Todd Archer's Cowboys report card
12:37 AM CST on Monday, November 6, 2006
| RUN OFFENSE |
| C | Julius Jones was limited to 3.7 yards per carry and 73 yards, but the Cowboys were able to get the tough yards against a solid front seven. They won the time of possession battle and were 10-of-16 on third down. Marion Barber roughed up the Redskins in the second half, but Dallas could not knock them out. |
| RUN DEFENSE |
| C+ | The Cowboys allowed a season-long 38-yard run to Clinton Portis for a touchdown but otherwise put the clamps on him. His 22 other carries went for 46 yards. The Redskins ran for 117 yards but needed 32 carries. Ryan Fowler, Bradie James, Jason Ferguson and Roy Williams came up big on the goal-line stand. |
| PASS OFFENSE |
| B- | Only once did Tony Romo find himself with nowhere to go with the ball. The line kept Romo (two sacks) relatively clean. He had completions to seven receivers. Although Terrell Owens led the team with 76 yards on seven catches, his drop of what would have been a touchdown in the third quarter was particularly galling. |
| PASS DEFENSE |
| C- | Mark Brunell only threw for 192 yards, but he hit several big throws at the wrong time for the Cowboys. Roy Williams' pass interference penalty preceded the tying touchdown. Williams later dropped a potential interception. The Cowboys sacked Brunell six times in the first meeting but got him just once Sunday. |
| SPECIAL TEAMS |
| D | The blocked field goal was inexcusable, especially with the most accurate kicker of all time on the field. But it wasn't just the block that made for a long special teams day. Antwaan Randle El averaged 16.7 yards on three punt returns. Mat McBriar had his most inconsistent day – with just a 25-yard net average. |
| COACHING |
| D | Bill Parcells said the mark of a prepared team is the way it starts the game. For the second straight week, the Cowboys found themselves in a hole (safety on first possession, field goal). Parcells followed the two-point conversion chart after the Cowboys' first score, and they ended up chasing that point for the rest of the game. |
| OVERALL |
| D | With a chance to put the Redskins away for the season and get two games above .500 at the midway point, the Cowboys whiffed. The effort was there, but they could not overcome themselves. Eleven penalties for 153 yards wiped out what could have been a momentum-turning win for the season. Despite all that, they still had a chance to win the game with a 35-yard field goal try and could not execute. Until the Cowboys correct the mistakes, they will continue to be an average team. |
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