METAIRIE, La. -- Former New Orleans Saints cornerback Jabari Greer is still keeping close tabs on the team and has agreed to join me on occasion to share his thoughts.
Click here for Greer's thoughts on the Saints' secondary. Here's his breakdown of Sunday's opponent, the Dallas Cowboys:
The approach against Dez Bryant: "I would cover Dez with everything that you got, brother. Dez is one of the best playmakers in the league. He's not a guy that runs the best routes. He's not a guy that's the fastest. But he does a great job of using his God-given ability, which is explosion, and maximizing every opportunity he has. Once he gets the ball in his hands, he's one of the better run-after-the-catch receivers in the league.
"Dez doesn't catch a lot of deep balls while running in stride. He catches a lot of balls underneath and a lot of balls on the back shoulder. Players seem to respect Dez -- which he's due -- but they respect him so much that they feel as if they have to play over the top of him. A lot of his balls are him coming back to the ball, and then making something happen with a run after the catch. And we understand that they like to throw a lot of back-shoulder fades to Dez on those red-zone routes. So you have to make sure that you play him tight and prepare for that.
"You have to be content with Dez Bryant getting his catches. You cannot think that you're going to go in there and shut him out with a zero-catch game. But the question is the longevity of the game. How do you keep him from the end zone?”
The approach against Terrance Williams: "The young guy, Terrance Williams, this guy is pure speed. He runs better routes and he's faster than Dez. He is the long-ball threat. And I know from playing against him, he's only a second-year player so he's still learning his craft, but his speed is unmatched.
"The approach on that guy, you have to stop him at the line. He's good coming off the line, but you have to make sure that you stay on his up-field shoulder. A guy that has that type of speed, you gotta make sure cannot get one step behind you or one step even. Because if they're even, they're leavin'.”
The book on Tony Romo: "Romo is one of the better quarterbacks at extending the play. He does a great job of moving, and he creates something out of nothing. And you have to play four quarters of football with Tony Romo, because he's done a great job of leading his team from behind and giving his team hope in the fourth quarter. So the important thing for the Saints to do is to really capitalize on the second and third quarter, when the emotion of the opening kickoff has subsided and they haven't yet gotten to the last two minutes of the game. It'll be crucial for the Saints to put their foot on the gas and to really create a separation to take Dallas out of it psychologically.”