JJT: Jay Ratliff has become a liability for Cowboys

[Zimmy Lives]

Originally Posted by Idgit

Don't sell them short. 'Bad fans' are often right about players several years earlier than the braintrust is. They were all over Witten being done earlier in the season, for example. And some of them have already identified what's wrong with Demarcus Ware after just a few short weeks without a sack. They nailed Terrence Newman and Roy Williams several years before any of the coaches saw it. They got Tony Romo back when he wasn't a good enough leader, and they're hot on the trail of Brandon Carr as we speak.

Just my opinion but I don't think Witten should be included in any discussion concerning age and declining play. Witten is one of those rare individuals who, though just as mortal as anyone else, seems to rise above the ordinary and produce by sheer will alone. Over my lifetime, I'd only place Staubach, Lilly, Randy White, Jordan, Cliff Harris, Pearson, Ed Jones, Rayfild Wright, Allen, Renfro, and Emmit in that category.

The truth is: Decline happens to the best of them and Witten is no exception. The difference is, though, that Witten will find ways to produce even though he no longer has the physical skills to be exceptional. The same can be said about Ware. It happens. Some day the Cowboys will have to make a difficult decision because I do not see Witten going away quietly.

Ratliff has been a very good player but, as a Cowboy, I have never believed him to be exceptional. Comparing him to Witten, or Ware, is really unfair and unmerited. If anything, Ratliff is the perfect example of a guy who the Cowboys should have allowed to walk last year as opposed to building a defense around him. I am actually grateful he has missed so much time because some of the younger guys are getting valuable playing time and the Cowboys can evaluate them to determine who has a future and who needs to be replaced.

I may be in the minority but moving on from Ratliff for budgetary reasons makes perfect sense to me. As valuable as he has been, he is no longer an impact player. It is time to invest in youth at his position.

[birdwells1]

Originally Posted by stasheroo

Must have missed the 'washed-up' posts, glad I did. And good thing for Witten that - unlike Ratliff - he actually came back and played and showed what he can do.




Obviously.

Fans are referring to Ratliff as 'dominant' when the guy's stat line is a flat line.
I
He hasn't played much at all and when he has he hasn't been the difference-maker he's being paid to be.

Good thing for me that I'm not invested in a Ratliff jersey to cloud my judgement.

I can see that he's not worth close to what he's being paid and with a bad attitude on top of it needs to go be someone else's problem.

Love that sig, its what's missing in Dallas presently.

[Seven]

Originally Posted by Chocolate Lab

Didn't say anyone was a bad fan... That's for others.

I have noticed over the years that you have an uncommon obsession with player salaries and "underperforming" what they're getting paid. Why? In this system every player is "overpaid" or "underpaid". Who performs exactly to his salary? Dez has been drastically underpaid the last month or so. But so what? That's the way it is on every single team in the NFL.

And the ones most likely to be overpaid are the vets who have gotten a contract extension. But what do you do, never give people decent contract extensions? Because they're all going to "underperform" at some point. Ware isn't "living up to his contract" this year, is he? Why not trash him, too?

[View Full Quote]Bottom line is that Ratliff has been one of the toughest, hardest-playing, best players on this team. He's been hurt, which happens to NFL players. And his contract is hardly crippling this team re: the cap. So why so upset?

Originally Posted by RamziD

Good post.

Wrong. Great post.


Nice, CL.