When Bill Belichick complements a player on a rival team, it is enough to make anyone sit up and take notice. On Friday, Oct. 14, Belichick passed on a very high compliment to a member of the Dallas Cowboys team when he compared linebacker DeMarcus Ware to Hall of Fame New York Giant Lawrence Taylor.
Wow. That is one heck of a compliment as Taylor was one of the best linebackers to ever play the game. It is also not the first time I have heard someone compare Ware to Taylor, although Belichick has the biggest pedigree to back up his compliment. Belichick, who is getting his New England Patriots ready to face the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday, Oct. 16, said that Ware is the best player they will have faced this year.
New England has played Miami (Brandon Marshall), San Diego (Philip Rivers and Antonio Gates) and the New York Jets (Darrelle Revis) and he calls Ware the best player the Patriots will have seen this year. What is incredible is that I think Ware is only going to get better.
DeMarcus Ware has been to five Pro Bowls, was named NFC Defensive Player of the Year and won the Butkis Award in 2008, and led the NFL in sacks for two seasons (2008, 2010). Now, in his seventh year in the NFL, Ware is playing in a system under Rob Ryan that gives him more opportunities than ever. Ryan moves Ware around and offensive lines have less chances to double team him. Ware has as good a chance of winning the sack title this year as he did in 2008.
So far in 2011, Ware has five sacks in four games, good for fourth in the NFL. He has 85 over his short career. Lawrence Taylor had 83 by the end of his seventh year in the league. However, it is not just the sack numbers that makes Ware as great as Taylor. As Belichick points out, Ware has speed and power. Ware has a nose for the ball. He is explosive and dominating. He is the heart and soul of the Dallas Cowboys defense.
If Dallas wants any chance of beating New England on Sunday, they need DeMarcus Ware to play like only he can. If Ware has an explosive game, Dallas can pull this one off.
Author Shawn S. Lealos has followed the Dallas Cowboys since he was a child, his favorite players range from Roger Staubach and Tony Dorsett to the Triplets of the 90s. Through the great years of the '90s and the hard times of the '80s, Shawn never turned his back on America's Team.
Source: CBSSports
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