The Shifting of Power in the NFC
Jeremiah O. Sarkett |Sep 25,2007
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 The Shifting of Power in the NFC
Dallas and Tony Romo are for real and showed just how serious a contender they are and proved that they are the new power in the NFC. The Cowboys are 3-0 for the first time since 1999 and Romo, the ‘Rock Star,’ continues his impressive start to the 2007 season once again showing why he was selected to the Pro Bowl last year.
Romo went 22-of-35 for 329 yards and had two touchdowns with just one interception and led the Cowboys on an 89-yard touchdown drive to start the second half that put the Cowboys ahead for good. Romo also engineered a 91-yard drive at the end of the third quarter and found Marion Barber for a 10-yard touchdown.
Barber was an animal as he showed that yes you can run on the vaunted Chicago defense. The Cowboys saved Barber and Julius Jones as Dallas was passing for the better part of the first half and it showed as the Bears front seven looked gassed in the second half. Barber ended the game with 102 yards on 15 carries and a touchdown, including a 54-yard burst and added a 10-yard touchdown reception.
Romo and the Cowboys started slow, but the young Cowboy quarterback made impressive plays in the first half avoiding the Bears blitz packages and found Jason Witten on numerous plays that seemed to open things up for Terrell Owens later in the game. "I think this journey that we’re going on has been pretty fun, and I think it’s going to be really exciting for the rest of the year," Romo said.
The Bears offense looked miserable as both Rex Grossman and Cedric Benson were stifled all game. Grossman went just 15-of-32 for 195 yards with no touchdowns and three interceptions. Benson had a touchdown and was running with power early on, but had a costly fumble and was never a factor after the big turnover.
The Cowboys leveled the Bears and sent a message to the rest of the NFL in the process. The pride of the Bears’ is hurting right now but after Sunday night’s manhandling, the Bears are physically hurting. Chicago lost Pro Bowlers Lance Briggs (groin), Nathan Vasher (groin), defensive tackle Tommie Harris (knee) and guard Ruben Brown (ankle) and these injuries may just be the nail in the coffin for defending NFC champs.
From My Note Pad
• The Cowboys had 431 total yards compared to only 239 from Chicago -- Chicago has to find their offense as Brian Urlacher and co. can not carry this team for the second straight year.
• The Cowboy defense made some big plays led by Anthony Henry’s two interceptions and touchdown.
• The Dallas defense had three sacks, two by DeMarcus Ware and one by rookie Anthony Spencer.
• Roy Williams had an interception and played much better on pass defense but finished with only 2.5 tackles.
• T.O. was unstoppable as he torched Charles Tillman and the Chicago secondary. Owens had eight catches for 145 yards.
• Jason Witten is having a fine season and had a big game with six catches, 90 yards and a key third quarter touchdown.
• The Cowboys hurt themselves with 12 key penalties for 100 yards. You can bet that Wade Phillips will address this in practice this week.
• Benson finished with 46 yards on 16 carries with a touchdown and a lost fumble. Bernard Berrian was the leading receiver for Chicago with six catches and 73 yards.
The Green Bay Packers Are Back
The Chicago Bears may not even be the best team in the NFC Central this year as the Green Bay Packers led by the always entertaining and Hall of Fame quarterback Brett Favre are 3-0 for the first time since 2001.
The Brett Favre show marches on and the Green Bay legend and hero has now tied Dan Marino with 420 career touchdown passes as Favre hit Greg Jennings on a ten yard slant (the Favre classic route) that turned into a 57-yard record tying, go-ahead touchdown that lifted the Green Bay Packers past the San Diego Chargers 31-24. "I could care less about the record," said Favre, who was 28-of-35 for 369 yards and three touchdowns. "Everybody's congratulating me, but I told them it doesn't mean anything if we don't win the game."
The Packers won the game and have come along way in just three games this year. Green Bay’s transformation has certainly been led by Favre. The gun-slinging veteran and first ballot Hall of Famer still has the arm strength and this year he is not second guessing his reads and receivers. He is looking to save plays instead of making them himself. Favre is hitting his check-down receivers more frequently -- Favre has confidence to do this now because the Green Bay Packers have a defense that is off the charts these days.
The Packer defense is yet to allow a rushing touchdown and held L.T. to just 62 yards on 22 carries. The Packers are getting awesome play from veterans such as Charles Woodson, Al Harris, Kabeer Gbaja-Biamila and Nick Barnett. Second year linebacker A.J. Hawk is maturing into one of the league’s top linebackers. The Green Bay defense has emerged as one of the NFL’s best and is giving Favre and the offense opportunities to put teams away.
Packers coach Mike McCarthy said he expects more from Favre in the weeks to come. "Every time he takes the field, he's adding another log on the fire of such a brilliant career that will continue to burn, hopefully, for awhile," McCarthy said.
Yes, the Packers are for real and this team seems more destined than lucky this year. "It's hard to luck into three straight wins like we have," Favre stated.
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