A Thought For Those Questioning The Offseason

[Cowboys Dad]

Listen, I probably am the most audible objectionists when the Cowboys leave themselves undermanned during the offseason, and dont field a roster that will be competitive for the long haul. That said it makes me want to puke that when I rightfully discuss glaring holes on the roster I am told that as a Cowboy fan I should shut up and not complain. Yet Ill be damned if Jerry hasnt built (with the help of that pinhead tuna) this thing into an almost perfect roster and there are people *****ing about how he didnt do this or that!

The first myth I want to dispell comes straight from Jerrys own mouth. I keep reading, here, at other Cowboys blogs, and the so called "experts" saying that Dallas should have addressed the short comings opposite Terrell. Hey Ive got a memo for all of you boneheads! NOONE WAS TRADING THEIR VETERANS. We can post our fantasy league trades, even if the value is supposedly enough, or excessive even, and that doesnt change the fact that these teams DIDNT WANT TO DEAL THEIR STUDS! They said it for months prior to the draft and they meant it. Oh Jerry tried some psychological ploys with them, and probably still hasnt given up on them, but the three names we have all been watching werent and aint going anywhere.

All of the reports are TRUE. If cincy lets Chad go they are opening Pandoras box, just ask Levi Jones. If Arizona trades Boldin, they end up right where we are with Fitz and noone to take coverages off of him. Roy you say? Come on be realistic. With average Quarterback play they know they have a ridiculous look in the years to come. Calvin Johnosn and Roy Williams is an even better combo that Holt and Bruce at their peak. Johnson was no where near healthy last year and is now, LOOK OUT!

Listening to Jerry all weekend it is clear that he was on the phone with Arizona, Detroit, and Cincy any number of times. Probably every time They were about to pick or he was about to pick or trade. I post frustration when there is a hole and there is no attempt to fill it, all the while excuses are made about how the fix will come from within. Clearly here if you have half a brain you can see that Jerry would have even overpaid for anyone of the three being talked about. For that matter he probably even sought out others who we havent spoke of. My only complaint about the missing WR is that they tried and missed on Bernard Berrian. Berrian is a slightly above average WR, not in the class of this three, but he has the missing commodity amongst the four guys that will be called upon predominantly to play opposite owens. Crayton, Hurd, Stanback and Austin. Proven deep threat capabilities.

Now this said, Ill address myth number two:Why didnt the Boys take Mendenhall? Because playing Running back and everything that comes with it is not what the Cowboys selected in Felix Jones. Although I would have preferred Chris Johnson, Jones offers something that none of the experts or Cowboy ramblers even see. Since Jerry missed via my explanation of myth 1, he HAS and HAD a definitive plan B. If you cant get a WR to threaten Defenses you get a FOOTBALL PLAYER to accomplish this. Felix Jones is that football player and Mendenhall isnt!

Mendenhall is a Running Back PERIOD. Turn, give him the ball, watch him run. Catch a screen here and there, have an eight nine year career of 1500 yards. Jones is a Rb sometimes and can do some of what I just said. Felix Jones is a WR too. He might not be Roy Williams, Anquan Boldin, Chad Johnson or even Bernard Berrian, but he can do many of the things that MArshall Faulk did. Even run some deep patterns and catch the ball. Felix Jones also will provide some Trickeration. Reverses, inside "scissors" handoffs, even a statue of liberty or two. Its clear to me that all of those comparing Mendenhall and Jones dont have a clue about WHY the Cowboys are better off with Jones than Mendenhall. The answer is simple! They needed someone to spell Barber, AND help TO by loosing some coverages by playing some WR.

Myth 3: Tashard Choice means they are looking to go in a different direction then Marion Barber. This is ridiculous. The plan for the next five to eight seasons (depending upon how long Barber lasts) is for Barber to carry the ball 20-25 times a game. Jones will be a change of pace, more than likely used on some first and some second downs at pure running back. Choice is simply a luxury, a damn fine one, but just a luxury. You never know who will get hurt and when. Choice affords you the ability to adequately (Although some of the WR and Trickeration stuff would need to be altered) replace either Barber or Jones in a pinch. Furthermore this guy DOES run with attitude like barber and CAN outrun defenses if he needs to. All of this with the Character to wait his turn, work his butt off, and find a way to contribute by covering kicks. Choice, Barber and Jones makes our running back group from last year look like garbage, and it leads me to the last myth.

Myth 4: All of the Cowboys Draft Picks were meant to upgrade certain positions such as corner and running back. I need to remind all Cowboy fans of the play that hurt the most last season. The inability to cover a punt. Remember after Craytons drop the fifty or so yard punt return? Absolute death! So even with the likes of Keith Davis, Jacques Cousteau, and Nate Jones we couldnt cover punts, we couldnt cover kickoffs, we couldnt return kicks, and we surely couldnt return punts! Jerry did an amazing job of not only replacing what left, but improving the special teams even if we still had those guys among others. Scandrick, Jenkins, Bennett, Choice, Jones (Pacman and Felix), Walden etc all will play special teams. (Walden may not make the team but if he does it will be due to play here) Speed, tackling ability, run back capability and most importantly the courage and desire to change a game with a big hit or a big run back are evident in EVERYTHING Jerry touched this offseason. Scandrick is going to develope into a Pro Bowl cover corner, but first hes going to become a gunner on the punt coverage team. Jenkins probably beats out Scandrick in that regard. Pac and Felix return punts and kicks respectively. Bennett and Choice give you good sized bodies, great desire and good athleticism to run down and be effective kick and punt coverers. It is not always what you see, but what most cowboy fans refuse to see, that makes the difference.

Lets open our eyes and stop trying to fit Mendenhall on this roster when he had no role. Your homework is to find a Cowboys roster and review why a Scandrick makes more sense than a WR named Hardy or Jackson. The answer youll find is that its hard to contribute anywhere when you cant make the team!

 

[Hostile]

Post of the day.

 

[cowboyjf]

Can't beleive no one else has posted in this thread. I agree - this is the post of the day.

 

[ndanger]

I'll go out on a limb and say this could very well be post of the month.

 

[tecolote]

:bravo:

Jerry improved on an already loaded roster, on paper this is a Super Bowl team, no doubt about it.

 

[AmishCowboy]

Post of the day.

Well Said and a must Read!

 

[Cowboys Dad]

Thanks to all, I am humbled indeed.

I was merely trying to see the big picture of Jerry, Stephen and Wades hard work. As well as their entire staffs.

 

[cowboyjoe]

yep, real good post, i will take it a step further, we all know what T O told us, he said right after the season that the cowboys told him, when the cowboys get through getting what they want in the offseason and in the draft, and after you compare the cowboys to what the patriots did last year, you will go WOW!

now, what one position did the patriots really break ground, and kill teams, that was hidden till shown later in the year;

no, im not talking about randy moss, i am talking about Wes Welker, a special teams punt returner and a terror in the slot, with speed and quickness.

now we all know we didnt draft a wes welker or sign a veteran wr in the offseason, so who does that leave?

yes, if you havent guessed, its Pacman, i just got my post review of the draft and i saw it posted again, a few weeks ago, frank wychek now a media guy, but was a pretty fair te and fullback for titans, said this

i wouldnt be surprised if the cowboys put pacman in the slot some to use his extreme quickness, pro football weekly said the same thing, look for pacman to be used some on offense in trick plays and on some offensive formations, just like the titans did when he was in Tennessee.

then, like the guy posted, we got killed on special teams after keith davis got hurt and deion anderson was lost for the year, now i have read reports that some of that may have been due to the special teams coach we had last year,

the special teams coach we have this year, wherever he was, like with the giants a couple of years, he developed star kickoff guys and covrage guys, he did the same thing at oregon college,

so what did we do in the draft, we went out and got some impact return guys on kickoffs and punt returns, as we all know felix jones is a dynamic kickoff return guy, even mike jenkins returned some kickoffs for good yardage, and even mike jenkins said he wanted to play some on offense but his head coach wouldnt let him, i guarantee you, if either of these guys is dynamic and can help some on offense garrett will find out

just think to the super bowl in 95, deion sanders played some at wr, and caught a big pass in the super bowl,

next we have like the guy mentioned big huge TE Bennett whom can run down and tacke on kickoffs, etc along with choice, just remember how T D the star running back in denver first got his start, was on kickoffs coverage, and he made some big hits

next we have orlando scandrick, whom has big speed too, not only is he a good corner, but he blocked 4 punts one year best i remember, and he has a knack for doing that, you cant teach that, the player has to want to do that, just like Choice wants to play for the cowboys with his big heart and desire.


so look out, our special teams will be greatly improved, especially wiht pacman on punt returns and the rest of the draft picks, not sure about welken, but from what i read, he has a great first step, just like demarcus ware, so he should be able to help on special teams,

 

[GalvestonCowboyFan]

Yeah. One thing I don't hear mentioned enough is that our offense was absolute dynamite last year. We set team RECORDS (and as we know, our team has high standards) in, among other things, most of the major passing categories. And we have to get another receiver? Sure, they had their slow games, especially when TO was hurt, but it's just not too realistic to expect in the salary cap era not to have to skip a beat when a HOFer goes down. Thank goodness he heals quickly.
That doesn't mean it wouldn't have been nice to land the likes of Boldin or Williams (and I still would like it!), but it's not at all the crucial move that people make it out to be.
Good points about the probable upgrade to special teams. I hadn't thought about the coverage units like that... Jenkins and Scandrick might be wicked gunners, and with Cricket back... hehe, I'm excited already.

 

[Eskimo]

The only thing I'll say is there's no way Barber lasts 5 years at 20-25 carries/game unless he drastically changes his running style. To last five years he'll probably have to be limited to about 15 carries/game or 250 carries/year.

 

[MONT17]

Kickoffs!!! Kickoffs??? Kickoffs... u talking about Kickoffs? With this D if the Kickoff returner has to be a First round draft pick someone is getting Fired! Felix should do some spot duty... but come on if he returns more than 3 kickoffs a game thats not a good thing!

 

[Beast_from_East]

Thanks to all, I am humbled indeed.

I was merely trying to see the big picture of Jerry, Stephen and Wades hard work. As well as their entire staffs.

That was a great read bro, I think you nailed it.

I think we just might have the best roster in the NFL, I am being serious too, not just a homer.

I see us right up there with the Colts and the Pats now.

 

[2much2soon]

maybe I misread this, but MBlll getting 300+ carries a season for another 5-8 years?
I bet no one in the Dallas organization believes that is possible, probably including MBlll himself.
If he does, and continues sacrificing his body every play, he will be the biggest freak of nature the game has ever seen to hold up to that kind of pounding.

 

[AmishCowboy]

That was a great read bro, I think you nailed it.

I think we just might have the best roster in the NFL, I am being serious too, not just a homer.

I see us right up there with the Colts and the Pats now.

We are right with if not better in over all Talent then the Pats or Colts, this is the most Talented team we have had since the Early 90's SB Teams, it's up to Wade and the Staff to get us over the Hump.

 

[Zaxor]

nice, but will those who need to read it...truly understand?

 

[KDWilliams85]

I think that this topic can be furthered by some of these comments:

1) Jerry knows that Barber can carry the load 50-70% of the time. He needed someone who could do it the rest of the time and put the hammer down when he did. If he didn't realize that he needed special teams help, he probably would have taken Mendenhall. The acquisitions of A. Jones and F. Jones, he knocks off some under appreciated burdens with high-class talent. If at the least, F. Jones could be a serviceable return man.

2) Terrell Owens does need a successor, yes; but, not right now. He's got a couple of good years left in him. Jimmy Smith carried on into his mid-to-late 30's as a major contributor for the Jaguars. Owens is a workout warrior so he knows what he has to do. Here lately, teams are finding high talent in the later rounds. So, addressing that need wasn't a first day priority. Granted, it could have been addressed Second Day but it wasn't. Why, it isn't for us to say. But, he believes he has the pieces already available to him. Hurd and Crayton have shown flashes of brilliance, or at the very least a hint of consistency.

3) The drafting of Tashard Choice means one of two things: Either A) Jerry wants some insurance just in case Barber's asking price goes beyond what he wants to pay; or B) Garrett wants to employ what I like to call the "1-2-3, you're KO'd" approach. He'll want to stick you in the jaw with Barber, then kick you in the stomach with F. Jones, and then knock you out with the fist to the teeth with Choice. The running game could leave you bloody and broken if you can't stop the onslaught.

4) Dealing for veterans is always a crafty business. Depending on your strategy, teams could deal to get better, younger, or to shore up holes. The acquisition of Terrell Owens was to get better. He clearly doesn't have youth on his side. We signed L. Davis to get better. He shored up holes and is better than what we had. A. Jones was acquired for all three reasons.

Wide receiver veterans are difficult to acquire because the teams that need them aren't willing to give up now for later. Some of the teams that are willing[conceivably Arizona, Detroit, and Cincinnati] have their now and later. Their future lies with the players they have. You could say the same for any position player. Many teams have this problem. More that they are willing to admit because of the need at those positions creates a logjam. Minnesota is the best example of this. If it weren't for Udeze going down, Jared Allen would never be there.


The biggest cut for our Cowboys last year was that we couldn't finish down the stretch. We had no depth behind our main guys and that hurt. Having starting caliber players will help us down that stretch because we can just plug them in and have them accountable in the defense's game plan.

We may have been quiet in free agency and in the draft, but as Cowboys Dad said, we have a Super Bowl team on paper. We just needed to acquire players who could work with limited playing time as efficiently as they could in a full-time role. We didn't need to get players who could start now. We need them ready for later. Jerry may have referred to this draft as a "Now" draft, but all of our picks were made hoping they'd be ready "later."

Great draft, Jerry. Next year should be our "Now" draft.