I’m holding for Atleast 2019 defense , but I think it will be better than that defense with parsons , also this defense was starting to get turnovers. Diggs was much better in zone alsoNolan said one thing and did another. Given his off-season, he should have made minimal changes and kept it simple but did the opposite and had a historically bad defense as a result. Any coach should have been fired after that.
There's almost no way Dan Quinn can do worse and should make this defense light years better than last year by comparison.
It also didn't help that our dummy, entitled players that had everything as simple as possible under Garrett....so simple the other team knew all about it all the time...had little interest in learning something new and complicated.It wasn't just the covid that hurt Nolan's chances. There were devastating injuries from the beginning. They lost their best D-line acquisition in veteran free agency before the season ever begun when Gerald McCoy went down. They lost Trysten Hill after 5 games, Neville Gallimore after 9 games, their LB's were constantly hobbling, The CB's were playing musical chairs all season long due to injuries.
The defense was practically gutted in the first quarter of the season, especially the middle of the defense.
Nonetheless, in the final quarter of the season they were ranked 8th in fewest points allowed and 1st in takeaways during those four games in which they went 3-1, very nearly 4-0.
It's said that Nolan's greatest error was not simplifying the defense once it was determined there would be no preseason games or training camp to prepare. However, the injuries to the players destroyed continuity in any case. I don't think the defense was left with sufficient talent to stop an average offense no matter how much they simplified.
There were just too many player disappointments, particularly with the veteran free agents. McCoy, Griffen, Poe.....we got absolutely nothing from those guys. Both LVE and Smith got banged up and just seemed to lack inspiration. The whole defense just seemed to go through the motions.
I think one of the issues we never discuss is the the players coming together to form the kind of bond that successful teams have. Training camp creates the common challenges, the competition, the close knit living arrangements that form the necessary environment in order to build comradery, commitment, and team chemistry. This is especially true for a new coaching staff. These defensive players never got an opportunity to become a team.
But somebody's head had to go and it wasn't going to be the GM or HC, although, quite frankly, it should have been.
Coordinators are not autonomous, they are still assistant coaches. I can't recall any reported incident in which McCarthy instructed Nolan to modify his defensive strategy. I don't recall McCarthy doing much of anything.
The quicker we can fast track Parsons and Joseph into the back seven with Diggs, thats when some sparks can start flying.I’m holding for Atleast 2019 defense , but I think it will be better than that defense with parsons , also this defense was starting to get turnovers. Diggs was much better in zone also
The quicker we can fast track Parsons and Josephs into the back seven with Diggs, thats when some sparks can start flying.
Just talking about those three being all together in the back seven is a base line for some serious improvement in just athletic ability alone.
I know all about the rookie curve, and takes this long... blah blah,, this is a fast tracked defense with immediate positions to fill and or upgrade, lets let the best start and if thats some rooks, then good, if its a vet, then he earned it.
Instilling confidence is huge, this defense has been beaten down to the point where I swore a white flag was waived, and I walked away for a moment.Yup I’m glad there going back to this scheme with a more aggressive coach. The vets on the team know it best and our current players mostly the linebackers had there beat seasons in this scheme. Parsons is gonna explode! I’m hoping Bohanna turns into a steal
It won't just be in spite of management/ownership. He'll have to deal with the inevitable task of replacing injured starters with capable backups. What are the odds, really, that the Cowboys are going to be able to make complete use of their defensive players? The Cowboys have not been one of the luckier teams when it comes to injuries. That's a critical challenge for a coordinator.It also didn't help that our dummy, entitled players that had everything as simple as possible under Garrett....so simple the other team knew all about it all the time...had little interest in learning something new and complicated.
It wasn't the brightest move by management in the first place, but the players were never getting on board.
Hey....I'm just hoping that's what it took to get Quinn, the latest version of someone who can hopefully lead us somewhere in spite of ownership/management.
Was anything going to help Nolan? Anything?
Nolan said one thing and did another. Given his off-season, he should have made minimal changes and kept it simple but did the opposite and had a historically bad defense as a result. Any coach should have been fired after that.
There's almost no way Dan Quinn can do worse and should make this defense light years better than last year by comparison.
It wasn't just the covid that hurt Nolan's chances. There were devastating injuries from the beginning. They lost their best D-line acquisition in veteran free agency before the season ever begun when Gerald McCoy went down. They lost Trysten Hill after 5 games, Neville Gallimore after 9 games, their LB's were constantly hobbling, The CB's were playing musical chairs all season long due to injuries.
The defense was practically gutted in the first quarter of the season, especially the middle of the defense.
Nonetheless, in the final quarter of the season they were ranked 8th in fewest points allowed and 1st in takeaways during those four games in which they went 3-1, very nearly 4-0.
It's said that Nolan's greatest error was not simplifying the defense once it was determined there would be no preseason games or training camp to prepare. However, the injuries to the players destroyed continuity in any case. I don't think the defense was left with sufficient talent to stop an average offense no matter how much they simplified.
There were just too many player disappointments, particularly with the veteran free agents. McCoy, Griffen, Poe.....we got absolutely nothing from those guys. Both LVE and Smith got banged up and just seemed to lack inspiration. The whole defense just seemed to go through the motions.
I think one of the issues we never discuss is the the players coming together to form the kind of bond that successful teams have. Training camp creates the common challenges, the competition, the close knit living arrangements that form the necessary environment in order to build comradery, commitment, and team chemistry. This is especially true for a new coaching staff. These defensive players never got an opportunity to become a team.
But somebody's head had to go and it wasn't going to be the GM or HC, although, quite frankly, it should have been.
Coordinators are not autonomous, they are still assistant coaches. I can't recall any reported incident in which McCarthy instructed Nolan to modify his defensive strategy. I don't recall McCarthy doing much of anything.
I know what you mean, and don't disagree at all.It won't just be in spite of management/ownership. He'll have to deal with the inevitable task of replacing injured starters with capable backups. What are the odds, really, that the Cowboys are going to be able to make complete use of their defensive players? The Cowboys have not been one of the luckier teams when it comes to injuries. That's a critical challenge for a coordinator.
Quinn will have to make halftime adjustments defensively. Hopefully, he'll make better ones than he made against the Cowboys early last season and the Super Bowl prior to that. I know he's our "darling" right now but we can't just select the "good" and ignore the "bad".....or the "ugly".
Quinn is going to have to show me. I'm not being negative, I am very hopeful that he will find a mountain of success for the Cowboys. He'll have to earn my faith in his ability to help this team get to the top.
Oh yeah. You got dat right.He needed Jason Garrett. That combo would have been impossible to stop....