September 13th, 2009 
Patrick Sells 
Posted in 
Horrible… That is the only way to describe a Cowboys defense that was truly lucky not to give up more than 21 points on Sunday. This may not be the type of thing you would expect to hear after a 34-21 win, but the fact is that it needs to be said.
The Cowboys defense STRUGGLED in the running game, giving up 174 yards on the ground, mainly due to their inability to tackle. With the exception of Terrance Newman, who had a team high 9 tackles, not one player showed that they knew how to tackle properly. This kind of performance will absolutely result in a loss to a team as polished as the New York Giants who come to Arlington in just one week.
Beyond the running game, the defense looked fairly decent against the pass with the exception of cornerback Mike Jenkins. Multiple times in the game Jenkins could be found playing with poor technique, and commonly making bad decisions in coverage. This is certainly not the kind of play you would expect to see from a player taking time away from a solid corner like Orlando Scandrick, and must be addressed this week in practice.
All in all every win counts, however if the Cowboys want to win against good teams, then they cannot play defense like they did today. Team tackling should be a focal point in practice, and Orlando Scandrick should get all of the first team reps based on what I saw against the Bucs. If the Cowboys want to have any hopes of winning next week against the Giants, these problems absolutely must be addressed and resolved.
[...] See the rest here: Cowboys Win 34-21 in Tampa; But Defense Struggles in Victory [...]
I agree Jenkins needs to sit, but lets talk about the running game of Tampa. You find a lot of teams with a running game that strong.
[...] The first game that has a touch of carolina blue on each side line is the one that has the Dallas Cowboys (-6) going to the sunshine state to take on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The game, played at Raymond James Stadium, had an attendance of 63,806. For the visiting team it’s safety Gerald Sensabaugh, who was very active in this game. The sixth year man, playing strong safety, had eight tackles (four solos) against the Bucs. And for the home team it’s eighth year veteran Ryan Sims, playing at defensive tackle. He registered a tackle in the game (no solos). In the end it was Dallas winning this one over Tampa Bay by the final of 34 to 21. Over at The Landry Hat (Fansided.com) the recap of the game says Cowboys win big against Bucs, but at NFL Gridiron Gab, Matt Loede tells us that D struggles in Victory. [...]