Are The Dallas Cowboys a Team On The Decline?

[NeonDeion21]

I typically don’t care about what the mainstream media says about the Dallas Cowboys. I try my best to avoid the negativity that comes from much of the national media that is directed towards the team. But every once in a while I stumble upon an article that makes me want to pull my hair out with each and every word.

Evan Silva of Rotoworld.com recently wrote a piece about the best rosters in the NFL and ranked them from 1-32. Silva, whose opinion I respect, ranked the Cowboys with the 21st best overall roster in the league. And the ranking itself isn’t even what infuriated me. It was the last two lines he wrote about the Cowboys roster:

“The Cowboys’ talent is mediocre and their roster planning seems to lack direction. The arrow is pointing downward on this team.”

The talent is mediocre? The arrow is pointing downward on this team? I could not disagree more with this statement.

Read the rest at: http://thelandryhat.com/2013/05/19/i...allas-cowboys/

 

[Eskimo]

Important players in rapid decline: Jay Ratliff

Important players in slow decline: Jason Witten, Demarcus Ware, Miles Austin

Important players not in decline: Tony Romo, Anthony Spencer, Brandon Carr, Jason Hatcher

Important players still improving: Dez Bryant, Tyron Smith, Sean Lee, Bruce Carter, Mo Claiborne, Demarco Murray

The way I see it we have way more players either on the upside then the downside right now. I will say that Ware is a massively important piece and how he responds this year after injuring his arm and neck last year will be of prime importance for us over the next 2-3 years and I really, really hope that he doesn't go into the rapid decline category like Jay Ratliff who is just about done.

To me this looks like a roster that is on the upswing. It is just the national media is used to only talking about Romo, Miles, Witten and Ware and all of those players are in slow decline except Romo who is 32 years old but still playing at his peak.

 

[NeonDeion21]

Important players in rapid decline: Jay Ratliff

Important players in slow decline: Jason Witten, Demarcus Ware, Miles Austin

Important players not in decline: Tony Romo, Anthony Spencer, Brandon Carr, Jason Hatcher

Important players still improving: Dez Bryant, Tyron Smith, Sean Lee, Bruce Carter, Mo Claiborne, Demarco Murray

The way I see it we have way more players either on the upside then the downside right now. I will say that Ware is a massively important piece and how he responds this year after injuring his arm and neck last year will be of prime importance for us over the next 2-3 years and I really, really hope that he doesn't go into the rapid decline category like Jay Ratliff who is just about done.

To me this looks like a roster that is on the upswing. It is just the national media is used to only talking about Romo, Miles, Witten and Ware and all of those players are in slow decline except Romo who is 32 years old but still playing at his peak.

That is a really good way to put it. And there are even more players I would add to that developing list such as Barry Church, Dwayne Harris, James Hanna, Tyrone Crawford, Jeremy Parnell.

 

[Idgit]

Silva is not a fan. I can live with that just fine.

 

[jnday]

I typically don’t care about what the mainstream media says about the Dallas Cowboys. I try my best to avoid the negativity that comes from much of the national media that is directed towards the team. But every once in a while I stumble upon an article that makes me want to pull my hair out with each and every word.

Evan Silva of Rotoworld.com recently wrote a piece about the best rosters in the NFL and ranked them from 1-32. Silva, whose opinion I respect, ranked the Cowboys with the 21st best overall roster in the league. And the ranking itself isn’t even what infuriated me. It was the last two lines he wrote about the Cowboys roster:

“The Cowboys’ talent is mediocre and their roster planning seems to lack direction. The arrow is pointing downward on this team.”

The talent is mediocre? The arrow is pointing downward on this team? I could not disagree more with this statement.

Read the rest at: http://thelandryhat.com/2013/05/19/i...allas-cowboys/

The bad roster planning is a fair point. The talent level is overrated on this board, but I don't see a big decline going on. There are quite a few players that are at the point of their career that age and wear may catch them anytime.

 

[visionary]

The NFL is up and down, anything can happen from year to year so who knows

Fact is, no objective person would rate this team among the top teams in the league from a talent standpoint

Average talent with below average coaching is a bad combination

 

[Nation]

The one thing I'm pessimistic about is that we may be in perpetual fixing mode due to our front office not being proactive enough. 2011 the problem was the interior line and cornerbacks, and we tried to fix those. 2012 the problem was the offensive line and the safeties, and we tried a half-fix there. I have a hard time not believing that the defensive tackles and defensive ends are next.

We aren't a Top 5 roster today and we don't have a Top 5 front office either. What we need is to hit on a couple of these 3rd & 4th round draft picks, and have some nice surprises in the way that Kyle Kosier, Jay Ratliff, Miles Austin, and even Tony Romo were.

 

[davey999]

Decline from what? The middle?

 

[fortdick]

That is a really good way to put it. And there are even more players I would add to that developing list such as Barry Church, Dwayne Harris, James Hanna, Tyrone Crawford, Jeremy Parnell.

Why add Parnell to a good list of names. He hasn't done a thing! He is 27 years old, starting his fifth season and is a backup.

You guys put too much stock in him because of the hate for Free.

 

[Nightman]

The NFL is up and down, anything can happen from year to year so who knows

Fact is, no objective person would rate this team among the top teams in the league from a talent standpoint

Average talent with below average coaching is a bad combination

Talent is where I would rank the Cowboys the highest when comparing us to other teams.

The secondary is young and talented
The LBs are young and talented
The WRs are young and talented
The RBs are young and talented
The DL is very talented and not as old as everyone says-29,30,31 and 30.
The QB is talented and in his prime
The TEs are talented and mostly young
The OL is young and 3 are talented and improving

Definitely on the upswing

 

[NeonDeion21]

Why add Parnell to a good list of names. He hasn't done a thing! He is 27 years old, starting his fifth season and is a backup.

You guys put too much stock in him because of the hate for Free.

Actually, it has nothing to do with Doug Free. He came into the league as a player who never played tackle before. He has reshaped his body and worked really hard to become a contributor for this team. I really like his upside.

I broke down some of his game film on thelandryhat.com if you would like to check it out.

 

[Rack]

Decline from what? The middle?

Exactly. If the roster is in a "Decline" it's not gonna decline very far. It's not like we've been a 10+ win team for the last 8 years.

Why add Parnell to a good list of names. He hasn't done a thing! He is 27 years old, starting his fifth season and is a backup.

You guys put too much stock in him because of the hate for Free.

 

[mmillman]

the core of the group is declining as very few players improve into their 30's.

Yes, Lee, Carter and Murray are improving but are very injury prone. As is Austin.

Smith? I cannot tell he is improving or not. He wasn't terrible and I can see huge upside but not there yet.

Witten? Physically declining. What I mean by that is he isn't getting faster and as he gets deeper into his 30's he won't be able to separate and will be injured more.

Romo? Can still perform at a high level but I would agree with the slow decline. Romo is interesting in that if he could improve the mental aspect of his game he could still improve substantially as his physical skills decline.

Ware - injured, but looks to be declining. Spencer - can still play at a high level but at 30 won't be getting stronger or faster. Both, hopefully, could see a pass rush benefit at end.

Depth on the team has been a long time problem and I don't see that changing soon.

 

[PJTHEDOORS]

Evan Silva of Rotoworld.com recently wrote a piece

Again, remember where Rotoworld is based. New York City. I'm guessing they had the Giants high on their list.

 

[CATCH17]

We either need to get better in numbers or get lucky and find more superstars like Ware and Witten.

The clock is ticking for this team and next season looks like another year that we won't be good enough to win it all.


We could give ourselves a better chance year in and year out if we were great at protecting and pressuring the Quarterback.

 

[NeonDeion21]

Again, remember where Rotoworld is based. New York City. I'm guessing they had the Giants high on their list.

They are traditionally very tough on Dallas. That can't be denied.

 

[NJ22]

Exactly.

Decline from what? The middle?

 

[Beast_from_East]

We have missed the playoffs 3 straight years, so what exactly are we declining from?

 

[Eskimo]

That is a really good way to put it. And there are even more players I would add to that developing list such as Barry Church, Dwayne Harris, James Hanna, Tyrone Crawford, Jeremy Parnell.

I see all those guys as just role players right now.

When they develop into quality, above average starters then I would add them to the lists. I was only listing those players who I saw as vital to the team, the core.

 

[NeonDeion21]

I see all those guys as just role players right now.

When they develop into quality, above average starters then I would add them to the lists. I was only listing those players who I saw as vital to the team, the core.

I would argue that at the very least Church and Harris are vital to this team. Church because of the uncertainty at safety. And Harris because of his play-making ability. Harris made some key plays towards the end of the season.

But I agree. Those players clearly aren't as important as Smith, Dez, Lee, etc.