among the league’s worst penalized teams, the Cowboys defense has the best record in the NFL for yards given up on penalties. It also ranks second for the least number of passing plays of over 40 yards in length. These are significant accomplishments, which show that the Cowboys defense is not prone to giving up yards easily on big plays or getting beat with penalties. In spite of the aggressive style of defense, and the risks associated with pass rushing schemes, Rob Ryan’s defensive philosophy is working well, and it is hard not to see the improvements over the previous years under Wade Phillips.

IRVING, Texas — Here’s the situation.

The Cowboys have not been at their best in “situational football,” the time of the game when it’s late, when each team has the chance to do something to win the game.

Holding a seven-point lead with 10 minutes to go in the fourth quarter of the season opener, the Cowboys committed two turnovers, had a punt blocked and lost.

Holding a 24-point lead with 10 minutes to go in the third quarter in Week 4, the Cowboys committed three turnovers and lost.

But this is also the situation:

The Cowboys have been good at situational football.

At San Francisco, they drove 44 yards to a game-tying field goal and then executed one play to perfection to set up the game-winning field goal.

Against Washington, they drove 76 and 64 yards for two fourth-quarter field goals then forced a turnover on defense to win the game.

So what’s the real situation?

“We don’t play consistent football for four quarters,” linebacker Keith Brooking said. “You can look at it, the two games we won, we probably shouldn’t have won. The two games we lost, you walk off the field: ‘What just happened to us?’.”

After four games, the Cowboys have seen enough to believe they’re good. They had a two-touchdown lead in the fourth quarter on the road against the Jets and are tied for third in the league in sacks.

But they also have 10 turnovers in the first four games. Their turnover margin is minus-4. They are in the bottom third of the league in rushing.

“It’s a long season,” coach Jason Garrett said. “The expression ‘It’s a marathon, not a sprint’ applies to an NFL season. We’re four games into it. Some good things have happened, some things that weren’t so good also happened. We’ve got to learn and get better and improve as the season goes on.”

Naturally, the Cowboys will try to keep that approach. Garrett will continue to emphasize situational football. But then, he’s been emphasizing it since training camp started in San Antonio. That was 10 weeks ago.

“You know, the disappointing part of that is, a lot of those things we’ve been working on for a long time,” tight end Jason Witten said. “We believe we’re a good team. We’ve shown that. We’ve just got to be more consistent with it. I think that’s what this bye week is about, to understand that. Collectively the mindset is that way. It doesn’t mean it’s going to be easy. We’ve got a tough opponent in New England next week.”

That will be another chance for some situational football.

THE KNOWNS

Answered questions in the first four games:

1. Was Tyron Smith the right pick? The Cowboys knew the 20-year-old had a big upside. They gladly used the No. 9 pick on him and figured on starting him immediately at right tackle. He’d have to learn on the job. Instead, he looks like he’s been there for years.

2. Is Sean Lee a playmaker? Two interceptions, two fumble recoveries, four pass breakups and a team-high 47 tackles are about all that can be asked of a second-round pick. Lee has delivered all of it, rewarding the Cowboys for entrusting him with a starting spot.

3. Can Dan Bailey be trusted? For now. Just when you think you have a kicker, he’ll start missing when he’s not supposed to miss. (Like from 21 yards). But Bailey’s made 11 in a row and 12 of 13. That’s enough to trust. For now.

4. Will the defense pressure the quarterback? The Cowboys led the NFL in sacks through the first 13 games, and they got them from six players. DeMarcus Ware had five. The next step is to get the secondary in on the party. Danny McCray is the only defensive back with a sack.

THE UNKNOWNS

Unanswered questions in the first four games:

1. Are the turnovers here to stay? Tony Romo has five interceptions and a fumble in four games. Backup Jon Kitna threw two interceptions in his only appearance. The Cowboys are minus-4 in turnover margin, which is better than only five teams in the league.

2. Can Dez Bryant stay on the field? Good things happen for the Cowboys when their first-round pick from a year ago is on the field. He produces touchdowns and big plays, and as coach Jason Garrett says, affects a game just by breaking the huddle. But he’s been playing hurt since the season opener, and he’s already missed one game.

3. Who do you trust at No. 3 receiver? Kevin Ogletree is in his third season with the Cowboys, but he still has only 18 career catches and hasn’t consistently been in sync with Tony Romo. Last week, fifth-year player Laurent Robinson appeared to move ahead of Ogletree despite being with the Cowboys less than a month. But Robinson made a route mistake that cost the Cowboys a turnover.

4. What will the running game provide? Through four games, the Cowboys gained 3.4 yards per carry. In 101 carries, they have only three runs for more than 10 yards and only one for a touchdown. They are passing 62.6 percent of the time. An imbalance the Cowboys do not want.

IRVING, Texas (AP) — Sean Lee was everywhere in the Dallas Cowboys’ opener.

One play, he’d be crashing through the line to harass the Jets’ quarterback and running backs.

On the next, he’d be dropping into coverage, doing it in such a sneaky way that he intercepted a pass and returned it just shy of the goal line.

And when it was time for special teams, he was usually out there, too.

It was the kind of high-octane, high-performance outing the Cowboys expected when they drafted Lee last year, and a great way for him to start his second season. It also was pretty exhausting.

“I was gassed a lot during the game,” Lee said Thursday. “But it’s one of those things where the atmosphere was so much fun, the game was close, I wasn’t going to try to come out.”

Now that Lee has cracked the starting lineup, he could be sticking around for years to come. In the latest example of this season being the start of a youth movement, his ironman outing in the opener left veterans Bradie James and Keith Brooking splitting time at the other inside linebacker spot.

Brooking missed much of training camp with an injury, giving Lee the opportunity he needed. Coaches thought he was ready to handle more responsibility and he clearly showed them he could.

“We talk about the passion, emotion and enthusiasm of our team,” coach Jason Garrett said. “I think he embodied that and represented that well for 60 minutes, on defense and in the kicking game.”

Days later, Lee is still embodying everything Garrett wants. Asked about the message he sent with his play against the Jets, Lee said: “It doesn’t mean anything; we lost.”

“You want to have a good game and win at the same time,” he said. “For me, I look at the tape and see things I can do better. You try to stay even keel. I know there were some good things I did, but at the same time you want to improve on it and you want to win.”

The Cowboys took Lee in the second round of last year’s draft out of Penn State because they saw a guy who loved football and loved playing it the right way. Other teams saw it all, too, but he was still available at the 55th pick because of questions about his knees.

Dallas traded up to get him there, but considered it a steal from the start. According to the club’s draft board, he was worth taking in the middle of the first round.

Lee’s intensity and ability prompted comparisons to Brooking from the start. Even Brooking saw it. The rest of the NFL got a glimpse in December, when he snagged two interceptions off Peyton Manning, returning one for a touchdown and the other setting up a game-winning field goal in overtime.

“I’ve said all along the sky’s the limit for Sean,” Brooking said this week. “He’s very instinctive. I think just the more reps he gets, the more familiar with the defense he gets, you’re just going to see him continue to progress. He’s extremely intelligent, he works his tail off. So, yeah. He’s going to be a heck of a football player.”

The only thing Brooking doesn’t like about the kid is that he’s taking away his job.

Brooking estimated that he played about 25 snaps Sunday, the fewest he could remember in a game when he was healthy. His only action came in relief of James.

“(Lee) deserves his chance. He’s proved that he can do it,” Brooking said. “I accept my role regardless. But that doesn’t mean I don’t want to be out on the field more. … Regardless of who’s out there, it’s a luxury that we have the three inside linebackers we have right now in that rotation. Regardless of who’s out there, we feel pretty darn good about what’s going to take place.”

Brooking will keep working as if he’s the starter, and Lee plans to keep watching the veteran, asking questions and learning all he can from him.

“His approach to the game, his demeanor, the way he practices every day, how he plays things, how he sees things — he really is a true linebacker in every facet,” Lee said. “He’s the pinnacle of what I want to be.”

Again, that’s more of what Garrett loves to see and hear.

“He has tremendous intensity in everything he does,” Garrett said. “You watch him in a meeting, you watch him in a walkthrough, you watch him on the practice field, you watch him playing the game — there is one way to go about it. The best players I have been around have that attitude and have that way about them, so we have seen that right from the start.”

Notes: WR Dez Bryant (thigh) didn’t practice for a second straight day, but is expected to play Sunday against the San Francisco 49ers. … CBs Terence Newman and Orlando Scandrick won’t play against the 49ers. Newman (groin) hasn’t practiced since early August, but Garrett had been hopeful he would be cleared this week. The Cowboys need him, too, because Scandrick (ankle) could be out several weeks and Mike Jenkins battled through various injuries last week. … LG Bill Nagy didn’t practice because of a neck problem, making it likely that recently signed veteran Derrick Dockery will start Sunday.

Read More: Orlando Scandrick (CB – DAL), Phil Costa (C – DAL), Tyron Smith (OT – DAL), Dallas Cowboys

The Dallas Cowboys starting lineup and rotation looked plenty different from it’s previous versions in last night’s season opening loss to the New York Jets. Second year receiver Dez Bryant took over the starters role, and make the Jets vaunted cornerback combo look overmatched. A early quad injury suffered on a punt return limited Bryant after the first quarter, even though he returned to finish the game after missing time and heading into the locker room for evaluation. Owner Jerry Jones voiced his concern over Bryant playing special teams after the game.

The offensive line boasted three new starters in rookies Tyron Smith (RT) and Bill Nagy (LG), as well as second year man Phil Costa (C). Both Costa and Smith were game time decisions due to back and knee injuries respectively, but were able to go. Tight end/F-Back John Phillips made the start after missing all of 2010 to a torn ACL. He started in place of Martellus Bennett, who was injured in preseason action and is expected to return before the early bye week.

Cornerback Terence Newman missed the contest, still nursing a groin injury, and was replaced by Orlando Scandrick in the lineup. Mike Jenkins, the team’s other corner, had missed the entire preseason with a stinger but started the game. Scandrick got bit by the injury bug early in the second quarter. MRI results have yet to be released, but a high ankle sprain or bone fracture puts him out for a reported 3-4 weeks. Jenkins spent several moments hurt on the turf throughout the game, most notably after a blind side block from Plaxico Burress that included trash talk from the Jet. Burress would push off Jenk’s replacement Bryan McCann for a touchdown.

“They have three big time receivers… to not have Terence here, then have Jenks out, and then have Scandrick go out. You know I thought Jenks did a great job battling back and continuing to play when he was banged up. You know we were playing with a  safety out there our fourth corner, i think rob did a great job managing that situation for a lot of the game… i thought for the most part they hung in there and battled as best they could.”

-Jason Garrett from post game presser

The youth movement on defense appeared in Sean Lee replacing veteran Keith Brooking at inside linebacker. All Lee did with the start is record 11 tackles, intercept a pass and almost score a TAINT, and recover a Mark Sanchez fumble. Expect him to become the poster boy for drafting injured players in the top rounds and waiting for their return to health (cough, Bruce Carter, cough).

Danny McCray, an undrafted 2010 free agent safety, was utilized by Rob Ryan in a variety of ways and crushed Mark Sanchez, forcing the fumble Lee snatched up. Once the secondary’s injuries started mounting, McCray lined up at cornerback.

In the presser, Jason Garrett said despite the mistakes of the fourth quarter, “the guys played with tremendous passion, emotion and enthusiasm… and just kept competing.” That is exactly what you want from a team full of youth and backups. As Garrett said, “There were a lot of good things that we can build on.”

For more Cowboys-centric coverage, check out SB Nation’s Blogging The Boys.

IRVING (AP) –  Demoted defensive lineman Igor Olshansky, last year’s starting fullback Chris Gronkowski and veteran kickers Shayne Graham and Dave Rayner were among the players the Dallas Cowboys released on Saturday to get their roster down to 53.

The departure of the experienced legs means the Cowboys are sticking with David Buehler and Dan Bailey. Buehler almost certainly will handle kickoffs, with Bailey handling field goals. Bailey was named the top kicker in college football last season, but wasn’t drafted.

Olshansky joined the Cowboys in 2008 to be reunited with Wade Phillips, who’d been his defensive coordinator in San Diego. Between Phillips getting fired midway through last season, and Dallas signing Kenyon Coleman — who spent the last two seasons in Cleveland playing for the Cowboys’ new coordinator, Rob Ryan — Olshansky’s release was no surprise. The move also saves Dallas more than $3.3 million against the salary cap.

Gronkowski, who has two brothers playing in the NFL, made the team as an undrafted rookie last season. His tenure will best be remembered for a missed block that led to Tony Romo breaking his collarbone. He becomes the sixth offensive starter from last season to be released under coach Jason Garrett, who has been the offensive coordinator the last four years.

Also dumped were fifth-round pick Josh Thomas, a cornerback, and seventh-rounder Shaun Chapas, a fullback; last year’s fourth-rounder, safety Akwasi Owusu-Ansah; and two members of the 2009 draft class, linebacker Brandon Williams, a fourth-rounder, and receiver Manny Johnson, a seventh-rounder.

Owusu-Ansah played with the first team at the start of training camp, but failed to make the most of his opportunity. Ditto for Lonyae Miller, who got extra work because of injuries to two running backs ahead of him. Phillip Tanner beat him out for the No. 4 spot behind Felix Jones, Tashard Choice and DeMarco Murray.

The Cowboys kept no fullbacks. In addition to Gronkowski and Chapas, they let go Jason Pociask and Isaiah Greenhouse.

Another thin position is inside linebacker. Dallas stuck with only Bradie James, Keith Brooking and Sean Lee, dropping Kenwin Cummings and Orie Lemon.

Rookie free agent Alex Albright beat out Williams for an outside linebacker job.

Dallas put receiver Raymond Radway on injured reserve. Radway, an undrafted rookie, broke his leg on the final play of the final preseason game after having earned a roster spot.

Receiver Teddy Williams, a star sprinter in college who hadn’t played football since high school until joining the Cowboys last season, was dropped. He missed most of camp with an injury caused when he ran into receivers coach Jimmy Robinson in one of the first drills of camp.

Other cuts included safeties Andrew Sendejo and Collin Zych; receivers Lyle Leong and Tysson Poots; cornerbacks Mario Butler and Chris Randle; linebacker Mike Balogun; defensive end Jimmy Sadler-McQueen; guard Pepa Letuli; quarterback Tom Brandstater; and punter Chris Jones.

The roster is certain to be in flux, with the Cowboys looking for players cut by other teams who could be upgrades here. They also have eight practice-squad spots to fill.

Dallas opens the season a week from Sunday on the road against the New York Jets.

(Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)