Better Overall Roster and Head Coach Since the 90s?

[DFWJC]

The early to mid 90s rosters were insane and the rosters recently (2014-2019) have been solid.

But this year's roster (on paper) may be the best roster we've had since the Super Bowl teams.

The only group I can think of to compare them to was the 2007 roster.
It was back when the Pro Bowl voting ended early in the season and they started really strong, so they got a ton of fans voting and many undeserving players onto the Pro-Bowl out of hype.
But still, it was a very good overall roster.


Let's compare the 2020 roster to that 2007 roster

• We'll just go ahead and give the Head Coaching nod to McCarthy over Wade Phillips, if that's ok with you all. lol

OFFENSIVE ROSTERS (2007 vs 2020)

QB
2007: ROMO: 2nd year starting--1st full year
2020: Prescott: 5th year starting
---this may be closer than some think due to experience..this was not Romo 2014. Still give him the nod though

RBs
2007: Barber/Ju Jones
2010: ELLIOTT/ Pollard
--Barber/Jones were good. Elliott and Pollard are better

WR1
2007: OWENS was 34 years old .late in year he was hurt...including during the playoffs
2020: COOPER...26 years old in his prime
----EVEN? 34 year old owens vs 26 year old cooper? I'm fine picking either way. May lean slightly toward Owens though

WR2
2007: Crayton..always a wr3 ..best year 700 yards
2020: GALLUP…already has a 1000 yard season and is on the rise
---Gallup, and not even close

WR3
2007: Hurd...good grief
2020: LAMB
---Lamb in a blowout, even as a rookie

TE
2007: WITTEN at 25 was outstanding
2020: Jarwin et al
---Not close when Witten was 25

LT
2007: Adams at 32
2020: SMITH at 30
---Smith, but Adams was good! Both getting older and dinged up but Smith is overall the better player

LG
2007: Kosier (30..and starting to really break down)
2020: C Wiliams (23 and developing)
---EVEN? both a weak link, but Kosier was bad at this stage

C
2007: GURODE (29)
2020: Looney (29)
---- Gerode couldn’t snap properly and made some dumb mistakes but was still good otherwise.

RG
2007: Davis
2020: MARTIN
----Martin is the man

RT
2007: Columbo
2020: COLLINS
---Collins is one of the best RTs in football. Columbo was not bad though...yet

2007 wins 3-5 of 11
2020 wins 7-9 of 11


Next, the defenses

 

[Swagger]

Agree completely except the QB position isn't close at all.

 

[Jipper]

Very good comparison and interesting....our offense is going to be very hard to stop if we stay healthy this year

 

[Stash]

The early to mid 90s rosters were insane and the rosters recently (2014-2019) have been solid.

But this year's roster (on paper) may be the best roster we've had since the Super Bowl teams.

The only group I can think of to compare them to was the 2007 roster.
It was back when the Pro Bowl voting ended early in the season and they started really strong, so they got a ton of fans voting and many undeserving players onto the Pro-Bowl out of hype.
But still, it was a very good overall roster.


Let's compare the 2020 roster to that 2007 roster

• We'll just go ahead and give the Head Coaching nod to McCarthy over Wade Phillips, if that's ok with you all. lol

OFFENSIVE ROSTERS (2007 vs 2020)

QB
2007: ROMO: 2nd year starting--1st full year
2020: Prescott: 5th year starting
---this may be closer than some think due to experience..this was not Romo 2014. Still give him the nod though

RBs
2007: Barber/Ju Jones
2010: ELLIOTT/ Pollard
--Barber/Jones were good. Elliott and Pollard are better

WR1
2007: OWENS was 34 years old .late in year he was hurt...including during the playoffs
2020: COOPER...26 years old in his prime
----EVEN? 34 year old owens vs 26 year old cooper? I'm fine picking either way. May lean slightly toward Owens though

WR2
2007: Crayton..always a wr3 ..best year 700 yards
2020: GALLUP…already has a 1000 yard season and is on the rise
---Gallup, and not even close

WR3
2007: Hurd...good grief
2020: LAMB
---Lamb in a blowout, even as a rookie

TE
2007: WITTEN at 25 was outstanding
2020: Jarwin et al
---Not close when Witten was 25

LT
2007: Adams at 32
2020: SMITH at 30
---Smith, but Adams was good! Both getting older and dinged up but Smith is overall the better player

LG
2007: Kosier (30..and starting to really break down)
2020: C Wiliams (23 and developing)
---EVEN? both a weak link, but Kosier was bad at this stage

C
2007: GURODE (29)
2020: Looney (29)
---- Gerode couldn’t snap properly and made some dumb mistakes but was still good otherwise.

RG
2007: Davis
2020: MARTIN
----Martin is the man

RT
2007: Columbo
2020: COLLINS
---Collins is one of the best RTs in football. Columbo was not bad though...yet

2007 wins 3-5 of 11
2020 wins 7-9 of 11


Next, the defenses

Kudos on a great idea for a thread! Great source of talking points and debate.

 

[Stash]

Agree completely except the QB position isn't close at all.

In whose favor?

 

[DFWJC]

DEFENSIVE ROSTERS (2007 vs 2020)

This gets tricky due to 3-4 vs 4-3, but it balances out


LDE
2007: Spears
2020: LAWRENCE
--- Lawrence, but 4/3 vs 3/4 makes it wierd....but evens out with Ware over Smith later

DT
2007: Canty
2020: McCOY
--- closer than one might think maybe due to age...if we add backups, McCoys wins, imo

DT
2007: RATLIFF
2020 Poe
--- Rat, at that stage of careers, Ratliff better

RDE
2007: Ellis at 32
2020: GRIFFEN/A Smith
--I like this years group better, especially if depth included vs Ellis at 32

LB
2007: Ayodlee
2020: LEE, etc
---Lee et al

ILB
2007: James
2020: LVE
-- James was very solid, but LVE better overall

OLB
2007: WARE
2020: Smith
--Ware > Smith , or almost anyone

CB
2007: Reeves
2020: AWUZIE and dpeth
--Awuzie > Reeves

CB
2007: NEWMAN
2020: Brown/Diggs
--Newman > anyone in 2020

SS
2007: WILLIAMS
2020: Woods
--Williams. the league had not passed him by yet

FS
2007: HAMLIN
2020: Clinton-Dix
--- ?? closer than some might think..maybe Hamlin

So
2007 wins 5 of 11
2020 wins 6 of 11

That was surprising

 

[Stash]

DEFENSIVE ROSTERS (2007 vs 2020)

This gets tricky due to 3-4 vs 4-3, but it balances out


LDE
2007: Spears
2020: LAWRENCE
--- Lawrence, but 4/3 vs 3/4 makes it wierd....but evens out with Ware over Smith later

DT
2007: Canty
2020: McCOY
--- closer than one might think maybe due to age...if we add backups, McCoys wins, imo

DT
2007: RATLIFF
2020 Poe
--- Rat, at that stage of careers, Ratliff better

RDE
2007: Ellis at 32
2020: GRIFFEN/A Smith
--I like this years group better, especially if depth included vs Ellis at 32

LB
2007: Ayodlee
2020: LEE, etc
---Lee et al

ILB
2007: James
2020: LVE
-- James was very solid, but LVE better overall

OLB
2007: WARE
2020: Smith
--Ware > Smith , or almost anyone

CB
2007: Reeves
2020: AWUZIE and dpeth
--Awuzie > Reeves

CB
2007: NEWMAN
2020: Brown/Diggs
--Newman > anyone in 2020

SS
2007: WILLIAMS
2020: Woods
--Williams. gave had not passed him by yet

FS
2007: HAMLIN
2020: Clinton-Dix
--- ?? closer than some might think..maybe Hamlin

So
2007 has 5 better
2020 has 6 better

I disagree with Hamlin over Clinton-Dix. And I'm shocked to see that Jacques Reeves was a starter on that team. Dude was awful!

 

[Bobhaze]

The early to mid 90s rosters were insane and the rosters recently (2014-2019) have been solid.

But this year's roster (on paper) may be the best roster we've had since the Super Bowl teams.

The only group I can think of to compare them to was the 2007 roster.
It was back when the Pro Bowl voting ended early in the season and they started really strong, so they got a ton of fans voting and many undeserving players onto the Pro-Bowl out of hype.
But still, it was a very good overall roster.


Let's compare the 2020 roster to that 2007 roster

• We'll just go ahead and give the Head Coaching nod to McCarthy over Wade Phillips, if that's ok with you all. lol

OFFENSIVE ROSTERS (2007 vs 2020)

QB
2007: ROMO: 2nd year starting--1st full year
2020: Prescott: 5th year starting
---this may be closer than some think due to experience..this was not Romo 2014. Still give him the nod though

RBs
2007: Barber/Ju Jones
2010: ELLIOTT/ Pollard
--Barber/Jones were good. Elliott and Pollard are better

WR1
2007: OWENS was 34 years old .late in year he was hurt...including during the playoffs
2020: COOPER...26 years old in his prime
----EVEN? 34 year old owens vs 26 year old cooper? I'm fine picking either way. May lean slightly toward Owens though

WR2
2007: Crayton..always a wr3 ..best year 700 yards
2020: GALLUP…already has a 1000 yard season and is on the rise
---Gallup, and not even close

WR3
2007: Hurd...good grief
2020: LAMB
---Lamb in a blowout, even as a rookie

TE
2007: WITTEN at 25 was outstanding
2020: Jarwin et al
---Not close when Witten was 25

LT
2007: Adams at 32
2020: SMITH at 30
---Smith, but Adams was good! Both getting older and dinged up but Smith is overall the better player

LG
2007: Kosier (30..and starting to really break down)
2020: C Wiliams (23 and developing)
---EVEN? both a weak link, but Kosier was bad at this stage

C
2007: GURODE (29)
2020: Looney (29)
---- Gerode couldn’t snap properly and made some dumb mistakes but was still good otherwise.

RG
2007: Davis
2020: MARTIN
----Martin is the man

RT
2007: Columbo
2020: COLLINS
---Collins is one of the best RTs in football. Columbo was not bad though...yet

2007 wins 3-5 of 11
2020 wins 7-9 of 11


Next, the defenses

Nice work. Like you said, so far, this roster’s quality is based almost totally on what we think it can do. I like this roster a lot. But the last two decades have made me a little less inclined to believe any hype until after it happens. I think it’s going to take this team at least a year under Big Mac before it achieves its potential.

 

[DFWJC]

Final Tally

• 2020 Head Coach Wins
• 2020 Offense wins 7-9 range to 3-5 range.
• 2020 Defense wins 6 to 5 (but could flip to 5-6)

 

[DFWJC]

I disagree with Hamlin over Clinton-Dix. And I'm shocked to see that Jacques Reeves was a starter on that team. Dude was awful!

Yes, I liked Hamlin Dix is very good too I was feeling weird that even the 2020 defense was pulling ahead so I gave them the Hamlin tie-breaker. lol

And yes, Reeves would have a hard time even making the 2020 roster.

 

[QuincyCarterEra]

To be fair, we hear this every single year.

 

[Aviano90]

To be fair, we hear this every single year.

Paper champions since 2006.

 

[DFWJC]

To be fair, we hear this every single year.

Better than the 2007 roster?
When did anyone say that?

Last year's was somewhat close (and why 8-8 was so awful) but I can't recall anyone saying any roster was the very best since the 90s.

 

[JohnsKey19]

Yes, I liked Hamlin but he was not the playmaker Dix can be. I was feeling weird that even the 2020 defense was pulling ahead so I gave them the Hamlin tie-breaker. lol

And yes, Reeves would have a hard time even making the 2020 roster.

Hamlin was a good player in Dallas for a year and some change - that 1 year being 2007. If you're telling me Clinton-Dix gives us that level of play in 2020, I take it every day of the week.

Jaques Reeves was brutal. You forgot Anthony Henry. Can you imagine a CB these days getting 6 INTs??? The Newman/Henry is a better starting duo than anything we have NOW. The issue was Reeves was so bad as a 3rd CB and/or as a replacement starter due to injury. So the overall depth for 2020 is probably better.

 

[QuincyCarterEra]

Better than the 2007 roster?
When did anyone say that?

Last year's was somewhat close (and why 8-8 was so awful) but I can't recall anyone saying any roster was the very best since the 90s.

What?

We hear every season that our roster is the best since our Super Bowl rosters. I didn't say anything about 2007.

 

[QuincyCarterEra]

Paper champions since 2006.

Yes sir.

 

[JohnsKey19]

DEFENSIVE ROSTERS (2007 vs 2020)

This gets tricky due to 3-4 vs 4-3, but it balances out


LDE
2007: Spears
2020: LAWRENCE
--- Lawrence, but 4/3 vs 3/4 makes it wierd....but evens out with Ware over Smith later

DT
2007: Canty
2020: McCOY
--- closer than one might think maybe due to age...if we add backups, McCoys wins, imo

DT
2007: RATLIFF
2020 Poe
--- Rat, at that stage of careers, Ratliff better

RDE
2007: Ellis at 32
2020: GRIFFEN/A Smith
--I like this years group better, especially if depth included vs Ellis at 32

LB
2007: Ayodlee
2020: LEE, etc
---Lee et al

ILB
2007: James
2020: LVE
-- James was very solid, but LVE better overall

OLB
2007: WARE
2020: Smith
--Ware > Smith , or almost anyone

CB
2007: Reeves
2020: AWUZIE and dpeth
--Awuzie > Reeves

CB
2007: NEWMAN
2020: Brown/Diggs
--Newman > anyone in 2020

SS
2007: WILLIAMS
2020: Woods
--Williams. the league had not passed him by yet

FS
2007: HAMLIN
2020: Clinton-Dix
--- ?? closer than some might think..maybe Hamlin

So
2007 wins 5 of 11
2020 wins 6 of 11

That was surprising

The front 7 comparison is tricky as you mentioned. Young Spears, Canty and Ratliff were studs based on what they were asked to do in that defense. So it's a difficult comparison. And let's not forget Ellis did finish with 12 sacks in 2007.

 

[DFWJC]

Hamlin was a good player in Dallas for a year and some change - that 1 year being 2007. If you're telling me Clinton-Dix gives us that level of play in 2020, I take it every day of the week.

Jaques Reeves was brutal. You forgot Anthony Henry. Can you imagine a CB these days getting 6 INTs??? The Newman/Henry is a better starting duo than anything we have NOW. The issue was Reeves was so bad as a 3rd CB and/or as a replacement starter due to injury. So the overall depth for 2020 is probably better.

Agree.
Reeves was listed as the starting LCB while Newman was listed as the starting RCB. But if we flip Henry into Reeves' slot it gets more interesting.
Part of that 2007 defenses success was having Wade as the DC.
Not a good HC but he was a better DC than we've had here in recent years....imo

 

[JohnsKey19]

The early to mid 90s rosters were insane and the rosters recently (2014-2019) have been solid.

But this year's roster (on paper) may be the best roster we've had since the Super Bowl teams.

The only group I can think of to compare them to was the 2007 roster.
It was back when the Pro Bowl voting ended early in the season and they started really strong, so they got a ton of fans voting and many undeserving players onto the Pro-Bowl out of hype.
But still, it was a very good overall roster.


Let's compare the 2020 roster to that 2007 roster

• We'll just go ahead and give the Head Coaching nod to McCarthy over Wade Phillips, if that's ok with you all. lol

OFFENSIVE ROSTERS (2007 vs 2020)

QB
2007: ROMO: 2nd year starting--1st full year
2020: Prescott: 5th year starting
---this may be closer than some think due to experience..this was not Romo 2014. Still give him the nod though

RBs
2007: Barber/Ju Jones
2010: ELLIOTT/ Pollard
--Barber/Jones were good. Elliott and Pollard are better

WR1
2007: OWENS was 34 years old .late in year he was hurt...including during the playoffs
2020: COOPER...26 years old in his prime
----EVEN? 34 year old owens vs 26 year old cooper? I'm fine picking either way. May lean slightly toward Owens though

WR2
2007: Crayton..always a wr3 ..best year 700 yards
2020: GALLUP…already has a 1000 yard season and is on the rise
---Gallup, and not even close

WR3
2007: Hurd...good grief
2020: LAMB
---Lamb in a blowout, even as a rookie

If this is before we find out Terry Glenn is injured all season, Im taking TO/Glenn all day.

 

[VaqueroTD]

DEFENSIVE ROSTERS (2007 vs 2020)

This gets tricky due to 3-4 vs 4-3, but it balances out


LDE
2007: Spears
2020: LAWRENCE
--- Lawrence, but 4/3 vs 3/4 makes it wierd....but evens out with Ware over Smith later

DT
2007: Canty
2020: McCOY
--- closer than one might think maybe due to age...if we add backups, McCoys wins, imo

DT
2007: RATLIFF
2020 Poe
--- Rat, at that stage of careers, Ratliff better

RDE
2007: Ellis at 32
2020: GRIFFEN/A Smith
--I like this years group better, especially if depth included vs Ellis at 32

LB
2007: Ayodlee
2020: LEE, etc
---Lee et al

ILB
2007: James
2020: LVE
-- James was very solid, but LVE better overall

OLB
2007: WARE
2020: Smith
--Ware > Smith , or almost anyone

CB
2007: Reeves
2020: AWUZIE and dpeth
--Awuzie > Reeves

CB
2007: NEWMAN
2020: Brown/Diggs
--Newman > anyone in 2020

SS
2007: WILLIAMS
2020: Woods
--Williams. the league had not passed him by yet

FS
2007: HAMLIN
2020: Clinton-Dix
--- ?? closer than some might think..maybe Hamlin

So
2007 wins 5 of 11
2020 wins 6 of 11

That was surprising

I like your offensive comparison, but I disagree with the defensive comparisons. I think we're overhyping our defensive FAs this year. They look good on paper but are getting old or haven't proven much.

I think Ellis was pretty similar to Griffin. Isn't Griffin 32?

If you want to be fair, compare their roles. It should be Dlaw vs DWare. I take DWare in a heartbeat!

I think Canty and Ratliff, or Canty and Spears, however you want to make it more fair with 4-3 vs 3-4 are just as good as Poe and McCoy. If this was McCoy of 5 years ago, it would be different.

Overall I give the nod on defense to the 2007 squad. Hamlin and Ayodele are the only ones I remember as patchwork FAs. We home grew most of them, and that's what we need more of on this defense.