Dallas Cowboys Strategy and Personnel
by Sports Xchange
PLAYER NOTES
--TE Martellus Bennett needs a touchdown catch against the Steelers to become the first rookie in team history with a receiving TD in four straight games.
--TE Jason Witten is 20th all-time in the NFL among tight ends with 406 receptions. He caught his 400th career pass against
Seattle on Nov. 27 and became the 21st tight end in league history to reach that mark. Witten accomplished the feat in 91 games. He reached 400 catches faster than all but two tight ends in NFL history.
Witten needs just two more receptions to become the fifth tight end in NFL history to catch 60 or more passes in five straight seasons.
--RB Marion Barber and WR Terrell Owens have 1,000-yard seasons within their reach.
Barber is just 130 yards shy of his first career 1,000-yard rushing
season. Five different Cowboys running backs have combined for 23 1,000-yard seasons in team history. Julius Jones (1,084) was the last Cowboys running back to crack the 1,000-yard barrier, accomplishing the feat in 2006.
Owens is 184 yards shy of 1,000 receiving yards. He has eight career 1,000-yard seasons, including two straight as a Cowboy.
The Cowboys have had a 1,000-yard rusher and a 1,000-yard receiver in the same season 12 times.
--LB Bradie James is once again at the top of the tackle charts for the Cowboys with 148 through 12 games. This is his fourth consecutive season with at least 100 tackles.
James had a career-long streak of three games with a sack snapped at
Washington on Nov. 16.
GAME PLAN: The Cowboys have to stop the run and put pressure on quarterback Ben Roethlisberger. Big Ben is prone to hold on to the ball too long and can be sacked if the Cowboys can cover in the secondary. Offensively, the Cowboys must try to establish the run and then make some plays downfield to wide receivers Terrell Owens and Roy Williams.
MATCHUPS TO WATCH: Cowboys QB Tony Romo vs. Steelers pass defense --
Romo has passed for over three hundred yards in back-to-back games and has six 300-yard games in his nine starts. The Steelers haven't allowed a 300-yard passer all season.
Cowboys LT Flozell Adams vs. Steelers LB James Harrison: Any hope quarterback Tony Romo has of making plays against the Steelers defense is incumbent on Adams being able to handle Harrison, who has 14 sacks and six forced fumbles this season. Adams has had troubled with quick pass rushers, and he will have his hands full with Harrison. Look for the Cowboys to give Adams some help blocking Harrison.
INJURY IMPACT: WR Miles Austin is out at least another game with a sprained knee.
--RB Marion Barber missed practice Wednesday with a dislocated small toe. He is not expected to practice until Friday, if at all. He will be a game-time decision Sunday.
--LB DeMarcus Ware didn't practice on Wednesday because of a hyper-extended knee. He will not practice until Friday, if at all. He will be a game-time decision, although Ware guaranteed that he will play on Sunday.
--CB Mike Jenkins is out at least another week with a strained hamstring.
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