Week Four NFC East Thoughts
by David Syvertsen
With four weeks in the rear view mirror, the NFL’s top division is off to a red hot start. With the Cowboys hosting the Redskins and the Eagles playing in front of a national TV crowd in Chicago, the results of week 4 have updated the view of the division.
Whenever the overall strength of the NFC East is mentioned, the Cowboys are often talked about as the team to beat. They have talent overflowing across the depth charts on both sides of the ball and seem to be primed for a Super Bowl run. On the flip side, the Redskins are talked about as a team that could contend in any other division in the NFL but simply cannot hang with the big shots of the NFC East. Somebody forgot to tell them because they went into Dallas and outplayed the Cowboys on their home turf from start to finish.
Coming into the season, one could point to a variety of keys needed to unlock the door separating the Redskins from divisional contention. The two that were most important however were on display in Dallas, the play of quarterback Jason Campbell and the defense’s ability to get to the passer.
One player that kept coming to mind in comparison when Campbell was breaking tackles in the pocket and slithering his way to open himself up for passes was Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger. Campbell’s 6-foot-5, 231-pound frame allowed him to stand strong behind the offensive line and stay patient waiting for Santana Moss and Antwaan Randle El, both of whom are impossible to cover once a play breaks down. Campbell really showed he is comfortable in this West Coast-type scheme that Jim Zorn has brought in and when you combine that with the physical ability, this offense could be ready to surge. The tool set has never been in question with Campbell, it has always been his ability to react when things break down and there has not been a three-week span in his career in which he has looked more confident than he does right now.
Washington did not register a sack in Dallas, but what else is new right? Well, if the game was watched from start to finish, you would know the impact that the defensive line had on the game was enormous. Defensive end Andre Carter and defentsive tackle Demetric Evans were both in Tony Romo’s grill all day and it hampered the Dallas passing attack as the game went on. The loss of Jayson Taylor was supposed to hurt this team big time, but their defensive front more than held its own against the most dominant line in football. However, the strong defense displayed by the Redskins did not end there as Shawn Springs and Carlos Rogers arguably played their best football of the year on the biggest stage.
Although Springs went down with a leg injury in the second half, he was a thorn in the side of Terrell Owens when they were both on the field. He is the ideal matchup against Owens when you consider his blend of size, strength and experience as a top notch corner. That Cowboys passing game is all about timing and Springs was consistently throwing Owens off his routes and altering the timing of Romo’s drop backs. When he went down with the injury, Cowboys offensive coordinator Jason Garrett tested third-year cover man Carlos Rogers several times throughout the game and his progression continues to soar.
While the ball skills of Rogers are nothing to write home about, there are very few receivers in the league that he couldn’t stick with all over the field. If the pass rush can continue its improvement and Taylor can come back strong from the calf injury, this defense has the capability of keeping the best offenses in the league at least somewhat grounded.
So what is there to take from the first loss of the Cowboys’ 2008 season? You can label them a 13-win team right now and you will not get an argument from many people across the league. However the two exploited weaknesses of this team proved to still exist this week just as they did against the Giants in the postseason last January. One, the defense cannot come up with a big stop when it matters most. There are stars, both literally and figuratively, everywhere you look in the secondary for Dallas yet they could not come up with a turnover.
Their defensive line is raved about everywhere you look now that Jay Ratliff has taken over full time as the team’s nose tackle. Behind him is one of the best of all time run stuffing linebackers in the game, Zach Thomas. However the Redskins were in need of a time consuming drive that was fueled by Clinton Portis and they did so without a problem. The big-time defenses in this league don’t let either of those things happen.
Secondly, Tony Romo had an average-to-above average game but he missed on several throws in the second half that he usually hits. He is a different passer when the pressure is on and once he got tossed around a bit by the Redskins pass rush, his decision making appeared to be rushed and out of sync. The big time quarterbacks in this league don’t let that happen.
Washington has a history of disappointing after games like this. They have another NFC East battle in Philadelphia next week followed by a soft spot in their schedule (Rams, Browns, @ Lions). If they are at least competitive in Philly next week, the Redskins absolutely have to be considered a legit contender.
*It has been a well-known fact for a few years that without Brian Westbrook, the Philadelphia Eagles are very beatable. Although Donovan McNabb is playing the best football of his career (outside of the Owens era), the Sunday night game in Chicago showed how vastly different that offense’s gameplan is with No. 36 on the sideline. Do you think the Eagles fail to convert from the one-yard line three straight times with him out there? Not a chance.
So the Eagles now sit at 2-2 in a division that hosts three teams with three wins apiece. If there is one division you do not want to fall behind, it is the NFC East. Westbrook is not expected to miss a ton of time, however there is ground that needs to be made up over the next few weeks. The defense appears to be a typical Jim Johnson unit that attacks downhill and uses a deep rotation on all three levels. The issue that is blatantly obvious right now is simply that there are far too many big plays being given up. If the Eagles are up against an offense that can pick up their complex blitzing schemes, the middle of the field can be attacked via the air all game. While the relentless pursuit to the ball carrier by all eleven players is what you want in a defense, the likes of Brian Dawkins, Omar Gaither and Quinton Mikell are creating cutback lanes wide enough for a bus to drive through. If they can tone it down a notch while keeping their smashmouth attitude, the Eagles will be able to tread water until their opportunity to strike presents itself.