Cowboys fixing big Mazi Smith mistake from 2023 as Mike Zimmer arrives

[Blast From The Past]

Honestly, I'd much prefer having Quinn over Zimmer any day. Zimmer just fits the mold of another one of Jerry’s yes-men, too comfortable to sit back and not make a wave unless Jerry gives the nod. What’s expected of him really? Nothing groundbreaking or innovative about his defensive strategies.

It’s clear as day that both Quinn and Zimmer are just marionettes dancing on Jerry Jones' strings. Jerry will do whatever pleases him, and these yes-men will nod along, pretending it's the next big strategy. I’d wager Quinn would find himself way better off in Washington than sticking around in Dallas. The Cowboys have become an absolute farce – underpaying their coaches, underpaying their players, sitting idle in free agency, all the while boasting about being “all in.” Their actions, or the lack thereof, scream the opposite. Jerry Jones has single-handedly dragged this once storied franchise through the mud, making it the NFL’s punchline.

Got it a pure Jerry/Steve comfort hire for a year then...poof!

 

[quickccc]

What's crazy about this .......

****Toco was Marinelli's pick and he was fired a year later

**** Mazi Smith was Quinn's pick and a year later, he took another job

Stop trusting defensive coordinators with our 1st round picks......

I disagree with that - Mazi was McClay's pick .. it came down to Mazi vs an OG Matthew Bergeron .. there's footage of McClay explaining why they decided to choose Mazi over Bergeron.

 

[quickccc]

I heard on the radio the team did NOT ask Mazi to lose that wait; he did that on his own.

Which " losing his own weight " would mean Mazi would have been heavily and regularly subject to team fines per player weight restrictions.

That's why this loss his own weight " would not have made sense to me.

 

[Chasing6]

If you are on a 1 year deal. How are you under control? I am whatever I want to do on my way out.

 

[Chasing6]

Bottom line is to take advantage of his strengths. Stop trying to make him into something he is not.

He is a space eater that will free up LB's to make plays. He is never going or have a lot is stats.

 

[75boyz]

Well,
assuming he's fixable that is.

jmo

 

[quickccc]

- Restoring Mazi's previous mass and bulk is one matter .. and a correctable one, imo - if it's not depression related.

- Vastly improving his notoriously get off/snap off the ball ,... is a whole completely different matter.

- what was his flaw in college, remained his leading flaw at the NFL level , ..

- and DQ and crew just could not remedy it.
They greatly assumed they could coach him up and out of it when they drafted him and upon his arrival in camp.
They failed miserably at that. And until he does improve in that area, i have major doubts that he will succeed at the NFL level.

- And Mazi is not a flabby fat body, he's actually chiseled for a guy that was 320+ pounds, also he has considerable athleticism for one
at his weight. and then of course there's his incredible weight room strength.

-Now its a matter of both Mazi himself and new DL coach Jeff Ngonia to prove they can correct the matter and point in him right direction as
an ascending player.

But i;m already not liking that Mazi will not have a seasoned , established vet DT aside of him (ala Hankins) - which places vast more pressure and insecurities
around Mazi as he tries to adjust to the NFL trenches.

 

[ColoradoCowboy]

Not at that impressed here. Weights on a pivot point are not "lifted", they are manipulated. To put that in perspective, I am 5'9" and my strongest weight was about 175 in college. At that time, I leg pressed the entire weight that the machine had AND my best friend swatting like a bug on top of the weights.

Show me a straight up bench press of 700 pounds and I'll be rightfully impressed.

 

[HabsCowboysOwn]

He could ask the guy who bought his storage unit for some of his weight gainer jars back.

 

[big dog cowboy]

Another Will McClay dud

Why are you blaming McClay?

 

[PAPPYDOG]

Why are you blaming McClay?

For bad advice.................and I am personally not very impressed with his scouting.

 

[plasticman]

How many times do some fans have to be wrong about a young player before they realize there is a reason they don't have careers as football analysts.

Remember early evaluations of Dalton Schultz, Dorance Armstrong, and Cooper Rush among several others? I remember phrases like "pure garbage". They weren't All Pros but they contributed far more than many predicted.

If the internet was around in 1975 then Randy White would have been considered a bust after his rookie season.

 

[CowboyoWales]

I don't know if it's true or not but I read from another poster that losing weight was his decision and not the coaching staff. That might point to why he didn't have much playing time.

If that's the case, then the draft team are at fault for not identifying that he was a lone wolf and not a team player. Mazi, do as you're told.....though I suspect, especially listening to McClay's praise and potential contributor in pass-rush that it was 'the teams' decision to slim him down, especially as they'd be HIGHLY criticized for (over) drafting a NT in the 1st Rd.

In Zimmer's Defense, bulk up and 1-Tech the A gap, this will at least anchor the run defense and help out the LB in the run defense, which is our primary defensive weakness. I think Quinn was, at times, pass-rush happy which got punished when teams just focused on the run.

 

[Zekeats]

Cowboys fixing massive Mazi Smith mistake from 2023 as Mike Zimmer arrives​

Bryan Broaddus of 105.3 The Fan noted on "The Draft Show" podcast that Dallas is having Smith put weight back on to convert back to a true nose tackle. That's the position Smith was drafted to play, which made the weight loss request downright impossible to comprehend.



That is music to Cowboys fans' ears. Zimmer's arrival seems to already be paying dividends for Smith's career. As an interior defensive lineman, the former Wolverine is a much better fit in Zimmer's scheme relative to Dan Quinn's.

Toward the end of the 2023 season, Smith looked smaller than most of Dallas' defensive linemen, including their edge rushers. It was shocking to the eye considering Smith was drafted at 327 pounds. He went from one of the strongest players in the draft to a player who routinely got pushed off the ball and couldn't handle double teams.

See link for Mazzi Smith 800 lb lift weight:

That’s what happened in college too go look at the tape

 

[tm1119]

The problem with Mazi is that he really wasn’t good in college either. Everyone just fell in love with the idea of his “freak” ability while ignoring that he wasn’t actually good at football. He put up 5 TFL and .5 sacks as a 28 game starter. I understand the position isn’t good to lead to big production #’s, but for a 1st round pick those #’s are pretty awful.

 

[DuncanIso]

Doesnt Zimmer run AA Gap defense?

DTs line up on the outside shoulder of the G.

2 LBs are in the A Gaps.

 

[DuncanIso]

The problem with Mazi is that he really wasn’t good in college either. Everyone just fell in love with the idea of his “freak” ability while ignoring that he wasn’t actually good at football. He put up 5 TFL and .5 sacks as a 28 game starter. I understand the position isn’t good to lead to big production #’s, but for a 1st round pick those #’s are pretty awful.

Maybe he's do better in a 0T/NT 3-4 scheme?

 

[Hawkeye0202]

My problem ......you drafted a DT with a 1st round pick for the time Russell Maryland (1991) and there is confusion about true talent, best position, if he fits your system ( scheme ) and even his play weight. It appears the decision to burn a 1st on him was knee-jerk, poorly planned or both. Either way, just way too many question marks about a 1st round pick used on a position for the first in over 30 years.

And get this........the defensive coordinator system/scheme he was drafted for is gone after one year. Makes zero sense......this is where I think Jerry's age and structure ( owner, president and GM ) work against him. No way a young conventional GM makes this kind of mistake w/o worrying about his job.

 

[Floatyworm]

Cowboys fixing massive Mazi Smith mistake from 2023 as Mike Zimmer arrives​

Bryan Broaddus of 105.3 The Fan noted on "The Draft Show" podcast that Dallas is having Smith put weight back on to convert back to a true nose tackle. That's the position Smith was drafted to play, which made the weight loss request downright impossible to comprehend.



That is music to Cowboys fans' ears. Zimmer's arrival seems to already be paying dividends for Smith's career. As an interior defensive lineman, the former Wolverine is a much better fit in Zimmer's scheme relative to Dan Quinn's.

Toward the end of the 2023 season, Smith looked smaller than most of Dallas' defensive linemen, including their edge rushers. It was shocking to the eye considering Smith was drafted at 327 pounds. He went from one of the strongest players in the draft to a player who routinely got pushed off the ball and couldn't handle double teams.

See link for Mazzi Smith 800 lb lift weight:

I would like to say that was impressive....but really????

Let's just hope Zimmer can turn him into Pat Williams...and we can draft our Kevin Williams....come on down Darius Robinson????

 

[CowboyoWales]

The problem with Mazi is that he really wasn’t good in college either. Everyone just fell in love with the idea of his “freak” ability while ignoring that he wasn’t actually good at football. He put up 5 TFL and .5 sacks as a 28 game starter. I understand the position isn’t good to lead to big production #’s, but for a 1st round pick those #’s are pretty awful.

I think we need to ignore college and the fact we drafted him in the 1st with the possible intention of becoming a contributor in pass-rush.
Cut our losses and get him bulked up to anchor the run defense A gap. Run D, is arguably our greatest weakness, and having him anchoring (with Kendricks) will allow more flexibility out of Clarke and Overshown.