Friday, August 2, 2013 n www.themonitor.

com

Coach needs to win

Pressure is on Cowboys coach to lead team to playoffs
good at it. Take for instance when Garrett was the offensive coordinator for the Cowboys when Wade Phillips was the head coach. Garrett was in control of the offense and nothing else. Those teams could score as well as any other team in the league. Garretts a creative guy and a smart guy. Its Josh easy to see why Bowe other teams in Commentary the league were infuriated by Garretts head coaching prospects, as his Cowboys teams were piling up the points, even if they werent piling up wins. Garrett as a head coach? The cracks start showing. The highlight reel of Garretts clock management miscues are almost endless. So are the running back draw plays when the Cowboys are at the goal line. Icing an opposing teams kicker before a game-winning field goal is generally a stupid idea. Icing your own kicker? Even Andy Reid knows thats a waste of a timeout. The past two Cowboys teams played hard but failed to grasp any sort of identity. Thats probably because Garrett

COWBOYS EXTRA

www.themonitor.com n Friday, August 2, 2013

hen Jason Garrett only has to do one thing, hes usually pretty

Dallas Cowboys coach Jason Garrett watches as players warm up before the Cowboys took on the Miami Dolphins at the Pro Football Hall of Fame exhibition football game Sunday in Canton, Ohio.
had trouble focusing on each part of the team. Hes the head coach, but he wanted to call the plays, manage the clock and do everything else. Theres a reason other NFL coaches divvy up the responsibilities to their assistants. At some point, it becomes too much even for a smart guy

David Richard | The Associated Press

like Garrett to handle. Trying to gauge the time left in a game while also figuring out which play to call when your team is trailing in the fourth quarter, sounds like a nightmare. I can barely eat dinner and carry a conversation at the same time. Multitasking is hard. So thats why I think Jerry Jones might be running out of patience with Garrett. Its why he made sure Bill Callahan is calling the plays this season. Its a good idea. Garrett seems to have a good handle on the locker room and easing a bit off his slate of responsibilities should only help Cowboys games go smoother. So even though Jones said Garrett isnt in any sort of trouble, I dont see how he cant be. Jones has basically made Garretts job easier. It feels like the last straw, that if Garrett cant succeed now, with the play-calling taken away, then its time to go. The fact that this move comes from Jones should be only more telling of how much patience Jones has left. Garrett might have said its a mutual decision, but his constant flip-flopping of who was calling plays earlier in the year, even after Jones said it was going to be Callahan, indicates that Garrett wasnt really ready to let that go. Its time for Garrett to win. He isnt multitasking (as much) anymore. Hopefully the Cowboys kicker will only be iced by opposing coaches this season.

MEET MONTE kiffin

SPOTLIGHT PLAYERS

Tanner, Selvie turn heads in preseason opener vs. Miami

ne of the big questions coming into the season for the Cowboys was who is going to be the second running back behind DeMarco Murray. That player might be Phillip Tanner. The RB had a solid night against the Miami Dolphins last Sunday, rushing for 59 yards on 10 carries. The numbers were not as important to the Cowboys as was the way he ran with the ball. Tanner Tanner ran with the toughness the team is hoping for out of their No. 2 RB. Tanner has not played much since being signed as an unrestricted free agent with the Cowboys before the 2011 season out of Middle Tennessee. His amount of carries Sunday were more than he had all of last season.

Dallas Cowboys defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin is seen during Cowboys training camp last month in Oxnard, Calif.

Gus Ruelas | The Associated Press

What you need to know about new DC Monte Kiffin

The Cowboys hired veteran defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin because they wanted to run his 4-3 defense. Early in training camp, the players have enjoyed the 73-year-old's energy on the practice field. >> Kiffin has coached in all major bowl games with the exception of the Rose Bowl. >> Kiffin was the defensive coordinator of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers when they won Super Bowl XXXVII in 2003. >> Kiffin was named the Nebraska High School Athlete of the Year in 1958. >> His son Lane Kiffin is the head coach at the University of Southern California, where Monte was the DC the last three years before resign

eorge Selvie is making the most of his opportunity. Only two weeks ago, the defensive lineman wasnt on an NFL roster. Selvie only joined the Cowboys because the team is facing serious injury issues to its defensive front. The former South Florida standout was drafted in 2010 by the St. Louis Rams and has played in only 26 games in four seasons. He was signed by the Selvie Tampa Bay Buccaneers in April but was released one month earlier. Selvie is making a case for a spot with the team. In Sundays preseason win over the Miami Dolphins, Selvie had four tackles, two sacks, two tackles for a loss and three quarterback hits, impressive numbers for a player who only signed late last month.

never usually think about a record, because a record has a ceiling on it. }IWhy not shoot to something a little higher than that and then you might end up where you need to be?"
DeMarcus Ware Cowboys defensive end on breaking the NFL's sack record

They said it

Bad joke of the day

Q: Why doesn't
Sacramento have a professional football team?

Must-read blog: Cowboys roster projection post Hall of Fame game Bloggingtheboys.com

Dressed in blue
Armando Solis of La Feria, Texas shows his Cowboys pride with this custom interior design of his Ford F-150 pick-up. Solis predicts the Cowboys will advance to the Super Bowl this season.

A: Because

Oakland would want one, too.

Fun Cowboys facts

>> The Cowboys' .600 winning percentage is the best in Super Bowl era. >> Between 1966-1985, the Cowboys were the only NFL team to record 20 consecutive winning seasons. >> The Cowboys' 421 regular season wins is the most of any team since 1963.

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