Saints Seek 14th Win v. Cowboys

Here's a look at tomorrow night's Cowboys/Saints game. Indianapolis managed a 35-31 victory last night. Can New Orleans match the Colts 14-0 record?

Dallas Cowboys (8-5) @ New Orleans Saints (13-0)

Dallas: No questions the Cowboys need this win a lot more than the Saints. A lot of people already have this as a win for New Orleans. It's in the Superdome, the loudest home stadium in the NFL. The Saints offense seems to run to perfection. The more I think about it, the more sense Dallas WR Roy Williams made by channeling his inner Dennis Green.

But what must Dallas do to get that win? Run the ball on offense. Chew up the clock. I might be crazy, but with the exception of the goal line stand last week, Dallas seems to want to abandon the run way too early. That train of thought will not work against the Saints. The more your offense is on the field, the less Drew Brees and the Saints offense is on it.

It's hard to fathom, but Marion Barber (right) has managed only 4 rushing TD this season and he hasn't had one since week 8 against the Seattle Seahawks. In fact, Barber has only one 100+ yards game to date and that was the second game of the season. Sure, Dallas is giving more carries to Felix Jones and  few to Tashard Choice, but Barber is the Cowboys main threat at running back.

Come to think of it, the Cowboys aren't exactly a shabby offense (3rd overall) and despite losing the last two games, QB Tony Romo has performed well. And WR Miles Austin has evolved into a star right before our eyes. The only thing lacking is getting the ball in the endzone. At this point, we've seen that relying on K Nick Folk for three isn't a safe option.

But it's Dallas' defense that worries me. Last week against the Chargers, Dallas had virtually no pass rush and the secondary had trouble containing the Chargers big receivers. It's a similar situation this week against the Saints.

Having LB Demarcus Ware available will aid that defense greatly. Ware suffered a sprained neck last week, but he's trying to get in a position to play against the Saints. But for the Dallas defense, it's pretty easy to see. No Ware, no pass rush. No pass rush, no help for the secondary. We all know what happens after that.

Saints: Can the express known as the Saints offense be stopped? I don't think it can, but you can slow it down. Well, you better hope you can.

NFL Midseason Awards...and Others

We have (sort of) approached the halfway mark in the NFL season. And what goes along with that? The midseason awards! And a couple you might not have seen coming!

MVP - This is a tough call. The three that have my attention are all quarterbacks, Indy's Peyton Manning, New Orleans' Drew Brees, and Minnesota's Brett Favre. Yes, Favre. The Colts, Saints and Vikes are a combined 21-1, with Minnesota having the only loss. When it comes down to it, I'm opting for Manning. Unlike Brees and Favre, he does not have a running game to lean on.

Best Offensive Player - You can't go wrong with any of these guys: Titans RB Chris Johnson (just ask him), Packers QB Aaron Rodgers, or Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger. The only knock on Johnson is not that he plays for a 1-6 team, but that of his league leading 824 yards, 425 of those yards have come in only two of the Titans seven games. Not totally his fault that Tennessse has given up so many points and had to abandonthe rush. Roethilsberger is interesting because we all used to view the Steelers as a run first offense. Can't anymore since the rushing game has sputtered since Jerome Bettis left. But I'm going with Rodgers. Despite being sacked a league leading 31 time, he still leads the NFL in passer rating. Better than Manning, Brees and Favre.

Best Defensive Player - I'm considering these three: New Orleans safety Darren Sharper, Minnesota's defensive end Jared Allen and Denver's "morph" Elvis Dumervil. Sharper has 7 int with 3 return TD. Allen leads the NFL with 10.5 sacks and Dumervil is right behind with 10. We all know what Allen brings to the table, massive intensity. But look at his line mates? Playing with the Williams guys and Ray Edwards will get you a better blocking matchup...and more sacks. Dumervil is more of a product of Mike Nolan's defensive system. My nod goes to Sharper whose been the biggest inluence on the Saints D.

Best Rookie - Minnesota's "do everything" Percy Harvin, Buffalo's CB Jairus Byrd and Texans linebacker Brian Cushing. Byrd is tied with Darren Sharper for the NFL lead with 7 INT, all coming in the Bills last four games. Byrd did not become a starter until week 3. Harvin does eveything for the Vikings. He catches and he returns kickoffs...to the tune of 5 TD overall. It's easy to go the way of Harvin, but I'm going with Cushing. He stands 6th in the NFL in total tackles (1st among rookies), and Cushing has been a major reason the Texans defense has improved this season.