Carter the starter?

Was reading ESPN Dallas' breakdown of the roster, and it was mentioned that Bruce Carter won the starting job over Dan Connor.

If that's the case, I'm very pleased. Carter's speed will be an asset while I also haven't seen him having mental busts that lead to big plays. He hasn't been making a whole lot of plays, but let's start with not giving up a whole lot and work up to playmaking.

That being said, I know Connor will get playing time, too, but hopefully it will come mainly when Dallas uses its 4-3 alignment and the Cowboys will make sure to put him in a position where he doesn't have to cover anyone.

He deserves to be...ill say that much.

Connor is like watching Keith B, with a gun shot wound to the leg.

I really don't want to enter another season, screaming at an LB because he cant run, or cover.

Connor shouldn't be on the team, it's a joke that he is and a complete waste of space of the roster. I hate to say it but Lemon, or Coale would have served much better there.

Pretty clear after seeing the Dolphins backups break Connor's ankles. The guy is horrific in pass coverage.

I'd rather just deal with the growing pains of having Carter in there and actually learning over being afraid to play him. It's better than watching someone who has to chase down every play.

I sure hope so. Connors is no better than Brooking or James were.

tupperware;4698002 said:

I'd rather just deal with the growing pains of having Carter in there and actually learning over being afraid to play him. It's better than watching someone who has to chase down every play.

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EXACTLY, I don't understand any argument against that. I'd much rather see some young kid trying to grow into a position than someone who has been given a chance and is then fairly evaluated as an average to below average player.

a_minimalist;4697994 said:

Connor shouldn't be on the team, it's a joke that he is and a complete waste of space of the roster. I hate to say it but Lemon, or Coale would have served much better there.

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Connor was pretty good, actually quite good, for Carolina last year at playing the run, and I think Dallas likes the possibility of using him in certain packages to do that.

I like Lemon, but I think people tend to overhype guys who have moments that stand out against other teams' backups. Connor has already proven to be a better player than Lemon might ever become.

The only knock I have against Connor is the knock he came in with: He isn't strong in coverage. Although Lemon had a nice interception, I don't really think that's his strength either.

And as much as I'm intrigued by Lemons and Coale, we need to stop seeing things through tinted lenses.

gimmesix;4698035 said:

Connor was pretty good, actually quite good, for Carolina last year at playing the run, and I think Dallas likes the possibility of using him in certain packages to do that.

I like Lemon, but I think people tend to overhype guys who have moments that stand out against other teams' backups. Connor has already proven to be a better player than Lemon might ever become.

The only knock I have against Connor is the knock he came in with: He isn't strong in coverage. Although Lemon had a nice interception, I don't really think that's his strength either.

And as much as I'm intrigued by Lemons and Coale, we need to stop seeing things through tinted lenses.

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Using him in certain packages like you said makes sense. I just wonder about the risk vs reward with keep Connor and cutting someone else who could grow to contribute more than Connor.

It's definitely the safer choice, I'll give you that.

He was better during preseason.

Quincy!

Oh sorry wrong Carter heh....:

I wouldn't be surprised if Albright eventually gets ahead of Connor on the depth chart this season.

theogt;4698066 said:

He was better during preseason.

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I'm glad he's starting, just hoping he can improve on his ability to read run plays, hopefully he just doesn't just have bad instincts and it something he can improve on with time like other players have done in the past.

I really like having a guy like Carter in coverage though, him along with the improved secondary could make a huge difference in our backend this year.

fifaguy;4697996 said:

Pretty clear after seeing the Dolphins backups break Connor's ankles. The guy is horrific in pass coverage.

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This is what scares me about this current regime. I have to say, I've haven't had a chance to watch any of the preseason games this year but the disgust with Connor's play seems to be nearly universal on this board. How in the heck can we get rid of guys like Bradie James and Keith Brookings, due to the fact that they are awful in pass coverage, only to pick up a guy who is just as bad in space, if not worse?? What the heck kind of sense does that make?

cowboys2233;4698174 said:

This is what scares me about this current regime. I have to say, I've haven't had a chance to watch any of the preseason games this year but the disgust with Connor's play seems to be nearly universal on this board. How in the heck can we get rid of guys like Bradie James and Keith Brookings, due to the fact that they are awful in pass coverage, only to pick up a guy who is just as bad in space, if not worse?? What the heck kind of sense does that make?

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Connor is not as bad as the two said former Cowboys in any sense.

Connor is a good run stuffer, who probably will not be on the field on third down regardless.

Connor can be had in some passing situations, up to coaches to know when and how to play him to his strengths.

Bruce Carter is faster, better in coverage and has upside as well.

Carter will be a catalytic player once he gets more game time, I have watched the guy much from UNC, I truly believe he will be a really good player.

gimmesix;4697960 said:

Dallas uses its 4-3 alignment and the Cowboys will make sure to put him in a position where he doesn't have to cover anyone.

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Linebackers in the 4-3 that have no coverage responsibilities don't exist. And anyone who thinks a linebacker can be protected these days needs to read Chris Brown's article on Grantland about package plays.

The whole point of package plays is to isolate one defensive player and create a situation where all he can do is make a mistake. They're like an option on steroids.

D-

Bruce Carter will be a playmaker for the Cowboys...

dwmyers;4698251 said:

Linebackers in the 4-3 that have no coverage responsibilities don't exist. And anyone who thinks a linebacker can be protected these days needs to read Chris Brown's article on Grantland about package plays.

The whole point of package plays is to isolate one defensive player and create a situation where all he can do is make a mistake. They're like an option on steroids.

D-

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I disagree. There are defensive play-calls that can cover for one weakness. If you have multiple weaknesses, you're out of luck.

a_minimalist;4698010 said:

EXACTLY, I don't understand any argument against that. I'd much rather see some young kid trying to grow into a position than someone who has been given a chance and is then fairly evaluated as an average to below average player.

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I'm not debating rather or not Carter should be the starter. What concerns me is he's soft against the run-"a liability". We will most likely only use a 3-4 set fot nickel packages.

gimmesix;4698276 said:

I disagree. There are defensive play-calls that can cover for one weakness. If you have multiple weaknesses, you're out of luck.

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You haven't read Chris Brown's article, and you have no clue what a package play is. That's obvious from your reply.

The point of a package play is to have multiple options (say run and pass), and the way the play goes depends on the read of the player being picked on. If he plays the run, you pass. If he plays the pass, you hand off to the RB.

There were a few of these in Peyton Manning's offense in IND, and they were a big part of the Oklahoma State offense last year as well.

In this context, the Lombardi halfback pass option is a "read" on the cornerback, and in general, a counter to using the corner force on the sweep. It's a very early primitive version of what Chris called a package play.

So it's conceptually simple. You design package plays, run-pass options that prey on where Connor goes. If he goes for the run, there will be a pass over his head. If he falls back to defend the pass, the team will run.

I look back at the first Philadelphia game last year, and I think that's exactly what Andy Reid did to our linebackers then.

Point is, if Chris's article is correct, play packages can be designed to tee off the weaknesses of any single player. It's being done now, and in the better offenses, it's routine.

Note that run-pass options aren't the only way package plays go. They can be run-screen, or pass-screen, etc. The first point is to isolate defensive players and play off their reactions. The second point is to make the rest of the defense redundant in terms of the play and the read.

And people that can't read the Grantland article are simply playing Tecmo Bowl in their mind.

D-