What happened to promising Cowboys rookie Bradlee Anae in 2020?

Doomsday101

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Had high expectations for Francis Bernard when we drafted him and still do as well.
There is some good athletic young prospects, and will be interesting if Quinn can start utilizing it asap.

I like him too but it seems we put all of it on coaches what role does the player, play in this? Honestly I don't see practice nor does the media last year except for a small portion they were allowed to view, so none of us really know how Bernard or Anae were performing. At least in my eyes players play a big role in this and a lot falls to them to make the most of the snaps through out the week to have a chance to get snaps in a game.
 

LittleD

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Bottom line, he doesn't have ideal measurables and size limitations.
 

quickccc

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True but the issues I was seeing had nothing to do with DE, if Anae played DT, LB or FS then I would agree but Anae playing or not playing seems to be more about fans wanting to see and no team is going to operate based on fans want to see what he has. Coaches see these guys day in and day out during practice and it falls to players to go out and show themselves during that time. Having said that because of injuries Cowboys putting game day roster together going deeper at injured areas very well could play a part in Anae being on game day roster, the fact he does not play special teams can hurt a player not making game day roster

We could not generate a pass rush,..how is that not have anything to do with DE's ?

And c'mon please spare me with the coaches in and out ... it's a reason why those the same in and out coaches got fired simply because management thought
those same coaches clearly were not up to par.
 

Doomsday101

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We could not generate a pass rush,..how is that not have anything to do with DE's ?

And c'mon please spare me with the coaches in and out ... it's a reason why those the same in and out coaches got fired simply because management thought
those same coaches clearly were not up to par.

When teams can run the ball at will it is hard to generate a pass rush, this is why even Dallas wants to run the ball. By keeping yourself in great down and distance situation you keep defense off balance and in turn slows the pass rush down. People act as if pass and run defense are 2 different things yet both effect the other. It is like saying all 3rd downs are created equal, they are not it is much easier to convert 3rd and short as opposed to 3rd and long. When your defense is looking at 2nd/3rd and short you can't just tee off on a pass rush. Get run defense under control and it will go a long way in generating a pass rush as down and distance advantage moves towards the defense.
 

gimmesix

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He was a 5th rounder to begin with.

Never really understood the hype.

A lot of DEs have great numbers in college and look great on film. But that's because there is a lot of mediocrity in college football. He looked impressive against a lack of talent, but put someone of NFL caliber in front of him and he is a back up at best.

And a lot of DEs outplay their draft position. I don't think the book is close to being closed on Anae yet. Let's see how he develops before we determine he's a backup at best.

Now, a player like Armstrong at this point likely is what he's going to be at this point. He could go somewhere else and be used in a different way that garners some pass-rushing success, but I do think it is clear that he's nothing more than a backup.
 

J12B

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And a lot of DEs outplay their draft position. I don't think the book is close to being closed on Anae yet. Let's see how he develops before we determine he's a backup at best.

Now, a player like Armstrong at this point likely is what he's going to be at this point. He could go somewhere else and be used in a different way that garners some pass-rushing success, but I do think it is clear that he's nothing more than a backup.

When was the last time a Dallas DE outplayed their draft position?

Dallas has taken probably 6 or 7 DEs in the last 7 years since drafting D Law and all have done nothing (with the exception of Gregory but he's had a different problems of his own).
 

Cowboys4lifeGR

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the strange under-use of Gregory played a huge part in DL coach Jim Tomsula getting the axe, as Gregory has
become a big fan of Jerry Jones, and spots where he's only getting 10% snaps and only 11 reps vs Ravens, was the
final piece that wasnt gonna be tolerated by the Jones.

As Mike Fish pointed out recently it got to a point that the average Dorace Armstrong became more of a favorite than the vastly more talented Gregory.
Even as a nickel pass rush specialist, Anae wasn't gonna see much time with old school Tomsula around.

It's also needs to be mentioned that Anae dominated both the practice sessions at the Senior Bowl, as well as the
Senior Bowl game itself... to add more, he made quite an impression in this past Cowboys training camp in limited time.

As for his run defense, he's a rookie and may not have mastered the nuisances and technique of run defense .yet
but his pure pass rush off the edge was sorely needed with Dlaw not returning his sack master act of 2 years ago, and
Aldon Smith fading badly down the 2nd half of the season as a pass rusher.

How can you even come close to learning better run defense and gaining valuable experience with your vet DL coach
virtually red shirting you all season ?


+1
 

Rayman70

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Quinn has an eye for talent and Anae will get his chance in camp.
 

quickccc

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When teams can run the ball at will it is hard to generate a pass rush, this is why even Dallas wants to run the ball. By keeping yourself in great down and distance situation you keep defense off balance and in turn slows the pass rush down.

People act as if pass and run defense are 2 different things yet both effect the other. It is like saying all 3rd downs are created equal, they are
not it is much easier to convert 3rd and short as opposed to 3rd and long.

When your defense is looking at 2nd/3rd and short you can't just tee off on a pass rush. Get run defense under control and it will go a long way in generating a pass rush as down and distance advantage moves towards the defense.

You could use him as a pass rush specialist. Not a run specialist. It's not like we are asking him to start.

Aldon Smith did not even start his rookie year as his DL coach Jim Tomsula with he Niners when both were had him used as a rush specialist while he gradually improved and adjusted to the NFL trend nuisances that included run defense.

Tomsula did not anything to Anae's game that he thought he could help his team. But yet now Tomsula is gone.

and i thought you'd be more astute when looking at tape with your eyes that you could see it was far more the work and failure of
the interior DTs that were led more to the massive failures with the run defense.
as a whole, we had to have the worst group of DT in the NFL
 

dwreck27

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I’m sure a lot of teams fan boards ask why day 3 picks weren’t all rookie team members
 

plasticman

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I give everyone a pass when it comes to the 2020 season.

It's probably the most unfavorable circumstances to toss a new Head Coach in with a new coaching staff and a new system. They probably needed the minicamps, training camp, and preseason games more than just about any other team.

It was tough enough for any NFL team to endure the circumstances of last season but what the Cowboys went through was brutal. I would consider this season the first under a new system.

They didn't have a whole lot of time to evaluate anyone completely. I suspect you will see a larger number of contributing young guys in 2021, including Anae.
 

Mr_437

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Anae hasn't played, so opinions are all over the place. Nothing wrong with saying we have to wait n see. Y'all said Dalton Shultz was a JAG and nothing more than a 3rd stringer type talk, but he hadn't played.
 

charron

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CowboysZone LOYAL Fan
Bradley was all hype no substance. When active he was getting what 3 snaps? McCarthy likes to draft guys then not use them.
 

Cowfan75

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Fan hype. Still happens a lot even with a decades-long inept FO. But can you blame the fans? With no willingness to utilize free agency, we have to pray we strike gold with every single pick.
 

Beaker42

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He just wasn't as good as we all wanted him to be, he's not the first and won't be the last player to not live up to the fan hype.
How in the **** can anyone say he’s just wasn’t as good as we all wanted him to be?? He NEVER GOT ON THE FIELD........
 

Bullflop

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It's never surprising whenever a 5th round draft pick isn't allowed an opportunity to play, especially in a year when a full offseason was missed.

Bradlee Anae will either improve enough to get his an opportunity to win a spot or he'll again fail to make it. That will be for Quinn to determine.
 
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