Dallas Cowboys - NFC East Preview - The Dallas Cowboys have a new sheriff in town i...

The Dallas Cowboys have a new sheriff in town in Head Coach Wade Phillips. Gone is Bill Parcells and his demanding ways replaced by the laid back style of Phillips. Phillips will have the less than enjoyable task of managing the one man soap opera Terell Owens and a second coach on the field in Owner Jerry Jones. Their is already evidence of how the players are handling Phillips nice nature with a slew of players making the trip to the trainers room with minor "injuries". Whether the new players coach attitude is a good thing remains to be seen but Phillips is 3-4 defensive specialist with a team that made signifigant upgrades in the off-season for Dallas to make a run at the Superbowl. SportsBetting.com has the Dallas Cowboys at 20 to 1 odds to win the 2008 Super Bowl.

The offense will be run by first time play-caller Jason Garret. The Cowboys plan to be a running team with a man-to-man blocking scheme replacing the zone blocking of last year. QB Tony Romo will be given the opportunity to sling around the pigskin quite a bit also after his Pro-Bowl 06'. Romo is a smart player that is agile and accurate. Tony however is still somewhat green is vulnerable to heavy pressure. The ground attack will feature the duo of Julius Jones and Marion Barber. Barber is coming off a great season that saw him accumulate 14 TD's as a goal line specialist. The inside running Barber will have a more advanced role this year getting more carries. Jones is a fast reciever/running threat that is adequate but nothing special.

Terell Owens had a productive year despite playing mostly with a broken finger. T.O is still a very good WR but is not the elite player the public percieves him as. #2 wideout option Terry Glenn is small but he has a great accelerator and makes unbelievable catches. WR Patrick Crayton is a nice #3 option that should put up some decent numbers this year. TE Jason Witten is the complete package at Tight End. Witten is very menacing near the goal line and should grab about 7-8 more TD's than the 1 TD he had last season. The O-line needed a tune-up and it got one with the signing of glass-eating OG Leonard Davis. The O-Line has good core of guys but overall they are below average pass-blockers.

Wade Phillips is 3-4 defensive guy that likes to be aggresive. OLB DeMarcus Ware will emerge this year as superstar. In Phillips system Ware could possibly rack up 15+ Sacks this season. Unknown ILB Akin Ayodele is a very good run supporter that is very sharp mentally and a nice complement to Ware. The rest of the linebacking core Bradie James, Anthony Spencer, Bobby Carpenter and Greg Ellis give the Cowboys a tremendous amount of quality depth. At the Nose Tackle position Jason Ferguson is the heart of the Dallas D. Ferguson can neutralize opponents power running game with run stuffing ability. DE's Marcus Spears and Chris Canty were limited by Parcells's unwillingness to unleash them on opposing QB's. Look for Spears to show his teeth this year as his quickness will be able to collapse pockets.

The Secondary has the capacity to be very good with the ongoing improvements of corners Terrance Newman and Anthony Henry. Newman has risen to become a legitimate lockdown corner capable of blanketing anyone. Henry had his struggles last year while battling injuries but is a big corner that should bounce back. SS Roy Williams gives up too many big plays in the Secondary. Williams is still a savvy player that can take your head off but is no longer a Pro-Bowl player. FS Ken hamlin was added in the off-season and should provide an upgrade.

The Special Teams has a nice weapon in Punter Mat McBriar who can flip the field with his sky-high boots. Martin Gramatica is an able veteran Kicker that can still get the job done. The return and coverage squads are solid all around.

The Dallas Cowboys should show some improvement this year with their new Coach Wade Phillips. Offensive Coordinator Jason Garret has never called a live play as coordinator but if he can continue with the development of Tony Romo Dallas could go deep into the playoffs. It should be a dogfight between Philly and Dallas for the division title.

Brad Marchetti Opening Day Dallas Cowboys Power Ratings: 20-80 Scale

20- Poor
30- Well Below Average
40- Below Average
50- Average
60- Above Average
70- Very Good
80- Great

Coaching: 55
Quarterback : 60
Backs : 60
Receivers : 70
Offensive Line : 60
Defensive Line : 60
Linebackers : 70
Secondary : 65
Special Teams : 65

SportsBetting.com has posted NFL odds to win the 2008 Super Bowl:

Arizona Cardinals
45 - 1

Atlanta Falcons
60 - 1

Baltimore Ravens
20 - 1

Buffalo Bills
100 - 1

Carolina Panthers
25 - 1

Chicago Bears
15 - 1

Cincinnati Bengals
15 - 1

Cleveland Browns
150 - 1

Dallas Cowboys
20 - 1

Denver Broncos
20 - 1

Detroit Lions
75 - 1

Green Bay Packers
45 - 1

Houston Texans
100 - 1

Indianapolis Colts
8 - 1

Jacksonville Jaguars
30 - 1

Kansas City Chiefs
60 - 1

Miami Dolphins
55 - 1

Minnesota Vikings
50 - 1

New England Patriots
5 - 2

New Orleans Saints
15 - 1

New York Giants
30 - 1

New York Jets
40 - 1

Oakland Raiders
75 - 1

Philadelphia Eagles
20 - 1

Pittsburgh Steelers
25 - 1

Saint Louis Rams
45 - 1

San Diego Chargers
6 - 1

San Francisco 49ers
20 - 1

Seattle Seahawks
20 - 1

Tampa Bay Buccanneers
50 - 1

Tennessee Titans
60 - 1

Washington Redskins
50 - 1

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