Defense quiet but confident

The Cowboys offense was prolific last season when it gained the second most yards in the league, trailing only New Orleans. The Tony Romo-Miles Austin combo was flashy. Jason Witten quietly caught 94 passes. Marion Barber had his moments and Felix Jones had a few electrifying bursts down the field.

A potent and exciting offense, indeed. Even the defense knows that.

But the defense also had a great season. It allowed the ninth fewest yards during the 2009 regular season and finished second in points allowed. The Jets allowed 14.8 points per game while the Cowboys allowed 15.6.

But most of the headlines went to the offense, which is fine with the defenders.

“Offense sells tickets,” defensive end Marcus Spears said, smiling. “But we’ll continue to play well on defense and work as hard as we need to work in order to be the best defense in this league and that’s everybody’s mentality. We have this identify that we’d rather fly under the radar.

-- Jan Hubbard