Am I the only one NOT worried about the OL?

[dcstands4]

I understand what we went through last year. At EVERY snap I was yelling at the TV, "Why is it taking so long, why is it taking so long". I understand that Romo had to do more "O-line leadership" and we suffered injuries plus apparently when Cook wasn't in we were dipshits "offensive line schematic wise". They worked with Callahan week in and week out and to to his credit he is a damn good oline coach via past experience., but they were not getting it.

Fast Forward to the draft we get Fredrick. Criticism aside as far as where he was picked. I think this kid is and will be a good player either at Center or either Guard side. His versatility always a plus. We also have Smith (LT) who is getting better every year. We know Free will be playing RG (and yes I admit he is a weakness, but Romo is not left handed so damage will be minimal). So we have either two of the three Livings, Costa and Cook filling in at what my guess will be is at guards. I know what the depth chart says but I don't think Bernadeau will be starting come Sept.

Therefore as I see it Smith (LT) Livings (LG) Frederick (C) Costa (RG) Free (RT). Even if Costa and Frederick flipped I do not see this as being a bad line. If Fredrick can do one thing which is keep these guys on the same page at the Center spot that is worth the pick alone. This therefore seals the left side of our line. If Free can play decent with Costa we can be serviceable.I feel we will run more as far as Murray says on the field. Sometimes the offensive line makes the running back better and sometimes the running back makes the offensive line look better.

What do you think?

 

[TheSport78]

I understand what we went through last year. At EVERY snap I was yelling at the TV, "Why is it taking so long, why is it taking so long". I understand that Romo had to do more "O-line leadership" and we suffered injuries plus apparently when Cook wasn't in we were dipshits "offensive line schematic wise". They worked with Callahan week in and week out and to to his credit he is a damn good oline coach via past experience., but they were not getting it.

Fast Forward to the draft we get Fredrick. Criticism aside as far as where he was picked. I think this kid is and will be a good player either at Center or either Guard side. His versatility always a plus. We also have Smith (LT) who is getting better every year. We know Free will be playing RG (and yes I admit he is a weakness, but Romo is not left handed so damage will be minimal). So we have either two of the three Livings, Costa and Cook filling in at what my guess will be is at guards. I know what the depth chart says but I don't think Bernadeau will be starting come Sept.

Therefore as I see it Smith (LT) Livings (LG) Frederick (C) Costa (RG) Free (RT). Even if Costa and Frederick flipped I do not see this as being a bad line. If Fredrick can do one thing which is keep these guys on the same page at the Center spot that is worth the pick alone. This therefore seals the left side of our line. If Free can play decent with Costa we can be serviceable.I feel we will run more as far as Murray says on the field. Sometimes the offensive line makes the running back better and sometimes the running back makes the offensive line look better.

What do you think?

I don't understand how a Cowboys fan can't be worried about the OL. Heck, the Cowboys themselves have to be concerned.

1) Costa will not play guard
2) Livings and Bernadeau are hurt...again
3) Doug Free is a complete unknown at this point
4) Free's supposed "competition" is hurt
5) You're asking a lot for a rookie to come in and "keep these guys on the same page"...he's trying to learn the NFL game himself as a rookie and he's going to direct others?

Yeah, I'm not optimistic about the OL lol

 

[Reverend Conehead]

I understand what we went through last year. At EVERY snap I was yelling at the TV, "Why is it taking so long, why is it taking so long". I understand that Romo had to do more "O-line leadership" and we suffered injuries plus apparently when Cook wasn't in we were dipshits "offensive line schematic wise". They worked with Callahan week in and week out and to to his credit he is a damn good oline coach via past experience., but they were not getting it.

Fast Forward to the draft we get Fredrick. Criticism aside as far as where he was picked. I think this kid is and will be a good player either at Center or either Guard side. His versatility always a plus. We also have Smith (LT) who is getting better every year. We know Free will be playing RG (and yes I admit he is a weakness, but Romo is not left handed so damage will be minimal). So we have either two of the three Livings, Costa and Cook filling in at what my guess will be is at guards. I know what the depth chart says but I don't think Bernadeau will be starting come Sept.

Therefore as I see it Smith (LT) Livings (LG) Frederick (C) Costa (RG) Free (RT). Even if Costa and Frederick flipped I do not see this as being a bad line. If Fredrick can do one thing which is keep these guys on the same page at the Center spot that is worth the pick alone. This therefore seals the left side of our line. If Free can play decent with Costa we can be serviceable.I feel we will run more as far as Murray says on the field. Sometimes the offensive line makes the running back better and sometimes the running back makes the offensive line look better.

What do you think?

I'm not worried in the sense of the word meaning panicked. I am, however, concerned. After the disaster that was last year on the o-line, you would have to be nuts to not be concerned. I do think there is a decent chance the line will be better. I'll wait and see.

 

[Tex]

I understand what we went through last year. At EVERY snap I was yelling at the TV, "Why is it taking so long, why is it taking so long". I understand that Romo had to do more "O-line leadership" and we suffered injuries plus apparently when Cook wasn't in we were dipshits "offensive line schematic wise". They worked with Callahan week in and week out and to to his credit he is a damn good oline coach via past experience., but they were not getting it.

Fast Forward to the draft we get Fredrick. Criticism aside as far as where he was picked. I think this kid is and will be a good player either at Center or either Guard side. His versatility always a plus. We also have Smith (LT) who is getting better every year. We know Free will be playing RG (and yes I admit he is a weakness, but Romo is not left handed so damage will be minimal). So we have either two of the three Livings, Costa and Cook filling in at what my guess will be is at guards. I know what the depth chart says but I don't think Bernadeau will be starting come Sept.

Therefore as I see it Smith (LT) Livings (LG) Frederick (C) Costa (RG) Free (RT). Even if Costa and Frederick flipped I do not see this as being a bad line. If Fredrick can do one thing which is keep these guys on the same page at the Center spot that is worth the pick alone. This therefore seals the left side of our line. If Free can play decent with Costa we can be serviceable.I feel we will run more as far as Murray says on the field. Sometimes the offensive line makes the running back better and sometimes the running back makes the offensive line look better.

What do you think?

I dont think that will be our line at all. I bet Leary mans one of the guard spots. Livings and Bernie are both hurt. Heck I'm not convinced Livings even makes this team and with the shape his knees are in I cant imagine depending on him to start all year even if he does and you have him starting.

So we basically have a rookie (I like fred) at center. Hopefully Leary who is basically a rookie with no experience at one guard spot. And we are hoping that one of Costa, Arkin, Kowalski, Livings or Bernie steps up at the other guard spot and yes I am worried. I am hopeful but I dont know how that many unknowns make you confident at all. And we wont even discuss how much of a black hole RT is right now with Free as there is no telling what he is going to do or if Parnel can at least be average over the course of a full season.

I wish we had brought in one decent experienced veteran guard that was actually HEALTHY to challenge for that other guard spot.

 

[Zordon]

you're the only one bro.

 

[RS12]

Am I the only one NOT worried about the OL?

As far as I know.

 

[Doomsay]

The only difference from last year is a kind of first round reach and a bag of pixie dust hopefuls ..... hope that last year's players wont be as awful or injured this year. If you accept the premise that the line was a big problem in 2012, then it's hard to honestly not worry about essentially that same line in 2013. Fred might be good in his first year, but one rookie isn't enough to fix a pretty bad line.

 

[Idgit]

I'm worried. Well, not worried, because that's not the right word. It the area of the team with--by far--the most significant question marks. We've got to have things break right at at least 3 positions in order to be in good shape. Good news is that we've got multiple options for each of those positions we need to break right. I don't love our options at RT. I think we're probably in good shape at C. RG is fairly up in the air, but of all the positions on offense that can be up in the air, that's a pretty good one to not be sure about.

 

[CyberB0b]

I am concerned we didn't address our biggest needs properly: O-line, D-Line and Safety. We always seem to be a year or two behind when it comes to filling obvious gaps. It's like those cartoons where a leak springs on a boat and the character frantic scrambles to plug a leak while another pops up.

 

[Plankton]

The offensive line is a concern until the performance of the unit demonstrates otherwise. They have injury issues at guard, and a poor track record from the players on the right side of the line. Frederick has a ton of pressure on him to upgrade the performance of the rest of the line by himself. Most 31st overall picks don't have that kind of pressure on them.

 

[TheRomoSexual]

I am concerned we didn't address our biggest needs properly: O-line, D-Line and Safety. We always seem to be a year or two behind when it comes to filling obvious gaps. It's like those cartoons where a leak springs on a boat and the character frantic scrambles to plug a leak while another pops up.

DLine was not one of our biggest needs.

 

[JoeyBoy718]

For someone not concerned about the O-line, you seem to not have much of a clue about the status of the current O-line. I know training camp hasn't begun and things are still up for grabs, but there's almost no one considering an O-line of LT Smith, LG Fred, C Costa, RG Free, RT None? You called Free a RG and only listed 4 starters on your projected O-line. And I don't think Cook even makes the team. It's likely going to be something like LT Smith, LG Livings/Leary, C Fred, RG Bern/Costa, RT Free/Parnell. Our weakest part of the O-line last year was RG and RT, and it, at least at the moment, is looking like those are the front runners for RG and RT again. The only change will be some consistency at C, but we also have no idea how Fred will perform. People forget that Smith wasn't that good last year, but at the moment he's our only real guaranteed starter. And Leary might take the LG job from Livings, which makes people happy, but Livings was arguably our best lineman last year.

All that said, I am optimistic about the O-line. I think Smith will have a breakout year, Fred will have a good rookie year, Leary and/or Costa will step up at the guard spots, and the winner of Free and Parnell will be much improved. So, in other words, I'm optimistic, but I sure as heck am not NOT worried.

 

[Gemini Dolly]

Yes you are indeed.

 

[honyock]

I understand what we went through last year. At EVERY snap I was yelling at the TV, "Why is it taking so long, why is it taking so long". I understand that Romo had to do more "O-line leadership" and we suffered injuries plus apparently when Cook wasn't in we were dipshits "offensive line schematic wise". They worked with Callahan week in and week out and to to his credit he is a damn good oline coach via past experience., but they were not getting it.

Fast Forward to the draft we get Fredrick. Criticism aside as far as where he was picked. I think this kid is and will be a good player either at Center or either Guard side. His versatility always a plus. We also have Smith (LT) who is getting better every year. We know Free will be playing RG (and yes I admit he is a weakness, but Romo is not left handed so damage will be minimal). So we have either two of the three Livings, Costa and Cook filling in at what my guess will be is at guards. I know what the depth chart says but I don't think Bernadeau will be starting come Sept.

Therefore as I see it Smith (LT) Livings (LG) Frederick (C) Costa (RG) Free (RT). Even if Costa and Frederick flipped I do not see this as being a bad line. If Fredrick can do one thing which is keep these guys on the same page at the Center spot that is worth the pick alone. This therefore seals the left side of our line. If Free can play decent with Costa we can be serviceable.I feel we will run more as far as Murray says on the field. Sometimes the offensive line makes the running back better and sometimes the running back makes the offensive line look better.

What do you think?

Hopeful, yes. Unconcerned, no. I can get that there are reasons for optimism. But there are a lot of if's involved with that optimism. We need a lot of those if's to have positive answers. Is Leary really ready to take over a starting job? Will Free return to at least serviceable form, and if not, is Parnell ready to start for a full season? Can Bern get healthy, and will a healthy Bern give adequate guard play? Are Livings' knees up to a full season of serviceable guard play?

I'm pretty optimistic that Tyron will be fine this year. I'm pretty optimistic that Frederick will bring stability to center as a rookie. I'm pretty optimistic that Parnell can beat out Free if given a chance and be solid at RT. About both guard positions, I'm just stuck with hope. There is too much unknown there. At this point, I'm more hopeful about Bern than Livings. Bern is younger and potentially athletic enough to be a decent guard. He needs enough healthy prep time to be strong enough to anchor this year. I don't trust Livings knees. I hope one of the two can be adequate, because trusting that two of the young guards can step up is a reach.

 

[CowboyStar88]

I understand what we went through last year. At EVERY snap I was yelling at the TV, "Why is it taking so long, why is it taking so long". I understand that Romo had to do more "O-line leadership" and we suffered injuries plus apparently when Cook wasn't in we were dipshits "offensive line schematic wise". They worked with Callahan week in and week out and to to his credit he is a damn good oline coach via past experience., but they were not getting it.

Fast Forward to the draft we get Fredrick. Criticism aside as far as where he was picked. I think this kid is and will be a good player either at Center or either Guard side. His versatility always a plus. We also have Smith (LT) who is getting better every year. We know Free will be playing RG (and yes I admit he is a weakness, but Romo is not left handed so damage will be minimal). So we have either two of the three Livings, Costa and Cook filling in at what my guess will be is at guards. I know what the depth chart says but I don't think Bernadeau will be starting come Sept.

Therefore as I see it Smith (LT) Livings (LG) Frederick (C) Costa (RG) Free (RT). Even if Costa and Frederick flipped I do not see this as being a bad line. If Fredrick can do one thing which is keep these guys on the same page at the Center spot that is worth the pick alone. This therefore seals the left side of our line. If Free can play decent with Costa we can be serviceable.I feel we will run more as far as Murray says on the field. Sometimes the offensive line makes the running back better and sometimes the running back makes the offensive line look better.

What do you think?

I think you are forgetting about Leary I think the dude will steal one of the OG spots. I think the line I would be happy with is a smith-Fred-costa-Leary-free/Parnell and to be honest I'm not really worried about the line I think it will be much improved from the talent level to the scheme to the hurry up offense and the not snapping the ball at the last moment.

 

[links18]

Any OL with Doug Free on it is cause to be very worried. If he has another year like he did last year, Romo will be unlikely to finish the season.

 

[pupulehaole]

Yes, yes you are.

 

[links18]

Jerry Jones might not be worried.

 

[Hoofbite]

I'm not worried. My expectations of that unit are pretty low so they'd really have to suck to let me down.

 

[TwoDeep3]

I understand what we went through last year. At EVERY snap I was yelling at the TV, "Why is it taking so long, why is it taking so long". I understand that Romo had to do more "O-line leadership" and we suffered injuries plus apparently when Cook wasn't in we were dipshits "offensive line schematic wise". They worked with Callahan week in and week out and to to his credit he is a damn good oline coach via past experience., but they were not getting it.

Fast Forward to the draft we get Fredrick. Criticism aside as far as where he was picked. I think this kid is and will be a good player either at Center or either Guard side. His versatility always a plus. We also have Smith (LT) who is getting better every year. We know Free will be playing RG (and yes I admit he is a weakness, but Romo is not left handed so damage will be minimal). So we have either two of the three Livings, Costa and Cook filling in at what my guess will be is at guards. I know what the depth chart says but I don't think Bernadeau will be starting come Sept.

Therefore as I see it Smith (LT) Livings (LG) Frederick (C) Costa (RG) Free (RT). Even if Costa and Frederick flipped I do not see this as being a bad line. If Fredrick can do one thing which is keep these guys on the same page at the Center spot that is worth the pick alone. This therefore seals the left side of our line. If Free can play decent with Costa we can be serviceable.I feel we will run more as far as Murray says on the field. Sometimes the offensive line makes the running back better and sometimes the running back makes the offensive line look better.

What do you think?

Yes, I am worried about the offensive line. A rookie will not fix everything about it.