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Taylor: Cowboys will be best with Marion Barber starting, punishing
11:49 PM CDT on Friday, August 6, 2010
SAN ANTONIO – Don't judge Marion Barber solely on yards and touchdowns.
That's too simplistic. Too easy.
He's never had a 1,000-yard season and hasn't scored double-digit touchdowns since 2008. He's had only one 100-yard performance in the last 21 games and has faded badly the last two seasons.
Column by JEAN-JACQUES TAYLOR / The Dallas Morning News | jjtaylor@dallasnews.com
Jean-Jacques Taylor
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"He embodies what you want in a football player," Cowboys offensive coordinator Jason Garrett said. "He's tough mentally and physically, and he's productive as a runner and receiver.
"You can't just look at stats and have them tell you everything he does for our team. We pride ourselves on being a tough, physical football team, and he plays a big part in giving us that identity."
That's why numbers alone don't begin to tell you Barber's importance – not just to the offense but to the entire team's psyche. Barber provides too many intangibles to have his role questioned just because he leaves fantasy football owners dissatisfied most weeks.
All you have to do is watch Barber practice. Or talk to his teammates – on offense or defense. And his coaches.
They'll tell you about his leadership skills in the weight room, the classroom and the practice field. They'll tell you how he inspires his teammates to play with more intensity every time he runs over a defender or breaks a tackle.
They'll tell you how Barber gives the Cowboys a swagger, an attitude, a physical presence.
During a recent practice, Barber bowled over a defender, popped up and signaled first down after a nice run. Two plays later, he made another nifty run and spun the ball like a top after getting knocked to the ground.
His offensive teammates howled with delight, while the defensive players increased their trash talking. Just like that, the intensity level in yet another training camp practice had increased.
He affects games the same way.
"Everybody feeds off Marion. People don't understand that," linebacker DeMarcus Ware said. "When big Leonard Davis sees Marion run somebody over and gain a couple of extra yards, he gets excited and he wants to push himself and punish somebody on the next play, so he can watch Marion do it again."
Understand, Garrett believes the Cowboys must have a tough, physical offense to win games in December when games have more importance. Barber helps create that physical tone during the week and on Sundays.
"When Barber gets in one of those grooves," said vice president Stephen Jones, "he's so physical that he wears the other team down, and it gets all of our guys fired up. Not a lot of people can do that."
Barber still must play better than he did last season, when he rushed for 932 yards, a 4.4 average per carry and seven touchdowns. Those numbers are hardly awful, but too many times he wasn't the dynamic runner we saw in his first few seasons.
He carried 11 times for just 18 yards in two playoff games, which is among the reasons so many folks already have Felix Jones penciled into the starting lineup against Washington in the season opener. Others believe Tashard Choice should start while Barber is relegated to third downs.
This team, however, will be at its best with Barber starting, setting a physical tone and loosening up the defense for the game-breaking Jones, whose body can't handle a heavy workload.
Maybe Barber was too heavy at 222 pounds last season, a consideration since he lost eight pounds from his muscular physique in the off-season. Perhaps, he never really recovered from the quadriceps injury he suffered in Week 2 against the Giants.
Some front-office personnel think Barber bounced too many runs outside last season instead of taking the yardage available between the tackles.
At one level, none of it really matters. The Cowboys just need him to return to being one the NFL's most punishing runners.
11:49 PM CDT on Friday, August 6, 2010
SAN ANTONIO – Don't judge Marion Barber solely on yards and touchdowns.
That's too simplistic. Too easy.
He's never had a 1,000-yard season and hasn't scored double-digit touchdowns since 2008. He's had only one 100-yard performance in the last 21 games and has faded badly the last two seasons.
Column by JEAN-JACQUES TAYLOR / The Dallas Morning News | jjtaylor@dallasnews.com
Jean-Jacques Taylor
Archive | Bio | E-mail
"He embodies what you want in a football player," Cowboys offensive coordinator Jason Garrett said. "He's tough mentally and physically, and he's productive as a runner and receiver.
"You can't just look at stats and have them tell you everything he does for our team. We pride ourselves on being a tough, physical football team, and he plays a big part in giving us that identity."
That's why numbers alone don't begin to tell you Barber's importance – not just to the offense but to the entire team's psyche. Barber provides too many intangibles to have his role questioned just because he leaves fantasy football owners dissatisfied most weeks.
All you have to do is watch Barber practice. Or talk to his teammates – on offense or defense. And his coaches.
They'll tell you about his leadership skills in the weight room, the classroom and the practice field. They'll tell you how he inspires his teammates to play with more intensity every time he runs over a defender or breaks a tackle.
They'll tell you how Barber gives the Cowboys a swagger, an attitude, a physical presence.
During a recent practice, Barber bowled over a defender, popped up and signaled first down after a nice run. Two plays later, he made another nifty run and spun the ball like a top after getting knocked to the ground.
His offensive teammates howled with delight, while the defensive players increased their trash talking. Just like that, the intensity level in yet another training camp practice had increased.
He affects games the same way.
"Everybody feeds off Marion. People don't understand that," linebacker DeMarcus Ware said. "When big Leonard Davis sees Marion run somebody over and gain a couple of extra yards, he gets excited and he wants to push himself and punish somebody on the next play, so he can watch Marion do it again."
Understand, Garrett believes the Cowboys must have a tough, physical offense to win games in December when games have more importance. Barber helps create that physical tone during the week and on Sundays.
"When Barber gets in one of those grooves," said vice president Stephen Jones, "he's so physical that he wears the other team down, and it gets all of our guys fired up. Not a lot of people can do that."
Barber still must play better than he did last season, when he rushed for 932 yards, a 4.4 average per carry and seven touchdowns. Those numbers are hardly awful, but too many times he wasn't the dynamic runner we saw in his first few seasons.
He carried 11 times for just 18 yards in two playoff games, which is among the reasons so many folks already have Felix Jones penciled into the starting lineup against Washington in the season opener. Others believe Tashard Choice should start while Barber is relegated to third downs.
This team, however, will be at its best with Barber starting, setting a physical tone and loosening up the defense for the game-breaking Jones, whose body can't handle a heavy workload.
Maybe Barber was too heavy at 222 pounds last season, a consideration since he lost eight pounds from his muscular physique in the off-season. Perhaps, he never really recovered from the quadriceps injury he suffered in Week 2 against the Giants.
Some front-office personnel think Barber bounced too many runs outside last season instead of taking the yardage available between the tackles.
At one level, none of it really matters. The Cowboys just need him to return to being one the NFL's most punishing runners.