Cowboys Corner

Cowboys are banged up at receiver

First, Miles Austin went out. Then, Dez Bryant. Cole Beasley was shaken up, too, and Dwayne Harris left the field on crutches.

If the Cowboys had to play a playoff game this weekend, they would be hurting at receiver.

"We were banged up going into this game, and at this point, I think we would have a tough time having some guys back next week," Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo said. "Some of the injuries don’t look very good."

At crunch time, with the Cowboys down two scores, Romo was trying to spearhead a comeback without his starting receivers. Austin was standing on the sideline with a left ankle injury. Bryant was in the locker room with a lower back injury.

"I went down with the high-ankle sprain, so that wasn’t a good thing," Austin said. "Very difficult [to push off], very difficult. Frustrating."

Romo threw a 10-yard touchdown pass to Kevin Ogletree with 5:50 left. Ogletree had been chastised by Romo after Romo’s first interception, which was intended for Ogletree. Then, Romo hit Dwayne Harris for a two-point conversion to draw Dallas to within 21-18.

On the Cowboys’ final drive, they were without Harris, who had a left ankle injury on the Redskins' last kickoff in the waning seconds.

"We got beat up pretty good at receiver," Ogletree said. "I know Miles went down and Dez left. As a group, we just try to pick each other up when we can. Missing those two guys is crucial, but we know it’s next-man-up system."

Tight end Jason Witten had seven catches for 56 yards and a touchdown. Bryant had four catches for 71 yards. Austin had no receptions.

-- Charean Williams

 

 

 

Witten finishes a record year, but says it's all 'an empty feeling in your stomach'

Jason Witten finished a record-setting year. But the Cowboys’ tight end, one of the most vocal players on the team – who said this week, “It can’t be the same old thing,” for the Cowboys – admitted there was nothing more to say.

“It’s really nothing you can say at this point,” he said after the Cowboys’ loss to the Redskins. “Obviously, it’s disappointing. I will give them credit. I feel like we had a good game plan coming in; they just out-played us.

“I said earlier in the week it’s about execution. It’s not about emotion or any of that other stuff. They out-executed us and deserved to win. It’s a tough one to swallow right now.”

Witten spoke at his locker in his uniform. He hadn’t even taken his shoulder pads off.

“It’s an empty feeling in your stomach,” he said. “Obviously, you can’t describe it. You feel like you’re right there, and you can’t seem to get over the hump. It’s going to take more. we have good players, but it is going to take more, playing better and finding a way to finish those games. It’s a tough league and a bottom-line business. We just have to find a little bit more to get out there, execute and find ways to win those games.

“It’s a tough feeling right now, obviously.”

Witten wound up with 110 catches this season, a record for NFL tight ends, and second all-time in Cowboys history to Michael Irvin’s 111 in 1995.

He also finished with his fourth 1,000-yard season, totaling 1,039.

He also topped 800 catches for his career. He did it in 159 games, faster than the previous two tight ends to reach that mark – Tony Gonzalez in 171 games and Shannon Sharpe in 202.

-- Carlos Mendez

Twitter @calexmendez

DeMarcus Ware was limited with shoulder strain

DeMarcus Ware did as much as he could do, but it wasn't as much as he wanted to do. Ware played with a shoulder strain and a hyperextended elbow.

He needed a harness for his shoulder and a brace for his elbow.

The Cowboys picked their spots for Ware. He played only 10 plays in the first half, and more in the second after Anthony Spencer briefly left the game with a left ankle injury.

Ware made one tackle and had one hit on the quarterback.

"Ware was very limited," Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said. "He gave us as much as you could ask of anybody to play tonight. But he certainly had his limitations. But they had players who had their limitations, too. So, I want to even it up here. But they were able to play better than we were and win tonight."

Ware, who had only 1.5 sacks in the last six games to finish with 11.5, will need surgeries on his right shoulder and right elbow, he said. He made the Pro Bowl but won't play in the all-star game.

-- Charean Williams

Cowboys notes: Dez Bryant has fourth-most receiving yards in single season in franchise history

Here are the notes compiled by the Cowboys' public relations department:

Dez Bryant caught four passes for 71 yards tonight. He upped his career receptions total to 200 to break a tie with Patrick Crayton for sole possession of 20^th in franchise history. He is also the 20^th Dallas Cowboy to reach 200 career receptions.

Bryant improved his season receiving yards total to 1,382 to give him the fourth-most yards in a season in franchise history:

Single-Season Dallas Receiving Yards

Player                  Yards    Season

Michael Irvin....... 1,603      1995

Michael Irvin....... 1,523      1991

Michael Irvin....... 1,396      1992

Dez Bryant........ 1,382      2012

Terrell Owens... 1,355      2007

Bryant’s 71 yards tonight were the seventh-most by a Dallas Cowboy coming off of a 200-yard performance from the previous week:

Yards Following 200-plus Yard Game (by date)

                                                                            200-yard                                      2-game

Player                       Yds   Opp, date                 game      Opp, date                    Total

Frank Clarke............ 13    Pit, 9/23/62                241        Was, 9/16/62               254

Bob Hayes............... 96    Pit, 11/20/66             246        @Was, 11/13/66         342

Lance Rentzel....... 145    StL, 11/23/67            223        Was, 11/19/67             368

Tony Hill................... 92    @Was, 11/18/79      213        Phi, 11/12/79               305

James Dixon........... 28    Mia, 11/19/89            203        @Pho, 11/12/89          231

Michael Irvin.......... 105    @Phi, 10/5/92          210        Pho, 9/20/92                315 

Kevin Williams........ 32    @Chi, 9/2/96            203        @Ari, 12/25/95            235

Terrell Owens......... 98    Sea, 11/27/08           213        SF, 11/23/08                311

Miles Austin........... 171    Atl, 10/25/09              250        @KC, 10/11/09           421

Dez Bryant.............. 71    @Was, 12/30/12      224        NO, 12/23/12               295

Felix Jones’ one catch tonight gave him 128 for his career to break a tie with Eric Bjornson for sole possession of 35^th in team history.

Tony Romo passed for 218 yards tonight and upped his career passing yards total to 25,737 and passedJeff Garcia (25,537) for 60^th all-time in NFL history.

Romo’s 37 pass attempts tonight improved his single-season club record to 648, and his 20 completions improved his season club-record to 425. His 218 yards upped his club record of single-season passing yards to 4,903.

Romo’s touchdown passes today gave him 28 for the season to tie Danny White (1980) for the fourth-most scoring throws in a season in franchise history:

Dallas Cowboys Single-Season TDs

Player                       TDs      Season

Tony Romo.............. 36          2007

Tony Romo.............. 31          2011

Danny White............ 29          1983

Danny White............ 28          1980

Tony Romo............. 28          2012

Romo’s two touchdown passes today gave him 56 career multiple-touchdown games to improve his club-high and allow him to place fifth in the NFL since becoming a starter in 2006:

Cowboys Career Multi-TD Games

Player                             Games

     Tony Romo..................... 56

     Roger Staubach............. 48

     Danny White................... 44

     Troy Aikman.................... 43

     Don Meredith.................. 41

 NFL Multi-TD Games (since 2006)

Player                             Games

     Drew Brees..................... 74

     Tom Brady....................... 65

     Philip Rivers................... 64

     Peyton Manning............. 61

     Tony Romo..................... 56

     Eli Manning..................... 54

Anthony Spencer notched his 11^th sack of the season tonight to up his single-season career-high. 

On his first catch of the game, Jason Witten had his 800^th career reception, making him the third tight end and the 26^th (Andre Johnson) NFL pass catcher to reach 800 career catches. Among NFL tight ends, Witten joined Tony Gonzalez and Shannon Sharpe in the800-catch club. 

Witten reached 800 catches in his 159^th game, faster than the previous two (Gonzalez, 171 and Sharpe, 202). 

Witten finished tonight’s game with seven catches for 56 yards. For the season, Witten had 110 catches – an NFL tight end record and second to Michael Irvin’s club record of 111:

Single-Season Receptions (Dallas Cowboys)

            Player                  Rec      Season

            Michael Irvin....... 111       1995

            Jason Witten..... 110       2012

            Jason Witten........ 96       2007

            Jason Witten........ 94       2009

            Jason Witten........ 94       2010

Single-Season Receptions (NFL TEs)

            Player                  Rec      Season

            Jason Witten..... 110       2012

            Tony Gonzalez... 102       2004

            Dallas Clark....... 100       2009

            Tony Gonzalez...... 99       2007

            Jimmy Graham.... 99       2011

Witten’s 56 yards tonight gave him 1,039 for the season. It is his fourth career 1,000-yard season to tie Tony Gonzalez for the most by a tight end in NFL history and give him the second-most in franchise history behind Michael Irvin’s seven.

Along with Bryant’s 1,000 yards, this season is the sixth time a pair of Cowboys pass catchers reached 1,000 yards in a season. Witten has now been a part of four of the Cowboys duos to accomplish the feat.

Witten’s 1,039 yards this season is second in his career to the 1,145 he racked up in 2007. His other 1,000-yard seasons were 1,030 (2009) and 1,002 (2010).

 

 

Jerry Jones says Cowboys now have to think about how to catch 'impressive, formidable' Redskins

Last year, Jerry Jones and the Cowboys chased the New York Giants.

Now they have to measure up against the Washington Redskins.

“I’m impressed with how the Redskins are put together across the board,” Jones said in the post-game locker room Sunday night following the Cowboys’ 28-18 loss to the Redskins. “They’re going to be formidable as we look, as the Cowboys look, to the future. We have to look where we are within our division, and we’ll look and see just exactly how to approach a team that has some of the players that they’ve got and the good coaching they’ve got.

“We’ve got a big challenge ahead of us. They’re, of course, in the tournament. We’re getting to sit at home and start thinking about how to get into the tournament. This is very disappointing. We have players that also have fought hard, fought hard all year. But it did not get it done. One of my jobs is to basically evaluate and analyze and make decisions in the off-season that can help us be in better shape when we’re standing here going into ...”

Jones, asked how close he believes the Cowboys are, said, “I think we’re about what we saw tonight, about what our record was. ... We’re in a league that’s playing it pretty close for the most part. As far as I’m concerned, we’re as far away as you can measure because we’re at home and not in the tournament.”

-- Carlos Mendez

Twitter @calexmendez

First thing Jerry Jones tells reporters: 'I'm not going to talk anything about coaches and coaching'

Cowboys owner Jerry Jones began his post-game meeting with reporters by saying he would not talk about the status of head coach Jason Garrett.

“Just before we start, I’m not going to talk anything about coaches and coaching, and I’m not going to talk about, obviously, I’m not going to talk about personnel,” Jones said following the Cowboys’ loss to the Redskins. “We’ll talk about the game. I would say they were the better team. They played like it. They played well enough to win, and they deserved what they’re getting. My hat’s off to them – the entire organization.

“They’ve done something pretty phenomenal to come back like they have, considering how they started. I give them all that they deserve, the Washington Redskins.”

Jones said last week after a Fox Sports report that Garrett’s job was safe for next year, no matter the outcome of the final two games, that he had not put any thought into anything besides Garrett being the coach.

Asked how close the Cowboys are, Jones said, “As far as I’m concerned, we’re as far away as you can measure because we’re at home and not in the tournament.”

Live blog: Cowboys at Redskins (F)

Just CHILL: NFL Pick of the Week; the end of the season is here

Clarence Hill

Just CHILL: NFL Pick of the Week; the end of the season is here

Tampa Bay at Atlanta

The Falcons have already secured home field advantage throughout the playoffs and a first round bye. The Buccaneers are trying to end the season on a high note. Buccaneers, 20-17

N.Y. Jets at Buffalo

No gain means so little as this one as neither team have anything to play for or anyone they want to look at the for the future. The Bills are at home and they do have C.J. Spiller. Bills, 13-10.

Baltimore at Cincinnati

Both teams are in the playoffs but this game means more to the Bengals who are trying to break out of the shadow of the Steelers and Ravens. They took care of Pittsburgh last week now its Baltimore's turn. Bengals, 24-21

Chicago at Detroit

The Bears need to win and also get help to qualify for the playoffs. The Lions are just playing out the string. Bears, 20-16

Jacksonville at Tennessee

Both teams are a mess. But the Titans are still smarting from losing 55-7 a week ago. They need to finish strong. That still might not be enough to stop owner Bud Adams from cleaning house. Titans, 23-17

Houston at Indianapolis

The Texans have lost two of their last three games and look nothing like the juggernaut they appeared to be earlier in the season. They continue to have problems on defense and the Colts are tough to beat at home. Colts, 28-25

Carolina at New Orleans

Both teams are playing their best football after horrible starts to the season. The Saints are riding the high of learning that suspended coach Sean Payton has signed a new five year deal with the team. Saints, 35-31

Philadelphia at N.Y. Giants

Mike Vick is back at quarterback and hoping to showcase his skills for another team next year. The Giants must win the game to have any hopes at making the playoffs. The latter means more than the former right now. Giants, 24-14

Cleveland at Pittsburgh

 The Steelers are embarrassed that they are not in the playoffs. They have enough left to handle the Browns, who have two injured quarterbacks. Steelers, 20-13

Oakland at San Diego

This is the end of the road for Norv Turner in San Diego. He will end with a win against the Raiders, who remain a dysfunctional mess. Chargers, 23-17 

Green Bay at Minnesota

The Packers are still jockeying for playoff positioning so this game means something to them. It's also a must win for the Vikings and their slim playoff hopes. Go with Aaron Rodgers. Packers 26-18

Arizona at San Francisco

The 49ers need the win to guarantee a first round bye in the playoffs. They will get it against a Cardinals team with no quarterback and a lame duck coach. 49ers, 27-10

St. Louis at Seattle

The Seahawks don't lose at home. The Seahawks don't lose at home. The Seahawks don't lose at home. Any questions? Seahawks, 30-20

Miami at New England

The Patriots still have a shot at earning home field advantage throughout the playoffs. That and the weather will make for a horrible day for the Dolphins. Patriots, 28-18 

Kansas City at Denver

Peyton Manning has the Broncos vying for at least a first-round bye if not home field advantage throughout the playoffs. The Chiefs have already announced plans to fire the head coach and general manage. The focuses in the season final couldn't be more divergent. Broncos, 35-17

Dallas at Washington

The Cowboys have failed in spot last year. But the Redskins don't have the experience of the Giants and have never been in winner take all game for the NFC East title. The Redskins are happy to be here and would be satisfied with their progress win or lose. The Cowboy have to win. Cowboy, 30-24.

Last week: 9-7

DeMarco Murray isn't worried about fumbles, vows to protect the ball better

DeMarco Murray, who has 25 carries for 121 carries and one touchdown the past two games combined, had no fumbles the first 288 carries of his career. He now has two lost fumbles over his last 20 carries.

His first occurred at the Pittsburgh 8-yard line, denying the Cowboys points, and the other happened at the Dallas 5, leading to a New Orleans touchdown.

“We have tremendous amount of confidence in DeMarco,” Cowboys coach Jason Garrett said. “He’s done a lot of really good things for us. We’re going to hand him the ball and give him every opportunity. He knows more than anybody else the importance of ball security. He’s had a couple the last couple weeks, one in red zone and one coming out. That really led to points and took points away from us. He knows that better than anybody else. He’s carried the ball a lot in his life, and he understands the importance of securing it and making sure he can be a reliable guy that way. We’ll give him some chances, though. There’s no doubt about that.”

Murray said he isn't a fumbler, and the fumbles already are gone from his memory. 

"It doesn't bother me at all," Murray said. "Last week was last week. I don’t worry about mistakes. I don’t worry about good plays. Once a bad plays happens, it’s erased. Once a great play happens, it’s erased. I have a short term memory, good, bad, negative, positive, I just move on and try to make a play the next time."

Murray said running backs coach Skip Peete has not talked to him about the fumbles. He already knows the value of better protecting the ball and vows to do a better job with that this week.

"When you start, and someone starts talking about it, 'Hey, you need ball security,' that’s when you start thinking about it, that’s when fumbles tend to happen," Murray said. "He knows. He’s a great coach. He knows how to get his guys ready. You know the ball is important. You’ve got to keep it away from them. Turnovers can hurt you.

"I just try to play hard, try to play fast."

-- Charean Williams

Ryan says defense doesn't want to be 'second-class citizen' to Cowboys offense, needs to be 'a part of this'

Rob Ryan said the defense doesn’t want to be a second-class citizen compared to the offense.

“Our offense, in my opinion, is second to none,” Ryan told reporters Friday at Valley Ranch. “We have a tremendous quarterback, and obviously a great system with Jason. So what we need to do is play better football on defense. We’ve been competitive. Maybe we’re not going to be great, but we need to be better than we’ve been. Need to keep the points down, and that’s how you win as a team.

“Our strength is definitely offense right now, but we don’t want to be a second-class citizen. We played that way last week, and it showed against a great offense and a talented quarterback in Drew Brees. We need to bounce back, have a great game here and be a part of this.”

Ryan said the short week for the Thanksgiving Day game “certainly didn’t help” but that the Cowboys had a good plan for the first game and got good pressure on Robert Griffin, with three sacks and seven quarterback hits.

“We forced him to throw the ball quick sometimes,” Ryan said. “We sacked him ... so I was happy with the pass rush we got on him last time. Did he beat some blown coverages? Yeah, he did. What we need to do is be better in our coverage, be more sound in what we do and execute. To me, I liked our plan last time. I just don’t think we executed all that well, especially in short yardage, especially in double coverage when a guy ran by us for about a hundred-yard touchdown.”

-- Carlos Mendez

Twitter @calexmendez