Blogging The Boys
The preseason is over for the Dallas Cowboys, and one that ended on a high note with a full 60-minute win against the Atlanta Falcons. The win in front of a home crowd at AT&T Stadium has added a lot of intrigue to the looming roster cuts, something that felt a lot more cut and dry through the first two preseason losses. The Cowboys are no stranger to fielding a young roster and letting them develop on the fly, and they have found some new young standouts this preseason. They will also have so many new faces on the coaching staff making their say in these roster decisions, which must be finalized by Tuesday afternoon.
What were some of the most surprising things we saw from the Cowboys this preseason against the Rams, Ravens, and Falcons that may have us feeling better or worse about different areas of the team going into opening night against the Eagles?
There were a lot of questions about the run game for the second year in a row heading into preseason. The Cowboys had a key player they didn’t use this preseason in first-year acquisition Javontae Williams. Williams is slated as the top back and will spend a lot of time in between the tackles. We didn’t see him make those runs in preseason, but we did see Phil Mafah.
Mafah had his longest run of the preseason against the Falcons for 15 yards, and finished off that same drive with a one-yard touchdown. He led the team in carries with ten against the Rams in the preseason opener. The Falcons win was also the team debut for rookie Jaydon Blue, who fell right in line by giving the Cowboys more burst and dynamic ability compared to Mafah.
The play of Mafah and Blue has drawn a clear line in the sand with the depth chart at running back. Not only does their running styles give Brian Schottenheimer some variety, but their rookie contract status is an added bonus too. Both backs are capable of making big plays in limited roles. Unfortunately we won’t see Mafah right away as he will start on IR, but he and Blue both look like capable backs.
Another first-year player, one brought in late in the offseason, appears in line to make the roster and see real playing time. Edge rusher James Houston got the Cowboys first edge sack of the preseason, and he was also in on a play where DT Perrion Winfrey recorded a sack.
The Cowboys best chance to regularly win games this season will be a familiar one to teams in recent seasons under Mike McCarthy and Dan Quinn, even though the staff has been almost entirely turned over. Control the tempo of the game with the run game, score points via a Prescott-led pass game, and play from ahead to fully unleash the pass rush. The better...
