Sentence:  Ramsey has a thing or two to mutter about himself , for the Dallas defensive unit turned in another splendid effort against Denver , and the Texans <WSD>were</WSD> able to whip the dangerous Broncs without the fullbacking of a top star , Jack Spikes , though he did the team 's place-kicking while nursing a knee injury . 
Meaning of the word marked with <WSD> tags:  have the quality of being; (copula, used with an adjective or a predicate noun)