Monday, September 14, 1998

Cowboys' defense dooms its own team, not opponents

By FRANK LUKSA

The Dallas Morning News

DENVER - A different version of the Cowboys' once-famed Doomsday Defense appeared Sunday at Mile High Stadium. The altered aspect of then-and-now comparison became evident against the Denver Broncos. This defense has the potential to doom its own team instead of the opposition.

The Cowboys lost more than a 42-23 game. They lost quarterback Troy Aikman for four to eight weeks with a fractured left collarbone. And if they harbored illusions about the quality of their defense, that also became a casualty to reality.

"This was not a setback," cornerback Kevin Smith protested. "It's an eye-opener, but it's not like we lost to the Bears of last year. We lost to the No. 1 team in football and the defending Super Bowl champions."

Pardon me, Kevin, but I thought your defense played with its eyes closed. Or wearing blinkers and outfitted in combat boots.

Denver did things to a Cowboys defense that had never been done before. Like score 35 points in the first half. It is possible the Broncos would have scored more, but they had only five possessions. Anyway, 35 points in the first half broke the previous record of 34 last matched by Washington in 1986.

The early rout confirmed suspicion that this defense is unstable. It's vulnerable, exploitable and inconsistent. Its flaws were exposed by John Elway's arm, the flying feet of Terrell Davis and catches by receivers Shannon Sharpe and Ed McCaffrey. Those flaws were emphasized by a gifted Denver game plan that produced favorable matchups that first beat the Cowboys, then left them confused.

"They did a great job of spreading us out," said Cowboys coach Chan Gailey, alluding to that point. "They were able to create a lot of one-on-one matchups."

Deion Sanders was more emphatic in touting Denver coach Mike Shanahan's skill of attack:

"I've said this before. Shanahan is an offensive genius. Every time we made adjustments, he made more."

Shanahan created much destruction. Davis ran for touchdowns of 59 and 63 yards on consecutive plays and was confronted only by a headwind. No one laid a hand on him either time. Elway threw scoring passes of 38 and 23 yards to tight end Sharpe, so alone behind a befuddled secondary that you figured they thought Shannon had retired.

The Cowboys defense wound up abused for 515 yards. Denver amassed 379 yards of it in the first half. Davis rushed for 138 yards in the first quarter, and those TD runs were the third- and fifth-longest of his NFL career. McCaffrey added to the carnage with another career high for receiving yards (117 yards on five catches). Elway missed only six of 22 pass attempts and hung up 268 more aerial yards.

"We were shell-shocked," said Dallas defensive tackle Chad Hennings.

Certain truths seem self-evident and repetitive about this defense. It does not rush the passer well. It does not force turnovers. And against an elite offense, it is easy prey. Problems now multiply.

Best previous hope was for the Cowboys to outscore the other side. Signs looked favorable that Aikman and his mates were in early sync with Gailey's new offense. More offense meant less pressure on a defense of questionable components before the season opened. Those prospects dim in Aikman's absence.

Aikman produced two touchdowns and had another scoring drive in motion at the instant he was hurt. Jason Garrett relieved and kept the march in motion toward a Richie Cunningham field goal. But over the next 40 minutes of action, the Cowboys made only two second-half field goals behind Garrett.

The scales reflect an ominous sway. The offense won't be the same without Aikman. It won't score as much. A defense that leaked five gains of more than 30 yards to Denver will play longer. More exposure means trouble for a unit that lacks game-breakers and difference-makers.

Sunday's results were of season-turning consequence. Aikman at least can be replaced. The defense can't. A hard choice awaits Gailey and defensive coordinator Dave Campo. They've seen enough to know this defense can't hold its own playing in a standard way. Might they gamble on a go-for-broke style with a mad mix of blitzes hereafter?

"We're down on one knee," said Hennings, "but we're not out of the count. We have a long season ahead of us."

Fourteen remaining games, perhaps as many as seven without Aikman, suddenly looks like the biggest of a long list of problems for the Cowboys.