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| Other Week 3 Game Recaps | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ATL at NE | CAR at DAL | CHI at SEA | CLE at BAL | DEN at OAK | GB at STL | IND at ARI | JAX at HOU |
| KC at PHI | MIA at SD | NO at BUF | NYG at TB | PIT at CIN | SF at MIN | TEN at NYJ | WAS at DET |
Week 3 Game Recap: Carolina Panthers 7, Dallas Cowboys 21
Carolina Panthers
| QB Jake Delhomme, Pass: 22 - 33 - 220 - 1 TD / 2 INT, Rush: 2 - 10 - 0 |
Delhomme started out confident, executing well on quick passes and only failing when he faced a lot of pressureon third down. As the game went on, he had a rough go of it on two deep balls to Muhsin Muhammad, one that was underthrown and intercepted, and one that was caught and taken to the house, but Muhammad was called for offensive pass interference because he put a hand in Michael Jenkins back. He did look his best in the two minute drill that resulted in the Panthers only score at the end of the first half. He went to Dante Rosario on back to back seam routes that covered about half of the field, the second of which resulted in a score. Delhomme only took a deep shot to Steve Smith late, and he was also victimized for a pick six on a pass intended for Smith when Smith seemed to change the route from the quick slant Delhomme was expecting. The Panthers comeback chances ended when Delhomme lost the ball under pressure in the game's last minutes.
| RB DeAngelo Williams, Rush: 11 - 64 - 0, Rec: 2 - 10 - 0 (2 targets) |
Williams ran as well as you could have hoped for, including a first-down conversion on a third-and-16 draw play, but he never got a chance to gash the Cowboys for a lot of yards because the Panthers couldn't get any extended drives going, except for the two-minute drill. He rattled off a couple of moderately long runs, but Williams didn't have enough touches to have a big game on Monday night.
| RB Jonathan Stewart, Rush: 3 - -1 - 0, Rec: 2 - 17 - 0 (2 targets) |
Stewart was barely involved in the game. On his few carries he was mostly met in the backfield. His one decent gain on the night came on a reception when the Panthers were in catchup mode.
| WR Muhsin Muhammad, Rec: 6 - 51 - 0 (9 targets) |
Muhammad could have had a much bigger game, but his 79-yard catch and run TD was nullified by a good offensive pass interference call. Muhammad put his hand on Michael Jenkins back and bent him over as the pass was arriving. He did show decent speed for an older WR on the run after catch. He was targeted deep one other time, and Delhomme underthrew the pass, so it resulted in an interception. Muhammad bears part of the blame because he didn't turn into a DB and make a play on the ball. On his short catches, Muhammad ran like a rugged running back, breaking tackles and generally forcing a good effort to get him down. He seemed to be as prominent in the gameplan as Steve Smith, maybe even more after Smith's freelancing caused an interception return for TD.
| WR Steve Smith, Rec: 4 - 38 - 0 (7 targets) |
Smith only made noise on some very short catches that let him do some damage as a runner. He got targeted deep once in the second half, but the ball was off and he was well-covered. His worst moment came with the Panthers down six late. Delhomme was expecting Smith to run a quick slant, but he broke the route outside and Terence Newman ended up with a defensive touchdown.
| WR Kenneth Moore, Rec: 2 - 19 - 0 (2 targets) |
Moore had a third quarter catch, and a catch in garbage time, but he no better than the fourth option in this passing game.
| WR Dwayne Jarrett, Rec: 1 - 10 - 0 (1 targets) |
Jarrett caught one pass in the two-minute drill, but he is clearly a bit player in this offense.
| TE Dante Rosario, Rec: 3 - 58 - 1 (5 targets) |
Rosario came alive for three catches in the two-minute drill, including a pair of 25-yarders, the second going for a juggling TD that was a reminiscent of the one he scored to beat the Chargers on the last play of the 2008 week 1 game. He was targeted a few times in the second half, but the Panthers didn't seem to adjust their game plan to focus on him after his success in the first half.
| TE Jeff King, Rec: 2 - 17 - 0 (2 targets) |
King was targeted early on a play action pass for a first down, but he only got one more catch over the course of the rest of the game and seems to be afterthought in the Carolina air attack.
Dallas Cowboys
| QB Tony Romo, Pass: 22 - 33 - 255 - 0 TD / 0 INT, Rush: 5 - 22 - 0 |
Romo was patient and safe for the most part, and managed the win very well, although he didn't do anything to make his fantasy owners happy. Romo didn't throw downfield too often, settling for underneath passes to Jason Witten in the first half, and finding Roy Williams and Patrick Crayton on intermediate routes when he did throw to his wideouts. Romo got sacked in the red zone in the first half on a trick play that took too long to develop, and in the second half he got to throw two fades at the one-yard line. Roy Williams dropped one of them, and Martellus Bennett turned the wrong way on the other. Romo had one play that displayed his heroics and foolishness, a throw back across the field to Tashard Choice that resulted in a nice gain, but was also the kind of throw that often ends up going the other way for a TD. On the plus side for his fantasy owners, Romo showed a willingness to use his athleticism to gain yards as a runner when the play broke down. He only took one deep shot, to Roy Williams, but Williams was not open.
| RB Tashard Choice, Rush: 18 - 82 - 1, Rec: 4 - 36 - 0 (7 targets) |
Choice was not a big part of the Cowboys running game until Felix Jones got hurt, but once Jones went down, Choice was featured and did well. He had one TD reception called back because his knee was down at the one, and he couldn't score on his next carry. He scored the Cowboys only offensive TD on the night on a draw play at the five, and he ran the ball down to the one, only to have the Cowboys call two unsuccessful passes. Choice gain the tough yards inside, and ran very well on delays and draws. He had a good night as a receiver, except for one early drop. His opportunity will depend on injuries, but Choice proved yet again that he'll produce when he gets on the field.
| RB Felix Jones, Rush: 8 - 94 - 0, Rec: 1 - 20 - 0 (1 targets) |
Jones was as dynamic as his reputation suggests. He was playing at a different speed than the Carolina defense, and made would-be tacklers look bad more than once. Jones was well on his way to a big game when he strained his knee on a 40-yard run early in the second half. He showed how explosive he can be when he gets more than a handful of touches, but he also reminded everyone how fragile he seems to be. The expensive European sports car analogy applies here - amazing performance, but has to spend a lot of time in the shop (thanks to Ridgelake from the FBG message boards for the fitting analogy).
| RB Marion Barber |
Barber was inactive with a quad strain.
| WR Roy Williams, Rec: 4 - 75 - 0 (7 targets) |
Williams had the one deep target on the night for the Cowboys, but he isn't as explosive as he used to be, and couldn't get enough separation to make the play. He did have a few good catches as a big possession receiver, and he also had a nice run after catch on a crossing route, his best gain of the night. Williams is leveling off as a fine WR3, and mediocre to adequate WR2 as the #2 option in this passing game.
| WR Patrick Crayton, Rush: 1 - 14 - 0, Rec: 3 - 44 - 0 (4 targets) |
Crayton got a good gain on an end-around in the red zone that he might have scored on with a little more speed or urgency in his running. He got open underneath a few times and Romo found him for solid gains, but he is a secondary part of this passing game, and there are no signs that he'll have a bigger game than he did in week 1 for the rest of the season.
| TE Jason Witten, Rec: 9 - 77 - 0 (9 targets) |
Witten wasn't spectacular, but he helped move the sticks in the first half as Tony Romo's security blanket, with eight of his nine catches in the first half. He caught a handful of his passes split out wide and even made a few defenders miss after the catch. He's well on his way to leading all tight ends in receptions.
| TE Martellus Bennett, Rec: 1 - 3 - 0 (3 targets) |
Bennett was once again on the field a lot split out wide, but he was mostly a decoy. He did get one catch on a screen that was poorly blocked and went nowhere, and he turned the wrong way in a fade route on his end zone target.