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Tag Archives: Defense

Straw That Stirs The Defenses Drink?

Gerald SensabaughThe 2009 version of the Dallas Cowboys defense will look and feel like a completely new unit. With an influx of young energetic, athletic players and a full season with Wade Phillips as the Coordinator will certainly change things.

There is one person however who holds the key to what this team can be, and it might not be who most of us would have thought either!

Now we could come up with at least a handful of names that at the very least could drastically change what this defense will be able to accomplish this year, Demarcus Ware, Terrence Newman, Bradie James, Mike Jenkins, Orlando Scandrick… just to name a few.

None of those guys can do for this unit what one Gerald Sensabaugh can though! I realize it sounds ridiculous to think that a guy who many of us did not even know who he was could suddenly be the main component in elevating this average defense to a top flight unit.

Gerald has already made a profound impression upon Wade Phillips during OTA’s, saying

“Sensabaugh looks outstanding” Phillips said last week. “He’s really got a lot of ability, good work ethic, but he can really cover a lot of ground. We can cover in man to man with him…he has great speed along with cover ability.”

I may not agree with a lot of the things that Wade Phillips does or does not do, but when that guy speaks about what he see’s in a defensive player, I do not question it!

When Wade tells us “He can really cover a lot of ground. We can cover in man to man with him...” He is speaking volumes about what Gerald means to this unit! Everyone wanted an Ed Reed type of safety, well guess what, Wade just told us that we now have one.

In Baltimore’s system Ed Reed is allowed to roam around in the defensive backfield and to just “go after the ball.” They will play some zone coverage, but primarily they stay in a man to man scheme. Ed Reed thrives in this type of system for two reasons.

First, Reed is very fast, and secondly he has excellent cover ability. Now I am in by no means saying that Gerald Sensabaugh is about to become the second coming of Ed Reed (although I certainly believe it is a possibility) I am simply comparing the two systems and how safeties with these abilities can change the culture of those systems.

Gerald Sensabaugh will allow the likes of Demarcus Ware, Anthony Spencer, Keith Brooking, Bradie James, Jay Ratliff, and the rookies to pin their ears back and send blitz packages at the opposing offense that they simply cannot plan for.

Wade Phillips has been dreaming about this type of safety since he became the Head Coach here, and his players know it!

Wade is ready, and so are his troops, thanks to one Gerald Sensabaugh.

Marty B … logger? and Jay Cutler

Well, it looks like the Dallas Morning News Cowboys Insider Blog has a new author, and face, now that Kevin Burnett has departed for San Diego. Can’t really say that it’s a surprise though since the new author has been making blogging headlines for a while now either due to his updates on Twitter or his, at times, controversial videos on YouTube.

Yep, Marty B TV is coming into the blogosphere and if his first post is any indication of what we can expect … good lord.

Check out Martellus Bennett’s first entry here.

In other news though, it appears that Jay Cutler has finally gotten his wish and is now being shopped around. It’s not really a surprise to me that Denver is trying to trade him, but it is concerning that so many people are still thinking that Washington is a good destination for him.

It’s similar to what happens to Tony Romo a lot being another NFC East quarterback … these guys consistently play some of the toughest defenses in the league. Anytime you have a team that plays against the likes of the Chiefs, Chargers, and Raiders for six weeks of every season, the quarterback on that team is going to look good more often than not.

But when you have a guy like Jason Campbell from the Redskins who plays six games against the Giants, Eagles, and Cowboys, he’s bound to look bad and play bad more often. It’s not a direct relation to the guys skill or talent or ability in any way, it simply means that he is playing better defenses in a division that is pass rush happy.

So the talks of the Redskins trading Campbell for Cutler are a little retarded. Some media folks have said that it would be a problem if the ‘Skins acquired Cutler because he is seen as one of the most promising young quarterbacks in the league, and that he would give the Cowboys fits, but really a guy like Cutler just makes our secondary look even better by throwing more interceptions than Campbell.

That’s really the trade-off between the two, Cutler throws more loosely, and Campbell takes more sacks. I say it’d be a plus for us if the Redskins picked up Cutler, not only because of those stats, but because Cutler is on the verge of becoming a full on diva in the league after he so adolescently threw a tantrum when he thought trade offers were being entertained for him early this off-season.

Guess what? Now he will be traded and what he has to look forward to is landing on a team that probably has less going for it than the Broncos. The only real contenders mentioned thus far as possible trade partners for Cutler have been the Redskins and Titans. Other teams being mentioned are the Vikings, Lions, Browns, and the Jets … careful what you wish for is coming to mind right now.