Dallas Cowboys Report Card Week 11: Grading Each Unit

The Cowboys are officially on a roll. The team has a three-game winning streak going with two winnable games in the coming weeks. They have the Dolphins on Thanksgiving and the Cardinals the week after. Dallas should, and I place a strong emphasis on should, win both games and emerge 8-4 once they make it through the softest portion of their schedule.

But what has led to the Cowboys recent run of success? Yes, their schedule has been easy but they've also overcome a bit of adversity. On Sunday against the Redskins the game could have gone either way but Dallas was able to push their way toward a victory. It's just another example of this team's maturation process that will continue as the season goes on.

So with so much good news moving through Dallas, let's take a look at how each unit has performed.

Offensive Backfield: A-Minus—This unit includes quarterback Tony Romo, fullback Tony Fiammetta and running backs DeMarco Murray and Phillip Tanner. So far Murray has 747 rushing yards with two touchdowns but he has two key stats that stand out.

He's averaging an even six yards per carry but his yards per carry in the second half is 5.3 yards. Garrett seems to ride him more in the third and fourth quarter with the majority of Murray's carries coming when Dallas needs them the most. He's simply been great for Dallas and Garrett has no issue with Murray carrying the team late into the season.

For Tony Romo it's been even better. Over the past six games he only has two turnovers with 12 touchdowns. Romo seems to be more careful with the ball but his decision making seems to be the same. He found Witten streaking down the field for a 59-yard touchdown against the Redskins but Romo made the same throw against the Lions that was picked off.

In this sequence of plays you can see what Tony can do when he has time and when he doesn't. On this particular play against the Redskins, Witten ran a simple curl route but when the play broke down he improvised and pointed to where Tony could find him. Cornerback Kevin Barnes was caught peeking in the backfield and released Witten to the safety.

As the play progresses you'll notice that there are four, count 'em, four different Redskin defenders who fail to account for Witten as he's moving down the field. Now of course these other defenders have their assignments but you get the picture.

This is part of what makes Romo so good is that he's able to improvise so well and he has incredible chemistry with his All-Pro tight end.

Romo tried the exact same thing with Witten against the Lions but what you'll notice on this throw is that Witten had as much field in front of him as he did in D.C. but Tony didn't have the arm strength to get it there. Linebacker Stephen Tulloch notices that Witten has field in front of him but he also sees that he has a chance to intercept the under thrown ball.

Witten has to stop his route and "try" to make a play on the ball but Tulloch goes up and gets it at its highest point. It's considered to be a bad play because it was a turnover but Romo routinely makes plays like this and they may turn out in the positive, see the Redskins game.

Offensive Line: B-Plus—Considering how many changes this line has gone through I believe that they are doing a bang-up job. There have been injuries, new players and etc...and the unit has still managed to do well.

Tyron Smith is ranked as the sixth best NFL right tackle according to Pro Football Focus. For a rookie I would say that's pretty good.

Couple the line with fullback Tony Fiammetta and you get DeMarco Murray and his 747 rushing yards. Romo has been upright the past few weeks and he has no turnovers.

But this is a marathon not a sprint and while the Cowboys are playing well through this sprint they have to keep it up moving forward.

Defensive Backfield: B-Plus—Against the game's tops passers the Cowboys have performed pretty well. What's been a great cover for what Dallas lacks in the secondary is their ability to rush and confuse the passer.

Terence Newman has played exceptionally well lately and Mike Jenkins seems to be back to normal after an awful 2010 campaign.

Dallas still has Josh Freeman, Eli Manning and Michael Vick to deal with but DeMarcus Ware should take care of them.

Linebackers: A-Plus—DeMarcus Ware has 14 sacks through 10 games. Do I really have to proceed with giving reasons as to why the linebackers have played great? Sean Lee leads the team with 65 tackles and three interceptions. Should I continue? The sometime underachieving Anthony Spencer has four sacks with 34 tackles.

They are playing at a high level and as long as defensive coordinator Rob Ryan keeps it fresh this great play should continue.

Defensive Front: C-Plus—Spears has always been good against the run and this season is no different. He made a great play against the 'Skins yesterday late in the game to help seal the Cowboys victory.

Kenyon Coleman and Jason Hatcher have played well and Jay Ratliff is a beast himself. The defensive front is getting to the quarterback and stopping the run which is all the corners can ask for.

But there have been issues, like when Shady McCoy of the Eagles and Fred Jackson of the Bills gashed them on the ground. I say C-plus because the group is still gelling and the run defense has to improve.

Special Teams: B—Dan Bailey has hit 23 straight field goals and won a game in overtime for Dallas on Sunday. The reason this isn't a grade higher is because of the shank punt off of Mat McBriar's foot yesterday that eventually led to Redskins points. Not to mention the sheer amount of yards the Cowboys gave up on kick and punt returns.

The special teams unit is the part of the Cowboys team that needs the most improvement, and if they continue to play so poorly it may cost them games. Well, sans Dan Bailey of course.

-JH

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