A Case for Redball

[Matts4313]

Hey all - I wrote this for another forum that I am part of. Part of the reason I wrote it though is due to all the crazy negativity I read here this morning. I thought I would share this with you guys - feel free to rip apart.

Also - PS - Adam, if you are reading this - WOULD LOVE TO SEE SOME CAP ANALYSIS!! What kind of shape are we in for next year????

A case for Garrett:

So - As many of you know, I am a supporter =>OF THE DIRECTION<= the franchise is going under Garrett. I emphasis those words to make a point. I do think Garrett as a coach and play caller has some significant deficiencies. Namely, the game day management of the offense and the perpetual problem with penalties (side note, 2003 was the last year we had under 6 penalties a game. We have been in the bottom 10 almost every year since then).

So Matt, why do you like Garrett? I think he has brought something that we have sorely lacked for far to long. He brought an identity.

Identity, who cares about that? All that matters are W/L.... Right? Sure - Wins are all that matters. But to build a franchise that can have continued success, you need to have an identity. For some teams that is "Smash Mouth"', "Defense" or "Passing Attack". Others it is simply "fundamental/Smart". But look at the teams that have continued success and they have a coach that embodies the identity of their team. Those coaches are in place for a significant tenure and mold a culture that breeds success.

Well then Mr. SmartyPants - What is our identity? RKG. Right kind of guy. Listen to Garrett talk about any roster move and you will hear this phrase. You will hear it more than once. Its our hope for the Dallas Cowboys, our future. Its a mentality. Its a type of player. Its a type of person. Its the culture that Garrett has started to implement.

Lots of hyperbole there, still didnt define RKG. Well, I can give you what MY definition would be. Not sure if it is Garretts. To me, it means a person with good character. A player who has passion for the game. A scrappy fighter who will give it 100%. Its people who will put in the work. An ode to the old school in that sense - football means more than money or fame. A team full of players that all have the heart of Jason Witten.

Thats cute, but I see an 8-8 team. Wheres the proof? I am impatient. I NEED A SUPERBOWL NOW!! You're right - we are an average team right now. There is no reasonable thought process that says otherwise. But that doesn't mean we are not improving. I posted this in another thread, but take a look at this:

Redballs roster changes (Before - After - 3rd year):

Romo - Romo - Romo
Barber - Jones - Murray
Austin - Austin - Austin
Williams - Bryant - Bryant
Witten - Witten - Witten
Free - Free - Smith
Kosier - Kosier - Livings
Gurode - Costa - Costa
Davis - Nagy/Holland - M.B.
Colombo - Smith - Free

Spears - Coleman - Spears
Ratliff - Ratliff - Ratliff
Olgoshansky - Hatcher - Hatcher
Spencer - Spencer - Spencer
James - James - Carter
Brooking - Lee - Lee
Ware - Ware - Ware
Newman - Newman - Carr
Jenkins - Jenkins - ClaiMaker
Ball - Elam - Church
Sensabaugh - Sensabaugh - Sensy

Alright, so we've transformed ~60% of the starters in 2 years. We are still AVERAGE, you said it yourself. Sure, I said it. I think we are average for a few key reasons:
1. We are young in a lot of places
2. Even with all the turnover, not all positions have been appropriately addressed.
3. We are injured... Very injured.


Injuries are an excuse. Besides, we drafted injury prone players, what can you expect? We should be able to overcome *some* injuries. But the truth is we are not talented enough to overcome multiple injuries at key positions. When Garrett took over, he had ~5 great players, ~5 good players, ~5 good enough guys and about ~35 guys who wouldn't make it on most NFL rosters. We know this because we have cut them - and most are buried on a depth chart or not on a team at all.

As for being injury prone, I don't buy into that for MOST NFL players. You want to say Glass Hammy Austin is injury prone? Okay, fine. But to say a guy who breaks a hand one year and then a toe the next year is injury prone is false (in my opinion). He is simply unlucky. Those are two very different injuries that have absolutely nothing to do with each other.


Ok, so what if I bought into your theory? Redball comes in, rebuilds the bulk of the team under our noses, all while giving us some entertaining competitive football to watch. When should we expect playoff success? Good question. Tough to answer. I think it would be fair and accurate to say that this offseason is highly critical to the future of Garrett. I do not think you put Garrett on the "Hot Seat" for all of next year. But I do think there needs to be some internal conversations with Garrett that 2013 needs to be a significantly more disciplined team. I think it should be made very aware to Garrett that the amount of boneheaded mistakes our team makes is beyond unacceptable. If it were me, I would let Garrett know that he be relieved of the offensive coordinator title. As a young Head Coach, he needs to surround himself with smart people who can help him right the ship.



TLDR version: Garrett has planted the seeds of our new identity. He deserves at least one more year to see the fruits of his labor.

[BAZ]

People that talk to themselves are not to be trusted.

[rocboy22]

Well written post

[Novacek84]

RKG? Nonsense. Winning is what counts. And to win you need to play like winners. Ask Jen Floyd Engel. She seems to get it.

http://http://www.foxsportssouthwest.com/12/03/12/Cowboys-ugly-win-wont-save-coach-Garrett/landing_cowboys.html?blockID=829857&feedID=4680

[TTexasTT]

Agreed, he has had a wonderful impact. Thankfully the carzies that actually think Payton will be here are wrong.
I embrace JG for our HC for atleast a decade.
There are haters, true.
We gonna act like this O-line insnt horrible?
We gonna act like our ProBowl NG is injured?
Two big time ILB arent hurt?
What about the safety, where is he?

Garrett has playersout there pouring everything into the game.
Our RB limps out to the field for the opening drive.
JG has a HOF TE out there trying to play with a lacerated spleen.
Ernie Simms could be working at Starbucks but JG has him on the field making plays.
Oh yeah? Remember that headcase, gangbanging, draft bust, thug, scrub? Thats the same guy that is making plays the almost no other athlete can make. Dez Bryant is running over, running past and dominated the opponents.

Really, would Landry, Lombardi, Chesty Puller, Red Auerbach or Joel Osteen have this team playing better. Absolutely not.

I look forward to a long time Jason Garrett era. Having this team ring six wins is something of a miracle.
All the Payton, Gruden, Holmgren and Bill Cowher dreamers should probably just come to terms and bow down to the new Cowboy Coaching Overlord, a new era is upon us.

Originally Posted by Novacek84

RKG? Nonsense. Winning is what counts. And to win you need to play like winners. Ask Jen Floyd Engel. She seems to get it.

http://http://www.foxsportssouthwest.com/12/03/12/Cowboys-ugly-win-wont-save-coach-Garrett/landing_cowboys.html?blockID=829857&feedID=4680

LOL at you suggesting she has any idea she knows what shes talking about. You do understand she is the laughing stock of the local media, right?
"She seems to get it" HAHAHAHAHAMLAHFGOIHA

[Novacek84]

She may be a laughingstock but it doesn't mean she's wrong about this topic.

[TTexasTT]

Originally Posted by Novacek84

She may be a laughingstock but it doesn't mean she's wrong about this topic.

Sure, lets just cherry pick topics that we happen to agree with. To heck with the source.

In other news the Enquirer reports that Brad Pitt will be giving birth to a dinosaur that has the cure for cancer.

[Section444]

I'm willing to give the guy another chance, I'm kind of tired of the coaching-carousel.

[Novacek84]

Originally Posted by TTexasTT

Sure, lets just cherry pick topics that we happen to agree with. To heck with the source.

In other news the Enquirer reports that Brad Pitt will be giving birth to a dinosaur that has the cure for cancer.

What topic would you like me to address when the column is about Garrett? And the source is just fine. I don't live in TX. So sorry I didn't follow Jen all those years at the StarTelegram when she apparently wrote a lot of unreasonable columns. Lets cherry pick the rants we make only against writers we don't like. C'mon man.

[TTexasTT]

Originally Posted by Novacek84

C'mon man.

Someone is watching Monday Night Countdown!

Im messin' with ya, bud. There are many others who agree with her.

[jgboys1]

Originally Posted by Section444

I'm willing to give the guy another chance, I'm kind of tired of the coaching-carousel.

Same here. Lets see what happens next year. Get some help in the trenches in the offseason and you can see a much improved Cowboys team next season.

[Idgit]

I don't care with JFE pretends to think about anything, honestly. She's only a sensationalist, so her opinions don't matter.

As to Garrett, I think this post does a nice job of expressing just what I think about the guy. He's underdelivered under some tough circumstances. He had one impressive half-season, then underperformed expectations badly the last 5 games of last season, and has been up and down this season.

The salary cap and, this year, season-ending injuries to defensive starters have been challenging. Those aren't excuses for the team, but they should factor into the evaluation of the job the coach has done. He's also still alive this season, and a lot of people are reacting as if we've been eliminated since the WAS loss.

I think the guy deserves and gets another year. I think--despite the record--the team is actually pretty close. I think we have a good roster, overall, too, though we're limited in some areas and we've gotten smacked right in our limitations this season (C, S, WR, and, with the multiple injuries, ILB). I know that the tone and the attitude of the team has changed, and that we've gotten rid of a lot of players who weren't bright and weren't the types of guys I personally like to see on my team. I know we've assembled an impressive coaching staff (thought I agree that Rob Ryan is slightly overrated). I love that our players seem to love him, too--at least the leaders like Romo, Witten, and Ware.

I understand, too, why some fans are disappointed or think they just haven't seen enough. As long as they're expressing that in a context of how hard this job actually is and how much work is needed, I don't have any problem with that. It's only the constant hindsight second-guessing of play calling and the straight up unfair criticisms like those aimed at our challenge history or that try to not credit him for anything that goes well and everything that goes poorly that I really ever object to.

He's a smart guy who conducts himself like a professional who hasn't won as many games as he could have these last two seasons. Not the end of the world, but not what we demand and expect yet, either. I give him another season and let him implement his plan fully and see where we're at. I think most fans, in their hearts of hearts, believe this is what's going to happen, too.

[GloryDaysRBack]

RKG is not a teams identity.

This team has no identity

[goshan]

RKG is not an identity and we are no more RKG than any average team

[Novacek84]

Originally Posted by TTexasTT

Someone is watching Monday Night Countdown!

Never miss it!!