NFL Week 7: Dallas Cowboys vs. St. Louis Rams

A pair of upsets in Week 6 & an injury to Tony Romo means this NFL Week 7 game has a different atmosphere than expected.

Cowboys vs. Rams Overview:

Dallas Cowboys tickets have sold out more than any other ticket in the NFL this season, and there is little reason to wonder. “America’s Team” is stocked with talent on both sides of the ball and has been the favorite to win the Super Bowl for the past two years. The St. Louis Rams have been the polar opposite of the Dallas Cowboys thus far and were looked at as possibly the bottom of the NFL. The St. Louis Rams turned it around under new head coach Jim Haslett and have great momentum coming into this game after scoring an upset win over the Washington Redskins.

Dallas Cowboys Offense:

The offensive firepower of Tony Romo and Terrell Owens has sold a ton of Dallas Cowboys tickets and put up a lot of points but is not the key to the offense. RB Marion Barber is the true engine that drives the Dallas Cowboys offense and must get the ball to have success. An angry runner that looks for contact Marion Barber wears down opposing defenses along with the giant Dallas Cowboy offensive line. RB Felix Jones is another key weapon in the Dallas Cowboys arsenal and burns defenses with impressive speed. With Tony Romo being injured, veteran QB Brad Johnson will command the outstanding Dallas Cowboys offense.

Dallas Cowboys Defense:

The 3-4 defense has sold plenty of Dallas Cowboys tickets on its own and must play well to win games down the stretch. OLB DeMarcus Ware is the centerpiece of the Dallas Cowboys defense and has gotten a sack in every game this season. NT Jay Ratliff has turned a great deal of heads with his dominant play in the interior of the line, and his success is felt on all levels of the defense, especially ILBs Zach Thomas and Bradie James. The Dallas Cowboys secondary is star studded with Adam “Pac-Man” Jones, Terrance Newman, and Ken Hamlin but must produce better.

St. Louis Rams Offense:

The one constant for the St. Louis Rams over the past few years has been the powerful running of RB Steven Jackson. The arrival of FB Dan Kreider means that the St. Louis Rams will pound the football even more. Bookend OTs Orlando Pace and Alex Barron have had up-and-down performances this season but are usually solid. The weak interior of the St. Louis Rams O-line has given them problems however. QB Marc Bulger is a careful passer and has a great possession target in WR Torry Holt and a deep threat in WR Donnie Avery.

St. Louis Rams Defense:

The second-overall pick of the 2008 NFL Draft, DE Chris Long, has already come on as a force for the St. Louis Rams. With great ability and a motor that never quits, Chris Long is always after the quarterback. DE Leonard Little is another excellent pass rusher along with DLs like Victor Adeyanju and La’Roi Glover. MLB Will Witherspoon has stepped up to become a leader for the St. Louis Rams defense. Injuries have torn through the St. Louis Rams secondary but even with the losses, safeties Cory Chavous and O.J. Atogwe have played well.

Dallas Cowboys Keys to Victory:

The injury to Tony Romo and the starting of Brad Johnson will change the passing game of the Dallas Cowboys, but the total offensive game plan stays the same. The Dallas Cowboys offensive line is individually the size of well-fed farm animals and maul teams in the run game. The St. Louis Rams have a weakness for the run so Felix Jones and Marion Barber should see plenty of action. The decimated St. Louis Rams secondary makes for a tantalizing target as well, and Brad Johnson will look to go deep to Terrell Owens, Patrick Crayton, Miles Austin, and Jason Witten.

With a great secondary behind them, the Dallas Cowboys’ front seven can blitz the quarterback and stuff running lanes with relative impunity. Since the St. Louis Rams are predicated on the run, then stuffing Steven Jackson is atop the list of goals for the Dallas Cowboys defense. The unpredictable nature of the 3-4 often confuses opposing offensive lines and the makeshift unit of the St. Louis Rams will have a fight on its hands. DeMarcus Ware clobbering Marc Bulger is definitely on the agenda for the Dallas Cowboys and turnovers will be forced.

St. Louis Rams Keys to Victory:

The slogan “Beware D-Ware!” will be hammered into the St. Louis Rams offense all week in the film room and the practice field. The St. Louis Rams cannot let DeMarcus Ware run wild on Marc Bulger so steps must be taken to stymie the pass rush of the Dallas Cowboys. A healthy dose of Steven Jackson is the best remedy for this and the St. Louis Rams are sure to ride their workhorse all game. The St. Louis Rams have to get a good push up the middle against Jay Ratliff, Zach Thomas, and Bradie James to be effective in the run.

The St. Louis Rams will ask DE Chris Long to earn all of his dollars against the Dallas Cowboys offense. The lack of Tony Romo takes away a certain spark from the Dallas Cowboys offense, but Brad Johnson can still make great throws and has Terrell Owens and Jason Witten to work with. In order to protect their secondary and maximize their pass rush, the St. Louis Rams must stop Felix Jones and Marion Barber. A stagnant running game will force the Dallas Cowboys to pass and will let Chris Long and Leonard Little focus on Brad Johnson in the pocket.

Cowboys vs. Rams Outlook:

The St. Louis Rams can hang their hat on the fact that they defeated the Washington Redskins in NFL Week 6. These very same Washington Redskins had defeated the Dallas Cowboys with Tony Romo and looked to be the class of the NFL. With Tony Romo out and the Dallas Cowboys stinging from a loss to the hated Arizona Cardinals, the St. Louis Rams certainly have a ton of positive momentum going into this home game.

Even in St. Louis, Dallas Cowboys tickets and Dallas Cowboys gear are flying off the shelf and their will be plenty of Dallas Cowboys fans in the stands. America’s Team seems to have a good crowd wherever they go and there will be plenty of support in St. Louis. Tony Romo being out is big, but the Dallas Cowboys have the running backs, offensive line, and weapons to strike an injury-depleted St. Louis Rams secondary. This will not be the blowout that had been previously scheduled, but the talent of the Dallas Cowboys will be too much for the hard-fighting St. Louis Rams.