YOU WANT THE GOOD NEWS OR THE BAD NEWS?

Okay, we’ll start with the good news...

For the first time this season, I felt like we had a game plan that played to our opponent’s weakness.  I was concerned with Portis’ recent success that we’d play vintage Gibbs’ football and smash it into the line 35-40 times, but we passed and passed often, showing Dallas is vulnerable against the pass. Roy Williams may be known as a “hitter,” but he couldn’t cover my dead grandmother with a blanket.  Campbell showed he can handle the intricacies of Saunders’ offense and run it very efficiently and effectively.  He completed passes to seven different players and generally kept the Cowboys on their heels.

It was also very encouraging to see some EMOTION on the sidelines!  Seeing Cooley slam his helmet down after settling for the third quarter FG was something that has been sorely lacking on this team.  We blew a golden opportunity to take the lead, and it was nice to know I wasn’t the only person throwing things in disgust that we blew a wide open TD!

Our run defense certainly stepped up.  The much-celebrated duo of Jones/Barber was held to 70 yards on 27 attempts -- 2.6 yards per carry for those scoring at home -- and pretty much a non-factor.

And Gibbs finally saw the benefit of having time outs at the end of the game.  We had a chance to win, which is all you can ask for.

And now the bad news . . .

Where does our defense go on third down?  Are they under the mistaken impression that this is Canadian football and the opposition punts on third down?  In several key situations, we stopped them on first and second down, only to see them convert a crucial third down -- one for a TD!  The Cowboys were 8 of 13 on third down conversions.  That is 61% for those without a calculator.

But the big one - - and the one that I do not, cannot, and will not EVER understand - - is  HOW DO YOU LEAVE THEIR ONLY DECENT RECEIVER IN MAN COVERAGE, especially after he burned Springs so bad he wouldn’t even qualify for a cameo in the Towering Inferno!!!!  After the third time, wouldn’t you change what you’re doing?  Let Crayton or one of those other “spares” beat us if they can, but how do you let the Mouth roam free in secondary? ARRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHH

Okay, I have vented, and we must develop a quick case of amnesia and look ahead to Tampa Bay.

The Bucs have taken a strong hold on the NFC South at 6-4, which tells you something about the strength of that division.  They’ve handled their division opponents, but seem to have trouble when they step out of division play.  Jeff Garcia is still capable of making plays out of nothing, and their receiving group of Galloway & Hilliard is very good; but with no running game to speak of, we should hold them in check offensively.  Defensively, they are ranked third in the NFC in passing yards allowed (173 per game), so Jason and the Gang will have to play dink and dunk down the field, but if we are patient, we CAN move the ball.  It will be a low scoring game, but I predict we break our two-game slide and start our march to the post-season!

Quick question - - is it just me, or do we ALWAYS play the BUCS in TB?  We never seem to have a home game against these guys.

We are right back in the drivers seat with a win at TB, a GB win over Detroit on Thanksgiving, and a NE win over Philly . . . with our schedule, a 5-1 finish is possible, and 10-6 certainly gets us in!

HAPPY TURKEY DAY TO ALL, AND TO ALL –