Cowboys interested in WR Breaston?

[Plumfool]

I think this has nothing to do with DW or any of the other receivers not named Miles Austin. Either they're considering his injury problems or they're going to try to trade him.

Think the team saw when Miles and Dez went down that they can move the ball with these second tier guys. The info about the OL sounds like they really are going to take a hard look at making sure its better. And getting a guy like Breaston and getting rid of Miles allows that to happen.

[InmanRoshi]

Originally Posted by Shinywalrus

Wouldn't have a big problem with it, but it certainly isn't a ringing endorsement of Danny Coale, who you'd have to think has the skillset to fill a similar utility role in that position group.

It's hard to know what any endorsement of Danny Coale would be based on besides blind faith. He broke his foot in the very first practice of OTAs. Missed a good deal of camp. Pulled his quad almost immediately after coming back. Then tore his ACL after he was resigned to the practice squad. Considering the ACL tear took place in November, he'll probably be rehabbing the entire offseason and is questionable for the start of training camp I would imagine.

[jrumann59]

Originally Posted by TheRomoSexual

I'm calling it -- Cowboys trade Miles Austin for a second, Spencer for a second and a fifth, and sign Breaston. BAM!!!

*restarts Madden*

Would you like to wager money on this?

Spencer is FA so it would be difficult to trade him.

[speedkilz88]

Originally Posted by jrumann59

Would you like to wager money on this?

Spencer is FA so it would be difficult to trade him.

I think most teams would franchise a guy coming off of double digit sacks and trade them rather than let them walk.

[TheRomoSexual]

Originally Posted by jrumann59

Would you like to wager money on this?

Spencer is FA so it would be difficult to trade him.

Thank you for telling me obvious info. Want to rattle off the lists of players who were franchised then traded?

[joseephuss]

I'm all for improving the #3 WR position. That doesn't mean that Witten isn't still very effective even when he is targeted a lot.

Among the tight ends:
Rank PLAYER TEAM REC TAR %
1 Dustin Keller, TE NYJ 28 36 77.78%
2 Fred Davis, TE WSH 24 31 77.42%
3 Brandon Myers, TE OAK 79 105 75.24%
4 Tony Gonzalez, TE ATL 93 124 75.00%
5 Garrett Graham, TE HOU 28 38 73.68%
6 Jason Witten, TE DAL 110 150 73.33%
7 Zach Miller, TE SEA 38 53 71.70%
8 Joel Dreessen, TE DEN 41 58 70.69%
9 Heath Miller, TE PIT 71 101 70.30%
10 Rob Gronkowski, TE NE 55 79 69.62%

Of the top 50 players that were targeted the most:

Rank PLAYER TEAM REC TAR %
1 Randall Cobb, WR GB 80 104 76.92%
2 Brandon Myers, TE OAK 79 105 75.24%
3 Tony Gonzalez, TE ATL 93 124 75.00%
4 Jason Witten, TE DAL 110 150 73.33%
5 Darren Sproles, RB NO 75 104 72.12%
6 Heath Miller, TE PIT 71 101 70.30%
7 Eric Decker, WR DEN 85 123 69.11%
8 Andre Johnson, WR HOU 112 164 68.29%
9 Wes Welker, WR NE 118 174 67.82%
10 Michael Crabtree, WR SF 85 127 66.93%

Witten is turning targets into receptions. You can and should improve the #3 and #4 WR roles and also the #2 TE position(either by adding someone or Hanna getting better), but targeting Witten is in itself not that big of a problem. Plus it isn't as if it is taking away targets from Dez(14th) or Miles(30th).

[InmanRoshi]

Originally Posted by joseephuss

I'm all for improving the #3 WR position. That doesn't mean that Witten isn't still very effective even when he is targeted a lot.

Converting targets is definitely nice, but what's ultimately more important is getting a lot of production out of those conversions. Catching 100% of 3 yard passes doesn't really accomplish much. Witten was 46th in Yards Per Reception among TEs who played 25% of their team's offensive snaps. Witten is a phenomenal weapon on 3rd and 4 and you need a high percentage play for 5 yards, but he was relied on way too much in other circumstances. Long story short, Cowboys need to get the ball more into the hands of people who run 4.4-4.5 and less into the hands of people who run 4.8.

[joseephuss]

Originally Posted by InmanRoshi

Converting targets is definitely nice, but what's ultimately more important is getting a lot of production out of those conversions. Catching 100% of 3 yard passes doesn't really accomplish much. Witten was 46th in Yards Per Reception among TEs who played 25% of their team's offensive snaps. Witten is a phenomenal weapon on 3rd and 4 and you need a high percentage play for 5 yards, but he was relied on way too much in other circumstances. Long story short, Cowboys need to get the ball more into the hands of people who run 4.4-4.5 and less into the hands of people who run 4.8.

They will still getting it into the hands of Bryant and Austin and were trying to do so. Both those guys also finished in the top 30 in targets and receptions, so they were getting the 4.4 guys involved. They just need another dependable 4.4 guy as an option, which they did not have this season. Even when/if they get one, Witten will still be a big time target for Romo. Although, I don't expect Witten to get targeted 150 times again he will still be targeted over 100 times and should be as a dependable receiver.

[InmanRoshi]

Originally Posted by joseephuss

They will still getting it into the hands of Bryant and Austin and were trying to do so. Both those guys also finished in the top 30 in targets and receptions, so they were getting the 4.4 guys involved. They just need another dependable 4.4 guy as an option, which they did not have this season. Even when/if they get one, Witten will still be a big time target for Romo. Although, I don't expect Witten to get targeted 150 times again he will still be targeted over 100 times and should be as a dependable receiver.

If Austin is mired in soft tissue injuries and/or Dez suffers another broken bone and Dwayne Harris is playing a lot of #2 WR and who knows playing #3 WR, I think we're going to see yet another year of 5 yard passes to Witten on 3rd and 7.

[joseephuss]

Originally Posted by InmanRoshi

If Austin is mired in soft tissue injuries and/or Dez suffers another broken bone and Dwayne Harris is playing a lot of #2 WR and who knows playing #3 WR, I think we're going to see yet another year of 5 yard passes to Witten on 3rd and 7.

Yep, probably. What else are you going to do in that situation? Even if you added Breaston, it wouldn't be too different. Most teams who lose their top two wide receiving threats in a season for a period of time have to come up with alternatives. I like the idea of bringing in Breaston or someone similar. It would be a good thing. That doesn't mean it solves everything if you lose Dez or Miles to injury long term.

[rocyaice]

Originally Posted by xwalker

Keep in mind that this is just a rumor.

Also keep in mind that almost every time a player is available, there will be a rumor linking that player to the Cowboys. Linking something to the Cowboys gets web page hits and it helps agents increase the buzz around their players.

You're right but in these cases isn't there always something to it? Like I doubt we'd seriously go for Revis or Alex Smith. But when a name like Breaston is out there and our name is attached? It seems like it must be something to it.

[Kristen82]

Originally Posted by joseephuss

Yep, probably. What else are you going to do in that situation? Even if you added Breaston, it wouldn't be too different. Most teams who lose their top two wide receiving threats in a season for a period of time have to come up with alternatives.

We could go the NE-style 2-TE 2-WR set more often. Witten makes a nice #2-3 receiving option as it is, plus you can line Hanna up anywhere along the line just like NE does with Hernandez with whom he shares similar athleticism.