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The speculation continues when it comes to Dallas trying add another impact receiver opposite Terrell Owens. Star-Telegram’s Randy Galloway asked Jerry about our #1 priority this offseason, and Jerry’s response was interesting:

“Without question, creating a threat on the other side of the ball from [Eldorado] Owens,” said Jerry.

Just what I wanted to hear. Many others haven’t agreed, but to me, finding another receiver, or two, topped any list of needs.

“I’ve ruled out nothing when it comes to those options, or possible options,” said Jerry.

That statement is backed by another NFL voice who said Friday, “within the league, you hear the Cowboys are attempting, or will attempt, to work a trade for Chad Johnson, for Roy Williams, for maybe others.”

And will Terry Glenn be on the roster? I would think he would get released in June, but Jerry says:

“I would urge you not to rule out Terry,” he said. “He will be here, he will on the roster, and don’t be surprised if he’s healthy. That’s all I will say. Don’t be surprised.”

One last thing on receivers. Finding one in the draft at the end of the first round, where the Cowboys’ have two picks, has become remote.

“Don’t think so,” was the Jones comment.

So that’s the meat of the article. What’s interesting is that Jerry says WR is the #1 priority, and it doesn’t appear that the Cowboys will be taking a wide receiver in the first round, even at #22. To me #22 must go to defensive back, whether Pacman is traded here or not. I’d be happy with DRC or Kenny Phillips.

The question I know pose is this…Jerry seems to be working some plans to getting someone in here no matter what, and I wonder if that would mean giving up two first round picks for a wide receiver again?

In 2000, Jerry did just that when he grabbed franchised tagged Joey Galloway from the Seattle Seahawks. GMs right now, know this, and they could ask Jerry for the same for one of today’s premiere WRs. Although players like Roy Williams, Chad Johnson, or Anquan Boldin are not franchised tagged, these GMs will see how far they can take the asking price knowing Jerry will pay whatever it takes. We’ll see.

For me though, one name that pops into my head is Texans Andre Johnson. He would be a perfect fit in Dallas, he just got a new deal in 2007 that is not so inflated as Fitzgeralds or Walker’s and he’s young. Andre Johnson has the build, the stats, the workable contract that the Cowboys could make a play for. Roy, Chad, and Anquan will all want huge contracts. Chad and Anquan are represented by Drew Rosenhaus, so for me, I would have to think that there could be some conflict of interest from Terrell Owens point of view, especially if one of these guys comes in here making more than him. That leaves Roy Williams and Andre Johnson. I’d take Andre Johnson all day over Roy Williams.
Here’s where these four receivers are at on their contracts right now:

Chad Johnson: 4/20/2006: Signed a six-year, $35.5 million contract.

Roy Williams: 8/1/2004: Signed a six-year, $27 million

Anquan Boldin: 7/31/2005: Signed a four-year, $22.67 million contract extension through 2010.

Andre Johnson: 3/3/2007: Signed an eight-year, $60 million contract.

Jerry, get with Bob McNair and grab Andre Johnson. If you’re going to make some team an offer they can’t refuse, get a player like Andre Johnson.

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If you call this a dress rehearsal game, then we’re in trouble. What a complete disaster from beginning to the end. The offense was putrid, and the defense looked unenthused. Lack of discipline just reared its ugly head in this game. What happened tonight was an embarrassment, and a let down, but its good to bring the Cowboys down to earth after seeming to be unstoppable in our last two outings. There’s just a whole litany of things that went wrong tonight. A good ass whipping is just what the doctor ordered.

Hopefully lessons will be learned, and the team can refocus on the task at hand, a Super Bowl.

Who was on?

On the positive side, Bradie James is indeed back. He has played well throughout the preseason, and looked outstanding tonight. He probably get’s a gameball for all his efforts. James has really come on in this new defensive scheme.

As predicted, Sam Hurd got a lot of reps in tonight, and he continues to look good as a possession receiver.

Who was off? This list could go on forever, so I’ll keep it nice and concise:

Special Teams continues to suffer. I’m not quite sure Bruce Read is getting the job done here, and I just knew that the Texans were going to tear it up on special teams - and they did. I’m baffled in this area, what needs to be done? Is it player personnel or coaching. Fix it, or we’re going to be putting a lot of unnecessary pressure on the defense.

The Defense was way off tonight, sloppy tackling, no swarming to the ball. I mean this unit was a complete opposite of what we’ve seen the last two weeks. When I saw them come off the field, the defense looked lifeless, and unenthused, very disappointing.

The Offensive Line did not get it done at all. Colombo had problems blocking most of the night, and Mario Williams looked like a rejuvenated, Pro Bowl type player tonight. Gurode had issues as well. With the offensive line playing like crap the Texans were in the backfield all day, and stuffed Julius and Barber. The Texans were clearly getting after the Cowboys in ALL aspects of the game, and the better team won tonight. Stupid penalties from Davis and Adams highlighted the offensive line’s woes tonight.

Overall, the team did not look energized, no confidence, no anything, they just showed up and made an appearance. Whether this is a result of loss of focus or discipline will be debated throughout the week.

As for the Texans, these guys are going to be a team to be reckoned with, and I’m not just saying this because they whipped us. Living in the Houston area, I’ve been watching their games, and they are playing well. Their first round pick, Omobi Okoye has great speed, and is going to be a menace up the middle. DeMeco Ryans is still the man at LB. And what can you say about their WR rookie, Jacoby Jones. I highlighted him in my post earlier in the week, and sure enough, this guy went the distance on their first possession. He made a nice catch in the endzone too. I think the Texans found their #2 WR for now and the future. You gotta give the Texans some props, they looked good in my opinion, and they could be on their way up starting this year.
The final preseason game is just five days away when we play the Vikings. Let’s hope we can return to form.

BOX SCORE

The Battle for Texas, The Governor’s Cup is tonight. I’ll be at Reliant Stadium tonight, deep in the heart of the enemy. I’m sure the crowd will be electrified as the game should be at full capacity. Houston hates the Cowboys, and Cowboys fans can’t stand Texans fans either. It should be a great time. Let’s hope the Cowboys can bring home another victory, but more importantly, return home injury free. Be sure to join our fan packed message boards to discuss the action as it happens.
Kickoff: 7PM (CST), Reliant Stadium, Local CBS Markets

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Here’s a small preview of the upcoming game:

HOUSTON — (AP) Wade Phillips was an assistant with the Houston Oilers when he met Gary Kubiak, then a high school student and ball boy for the team.

Thirty years later the two, who are now close friends, will meet again when Kubiak and the Houston Texans host the Phillips-led Dallas Cowboys on Saturday night in preseason action.

The coaches have faced each other plenty of times when Kubiak was Denver’s offensive coordinator, but this will be the first meeting between the two as head coaches.

“It’s a big deal for us as far a preseason game, being the third one,” Phillips said. “You want to do well out there, but I think there will be a big crowd. I think they’ll be into it. That will help their team some, as far as motivation, and I want to see how my team reacts with that.”

It will be a homecoming of sorts for Phillips, who played at the University of Houston and began his coaching career with the Oilers under his father, Bum… (more)

This is the preseason game, I always look forward to every year. I can’t stand the Houston Texans, and never liked the Houston Oilers either. Growing up on the outskirts of Houston was challenging because of my die hard loyalties to the Cowboys. I have my father to thank for that, and now I’ve passed this on to my son. We went to training camp in San Antonio, and we’ll be there this Saturday cheering on the only real team in Texas, our Dallas Cowboys.

Alright, I got that out of my system, let’s get down to my thoughts on the state of the Texans. Being that I live in the Houston area, I know everything about these loser Texans. Since the Texans came on the scene they have been losers. The cause of their failures can be linked to one man and one man alone, Charlie Casserly. Casserly single handedly destroyed this team from the get go.

Think about all the draft picks the Texans have ever drafted, and there’s TWO players that are very good in my opinion, CB Dunta Robinson and  WR Andre Johnson. Casserly drafted a lot of draft busts in all rounds. David Carr, injury prone Dominick Davis, Benny Joppru, Travis Johnson,  and Jason Babin to name a few. Casserly’s final gift was when he passed on Reggie Bush and Vince Young. Casserly, instead drafted the much overhyped and emerging bust, Mario Williams. Casserly’s tenure was devastating to say the least.

Its not all bad in Houston 

In the midst of all this bad drafting was the hiring of Gary Kubiak, and for the first time in years, this team has some hope for the 2007 season. Kubiak has a good staff in Houston, and has slowly brought in some players that are making their mark.

On Offense, the Texans brought in QB Matt Schaub from the Atlanta Falcons. I liked Schaub before then, and even wanted him in Dallas when we had Testaverde and Bledsoe at the helm, but Romo has taken over, and is the main man now. They also added RB Ahman Green, from the Packers. Green is a solid RB, but his durability is a major concern, but the Texans have a good stable of backups for short term gaps fills; however, if needed for the longterm, this team is back in the gutter again.

Schaub has looked sharp in the preseason, and I expect he’ll do some good things for the Texans. Adding Schaub, could be the smartest move the Texans have ever made in the offseason.

WR Kevin Walters was also added this offseason, he’s nothing amazing at all, but should be a good addition to what they had previous seasons.

The receiver to watch is their rookie WR Jacoby Jones, this guy is pretty good, has good hands, and is a big threat in their return game. Jones’ role will probably expand as the season goes on, he looks promising. In addition to Jones in special teams, the Texans still have Pro Bowler Jerome Mathis. Mathis and Jones could end up being the best special teams tandem in the league if Mathis returns to form, and if Jones stays on fire as he has been the last couple of weeks.

Their TE, Owen Daniels did well last year, and is expected to play a bigger role in the passing game this year.

So, I expect the offense to be much improved over last year. Right now, the Texans are flying high because they dominated the Cardinals, but that’s not saying much. The Cardinals are under a new head coach, and this is their first year with the 3-4 defense they installed this offseason. The Cards 3-4, is light-years behind what the Cowboys, Phillips 3-4 will show them. The Texans are in for a surprise. In addition to that, Phillips is familiar with Kubiak’s West Coast offense. Phillips has defended against the WC offense for years and saw it twice a year while in San Diego. Our own defensive coaches have seen it as well, because the Eagles run the WC offense.

As for the Texans Defense, this is their achilles heel. They need to rebuild this defense via the draft. There’s not much to their defense except a bunch of 1st round busts up and down the line. Their best players on defense are CB Dunta Robinson and LB DeMeco Ryans. They did draft Omobi Okoye to replace the Travis Johnson bust pick, but he’s a rookie and probably won’t be an immediate impact. Mario Williams is a bust in my opinion. He’s all size and nothing else. Our own Chris Canty is similar in size, and has out performed Williams.

Best players to watch on offense: Matt Schaub, Andre Johnson, Ahman Green, Owen Daniels, Jacoby Jones

Best players to watch on defense: Dunta Robinson, DeMeco Ryans

Best players to watch on special teams: Jerome Mathis, Jacoby Jones

Bottomline, we will beat the Texans, and I’ll be onsite to see it happen!