iceberg
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Question #1 Will Phillips be able to give the talent filled D a jolt and bring them up to elite status?
If this wasn't going to be hard enough, we now add in one of the top players in the NFL with a "heel spur" injury. From my own personal experience nothing has ever been more painful than the feeling of a dagger being shoved into your heel simply because you moved it or someone touched it. Whether or not Terrance Newmans injury is this severe we're not sure but the end result is the same - we lost our "shut down" corner and the jobs of the rest of the CBs just got a lot harder. Couple that in with surprise cut Aaron Glenn (signed with Jacksonville now) we seem to have compounded the problem without any real reason. Or Phillips felt Glenn was done and had nothing let to give. At 35 that's a real possibility.
However we now turn to Greg Ellis, also recovering from a ruptered achilles tendon, which is in the same famliy as the heel spur injuries. The tendon came off and had to be replaced and very careful rehab to follow. At his advancing age, I don't realy find comfort he'll ever be the Ellis of old. WIth his undying need to whine these days, I miss the Greg Ellis of old even more. So now we look to our last two 1st round picks in Spencer and Carpenter and someone we stole from New England in Butler. Can our LB's do what LB's do in the 3-4 or are we still in the middle of transitioning to this type of defense? If they can put on a good rush to the QB that alone will help our CB's more than any FA signing could hope to do. Speaking of which, Dyson is still out there. Asking price? Vet OG. What do we not have to spare? Vet OG. Oh well.
Spears has one last year to do something more than dent the grass when he's pushed aside like a groupie at a Bon Jovi concert. Couple this with hoping Ferguson doesn't get hurt our DL suddenly looks suspecious but hey - we've got a refugee camp for LB's.
Given that making a D is what we brought Phillips in for and given that he's used to having an Elite D around him, I think yes Wade can be the jolt to get them to elite status but I think we're a year from that. This year however, I do see a solid D learning to get mean again, and that's a start.
Question 2. Does Romo have "it".
From fairy tale season to nightmare ending, Romo had it all. His path while slow staring quickly went from "Who" to "Romosapien" and Cowboys fans who were previously locked in Carter, Hutch, Henson debates were all auddenly quiet and looking at the start of Romos career like the rest of the world - in awe. it came almost too easy at times and at times we had to realize soon or later this "killer wave" will fall to the earth and Romo will become "just a man" once more. While it took awhile, Romo did find his slump and his fumbled snap cost Dallas a chance ot win their first playoff game in a decade.
How do you put that kind of a year in a diary so anyone else just watching truly understands? How do you put that aside and move on and maintain your leadership status? How do you find confidence in yourself that the slip was a rare occurance and simply bad timing, not a premonition of your overall career?
These are all questions Romo has to handle and answer. Some publically, some he may just answer to himself and show you on the field his response. This would be good as this is what leaders do. Talk less, do more.
Romo has had a good camp and played well in his overall opportunities in pre-season. The fumble seems to be a thing of the past and now he won't even be a holder going forward. Maybe a good thing maybe overly cautious but regardless, he's our qb and he's the best chance we've had since Aikman walked off the field to have a leader from within. A "true" Dallas Cowboy.
A perinnial Pro Bowler once again.
I'll hedge my bets here but I'll also say Romo will have both extremes again this year in some form but I think we'll see him use them to grow up not hide behind and in the end I do suspect our constant struggle to find a quality starting QB is over.
3. Will TO be TO and can Glenn Make it Through the Year?
This has been traditionally where TO came crashing down on his team and everyone was Gay or didn't have the talent to win. Either way his reputation of being the bad boy came to Dallas long before he did. From standing on the star to wearing one, TO has in fact undergone a huge transformation. He's been on his best behaviour and his biggest crime this camp was not knowing which Spiderman costume to wear to camp. So far, all quiet on the TO front but that only takes us to Glenn. Glenn in my own memory plays well when Parcells is his coach, yet he's injured a lot when not.
Parcells gone, knee operated on, 2-4 weeks to be out, he takes all 4 and oops, camp over! Glenn to date has been a steal but I think the biggest value is gone with Parcells. I hope he proves me wrong but my question for Glenn is "can you make it through 10 full games this year? I'm gonna say "no", he won't.
Crayton or Hurd? If Glenn does stay out for an extended period of time, that could be good. We have (2) 1st round picks next year and it would be good to know if either of these can be a true starter. If both can be - even better as we don't need to spend one of those two picks at WR. Or if one or both bomb, know we know also.
TO will have a great year, Crayton will step it up and Hurd will continue to tease. Surprise player we now oogle over? Stanback as Austin continues to be a disappointment overall. This is a true time for flux at WR and may the best players step up and make it an easy call.
4. Will JJones finally be JJones or does he just talk too much?
Stephen Jackson. That's the name that comes to mind when I see Julius play. You see, we passed on Jackson because he wasn't a "true" back and not much different than JJones, Kevin Jones or anyone we could have in the 2nd round. Now while Fantasy Football isn't always a "strong" indicator of talent, he does say how many points he puts on the board and how well he plays for that scheme. By and large Jaskcon was a top 3 pick in most drafts I was a part of. JJones usually lasted till the 6th or later rounds while the short yardage TD machine Barber was usually taken first.
Blame Parcells. He picked Jones over Jackson then he killed Jones career by making him run like a robot. You got your wish, Jones now it's time to put your money where you rmouth is and anything less than a 10td 1200+ yard season means you're just not that goo after all.
In the end Jones won't cut it, he'll be what he's always been and that's an average back who couldn't take that step up.
leading to my 5th biggest question for 2007
Where will Cleveland wind up and Where do we look with 2 1st round picks in 2008?
Normally I hate this question because it means for the part time fan, every time Clevland has a good play, we just lost 4 slots in the draft. Every time they have a bad play, we're getting the 1st pick and McFadden will be a Cowboy. It's knee-jerk, and it's short sighted and a waste of time to me, But 2 things are for sure. Fans will do it and fans will ***** about it.
So what can we do as we ponder our fortunes of tomorrow while living the perils of today?
Keep an eye on the ever changing landscape and think long term. Do our WRs step up? Do our CBs step up?
Keep an eye on these players in college. The RBs, CB's and WRs. Our 1st 2 picks may come from these positions. Possibly OL if that falls into place.
Don't get tunnel vision on today. Don't fall so in love with the name McFadden to where anything else is a loss. ESPECIALLY If the first time you heard of McFadden was when Stephen Jones mentioned the name after trading for Clevelands pick.
So where do I see the draft if I were going this early? I see RB being something to look for, yes. McFadden however isn't the only one alive. I think WR can be addressed in round (2) unless someone is just in a free fall. Hopefully not a Bryant type free falling player. Then I see CB being a position we'll need to put some love into. I don't think we're lacking in that area I just think with Newmans injury and how rough those can be, you lose a #1 defensive player regardless of the position you take a huge hit. But you also work to replace it. So depending on or even regardless of, how Newmans story unfolds, I see CB as the other 1st round pick and WR in the 2nd perhaps..
Or the infamous trade down is always a possibility.
Get ready Cowboys fans. This has the potential to be the most exciting season in a decade and these are just some of the things to watch out for as we go for our 6th ring!
iceberg
If this wasn't going to be hard enough, we now add in one of the top players in the NFL with a "heel spur" injury. From my own personal experience nothing has ever been more painful than the feeling of a dagger being shoved into your heel simply because you moved it or someone touched it. Whether or not Terrance Newmans injury is this severe we're not sure but the end result is the same - we lost our "shut down" corner and the jobs of the rest of the CBs just got a lot harder. Couple that in with surprise cut Aaron Glenn (signed with Jacksonville now) we seem to have compounded the problem without any real reason. Or Phillips felt Glenn was done and had nothing let to give. At 35 that's a real possibility.
However we now turn to Greg Ellis, also recovering from a ruptered achilles tendon, which is in the same famliy as the heel spur injuries. The tendon came off and had to be replaced and very careful rehab to follow. At his advancing age, I don't realy find comfort he'll ever be the Ellis of old. WIth his undying need to whine these days, I miss the Greg Ellis of old even more. So now we look to our last two 1st round picks in Spencer and Carpenter and someone we stole from New England in Butler. Can our LB's do what LB's do in the 3-4 or are we still in the middle of transitioning to this type of defense? If they can put on a good rush to the QB that alone will help our CB's more than any FA signing could hope to do. Speaking of which, Dyson is still out there. Asking price? Vet OG. What do we not have to spare? Vet OG. Oh well.
Spears has one last year to do something more than dent the grass when he's pushed aside like a groupie at a Bon Jovi concert. Couple this with hoping Ferguson doesn't get hurt our DL suddenly looks suspecious but hey - we've got a refugee camp for LB's.
Given that making a D is what we brought Phillips in for and given that he's used to having an Elite D around him, I think yes Wade can be the jolt to get them to elite status but I think we're a year from that. This year however, I do see a solid D learning to get mean again, and that's a start.
Question 2. Does Romo have "it".
From fairy tale season to nightmare ending, Romo had it all. His path while slow staring quickly went from "Who" to "Romosapien" and Cowboys fans who were previously locked in Carter, Hutch, Henson debates were all auddenly quiet and looking at the start of Romos career like the rest of the world - in awe. it came almost too easy at times and at times we had to realize soon or later this "killer wave" will fall to the earth and Romo will become "just a man" once more. While it took awhile, Romo did find his slump and his fumbled snap cost Dallas a chance ot win their first playoff game in a decade.
How do you put that kind of a year in a diary so anyone else just watching truly understands? How do you put that aside and move on and maintain your leadership status? How do you find confidence in yourself that the slip was a rare occurance and simply bad timing, not a premonition of your overall career?
These are all questions Romo has to handle and answer. Some publically, some he may just answer to himself and show you on the field his response. This would be good as this is what leaders do. Talk less, do more.
Romo has had a good camp and played well in his overall opportunities in pre-season. The fumble seems to be a thing of the past and now he won't even be a holder going forward. Maybe a good thing maybe overly cautious but regardless, he's our qb and he's the best chance we've had since Aikman walked off the field to have a leader from within. A "true" Dallas Cowboy.
A perinnial Pro Bowler once again.
I'll hedge my bets here but I'll also say Romo will have both extremes again this year in some form but I think we'll see him use them to grow up not hide behind and in the end I do suspect our constant struggle to find a quality starting QB is over.
3. Will TO be TO and can Glenn Make it Through the Year?
This has been traditionally where TO came crashing down on his team and everyone was Gay or didn't have the talent to win. Either way his reputation of being the bad boy came to Dallas long before he did. From standing on the star to wearing one, TO has in fact undergone a huge transformation. He's been on his best behaviour and his biggest crime this camp was not knowing which Spiderman costume to wear to camp. So far, all quiet on the TO front but that only takes us to Glenn. Glenn in my own memory plays well when Parcells is his coach, yet he's injured a lot when not.
Parcells gone, knee operated on, 2-4 weeks to be out, he takes all 4 and oops, camp over! Glenn to date has been a steal but I think the biggest value is gone with Parcells. I hope he proves me wrong but my question for Glenn is "can you make it through 10 full games this year? I'm gonna say "no", he won't.
Crayton or Hurd? If Glenn does stay out for an extended period of time, that could be good. We have (2) 1st round picks next year and it would be good to know if either of these can be a true starter. If both can be - even better as we don't need to spend one of those two picks at WR. Or if one or both bomb, know we know also.
TO will have a great year, Crayton will step it up and Hurd will continue to tease. Surprise player we now oogle over? Stanback as Austin continues to be a disappointment overall. This is a true time for flux at WR and may the best players step up and make it an easy call.
4. Will JJones finally be JJones or does he just talk too much?
Stephen Jackson. That's the name that comes to mind when I see Julius play. You see, we passed on Jackson because he wasn't a "true" back and not much different than JJones, Kevin Jones or anyone we could have in the 2nd round. Now while Fantasy Football isn't always a "strong" indicator of talent, he does say how many points he puts on the board and how well he plays for that scheme. By and large Jaskcon was a top 3 pick in most drafts I was a part of. JJones usually lasted till the 6th or later rounds while the short yardage TD machine Barber was usually taken first.
Blame Parcells. He picked Jones over Jackson then he killed Jones career by making him run like a robot. You got your wish, Jones now it's time to put your money where you rmouth is and anything less than a 10td 1200+ yard season means you're just not that goo after all.
In the end Jones won't cut it, he'll be what he's always been and that's an average back who couldn't take that step up.
leading to my 5th biggest question for 2007
Where will Cleveland wind up and Where do we look with 2 1st round picks in 2008?
Normally I hate this question because it means for the part time fan, every time Clevland has a good play, we just lost 4 slots in the draft. Every time they have a bad play, we're getting the 1st pick and McFadden will be a Cowboy. It's knee-jerk, and it's short sighted and a waste of time to me, But 2 things are for sure. Fans will do it and fans will ***** about it.
So what can we do as we ponder our fortunes of tomorrow while living the perils of today?
Keep an eye on the ever changing landscape and think long term. Do our WRs step up? Do our CBs step up?
Keep an eye on these players in college. The RBs, CB's and WRs. Our 1st 2 picks may come from these positions. Possibly OL if that falls into place.
Don't get tunnel vision on today. Don't fall so in love with the name McFadden to where anything else is a loss. ESPECIALLY If the first time you heard of McFadden was when Stephen Jones mentioned the name after trading for Clevelands pick.
So where do I see the draft if I were going this early? I see RB being something to look for, yes. McFadden however isn't the only one alive. I think WR can be addressed in round (2) unless someone is just in a free fall. Hopefully not a Bryant type free falling player. Then I see CB being a position we'll need to put some love into. I don't think we're lacking in that area I just think with Newmans injury and how rough those can be, you lose a #1 defensive player regardless of the position you take a huge hit. But you also work to replace it. So depending on or even regardless of, how Newmans story unfolds, I see CB as the other 1st round pick and WR in the 2nd perhaps..
Or the infamous trade down is always a possibility.
Get ready Cowboys fans. This has the potential to be the most exciting season in a decade and these are just some of the things to watch out for as we go for our 6th ring!
iceberg
