2009 grades

[blindzebra]

QB: Romo was outstanding for the most part with just a play or two that we'd all like back. Grade:A

RB: Barber isn't the Barber of old, injuries, running style or the big contract he was hands down the weak link of the 3 backs. Grade: C-

Jones was brilliant at times, solid the rest. Injuries again popped up though. Grade: A-

Choice was solid and may replace Barber as the power to Felix's pop. Grade: B+

FB: Anderson was average as a blocker and no threat as a runner or receiver. Grade: C-

WR: Austin was huge. Grade: A+

Williams was solid at times as a FD and redzone threat which only made the rest of the time that more frustrating. Grade: D

Crayton probably had his best season and was a solid 3rd option. Grade B

Hurd had a few catches but mostly made an impact on ST. Grade: C

Olgletree was a nice surprise. Grade: B

TE: Witten was good as always but had too many penalties this year. Grade: B+

Bennett was a huge disappointment. Preseason showed so much promise, but mental mistakes and drops ruined the regular season. Only his blocking saves a F. Grade: D

Phillips may have played well enough to cause two players to be worried. He cut Anderson's snaps down at FB and was a better blocker and receiver than Bennett. Cowboys might just listen more seriously to trade offers this time around. Grade: B+

OT: Adams was Adams, brilliant at times, stupid at times and injured at times. Sadly he was probably our best lineman. Grade: B-

Colombo was average before he got hurt and awful when he came back. Grade: C-

Free did a fine job filling in at both tackle spots and it was probably a mistake to replace him with Colombo. Grade: B

OG: Kosier had at best an average year. Most felt losing him cost us big last year, he didn't live up to that with his play. Grade: C

Davis: For as big as he is seldom do we see him dominate his man. He was a big part of our struggles on the edges because he frequently gave up penetration breaking down the pocket. Grade: C-

C: Gurode was another overrated player. He has a pro bowl rep and his play rarely lives up to it. Grade: C-

Kicker: F for both Folk and Suisham.

LS: Ladouceur was solid as always. Grade A


DE: Spears and Olshansky both were solid against the run and better than expected rushing the QB. Grades: B

Hatcher and Bowen conversely were solid rushing and better than expected against the run. Dallas may work on keeping both. Grades: B

NT: Ratliff had another outstanding year. Grade: A

Sivaii was average. Grade: C

OLB: Ware was brilliant even battling through injuries Grade: A

Spencer went from mister almost to a beast late in the year. He was better against the run and and coverage than Ellis ever was and matched him pass rushing-wise as the season went on. Grade: A

Butler had some moments early and fell off late. Grade: C+

Octavien wasn't much of a factor good or bad on defense his ST play gets him...Grade:C+

ILB: Brooking may well have been the biggest difference maker on our team. Grade: A++++ as a team leader, B on the field...call it a B+/A- overall

James was solid. Grade B

Carpenter may have found his place. He was extremely good in coverage, did well blitzing and tackled okay. Grade B-

Williams rarely played. Grade: INC

Johnson see Williams. Grade: INC

CB: Jenkins was only passed by Austin for most improved. Not only did he cover well he showed a nose for the ball too. Grade: A

Newman was solid. He had some bone-head plays and some great ones too. grade: B

Scandrick went from sharing a starting role to the verge of terrible to pretty solid late. Grade: C+

S: Hamlin was what most of us feared. Out of position a lot, whiffing on tackles, and not making any big plays. How bad was he? Well, Ball played when Hamlin was out and we were hard pressed to even notice Hamlin was gone. Grade: D

Sensabaugh was good in coverage and a pretty good tackler too. We still need more big plays from the position though. Grade B-

Ball filled in at CB and safety and played well enough to have a future in Dallas as a roll player. Grade C

Watkins was outstanding on ST and a non-factor on defense. Grade C

Punter: McBriar returned and played well. Grade A

Kickoff specialist: Buehler was as billed. Grade A

KR: Neither Jones or Ogletree were anything to right home about. Grade C-

PR: Crayton had some big returns and some muffs...I'd still like to see us find one guy for all returns. Grade: B

Coaching: Wade was rock solid...he performed well under intense pressure. Grade A-

OC: Garrett is a work in progress. He's better than some give him credit for and at times is masterful. His biggest weakness is he seems to overreact sometimes and will get too cute at others. Grade B

DC: Phillips built up steam as the season went on. You give us a playmaking safety and this defense would become dominate. Grade A

ST: Our biggest problem became a plus. Coach Decamillas was not only a great coach but an inspiration. Grade A

 

[juck]

We need to trade bennett and rw11 and get what we can get.

 

[RS12]

Only disagree on three: Ratliff A+

Newman C

Carpenter C-

 

[ajk23az]

Only disagree on three: Ratliff A+

Newman C

Carpenter C-

Thats your Carpenter hate inside of you. He did damn well in coverage and very much deserves better than a C-. B- is about right.

 

[TheCount]

What are these grades actually based on? Not actual performance, clearly. Maybe just how much you like the player in question?

 

[8FOR!3]

Thats your Carpenter hate inside of you. He did damn well in coverage and very much deserves better than a C-. B- is about right.

Honestly, I'd say B- for Terrence Newman and a C+ for Bobby Carpenter. I think this year was a fairly big improvement for him, but he's still got a good long way to go. I think he'll develop well the next couple of years though, he's getting better for sure.

 

[Rampage]

Only disagree on three: Ratliff A+

Newman C

Carpenter C-

Ratliff was mia against backup centers in several games this season.

 

[Cover 2]

I would've given Hamlin a C+, but I can't argue with the rest.

 

[TNCowboy]

Not a bad attempt.

I would add the following, if you're considering the year as a whole:

Romo was not great early in the year. For that alone, I'd knock him down to a B, although he played at an "A" level the last several weeks.

Kosier was excellent the first half of the year or so, and then fell off dramatically.

Gurode is overrated, as you said. He looked to me like the only OL that was physically out of shape, and played like it much of the time. A shame, because he has the ability to be a dominant center.

I wouldn't give Spencer an A for the season, because he didn't play at that level for most of it. He certainly was by the end of the season, and looked like our best player against Minnesota, for whatever that was worth.

I wouldn't give Brooking an A. He was MIA too much for my taste. And I'd give James a C. Most of the time, he's JAG.

 

[Gzus]

MY PERSONAL GRADES
Offense:
Quarterback: Tony Romo played exceptionally well this season cutting back significantly on his turnovers and always put the Cowboys into position to win the game as long as his O-line was reasonably decent. A+

Running Backs:
Felix Jones: Still had injury issues that hobbled him for a good portion of the season. When he was on though, he was ON. Great explosiveness come the end of the season. B+

Marion Barber: Strangely enough, now constantly injured and IMO getting fragile. Lost his burst and umph when hitting opposing players. Consistently failing to convert short yardage situations. B-

Tashard Choice: Off and On. Had maybe one big play in his Razorback package, when used as a traditional running back showed flashes of his end of '08 run against some great defenses. He's a mix of both Felix and Barber, but haven't seen enough touches with this guy. B

Wide Receivers:
Miles Austin: Most improved of all players on the team. Likely the savior of this past season. Explosive off the catch and has an uncanny ability to break tackles and go the distance. Other than Irvin and TO, I believe he is the only other Cowboy to record 10+ TDs in a season. A+, pay the man

Patrick Crayton: Consistent when called upon. When a big catch is needed he can come through. Always a good route runner with great hands. He was more explosive off the catch this season than any other thanks to his off season regiment. Responded well when he lost his punt return duties and promptly stole the job back. I’ll give the guy an A-

Roy Williams: He can make a tough catch every now and then, and I have to give him credit for his 7 TDs. Led the team in dropped passes and his completion percentage compared to all other Cowboy receivers trails by about 15-20% (not good). We saw flashes but not enough flashes. D+

Sam Hurd: Not really much of him on offense, got one good highlight play against I believe the Seahawks. Solid special teamer, led the team I believe in tackles. I'll give him a C+

Kevin Ogletree: When he was on the field I thought he made the most of it. Explosive off the line and has the speed to get down the field. Great in space as we saw on the bubble screens they tossed to him, and I remember his one circus catch on the sideline. Guy has some talent and can continue to evolve. I give him a C+ only b/c he rarely saw playing time, but even then he made the most of it.

Tight-Ends:
Jason Witten: Still solid as ever, made most the catches that ever were thrown to him. The guy is money, lead the team in catches and it is known by everyone that he's the primary target on 3rd down and he still makes the catch. My only knock this season was his lack of TDs. In my book he's an A

Martellus Bennett: I was raving about this guy after preseason. He was gonna add a dimension of dominance to our offense running out of the 2 TE set. Never lived up to that expectation, his blocking was good but he couldn't run his routes right and made more catchphrases this season than catches. I'll give him a generous C+

John Phillips: Man Bennett better watch out this guy is a player. Doesn't seem to seek out the limelight but can make the big catch when needed (ie. Saints). He looks to me like Witten Lite and to be honest I could care less if Bennett finally matures b/c Phillips can be one hell of a football player with more maturing and training. I'll give the guy a B

Offensive Linemen:
Marc Colombo: When the guy was in the game he played pretty well. I don’t take anything away from him due to the way Doug Free performed. And I won’t penalize him for the way he performed coming back from injury against the Vikings. In the end I think they guy earned himself a B-

Leonard Davis: Hey the guy is still massive and clears some big ole holes for the running backs. Yeah he gave up some plays but then again all OL do occasionally. B-

Andre Gurode: Still a pretty good center, I didn’t see him royally screw up snaps like he used to. Still has some issues with inside protection. C+

Kyle Kosier: He played well this season and I give him credit for coming back from his injury and playing pretty solid. Like all the Cowboys OL he gave up a play or two so I’ll dock him for that. B-

Flozell Adams: Love the Hotel but the guy is still a problem with his penalties both personal and procedure. He looked slower this season than any getting out of his stance against speed rushers. C

Doug Free: Guy did one hell of a job jumping in there and filling in for Colombo, I think he could be a reasonable future OL starter in the next few seasons. I won’t penalize him for being thrown in the mix @ Minnesota at LT against one of the best pass rushers in the league. I’ll give him a B+

Defense:
Defensive Ends:
Igor Olshansky: Solid replacement for Chris “Who?” Played the run superbly which is all you can really ask from a 3-4 DE. I’ll give the guy a B+

Marcus Spears: Pretty good at times disrupting the pocket. Played the run probably best out of the DEs. Probably won’t warrant a huge new contract, but worth keeping around. He earns a B+

Stephen Bowen: Situational rusher who came in to spell the starters. Was decent when he came in and occasionally made a play. I’ll give him a B-

Jason Hatcher: Same as Bowen. B-

Nose Tackles:
Jay Ratliff: Played amazing as usual and was disruptive. He’s a new breed of 3-4 NT and he plays it better than anyone in the league. A+

Junior Siavii: Played ok when he came in to spell Jay Ratliff. I’ll give him a generous C+

Linebackers:
DeMarcus Ware: Guy is amazing as always. Led team in sacks and QB pressures. Played through numerous injuries and still was dominating. A+

Anthony Spencer: Even though he wasn’t getting sacks early on, he was still making great stops on run D and still getting QB pressure. Late in the season when it mattered he really turned it up a notch. Opposing QBs really have to worry now that he’s come on to be a star. I’m gonna give him an A+ as well.

Keith Brooking: Heart of the D and the entire team. Energy was infectious to both other teammates but also the fan base. Loved watching him play, still made great plays and has all the moves he used to have. I’ll give him an A-

Bradie James: New wrinkle in the D let him and Brooking blitz and they both made them count. As usual had a ton of tackles. I’ll give him B+, which is only under Brooking b/c of Brookings leadership.

Bobby Carpenter: Surprised with his play this season. Covered his assignments decently well and didn’t look entirely lost. He earns a solid B-

Victor Butler: Looked good at times, but bad in others (mainly Saints game). I give him credit for him being a rookie. He gets a C+

Steve Octavien: Same boat as Butler. He also gets a C+

Defensive Backs:
Mike Jenkins: Dude played out of his mind when he finally won the job. Very happy with his progress and he deserves to be in the Pro Bowl. Not many missed assignments, the occasional misstep but that happens. He gets an A

Terrance Newman: Nothing Stellar, but still a good corner that can limit any good WR in what he can do. He wasn’t a huge playmaker that we hope he is. He gets a B+

Orlando Scandrick: Was hoping he’d play better this season, but he was called for some untimely penalties. I give him credit for playing one of the toughest positions on defense covering the slot receiver. He gets a B-

Ken Hamlin: Dude where were you this season. The only time I really saw you was when you were getting flagged for personal fouls. Nothing spectacular like we saw when he was on a one year deal. He didn’t give up huge plays like we’ve been accustomed to in Dallas so I give him credit for that and keeping everyone in position to make plays. He gets a B-, no better than Scandrick.

Gerald Sensabaugh: HUGE upgrade over Roy Williams. Covers TEs well and even contributes on special teams. If he had two healthy hands this season he probably would have ended up with an interception or two more than he did. He gets a B+, gets docked for that big “huh?” in Minnesota.

Alan Ball: I love anyone with the name Alan, mainly b/c that’s my name. And the guy played admirably when filling in at safety and playing as a fill in CB. He gets a B.

Special Teams:
Kicker:
Nick Folk: Man o’ man Nick. You used to be labeled as Folk Hero and all that and now you’ve missed a NFL leading 10 FGs and we even had to cut ya. Ppl are talking maybe bring you back during the offseason to see if you’ve worked out your issues. I would love to see you back but for this season you get an F

Shaun Suisham: Same goes for you missing some chippys. F

David Buehler: If only he could kick FGs reliably, we’d have one hell of a weapon. Dude is a beast on kick offs and can also cover punts and kicks well. Can outrun some DBs out there. A+, b/c he was everything we hoped for.

Punter: Matt McBriar: He ain’t booming the ball like seasons past, but that’s not the goal this season under JoeD. It’s all about situational and directional, so I give him an A for being both consistent and a huge asset in field position.

Long Snapper: LP Ladouceur: No errant snaps and should be going to the Pro-Bowl if not for the league’s new rule on bringing a utility player from your own team. He gets an A

Coaches:
Wade Phillips: Would like a little more fire and backbone, but the guy did one hell of a job. Loved the defensive scheme, if only he would bench RW I’d be even happier. Finally got us a playoff win since ’96 so I’m happy with him. He gets an A+ for the playoff win and the performance of the defense.

Jason Garrett: Called a vanilla game plan up until the end of the season. When he was good he was good, and when he was bad he was a head-scratcher. Still guided us to a record season on offense so I give him credit for that. He gets an A-

JoeD: My god what a turnaround. Guy is one courageous SOB coming back from that neck injury and then that appendectomy and still putting out one of the league’s best ST. A+

 

[Jon88]

I agree with everything except Savii. I would give him an F. He never played so we weren't able to rest Ratliff much.