Thursday, December 31, 1998

Thursday, December 31, 1998

Once bitten, twice sly Dallas confident against 'The Snake'

By MIKE BALDWIN

The Daily Oklahoman

IRVING, Texas -- The Dallas Cowboys' defense still has a scar from the "snake bite" it suffered last month. But a scar is proof a wound has healed.

Pro Bowl cornerback Deion Sanders isn't expected to play Saturday in a playoff game against Arizona. But don't compare this weekend's wild-card matchup to a game 45 days ago when Jake "the Snake" Plummer exploited a Deion-less Dallas secondary.

"We've gotten it as well as you can get without Deion," said Cowboys coach Chan Gailey. "Kevin Mathis and Kevin Smith are playing well now. Charlie (Williams) and Larry Brown give us some good depth at corner. I feel better about where our secondary is right now, obviously, than at that point, in that game."

In that game, Dallas hung on for a 35-28 win at Sun Devil Stadium, a win that proved to be the difference in the NFC East race. Plummer, though, threw for 465 yards, one yard shy of matching the record by an opposing quarterback in the Cowboys' 39-year history.

But there were extenuating circumstances. Besides Sanders leaving with an injury, Mathis didn't play because of a broken forearm. After the game, Cowboys safety Darren Woodson said secondary coach Mike Zimmer giving inexperienced defensive backs advice was similar to drawing plays in the dirt.

"We had some guys out there playing certain positions for the first time," said defensive coordinator Dave Campo. "I feel good about our group of guys. I think our guys are confident in what they can do. It's going to be a good football game. We've just got to make sure he doesn't walk on water again."

Campo's reference was to Plummer directing nine fourth-quarter wins during his two-year career. Dallas wasn't one of the nine victims, but the Cowboys led 28-0 when Sanders was sidelined late in the first half, an injury that essentially sidelined him the remainder of the regular season.

Plummer seized the opportunity. He was magical in the second half. Constantly scrambling from the pocket, Plummer completed 31 of 56 passes. Of those 31 completions, nine went for more than 20 yards.

"He is the most dangerous when he's out of the pocket, running around and making things happen," Gailey said. "You have to be smart about what you do. You don't want to have pressure just to have pressure. You want to make sure that it's controlled pressure."

Arizona coaches were reminded in that game that Plummer is at his best when the game has a frenetic pace. The Cardinals aren't using a no-huddle scheme like they did the second half that day. But they have shortened the huddle in recent weeks to pick up the pace.

Part of Plummer's success can be contributed to having a 1,000- yard running back in Adrian Murrell. That forces defenses to play honest. Murrell is a quality back, but Plummer and receivers Frank Sanders (89 catches, 1,145 yards) and Rob Moore (67 catches, 982 yards) pose a bigger threat.

"Everybody talks about Plummer scrambling. But the thing that impresses me is he sees the coverages, gets the ball in the right place and he gets it off quick," Zimmer said. "He's not just a scramble guy. They have great receivers. It's a big challenge for us, but we've performed better the last three or four weeks."

The bottom line is the Dallas defense fits the bend-but-don't-break cliche perfectly. The Cowboys are ranked 18th in total defense but are third in the league in points allowed (17.2 points a game).

"I always look at points and third-down efficiency, and we're third and fifth," Campo said. "But all that stuff doesn't mean a whole heck of a lot now. We're to the point it's a one-shot deal. You either move on or you're gone."

(Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service.)