Every week during the 2011 NFL season, gridiron expert Hatley Vittitow dissects America's Team and its challengers.
ARLINGTON--Tony Romo has grown up.
Five years ago, a kid on the sideline walked around wearing his cap backwards, smiling without a care in the world. Now, a general barks orders to his team. Despite the droning Jaworski hyperbole, Romo has indeed become a coach on the field - directing his teammates where to line up, who to block, and what route to run. He is all business. He's leading by example too; playing through the pain of a cracked rib and punctured lung has inspired Dez Bryant and Felix Jones to tough it out. A year ago, Jones would have spent Monday night nursing his separated shoulder off the field. Instead, he plays through the pain, racking up a career high for single game rushing yards in the process.
This newfound toughness is thanks in part to head coach Jason Garrett. Garrett has set a new way of thinking at Valley Ranch that hasn't been seen in since the Jimmy Johnson era. He makes everyone accountable on the team, and it starts with his stars. Don't expect consummate slackers skating by on their upside to stick around much longer (Martellus Bennett).
Garrett as a head coach is doing a superb job. Garrett as an offensive coordinator through three games this season has room for much improvement. In every game, with his Cowboys in goal-to-go situations inside the five-yard line, Garrett has lined the offense up in shotgun packages. In four possessions inside the five, the Cowboys have produced ten points. That's inexcusable for a coach that has four years of play-calling under his belt.
It's obvious that Garrett does not trust his young offensive line to run the ball at the goal line consistently, but at least give them a chance to line up and play smash-mouth football. You just don't roll out the shotgun and try to fool defenses with halfback draws. This puts needless pressure on Romo to throw it to receivers that don't know what routes to run (Kevin Olgetree -- after three years in Dallas -- proved himself a clueless, useless cog under the Monday lights).
Protection will be everything on Sunday for both offenses.
Sunday's matchup features the two best defenses in the NFC in terms of total defense. This will put even more pressure on Romo and these inexperienced receivers to move the ball. The Detroit Lions' pass defense is only giving up 188 yards a game, tops in the NFC. Miles Austin is out through the bye week and Bryant is still hampered by a quad contusion that he suffered in week one, so Romo will have to rely on newly-signed Laurent Robinson, who had some big catches against the Redskins.
The Lions come into Cowboys Stadium riding a seven-game winning streak and all the confidence in the world. Just last season, the Lions held a streak of 26 straight losses on the road, but now they have won four straight (their last road loss was against the Cowboys). The play of their franchise quarterback, Matthew Stafford, has been the key. When healthy, Stafford is one of the top ten quarterbacks in the league. The Lions will be in the mix for a playoff spot, and maybe even a division title, well into December.
The key to this one is in the trenches. If the Cowboys' offensive line can protect Romo and provide running lanes for Jones, then the Cowboys have a great shot at winning. The Lions have one of the best defensive lines in the league, so it'll be a tough task for this young offensive line. On the other side of the ball, the key is the same. The Lions' offensive line must protect Stafford and try to jump-start a running game that has produced 2.8 yards per carry this year.
If the Cowboys were healthy, I'd be more inclined to like them here, but without Austin -- the only receiver that knows the offense -- Romo will struggle to find a receiver that will be in the right place at the right time. Jason Witten is his go-to guy, but defenses are double-teaming him with Austin and Bryant injured. The offensive line will struggle mightily against the Lions' defensive front seven, and the combination of Stafford and Calvin Johnson will be too much for a Cowboys' secondary that has not been tested thus far. The Lions will prevail, 23-19.
Bold: No botched snaps for Phil Costa.
Not Bold: Dan Bailey will make four field goals.
-- Hatley Vittitow
Twitter: @hatley_vittitow
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