|
GAME SET
WHAT: Baltimore Ravens (9-5) vs. Dallas Cowboys (9-5)
WHEN: Saturday, 7:15 p.m. (CST)
WHERE: Texas Stadium, Irving, Texas
TELEVISION: NFL Network (Bob Papa, Deion Sanders and Marshall Faulk)
BIG ISSUE: The Cowboys can clinch a playoff spot this week, as much of a long shot as that is, but they can't do it all by themselves. First, though, they need to beat the Ravens, who have never played at Texas Stadium. Then, they need one of the following scenarios to occur - a Philadelphia loss or tie against Washington, a Chicago loss or tie against Green Bay and an Atlanta loss at Minnesota; a Philadelphia loss or tie and a Chicago loss or tie and a Tampa Bay loss against San Diego; a Chicago loss or tie and a Tampa Bay loss and an Atlanta loss; or a Philadelphia loss or tie and an Atlanta loss and if Dallas clinches strength of victory tiebreaker over Chicago. If none of that happens, the Cowboys will still hold firmly onto a wild-card spot with a win, but will need a victory in Week 17 to clinch. Lose, and it's anybody's game, so this is a must-win for Dallas - again. Add in the extra motivation that comes along with playing the final game at Texas Stadium, and the Cowboys should be revved up for this one.
The Ravens are also fighting for a wild-card spot. Right now, Baltimore owns the sixth and final playoff spot in the AFC, holding tiebreakers over two other 9-5 teams - the Patriots and the Dolphins. The Jets, also at 9-5, may factor into the wild-card race if they lose the division lead. If the Ravens lose Saturday and those three teams win, it will be nigh impossible to gain a playoff spot with a week left in the season. If all those teams win, Baltimore would still have the head-to-head tiebreaker over Miami (which plays Kansans City), the strength of victory tiebreaker over the Jets (who play Seattle) and the conference record tiebreaker over the Patriots (who play the Cardinals).
NUMBERS, PLEASE: Cowboys sack master DeMarcus Ware, who leads the league with 19 sacks, records just fewer than 1.5 sacks a game. To beat Michael Strahan's single-season record of 22.5, 1.5 sacks in each of the final two games would still leave Ware half a sack short. But the Ravens give up close to two sacks a game (25 in total), so Ware may just be able to inch closer to the record.
The Cowboys cannot afford to get behind early to the Ravens. The combination of Baltimore's strong defense and powerful running game has the Ravens leading the league in time of possession at 33 minutes, 32 seconds a game. The Cowboys, by comparison, sit at 18th in terms of time of possession, with their offense on the field an average of three minutes less than the Ravens.
ONE-ON-ONE: No matter what the Baltimore injury report says, you can bet Ravens Pro Bowl safety Ed Reedwill be on the field Saturday night. Reed is a ball hawk who has five interceptions, two of which he's returned for touchdowns. It will be up to the one Cowboys player who doesn't have a one-on-one match-up, quarterback Tony Romo, to render Reed ineffective. The Cowboys know they can't simply throw away from Reed completely since he's all over the field, but don't expect them to throw to his side very often. Romo will have to do a good job recognizing coverage and moving his eyes, making Reed commit to a route so he can throw elsewhere.
While Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco has looked dangerous during his rookie season, the Ravens offense lives and dies by the run. That means that Cowboys Pro Bowl nose tackle Jay Ratliff, who caught a 50-pound catfish earlier in the week, will now have to reel in all 260 pounds of Ravens Pro Bowl fullback (used as a running back) Le'Ron McClain, who leads the team in rushing yards and touchdowns. McClain started the season hot, then fell victim to the merry-go-round of Baltimore running backs, but has since come back into favor, receiving 18 or more carries in the past four games. McClain doesn't have the quickness to break off a lot of long runs or bounce outside, so Ratliff will need to be his normal disruptive self at the line of scrimmage to close running lanes.
SUPPORTING ROLE: He's baaaaaaaack - again. Cowboys cornerback Adam Jones will likely make his second return to the field this season after missing the last game with a herniated disk in his neck (he missed four games during an NFL suspension earlier in the season). Jones will resume his duties in the Cowboys sub-packages as the right corner while Anthony Henry continues to move to safety in the nickel packages. Cowboys head coach Wade Phillips also said Jones will resume his punt and kick return duties, either lining up with Miles Austin on kickoffs or back there by himself.
With starting Ravens wide receiver Derrick Mason no better than questionable to play Saturday, Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco will likely target fourth-year receiver Mark Clayton more often. Clayton, who has underachieved thus far during his career, has proven to be a viable deep threat in the past few weeks, catching long touchdown passes against Philadelphia and Cincinnati in Weeks 12 and 13. Flacco has favored the veteran hands of Mason during his rookie season, but if Mason can't go, Flacco have to trust Clayton more by default.
HEADSET GAMES: The Cowboys know that to stop Baltimore on offense, they have to stop the run. If they can force Flacco to pass, both the Cowboys pass-rushers and defensive backs will be licking their chops at the potential for grabbing sacks and picks. Few teams have run on the Cowboys successfully since they surrendered over 200 yards against the Giants more than a month ago, but if the Ravens employ a three-back approach - using McClain, rookie Ray Rice, and oft-injured veteran Willis McGahee - they might be able to throw Cowboys defenders off rhythm.
The Ravens probably aren't as concerned with stopping the run, seeing as how Cowboys starter Marion Barber is again questionable with a dislocated toe and the only other backs on the roster are rookie Tashard Choice and first-year veteran Alonzo Coleman, signed from the practice squad two weeks ago. But the Cowboys want to make Baltimore concerned with stopping the run, or stopping Choice at least. Choice has proven to be very effective the past two games, especially on screen passes and draw plays. The Cowboys will use Choice in that role to stymie the Ravens pass rush. Once the Ravens start defending the screen and draw, Romo will have more time in the pocket to find open receivers.
HEALTH WATCH:
Cowboys
Most important to the Cowboys is that Romo is being listed as probable, and appears capable of playing through however painful his back still is. But distressing them some is Barber (toe) being listed as questionable once again and he figures to be a game-day decision since he has not practiced all week. Already listed as out are starting left guard Montrae Holland (ankle) and linebacker Bobby Carpenter (knee/calf). Good thing Jones is returning since backup corner Alan Ball (ankle) is doubtful, and unlikely to play. Besides Romo, the Cowboys have eight other players listed as probable, and that includes both starting safeties, Ken Hamlin (foot) and Keith Davis (knee, neck). Only Davis practiced once this week, but both figure to start. Also listed as probable are WR Miles Austin (knee), S Tra Battle (hamstring), CB Adam Jones (neck), WR Isaiah Stanback (shoulder), WR Roy Williams (foot) and TE Jason Witten (ankle). All are expected to be capable of playing.
Ravens
The Ravens, with 18 players already on injured reserve, aren't in much better shape this week, listing 12 players on their official injury report. Out is backup WR Marcus Maxwell (hip). There are four players listed as questionable, and three of those are secondary starters, including safety Ed Reed (thigh) and both starting corners, Samari Rolle (ankle) and Fabian Washington (thigh). While Reed failed to participate in either of this week's full practices, that's the same routine he followed last week yet he still played this past Sunday. The other questionable player is RB Ray Rice (calf). The Ravens have seven players listed probable, most notably LB Terrell Suggs (thigh), K Matt Stover (thigh), OT Willie Anderson (ankle), WR Derrick Mason (shoulder) and OT Jared Gaither (illness).
| Home | Email | Print | Register for New Alerts | RSS |
|
