All eyes on Brandon Weeden as he steps in for injured Tony Romo

Jay Asser 10:06 27/09/2015
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  • Brandon Weeden will be looking to continue Dallas’ fine start.

    The Dallas Cowboys won’t ask Brandon Weeden to fill the sizeable shoes of Tony Romo but the now-starting quarterback will be needed to keep the unbeaten team afloat in his time under centre.

    In their first game without Romo, who suffered a broken collarbone last week, Dallas put their flawless record on the line against the 2-0 Atlanta Falcons at home on Sunday.

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    Weeden will be at the helm of the Cowboys’ offence for now while Romo is out of action for at least seven games but the team acquired journeyman Matt Cassel from Buffalo midweek to give them another option should their backup-turned-starter falter.

    “There is pressure on everyone in this organisation,” Weeden said. “So I am not going to put any added pressure on myself. I know what is at stake. I know we have a good team. So hopefully we can all rally and keep this going in the right direction.”

    Although Weeden was a perfect 7-for-7 for 73 yards and a touchdown after replacing Romo in Week 2, the 31-year-old has managed just a 5-16 record as a starting quarterback, including eight straight losses.

    The Cowboys can alleviate Weeden’s load by getting their running game going, which has so far averaged 3.4 yards per rush, ranking 27th in the league – a far cry from the 4.6 mark of last season which was tied for third best.

    With Weeden not striking fear in opposing secondaries, however, Dallas’ running backs are likely to see stacked boxes, meaning some sort of threat through the air will be necessary.

    “We’ll continue to persist with the running game and continue to try to improve in the running game, but we have to be a balanced attack,” Dallas coach Jason Garrett said.

    “We can’t have 11 guys standing on the line of scrimmage because we’re not going to throw the football. That’s not good for anybody. Makes it too hard on the running game and makes it too hard on your quarterback.”

    Atlanta, meanwhile, will likely continue relying on wide receiver Julio Jones, who has torched defensive backs by averaging 138.0 receiving yards so far this season.

    Jones will test a Cowboys defence which has been stingy against the pass and has yet to allow a receiver to reach the century mark.

    That likely won’t stop Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan from heavily targeting Jones, who has been the catalyst of the offence.

    “I think the sky’s the limit,” quarterback Matt Ryan said of his top weapon. “I think he’s only going to continue to improve.”

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