A Touch of Hostility...Week 7

[kramskoi]

I see your point, but I wouldn't be evaluating him on whether he is able to make this team do a 180. I'm not sure anyone can do that this year. I just want to see if he can make changes in areas that aren't always apparent. How hard will he push the players in practice? Will he make them go until they get things right? Will he bench players that don't perform well?

And in regard to inspiring the team, if he's unable to make progress in that area for the remainder of this year, how can we expect him to do it next year if he's the head coach?

...but how are we to know that this is happening in practices?...there is only so much time to "get things right" and unfortunately all teams keep pretty much the same schedule leading up to a game...the time to actually lay the foundation for doing things right is in training camps and i feel the Cowboys did'nt use that time to greatest advantage this year...

...the reason i say it would be unfair to Garrett is because it would be a no-win situation for him...he is already viewed by some to be part of the problem and 10 games is enough time for disgruntled and irrational fans to turn against him completely...you'd have the talking heads calling for his head too by the end of the year...now if he could turn the team around and make the playoffs his stock soars but i'm afraid that is not a realistic scenario without Romo...and it is no guarantee that even Romo could flip the season, with the hardest part of the schedule yet to come...and who is yet to suffer injury this year...Holland is now hobbled along with Kosier (poor Gurode can't get a break) leaving Gurode the last "good" man standing in the interior line...this is bad and Kitna could be running for his life even playing dunk-ball...

...Jones has to reap what he has sown here...he brought back a suspect o-line and a suspect secondary at the safety positions...he figured Romo was elusive enough to hide it again but they have not aged gracefully and all of them are dogged by injury in some way...Kosier has been hurt the last two seasons, Gurode has a degenerative knee, Davis has lost all the quickness he ever possessed and Columbo is not what he was pre-injury...you'd like to get rid of all of them but i think that unless Costa shows us something special both Kosier and Gurode will return along with Free on the left side of the line...Davis and Columbo will be dispatched, or at least they should be...

 

[baj1dallas]

Last night when Witten had his false start I started thinking for a minute that the problem is Gurode. Maybe these guys are going on the right count after all and he forgets to snap it. That of course is impossible since only 1 man moves. H

Witten has been getting false start penalties his whole career. I figure it is just tough to judge being a TE. I don't think it's Gurode's fault.

 

[ringmaster]

Hos, I share your feelings regarding Garrett, but I'm also very tempted in thinking about what Gruden could do here.

But I absolutely agree Garrett will be a better head coach than coordinator. Absolutely agree. And he's far from a bad coordinator. He's a good coordinator who gets alot of grief from people that either A.) Have too high of expectations for what a coordinator can do, or B.) Simply dont know what the hell they're looking at/talking about.

I'm on board with Garrett, but I really want Gruden too.

Another thing to add Garrett also played under Gruden, so some of his offense is kind of Gruden like.

 

[ringmaster]

It's not an assumption, it's a fact and it's a simple as it gets: the players either execute how they were supposed to or they don't. Dez Bryant is a goat for alligatoring a catch against the Vikings last week, he's a hero for catching a TD pass on that same game. Both times the play caller was Garrett, and only one worked.

Roy Williams and Tony Romo couldn't get within the same zipcode last year, much less same page, this year both have hooked up like if they've been playing together all their lives. The plays that's made Miles Austin a Pro Bowl receiver from a " I hope he signs with the Jets so we can get their 2nd round pick ", have been called by Jason Garrett.

The simple fact is that NOBODY, except Jason Garrett, the coaches next to him, and eventually the players after watching films, knows why a play was called at any point of the game. Not me, not YOU, not anybody in here.

For you ( or anybody else for that matter ) to say that an " incorrect " or " wrong " play was called is sheer arrogance and ignorance. YOU are not on that sideline with a gameplan in your hands, YOU are not aware of everything that's going on during the game ( who's playing at 70% because of injuries and getting worse, who's having a bad day, what are the defensive tendencies up to that point, what does the game plan calls for, who's available personnel wise at that moment, what are other coaches recommeding, what's your QB seeing or recommending )..

You " think " you know, but you do NOT.

You can't even begin to comprehend the complexities of an NFL game plan, all the works that goes into it, and all the variables it depends on in order to work, much less play calling.



The next time Jason Garrett puts on shoulder pads and a helmet and goes out there to execute one of his play calls, then you can blame him. Otherwise, look at the guys who are throwing the ball, catching the ball, and blocking and give them the credit or the blame.

 

[ringmaster]

Not really. Before Jason Garrett there was another " Jason Garrett ". He played for 1 team ( I don't count a stint at the end of his career that lasted for a cup of coffee at the longest with another team ) as a back up QB for 15 years. Think about that, a back up QB lasting for the same team for 15 years. In those 15 years, which contained 2 HOF quarterbacks in the process, that team never had a QB coach or an offensive coordinator. At least not officially. Who's that you asked ?

That would be Don Strock, the team would be the Miami Dolphins, and the 2 HOF QBs were Bob Griese and Dan Marino. Just ask Dan Marino who called the Dullphins plays from the sidelines when he was throwing for 4,000 yards and 40 TDs every year.

When Strock went into coaching as a QB coach, he was credited for salvaging Vinny Testaverde's career. Before any of you start to laugh, know that Vinny ended up playing 20 years, throwing for over 46,000 yards, and 267 touchdowns. That's not something to laugh at. However, if it wasn't for Strock, his career would have been over after his 6th year in the league when he finished his contract in Tampa. He signed with Cleveland who's head coach was this guy named Bill Belichick and had hired Don Strock as one of his assistants. After Vinny got to Cleveland, and eventually moved to Baltimore, he credited Strock for resurrecting his career. Before then, Vinny Testaverde, Heisman trophy winner, QB of the college power house University of Miami, #1 overall pick in 1987, did NOT know how to breakdown and study college or NFL films. Never really bothered to learn and no coach thought of teaching him. By the time Strock got done with Vinny, not only was he a new QB that eventually went on to play 20 years in the NFL, but he became a mentor to QBs like Chad Pennington, Drew Henson, and, to this day, ( although I can't confirm it ) talks to this guy named Antonio Ramiro Romo on a regular basis.

One of the biggest mistakes the Dullphins franchise ever made was falling for the Jimmy Johnson legend, thinking he was going to recreate his years in Dallas, but just as big a mistake was not continuing the legacy of the best coach and most influential man they ever knew ( Don Shula ) and his replacement was right under their noses. But the Huizenga regime didn't bother to learn the history of their own franchise, and all they wanted was to make a big splash.

Strock's career as an " official coach " never took off ( his last job, I think, was with my alma matter Florida International University ) and the league completely forgot about him, which is a shame because he had/has a world of football knowledge in that head, particularly when it comes to QBs.

Wow! Didn't know that about Strock and I'm too young to remember his career as a QB, but what I do know from looking at NFL Films is how he came in against the Chargers, and just picked them to pieces going down as one of the greatest NFL games of all time.

 

[lockster]

Hope things get better with ur mom. Not nice hearing those bad things. On to the football part. The problem I have with Jason is his playcalling. I would hate for him to be the headcoach and try to play call too and I suspect we'd be trying to throw the ball 90 times a game if he was head coach, but maybe I'm wrong. It's the offense that got us into this mess in the first place mostly. I agree Hudson sucks, sucks like a tornado over Kansas. Campo doesn't have what it takes it seems. I think we need to keep coaches that produce like John Garrett. I want a headcoach that's in ur face. That's why Jimmy was so successful and Parcells to a certain extent with what he had at hand to play with. I think this season we didn't cover our bases on proven depth and we lost at FS, Nickel LB, PK and OT. Maybe this next year we will go back to our system of actually signing proven men before we roll the dice on just the draft. I hope Jerry feels good about saving money this year because it may have helped pay off the stadium, but it sent us to the bottom of the NFC east. I sure hope that stadium gets paid off fast. On the plus side I agree Dez makes me smile even in defeat. Got to love his attitude and hands. I also think that Josh Brent may just be a really good player for us down the road with the hustle that he seems to expend every game, but maybe that's just me.

 

[Cochese]

Another thing to add Garrett also played under Gruden, so some of his offense is kind of Gruden like.

he also played under switzer,which could explain why his unit is so arrogant, sloppy and undisciplined, with no real threat of accountability.

 

[DOUBLE WING]

It's not an assumption, it's a fact and it's a simple as it gets: the players either execute how they were supposed to or they don't. Dez Bryant is a goat for alligatoring a catch against the Vikings last week, he's a hero for catching a TD pass on that same game. Both times the play caller was Garrett, and only one worked.

Roy Williams and Tony Romo couldn't get within the same zipcode last year, much less same page, this year both have hooked up like if they've been playing together all their lives. The plays that's made Miles Austin a Pro Bowl receiver from a " I hope he signs with the Jets so we can get their 2nd round pick ", have been called by Jason Garrett.

The simple fact is that NOBODY, except Jason Garrett, the coaches next to him, and eventually the players after watching films, knows why a play was called at any point of the game. Not me, not YOU, not anybody in here.

For you ( or anybody else for that matter ) to say that an " incorrect " or " wrong " play was called is sheer arrogance and ignorance. YOU are not on that sideline with a gameplan in your hands, YOU are not aware of everything that's going on during the game ( who's playing at 70% because of injuries and getting worse, who's having a bad day, what are the defensive tendencies up to that point, what does the game plan calls for, who's available personnel wise at that moment, what are other coaches recommeding, what's your QB seeing or recommending )..

You " think " you know, but you do NOT.

You can't even begin to comprehend the complexities of an NFL game plan, all the works that goes into it, and all the variables it depends on in order to work, much less play calling.

So why even have coordinators then? What's the difference between one and the other if they're all apparently interchangeable? By your logic, they call the correct play 100% of the time and if it screws up, the fault is solely that of the players. By your logic, San Francisco shouldn't have fired Jimmy Raye, but instead fired everyone else around him for screwing up the perfect plays he was calling.

Or does that not apply to other coordinators, but only Garrett? Is he the only one who calls the correct play and uses his talent correctly 100% of the time?

The next time Jason Garrett puts on shoulder pads and a helmet and goes out there to execute one of his play calls, then you can blame him. Otherwise, look at the guys who are throwing the ball, catching the ball, and blocking and give them the credit or the blame.

It's not schoolyard football. Romo doesn't just go out there and tell Dez to get open. There are plays, formations and schemes that are called and designed by their coaches. It's up to those coaches to put the talent in the best position to be successful.

 

[Dodger]

...but how are we to know that this is happening in practices?...there is only so much time to "get things right" and unfortunately all teams keep pretty much the same schedule leading up to a game...the time to actually lay the foundation for doing things right is in training camps and i feel the Cowboys did'nt use that time to greatest advantage this year...

...the reason i say it would be unfair to Garrett is because it would be a no-win situation for him...he is already viewed by some to be part of the problem and 10 games is enough time for disgruntled and irrational fans to turn against him completely...you'd have the talking heads calling for his head too by the end of the year...now if he could turn the team around and make the playoffs his stock soars but i'm afraid that is not a realistic scenario without Romo...and it is no guarantee that even Romo could flip the season, with the hardest part of the schedule yet to come...and who is yet to suffer injury this year...Holland is now hobbled along with Kosier (poor Gurode can't get a break) leaving Gurode the last "good" man standing in the interior line...this is bad and Kitna could be running for his life even playing dunk-ball...

...Jones has to reap what he has sown here...he brought back a suspect o-line and a suspect secondary at the safety positions...he figured Romo was elusive enough to hide it again but they have not aged gracefully and all of them are dogged by injury in some way...Kosier has been hurt the last two seasons, Gurode has a degenerative knee, Davis has lost all the quickness he ever possessed and Columbo is not what he was pre-injury...you'd like to get rid of all of them but i think that unless Costa shows us something special both Kosier and Gurode will return along with Free on the left side of the line...Davis and Columbo will be dispatched, or at least they should be...

Again, you make some very valid points, and yeah, making Garrett an interim HC might not be that fair to him, but someone's got to deal with this ****ty situation, and it sure won't be Wade. Oh, he'll be here, but he's not going to actually do anything about it.

If you're going to play the games anyway, and you know Wade won't be invited back next year, why keep him around? Just so Garrett doesn't get any flak for the mess that is the Cowboys? He's already getting nailed in the press and by fans. Personally, knowing he's the interim coach and presiding over a Romoless team, I'd give him some slack, and I think a lot of other reasonable fans and media types would as well.

 

[CCBoy]

'CCBoy - Garrett would make an excellent battalion XO...Wade would make a great Chaplain neither is fit for Command.'

LOL, Cas...make 'er happen.

 

[ringmaster]

he also played under switzer,which could explain why his unit is so arrogant, sloppy and undisciplined, with no real threat of accountability.

Ok blame whoever you want man.

 

[CowboyMcCoy]

I can't believe it's week 7 already and we only have 1 win. It feels as if the season hasn't begun.