Bill Barnwell: Jerry's Broken Toy

[mldardy]

He played on 96% of the defensive snaps versus the Eagles according to this article. That is not exactly riding the pine. I've seen terrible corners before, but we have three good corners this year. http://www.bloggingtheboys.com/2013...defense-monte-kiffin-not-your-fathers-tampa-2

Agreed he's not terrible. He's adjusting to playing for a new coordinator/defense in his 2nd year and didn't play in the preseason. He's started to adjust pretty well right now.

 

[mmohican29]

Please, explain.

Edit: Cynicism aside. I'm truly curious.

- Not speaking for this poster- but I agree with his premise. While owning a franchise QB, you need to field a competitive football team each year.

If you overpaid for a player you thought would be reliable and consistent, then you've made a mistake. But that is an EVERY year possibility. So the difference in signing a player, or re-signing to your roster someone you think will be part of a core group of players that can put you in running for a Super Bowl is no different than passing on or letting someone go who IS proven valuable. Do you gamble to upgrade or do you let someone go that might be coming of age? It speaks to past production.

How has underspending helped the Tampa Bay Buccaneers? The Buffalo Bills? The Philadelphia Eagles?? Now those teams go out and attempt to purchase the best player availabe in Free Agency and for what? Holding money back isn't going to help. People are going to get hurt or underperform. And there will be people that overperform and then become available.

At some point your depth gets hit hard with the way the Cowboys do things. There are two solutions.

1) Exceptional Drafting- must hit on Rds. 1-4, players that can step in and perform well

2) Tremendous Pro-Personnel Scouting Department... the ability to find a guy that fits your scheme that allows your team to perform as near as possible to it holding blue chip talent at that position.

I would argue that the Cowboys pro-personnel department might be the best in the NFL. And their knack for finding UDFA's seems to speak to the ability of the scouting department to identify exceptional football players.

The Cowboys are close but just can't help themselves to selecting a Gavin Escobar vs. a needed guard or DT. That's the problem.

 

[mmohican29]

This is not saying anything we didnt know. When Wade Phillips was here, and Jerry had no one to hold him back, the franchise was being flushed down the toilet. Literally everything that Jerry and Wade did from 2007 - 2010 was screw up the strong unit that Parcells had left. Thats why many of us are so enamored with Garrett. Like Parcells and Jimmy, he has control over operations. Sure, Jerry pulls a power trip every now and then. But for the most part, the day to day stuff, the franchise has a clear leader and direction.

Regarding Ware - First, the article is wrong. He only has 2 years left on his contract. Secondly, that is a reality of Salary Cap NFL. You cant pay everyone. Ware got his. He has had 10 years with the team. He will likely be gone in two years when he is in his mid-30s. What is wrong with that?

Garrett is remaking the team. Almost every one of those bad contracts is off the books as of now. Miles will be gone this offseason.

I still dont see where the "Armageddon" is. He talks about how we can put off paying Smith until 2016.... Well guess what? We literally have 14 players under contract for 2016... As of right now, we are like $60+M UNDER the cap when we need to resign Smith. 2015? We are ~20-30M Under the cap. Pretty sure there is more than enough to sign Bryant.


Lastly:
Quote:
Now, since Parcells has left, Jones's drafts have mostly been bad (2010 aside) and he has traded away valuable draft assets for hunches on players who weren't worth it.

Quote:
that a trade would cost Jones one of the draft picks he desperately needs to restock the depth on his paper-thin roster


Both of those are flat out lies. Under Garrett we have had very solid drafts. We have also built up significantly more depth than what he had a couple years ago.

Agreed. Parcells did one good coaching job with CAMPO'S TALENT and selected Demarcus Ware and Jason Witten, got rid of his best QB (and I get why, but QC had just played his best season and looked pretty good prior to his release) on the roster at the time- and brought aboard poop on a platter has beens other than Terry Glenn who was had for a 6th Rd pick, and lucked into Tony Romo- and still won nothing.

 

[Nightman]

The whole premise is based off faulty numbers. Adam Scheffter says Dallas is 31m over the cap, but it's actually closer to 16m. That's a HUGE difference. Dallas has 143m on the books for 2014 including the dead money. The cap should be around 127m next year and should go up even more in 2015 when the already signed TV deals kick in. The NFL is expected to get another 700m per year from just 8 Thurs night games.

Some of the deals look bad, but really weren't or were for market value. Even though Ratliff has a 6.9m cap charge in 2014, he saved Dallas 4.2m in 2013 and 1.4m in 2014. But Ratliff and JJ get no credit for 4-5 years he way outperformed his cap charge. The bad deals would be the Barber extension and the Roy Williams extension after surrendering multiple picks and the 2009 draft. Injuries have been the biggest factor in the mediocrity IMO.

Dallas will be fine cap wise going forward. Miles Austin and Bern are the big cuts next year and they have already been replaced. There will be money to resign Hatcher and Waters or find replacements in FA and then after June 1st, they can extend Dez and TSmith. They can concentrate on DT/DE and OL in the draft. Things are finally looking pretty good in Dallas. They have a very young, homegrown team and a Top 10 QB.

 

[Common Sense]

Agreed. Parcells did one good coaching job with CAMPO'S TALENT and selected Demarcus Ware and Jason Witten, got rid of his best QB (and I get why, but QC had just played his best season and looked pretty good prior to his release) on the roster at the time- and brought aboard poop on a platter has beens other than Terry Glenn who was had for a 6th Rd pick, and lucked into Tony Romo- and still won nothing.

Campo's "talent?" Is that what they're calling it these days? You're moaning about the release of Quincy Carter? Good grief.

 

[Common Sense]

The whole premise is based off faulty numbers. Adam Scheffter says Dallas is 31m over the cap, but it's actually closer to 16m.

Where are you getting $16 million?

 

[Nightman]

Where are you getting $16 million?

Spotrac and Overthecap. It has Dallas around 143m committed for 2014. It may be closer to 145m if you extend to 51 players. I have no idea where Scheffter is getting 31m from. The cap went from 120.6m to 123m this year, so a jump to 127m is conservative, especially considering they settled the concussion lawsuit.

 

[Miller]

Using anything Jerry/Jason say in a press interview as a way to discredit Jasons influence is silly. Jerry blabs and says stupid contradictory things CONSTANTLY. "We wont bench Felix" - Benched that weekend. "Dez is too important to return punts" - Dez returning punts that weekend. Jason on the other hand says absolutely nothing in press conferences. "Are you the OC" --"We arent saying anything - status quo for now" <= Thats all he said, even though the decision had been made for months.

You may think that Jason doesn't have power - but everything going on within the organization would state otherwise. I think too many people have their head in the sand because they hate Jerry. Hate him all you want, but at least do it based on facts. Facts like under Garrett, we have cut the overpaid, aging vets. We have dedicated to rebuilding and developing youth. We have spent resources on the trenches. We have a core team that plays with intensity and direction.

Also - I find your criticisms of the players to be a little far fetched. Murray has done very well for a 3rd round RB. Morris had a solid rookie year. He had a terrible start to this year **AFTER he missed all of training camp and was adjusting to a new scheme (while injured)**. The last couple weeks he has looked better.

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As for the cap - we could beat it to death, but I will leave it at this. Every year a lot of people on the internet and media make a huge deal about the cap. A lot of them dont really understand it and often times they parrot an article "Restructure bad" "Armageddon" "Sacrificing future, cap hell impending".

Every year we manage to be fine. Every year we end up under the cap. And under Garrett, weve been getting under the cap, while cutting aging veterans and replacing them with youth and better depth.

Up to you if you want to get riled up *every year* about a problem that gets solved *every year*

I think you need to take it down a notch and pump the brakes. What Jerry and Jason did this off season was comical. They contradicted each other. AND Jason did get stripped of his play calling and al the things that Jerry babbled about pretty much happened. How is that a coach in control? Are you really saying that because of Jason..or since he has been here...he somehow is helping get under the cap? Seriously?

Also, I never once railed on JJ. My displeasure is with Garrett and the "direction" AND "PROCESS" so many here seem to give him credit for yet ignore the fact that all of these little victories they somehow claim have added up to .500 ball. Could you point out what withing the organization points out otherwise. My oldest brother worked for the Cowboys. When the stadium opened he sold the luxury suites for 5 years. Jerry had meetings with his group, they got to go to some away games, they walked around gameday with the ex-players and helped talk to clients. He basically spoke to D. Woodson weekly. And you know who did everything in the organization....Jerry. Garrett is just like the others before and his leash got yanked this year.

Seriously, Murray looks good for a back..WHEN he plays. They knew he was an injury guy coming out of college. That is a risk. Morris is a Top 10 pick that we gave up top picks for and was mediocre his rookie year and is 90th this year. This is a guy who some were comparing to Sanders. Again, Lee....great guy and player..when playing. Injuries in college too. Talent doesn't work if you only get them for parts of seasons. Intensity and Direction? What direction at .500. What direction when every year ends up with similar mistakes from players and coaches. Seriously, you sound like a Texan fan who loves them some Kubiak without looking at what is going on in games. Another .500 coach that had a 2 year window and is now plummeting back down. That isn't the goal....to ride a system or being "stable." The goal is to be a consistent top franchise.

 

[Matts4313]

It appears a lot of things you write are clearly media induced. You do not appear to be digging in further than face value on any of these subjects. For example:

They contradicted each other. AND Jason did get stripped of his play calling <== Proof? There is none. In fact, every one involved has said it was Jason decision. Taking it a step further **JASON SAID IT WHEN HE HIRED CALLAHAN A YEAR AGO**

My displeasure is with Garrett and the "direction" AND "PROCESS" so many here seem to give him credit for yet ignore the fact that all of these little victories they somehow claim have added up to .500 ball. Could you point out what withing the organization points out otherwise. <== Sure. How about in the last 3 years Garrett has cut almost every bloated contract and the underperfoming players behind it. That has lead to a total turnover of ~80% of our roster the last few years. On top of that, the *VAST* majority of our starters right now are young players developed under Garrett. That is signs of a process. Cut old players, replace with young developing talent that fits your philosophy.

Morris is a Top 10 pick that we gave up top picks for and was mediocre his rookie year and is 90th this year. <== ... You are seriously using the PFF grades? The same grades that have Colin Kaepernick as the 3rd **WORST** QB in the NFL? Behind Ponder, Freeman, Weeden, etc etc. I highly suggest that you consider how much stock you put into them.

Intensity and Direction? What direction at .500 <== This type of results oriented thinking is completely flawed. You have to use critical thinking skills here and look past the results. Thats the type of logic that got Belichik, Reid, Marty Schot, Dungy and others fired.

 

[Hoofbite]

"(Jerry) pays top dollar for premium talent, and sees the guys on the bottom of its roster blow plays that cost it playoff chances"

Now ain't that the truth.

That quote is depressing.

 

[Miller]

It appears a lot of things you write are clearly media induced. You do not appear to be digging in further than face value on any of these subjects. For example:

They contradicted each other. AND Jason did get stripped of his play calling <== Proof? There is none. In fact, every one involved has said it was Jason decision. Taking it a step further **JASON SAID IT WHEN HE HIRED CALLAHAN A YEAR AGO**

My displeasure is with Garrett and the "direction" AND "PROCESS" so many here seem to give him credit for yet ignore the fact that all of these little victories they somehow claim have added up to .500 ball. Could you point out what withing the organization points out otherwise. <== Sure. How about in the last 3 years Garrett has cut almost every bloated contract and the underperfoming players behind it. That has lead to a total turnover of ~80% of our roster the last few years. On top of that, the *VAST* majority of our starters right now are young players developed under Garrett. That is signs of a process. Cut old players, replace with young developing talent that fits your philosophy.

Morris is a Top 10 pick that we gave up top picks for and was mediocre his rookie year and is 90th this year. <== ... You are seriously using the PFF grades? The same grades that have Colin Kaepernick as the 3rd **WORST** QB in the NFL? Behind Ponder, Freeman, Weeden, etc etc. I highly suggest that you consider how much stock you put into them.
Intensity and Direction? What direction at .500 <== This type of results oriented thinking is completely flawed. You have to use critical thinking skills here and look past the results. Thats the type of logic that got Belichik, Reid, Marty Schot, Dungy and others fired.

Are you kidding?

Of course Jason said, what is he going to say? Jerry said that things would get uncomfortable. As the Summer wore on Jason kept saying that it was a collective decision while Jrery said that he hadn't decided who would call the plays. It was obvious what was happening. To think otherwise after all of the years is going against what Jerry does.

Cutting old players and getting new one isn't on Jason. You know he was part of the offensive process for years before this and was being groomed as the new coach in waiting and those are the players that got cut. That was an exercise in cap slashing and trying to turn the roster over, not a grand plan by Garrett.

I'm going on eyeball test that shows him getting beat. How hard is that.

And HERE we go...name a minority of coaches that bad first years and they all are now just like Jason. You forgot Landry and Knoll.

You are so far into the hype you can't see the reality. It's almost comical. Youre saying I'm going on media reports. I'm going on what someone...my brother..said from within the organization and from ex players. You're going on fairtales based on thigns that Jerry has never done before.

 

[ConstantReboot]

Two things wrong with this article. It states we are still drafting bad players. Honestly, in the last 3 years, our draft has looked very good.

Secondly, he states that drafting of Mo Clairborne was a disaster. That is way off base.

Seems like this guy has a personal vendetta against Jerry. There is a lot of substance in this article. But we are not as bad as he makes it out to be. There will be no Apocalyptic cap problem in Dallas next year.

 

[Matts4313]

Jason said in January 2011 that he planned to give up play calling to Calahan. Jerry went on for a year that he wanted Garrett to call plays. A year later, Garrett give up play calling. Those are all facts that can be backed up by years worth of articles and quotes. Your opinion that Jones stripped him is simply that - an opinion. It is based on no facts relating to this situation.
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Funny. That is one way to position the teams transformation under Garrett. Of course, the other is that Garrett has done a very good job of building and developing talent as we as acquiring a great group of coaches around him. You also havent sensed a theme in the draft picks lately? Do you feel the Cowboys still "feel" like they did under Phillips? They interview/talk the same? Take trips to cabo? Quit on their coach? Splintered? Have separate meetings to complain about other coaches?

Give me a break. If you dont see the difference in the roster, than you are choosing to turn a blind eye.
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And? He is a second year player who missed all of camp and got injured the first week of the season. If you didnt think he would struggle, maybe you were being unrealistic? And just because he sucked for the first 5 games of 2013, that doesnt make it a bad pick.
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I didnt name coaches with just first bad years. I named coaches who got fired because there was no critical thinking being done in the organization. Hence why I didnt name Landry. Landry is a great example of sticking with the process until it bares fruit. Cower as well.
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Not at all. I wanted Phillips gone. I thought the game (coaching wise) had passed Parcells. I think Garrett is going to be our best HC since Jimmy. And its not because of hype. Its because of the clear changes he has made.

 

[Common Sense]

Spotrac and Overthecap. It has Dallas around 143m committed for 2014. It may be closer to 145m if you extend to 51 players. I have no idea where Scheffter is getting 31m from. The cap went from 120.6m to 123m this year, so a jump to 127m is conservative, especially considering they settled the concussion lawsuit.

You're forgetting that the team has $145 million committed to the 2014 salary cap for only 45 players. Once you factor in the rookie class, performance escalators, and the rest of the roster, the team will be at least $29 million over.

 

[windward]

Are you kidding?

Of course Jason said, what is he going to say? Jerry said that things would get uncomfortable. As the Summer wore on Jason kept saying that it was a collective decision while Jrery said that he hadn't decided who would call the plays. It was obvious what was happening. To think otherwise after all of the years is going against what Jerry does.

Cutting old players and getting new one isn't on Jason. You know he was part of the offensive process for years before this and was being groomed as the new coach in waiting and those are the players that got cut. That was an exercise in cap slashing and trying to turn the roster over, not a grand plan by Garrett.

I'm going on eyeball test that shows him getting beat. How hard is that.

And HERE we go...name a minority of coaches that bad first years and they all are now just like Jason. You forgot Landry and Knoll.

You are so far into the hype you can't see the reality. It's almost comical. Youre saying I'm going on media reports. I'm going on what someone...my brother..said from within the organization and from ex players. You're going on fairtales based on thigns that Jerry has never done before.

Your brother attended high level meetings at Valley Ranch that impacted the football team? Because from my vantage point it still seems like a lot of hearsay.

 

[windward]

Jason said in January 2011 that he planned to give up play calling to Calahan. Jerry went on for a year that he wanted Garrett to call plays. A year later, Garrett give up play calling. Those are all facts that can be backed up by years worth of articles and quotes. Your opinion that Jones stripped him is simply that - an opinion. It is based on no facts relating to this situation.
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Funny. That is one way to position the teams transformation under Garrett. Of course, the other is that Garrett has done a very good job of building and developing talent as we as acquiring a great group of coaches around him. You also havent sensed a theme in the draft picks lately? Do you feel the Cowboys still "feel" like they did under Phillips? They interview/talk the same? Take trips to cabo? Quit on their coach? Splintered? Have separate meetings to complain about other coaches?

Give me a break. If you dont see the difference in the roster, than you are choosing to turn a blind eye.
--------------------------
And? He is a second year player who missed all of camp and got injured the first week of the season. If you didnt think he would struggle, maybe you were being unrealistic? And just because he sucked for the first 5 games of 2013, that doesnt make it a bad pick.
--------------------------
I didnt name coaches with just first bad years. I named coaches who got fired because there was no critical thinking being done in the organization. Hence why I didnt name Landry. Landry is a great example of sticking with the process until it bares fruit. Cower as well.
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Not at all. I wanted Phillips gone. I thought the game (coaching wise) had passed Parcells. I think Garrett is going to be our best HC since Jimmy. And its not because of hype. Its because of the clear changes he has made.

Jason has been doing what a lot of the fan base has said was necessary for years. But fans are a fickle bunch and see only the .500 seasons and not the underlying causes for them.

This is an exciting time to be a Cowboys fan IMO, and I'm enjoying the ride.

 

[FuzzyLumpkins]

90th ranked cornerback is a disaster when you gave up a 2nd for him.

I chuckle when people base their evaluations on pff as it is but when they do it using pff coverage 'metrics' I am on the floor rolling.

 

[burmafrd]

Agreed. Parcells did one good coaching job with CAMPO'S TALENT and selected Demarcus Ware and Jason Witten, got rid of his best QB (and I get why, but QC had just played his best season and looked pretty good prior to his release) on the roster at the time- and brought aboard poop on a platter has beens other than Terry Glenn who was had for a 6th Rd pick, and lucked into Tony Romo- and still won nothing.

that is hilarious. But hey coming from those that think Tony Romo is a bad QB its not like you have anyone respecting your opinion.

Gameoever hates Romo and BP. Nuff said about him.

As regards what BP did the main thing was that he finally got Jerruh to really think about being a GM. Unfortunately Jerruh then got Wade and we paid for it. But he has gotten better since BP gave him an advanced course on how to build a Football team. Hopefully Red Ball can keep him on course.

 

[BotchedLobotomy]

I don't like it

The truth hurts

 

[Matts4313]

Your brother attended high level meetings at Valley Ranch that impacted the football team? Because from my vantage point it still seems like a lot of hearsay.

dude, his bro sold tickets for the cowboys. That's the type of insider Adam Schefter would kill for. That's... That's like some Ed Werder inside access.

take anything this source says at face value, for sure.