Every once in awhile, you just have to show appreciation for something your opponent did. Of course, it's much easier to be magnanimous when your team has won the game, right? 

The Cowboys offense was pretty much kept in check by the Packers defense, with special mention going to the rookie cornerbacks. When Sam Shields  left the game with a concussion, Damarious Randall stepped into the  role of covering Dez Bryant with the result being Bryant having one of the worst games of his career.

As a team, the Cowboys only caught 13 passes for a paltry 114 yards. On paper, the running game appears to have been much more successful for the Cowboys, with 165 total yards gained. However, 95 of those yards came on two runs by Darren McFadden.

Normally, you might expect to see a post here about what went wrong for the Packers on those two plays. Well folks, I'm here to inform you (and flip Shakespeare around a bit), I'm here not to bury the Packers on those two plays, but instead to praise the Cowboys. 

Yes, I know that hurts. Hell, I just winced a little myself.

But those two plays were something you just don't see anymore in this league. A perfectly designed and executed sweep with multiple pulling linemen creating "a seal here and a seal there" and a nice alley for the running back to run through. Sound familiar?

Really, it was a thing of beauty.

Let's take a look at both of those plays.

The first one occurs only 3:10 into the first quarter.

As the ball is snapped, Left tackle Tyron Smith pulls to seal off back side pursuit while left guard La'el Collins  heads downfield after LB Jake Ryan. On the right side the Cowboys have two tight ends, who both block down, sealing off Mike Pennel and Julius Peppers. RG Zack Martin and RT Doug Free both pull outside of those blocks and look for second-level Packers to block. Free kicks out on Morgan Burnett and Martin cuts behind him and totally annihilates Clay Matthews. Matthews might as well have been a small child for how successful he was in fighting off Martin. Ryan arrives on the scene, but Collins has caught him and keeps him from filling the hole that McFadden squirts through. This was really Ryan's play to make, but he takes too East-West of an angle coming over and shows pretty stiff hips when trying to turn to face McFadden. McFadden bursts by Ryan and then in between Clinton-Dix, who gets an hand on him but nothing else and Julius Peppers, wh0 can't get there in time coming from the back side.

Peppers, deserves major credit, however, for not giving up on the play. When Micah Hyde forces McFadden to redirect, a pursuing Peppers just misses again but still does not stop. As Hyde forces McFadden toward the sideline, Peppers is there to finish off Hyde's cut tackle.

A tremendous effort by Peppers, but mainly this is about an absolutely textbook (or chalkboard) execution of a play that you just don't see any more.

The second McFadden run came 5:10 into the third quarter.

This play is basically a left-sided copy of the first play, but with a little twist that make it even more diabolically perfect. Again, there are two tight ends on the left side who block down. Again, three lineman pull with the same responsibilities. But this time, the Cowboys run some pre-snap motion, with Lucky Whitehead coming left to right, taking Damarious Randall with him and leaving one less Packer on the side of the field where the play is actually going. So simple, yet so effective. 

Micah Hyde has no chance against Tyron Smith and once again, Jake Ryan is kept from the hole, this time by TE Gavin Escobar who manages to seal off both Jayrone Elliot and then Ryan all in the same play. With no one to block, La'el Collins leads McFadden through a big "alley" and continues downfield where he knocks Clinton-Dix to the ground. It's quite striking how agile this 320 pound lineman is as he sprints downfield, continuing to lead McFadden. But much like Peppers on the first play, Clinton-Dix refuses to give up on the play and eventually brings McFadden down.

My Packers fanhood was formed during the days of Lombardi's Packers sweep. As such, I've always had a fond appreciation for the mechanics, design and execution of  the perfect sweep. It's the epitome of the football play where all eleven players have important roles in making it work. The Cowboys executed these two plays perfectly and it was a joy to watch. 

And again, I can say that because the Packers came home with the win. 

Go Pack!