Even the most feared pass-rushers in the NFL can learn a thing or two about their performance from a scientific standpoint. DeMarcus Ware (pictured above with NFL prospect Cameron Heyward) has made a living feasting on quarterbacks but that doesn’t mean he stops learning off the field. At the Super Bowl this year in Dallas, DeMarcus paired with Gatorade in order to work with their scientists at the Gatorade Sports Science Institute (GSSI). He was given the opportunity to learn about his specific sports’ nutrition routine, so that he can fuel maximum performance on the field. The Scores Report was fortunate enough to catch up with DeMarcus while he was at the GSSI, so he could fill us in on what the process was like and what he learned from his testing. We also asked him for his take on Wade Phillips, on what the Cowboys need to do to reach the Super Bowl next year and on the rising success of the 3-4 defense. Of course, we couldn’t let him go without getting his Super Bowl pick as well.

DeMarcus Ware: Hello?

The Scores Report: Hey DeMarcus! How are you, man?

DW: Good! How are you?

TSR: Doing well. So you’re in Dallas?

DW: Yes sir.

TSR: You having fun or what?

DW: Yeah, I’m having a great time at radio row.

TSR: Good stuff. Talk to me about Gatorade and what you’re doing with them for the Super Bowl.

DW: You know, everybody always thinks about sports drinks as something that just quenches your thirst. But they’ve taken it to the next level and they’ve gotten this lab to where it’s built for nutrition, fitness and really helping you with your performance. Gatorade has pre-drinks, post-drinks and you know, drinks in between workouts that helps you with peek performance.

TSR: I had the opportunity to speak with Maurice Jones-Drew last year about the Gatorade science lab and he loved his experience. Have you been able to jump on the treadmill or done anything like that yet?

DW: Yeah, I hopped on the bike and let me tell you, it was very strenuous. I actually got a headache.

TSR: Really?

DW: Yeah, it was no joke. But I got to find out what deficiencies I had and you’d be surprised as to what you’ll find out from going through their testing.

TSR: Talk to me about your specific deficiencies and what Gatorade has shown you about your personal performance.

DW: There’s one machine that’s for hand-eye coordination, which helps athletes figure out what they have to work on in that area. The left side of my brain works a little differently from the right side of my brain and this machine is set up where you push all of this different red buttons to show you how you can improve your hand-eye coordination.

TSR: Have you tried the G-Series Pro where you drink pre, during and post-workout drinks?

DW: I haven’t done it yet but I’m excited to try it. But I did have a headache earlier, tried their recovery drink and it went away. So obviously something’s in there that’s working.

TSR: What other Super Bowl events will you be able to take part in this weekend?

DW: I’ll be going to the EA Madden Bowl and I’ll probably wind up doing some other stuff with Gatorade down radio row. I also have some other sponsors here, so I’ll be going to whatever events they have planned.

TSR: What do the Cowboys need to do so that next year you’re taking part of media week as a player who’s competing in the Super Bowl?

DW: I think all of our guys need to experience this and see what it takes to get here. Because I think it would motivate us. We really have all the pieces in place – we just need to play better.

TSR: Not that you ever want to see somebody lose their job, but what was your take on the Wade Phillips firing? Did you think the Cowboys needed to go in another direction?

DW: Well, that’s up to Jerry Jones to think about whether we needed to go in another direction or not. It’s his decision. Wade is a great coach and he’s down in Houston and he’s going to keep coaching well. Now we have Jason Garrett and we have to roll with the punches. He’s a great guy and we just have to keep going.

TSR: You play in the 3-4 in Dallas and both the Packers and Steelers employ the 3-4. Are you surprised that more teams don’t adopt that alignment given the success that the Steelers have had over the years?

DW: You know the thing is, I see a lot of the 4-3 teams now starting to bring a little bit of that 3-4 look to their scheme. You never know who’s rushing the passer, you can bring more guys with the 3-4, but then it’s also a different blocking scheme, too. Anything to keep the opponents on edge and add that next dimension is what teams need.

TSR: Why don’t you think we see more teams use the 3-4 as their base?

DW: I just think it comes down to the players. You know, some teams have the big four-down linemen and some have linebackers that don’t rush as well. So if you have a defense with a couple of linebackers that can rush, as well as that big man up front, the 3-4 can work well.

TSR: How do you see the Super Bowl playing out from a defensive standpoint?

DW: You have two big, nasty defenses playing – No. 1 and No. 2, in fact. Both of these teams have done well, but the defense that gets the most pressure on the quarterback is probably going to win.

TSR: You guys played the Packers earlier this season. What makes Aaron Rodgers so special and how do you defend that Packers’ offense?

DW: Aaron Rodgers is a guy that can sit there in the pocket and throw the ball really well, but he also uses his legs to string things out and keep the chains moving. First you have to stop the run but second you have to be able to contain him. If you don’t, you’re going to lose the game.

TSR: I know you’re busy down there in Dallas DeMarcus, so I’ll let you go. But one last thing: Tell me who wins this weekend.

DW: I would say Green Bay – I have to stick with the NFC.

TSR: All right then! Thanks for your time, DeMarcus. Have fun down there with Gatorade and I’ll be looking to get your take on the G-Series Pro when you try it out.

DW: All right, thank you.

TSR: Thanks.

DW: Take care.

If Brett Favre watched how the Cowboys’ defense dismantled Donovan McNabb and the Eagles’ offense last Saturday, then he probably didn’t get much sleep that night.

For as good as the Vikings’ offense has been this season, the offensive line hasn’t played well in weeks. That doesn’t bode well for Minnesota given that its O-line has the unenviable task of trying to slow down a Dallas pass-rush that has emerged as a dangerous unit over the last month of the season.

In the Cowboys’ 34-14 trouncing of the Eagles last Saturday, DeMarcus Ware sacked McNabb twice and harassed him on several other occasions. It was Ware’s fourth multi-sack game of the season and it no doubt sent a message to Brad Childress that he better figure out a way to protect his quarterback this weekend.

One way to slow down an aggressive pass rush is to run the ball straight at it. Fortunately for the Vikings, they have a back in Adrian Peterson that excels running between the tackles and attacking the edge of a defense. But the problem is that Childress got away from his balanced attack over the course of the season and the Vikings suffered a little down the stretch. If Minnesota believes it can beat Dallas by throwing the ball early and often, then a second-round knockout is inevitable for the Vikings.

It’ll be interesting to see if Childress commits to running the ball with AP this weekend in order to attack the Cowboys’ excellent pass-rush. If he doesn’t, then he and Favre might be in store for a long day.

Photo from fOTOGLIF
]]> http://www.scoresreport.com/2010/01/12/can-the-vikings-slow-down-the-cowboys%e2%80%99-pass-rush/feed/ 0 http://www.scoresreport.com/2010/01/09/nfl-playoff-previews-saturday-games/ http://www.scoresreport.com/2010/01/09/nfl-playoff-previews-saturday-games/#comments Sat, 09 Jan 2010 12:00:04 +0000 Mike Farley http://www.scoresreport.com/?p=32561

New York Jets at Cincinnati Bengals
4:30 pm ET
TV—NBC

Last Sunday night, the Jets closed out the actual regular season history of “old” Giants Stadium the way the Giants wanted to the week before, turning a win-and-in situation into a rout against the Bengals, 37-0. The Jets and their # 1 pass defense held the Bengals to zero passing yards for the game. That’s right, ZERO passing yards. That’s not likely to happen again today, when the Jets visit the Bengals for a rematch that will determine who goes home and who moves on to the divisional round of the playoffs. Bengals’ head coach Marvin Lewis held RB Cedric Benson out of the Week 17 game, and only let QB Carson Palmer play a few series before letting some bearded guy named J.T. O’Sullivan take over. Lewis didn’t want to show too much, but what he may have shown in the process was that his team is fading fast and may have won games early in the season with smoke and mirrors. The Bengals’ defense is also solid, ranked #7 against the rush and #6 against the pass, but if they allow Thomas Jones and the Jets’ running game to control the clock again, this could very well be another dominant performance by the Jets. And don’t forget the way Jets’ all-world CB Darrelle Revis shut down WR Chad Ochocinco on the field and then on Twitter. The hotter Jets should prevail again, but either way, this is a game featuring two of the NFL’s best defenses, so it’s likely to be ultimately determined by who makes the least mistakes.
THE PICK: JETS 17, BENGALS 13

Philadelphia Eagles at Dallas Cowboys
8:00 pm ET
TV—NBC

For as surprising as the Jets’ thrashing of the Bengals was last weekend, the fact that the Cowboys shut out the Eagles may have been the biggest surprise of Week 17. Sure, the Cowboys have been on a roll since handing the Saints their first loss of the season a few weeks back, and haven’t given up a point since then. But the Eagles had won six in a row and were (insert cheesy line here like “flying high” or “soaring”). Despite having Brian Westbrook back, the Eagles have fallen to 22nd in the NFL in rushing offense and have been living by the big pass play most of the season, with second year WR DeSean Jackson changing games by himself on offense and special teams. The Cowboys, however, have beaten the Eagles twice this season, and their only losses came to the Giants twice (in games that could have gone either way), Denver, Green Bay and San Diego. They can run the ball (7th overall), pass with Tony Romo, Miles Austin and Jason Witten (6th overall) and they can stop the run (4th overall). The only blemish for the Cowboys is they are prone to big pass plays, but they seem to have remedied that recently, and with DeMarcus Ware coming off the edge, Donovan McNabb has to have eyes on the side and back of his head at all times. This game will certainly be close, and maybe come down to a field goal. And in that case, would you rather have David Akers or (gulp) Shaun Suisham as your kicker? That’s what I thought.
THE PICK: EAGLES 27, COWBOYS 24

It’s been two weeks since we last did these rankings, and while not much has changed at the top, the teams our top two guys play for have been very shaky. In fact, Philip Rivers’ Chargers are the only one on a roll heading into the postseason.

1. Peyton Manning, Indianapolis Colts—If Jim Caldwell benching his starting quarterback in the third quarter against the Jets proved anything, it’s that Manning is clearly and unequivocally valuable. His numbers (4405 yards, 33 TDs) don’t suck either.

2. Drew Brees, New Orleans Saints—There is no question that Brees hasn’t been the same since DeMarcus Ware terrorized him two weeks ago in the Superdome. But the MVP race is not based on a few games and Brees still has a league-high 109.6 QB rating, and leads the NFL with 34 touchdown passes.

3. Chris Johnson, Tennessee Titans—This guy was racking up yards even before the Titans started winning games this season. And he’s so far ahead of the pack right now, with his sights on 2000 yards and even Eric Dickerson’s record of 2105 yards for a single season. That’s saying something.

4. Philip Rivers, San Diego Chargers—Yes, he has numbers — 4155 yards, 27 TDs to 9 picks, second to Brees in QB rating with 104.5. But here is why Rivers belongs on here—because all he does is win games.

5. Brett Favre, Minnesota Vikings—Let’s not lose sight of the fact that Favre brought his Vikings back from a 17-point deficit in chilly Chicago before losing in OT. His season has been and continues to be bordering on magical.

Honorable Mention— DeSean Jackson, Eagles; Aaron Rodgers, Packers; Cedric Benson, Bengals; Reggie Wayne, Colts; Jared Allen, Vikings; Vince Young, Titans; Elvis Dumervil, Broncos; Darren Sharper, Saints; Wes Welker, Patriots; Darrelle Revis, Jets; Andre Johnson, Texans; Dallas Clark, Colts; DeMarcus Ware, Cowboys

Here are five, quick-hit observations from the Cowboys’ 24-17 upset over the Saints on Saturday night.

1. The Saints might be a team of destiny, but they’re not perfect.
There’s a reason why there have only been two undefeated teams in the history of the NFL: Because it’s freaking hard to run the table. It doesn’t matter that the Cowboys had lost two in a row or have always struggled in December under Wade Phillips; they had a great chance coming into Saturday night because the law of averages were eventually going to catch up with the Saints. And that’s exactly what happened.

2. The Saints have a problem defensively.
Three weeks ago when the Saints narrowly escaped Washington with a win, I noted that they better get healthy defensively or else they would have problems down the road. Not having DT Sedrick Ellis really hurt the Saints tonight, as Dallas churned out 145 yards on the ground and seized control of the game in the first half. New coordinator Gregg Williams has done a great job turning around the New Orleans’ defense, but this is not a unit that can overcome injuries and win a Super Bowl. They’re just not that deep.

3. Jermon Bushrod had a tough night.
Not to pile it on, but every defensive end that lined up across from Saints’ right tackle Jermon Bushrod abused him tonight. DeMarcus Ware was beating him so bad to the outside that on the final play of the game, Bushrod just fell over because he couldn’t get into his backpedal quick enough. (The play resulted in Drew Brees fumbling, which sealed the win for Dallas.) If Phillips’ defense can play with that much aggressiveness, energy and focus in the playoffs, the Cowboys are going to be a tough out.

4. Tony Romo played a flawless game.
Romo gets too much credit when the Cowboys play well and too much criticism when they don’t. But tonight was one of those games where even the biggest of Romo critics have to appreciate how he played. He found open receivers, he kept plays alive with his feet and he picked up extra yardage when he saw opportunities to run. And when Dallas needed a big drive to put the Saints away, Romo delivered by setting his team up with what should have been a game-clinching field goal with just over two minutes remaining.

5. Speaking of which…
Raise your hand if you thought the Saints were going to march right down the field and tie the game after Nick Folk clanked that extra point-sized field goal off the right upright. I don’t know if Dallas can find a kicker this late in the season, but they might as well start holding open tryouts, because Folk is brutal.

Appearing on Michael Irvin’s radio show, former Cowboys linebacker Greg Ellis said that DeMarcus Ware used to hide from coaches in order to help get Ellis onto the field last season.

According to Ellis, one of his prominent former teammates was so frustrated by the veteran’s diminished role that he’d hide from coaches during games to force them to put Ellis on the field.

“It’s a disgrace when DeMarcus Ware comes off the field just so I can get in the game and when the coaches tell him to come on the field, he tries to hide so I can play,” Ellis said during an appearance on ESPN 103.3′s Michael Irvin Show. “And you’re telling me we’re trying to win the Super Bowl?”

Ware, the weak side outside linebacker who threatened the NFL’s season sacks record during his third consecutive Pro Bowl campaign, could not immediately be reached for comment. Ware rarely sat out a defensive snap with the exception of late in the Thanksgiving win over the Seahawks, when he suffered a knee injury.

Irvin, the Hall of Fame former Cowboys receiver, asked for clarification that Ware would take himself out of games to force the coaches to play Ellis.

“On his own,” Ellis said. “He would say, ‘G, come on.’ And I would tell him, ‘No, DeMarcus, go ahead, man. You’re coming up on your contract year. Don’t mess that stuff up. Go ahead and do you, and we’re just going to do what the coaches, or whoever the powers that be, what they want to do.’”

Riiiight. I’m not saying this didn’t happen because it’s a little too bizarre for Ellis to make up, but he’s his comments are rather unclear. Did this happen several times throughout the course of the season? Did it happen once a game? Twice a game? Or did this just happen once throughout the entire 16-game schedule? Because if it was only once, then this isn’t a big deal at all.

Either way, Ellis isn’t helping his buddy score a new contract here. Ware is the midst of trying to get a new contract from the Cowboys and Ellis doesn’t really help him out by saying that Ware used to hide from coaches on the sidelines when they wanted him to go in.

What a weird story.

After months of speculation regarding whether or not to release or trade him, Cowboys’ owner Jerry Jones has decided to hang onto wide receiver Terrell Owens.

Financially, this was a wise move. Cutting T.O. wouldn’t have created much cap space and there’s nobody on the open market outside of T.J. Houshmandzadeh who matches what Owens brings to the field. That said, Jones better realize that he has nobody but himself to blame if Owens turns around and makes a mess of things in the locker room this season.

Something is wrong in Dallas, this much we know. They have more than enough talent on both sides of the ball to compete for a Super Bowl, yet they can’t even make the playoffs in a weak NFC. For the Eagles to make the postseason after looking so bad mid-year, there’s no reason a team composed of Owens, Tony Romo, Jason Witten, Marion Barber and DeMarcus Ware should miss the playoffs. And yes, Barber’s injury hurt the ‘Boys towards the end of the year, but a team as talented as the Cowboys should be able to overcome one player’s absence.

The word that keeps coming up with this team is chemistry. The Cowboys don’t have enough good chemistry to win. If that’s the case, then that hangs on Jones’s shoulders and again, he should be held personally accountable. He put this team together and he’s the one that believes a bunch of malcontents like T.O. and Pacman Jones can survive under one roof.

Jones jettisoned one bad apple (Pacman), but decided to keep another (T.O.). If the decision to keep Owens sours (pardon the apple pun) in the end, then Jones needs to look in the mirror and discover that the main problem is staring him right in the face.