The Dallas Cowboys have nothing to play for at this point in the season. The team was officially eliminated from the playoffs following their loss to the Green Bay Packers in Week 14 and now the team must figure out how to pull through for the remaining three games. According to head coach Jason Garrett, the team will continue to fight and will not rest as he fully expects the Cowboys to be competitive against the New York Jets in Week 15.
According to ESPN's Todd Archer, the Cowboys will start Matt Cassel against the New York Jets and fully believe the quarterback can get it done. Cassel has gone 1-5 in place of the injured Tony Romo. Brandon Weeden did not fare any better when he was with the team. With no other options really available at this point, Garrett stressed full confidence in the quarterback.
"I think the evaluation is who gives us the best chance to win on Saturday night," Garrett said, via ESPN.com. "We still feel like Matt Cassel is that guy. He's done some good things for our team over the time that he's started for us this year. We have won a game with him. He's contributed to putting us in position to win other games that he's started for us. Has he played perfectly? Absolutely not and no one knows that more than he does."
Cassel has not been good, but the team only has Kellen Moore as another option and the team likes experience over anything else. Cassel will have Dez Bryant on the field as well for the final three games of the season. Given the amount of injuries Bryant has had this year, there was a debate as to whether or not the receiver should be shut down for 2015. He started the year off with a broken foot while also dealing with knee and ankle injuries. As the team's best playmaker, owner Jerry Jones says that Bryant needs the reps after missing so much time.
"We'll go balls-out with Dez," Jones said, via 105.3 The Fan in Dallas. "I'm not so sure the foot is an issue apart from the fact that it limited him very early in the season and training camp, and of course the way [we] were involved in negotiations during the spring. In my mind, it is completely related to lack of practice, repetition. Dez is a passionate player. He's a passionate practice player. But he just hasn't had enough of it to cope with what we need him to be doing right now."
Cassel has not been able to make use of Bryant on the field. The two have struggled to get the connection going. Instead, Jason Witten and Darren McFadden have been the most used options on the field. That has not made Bryant very happy while likely contributing to the number of loss the team has faced.
