NewsBot
New Member
- Messages
- 111,281
- Reaction score
- 2,947
Early thoughts about the potential roster construction conundrums that could appear as the preseason progresses.
There is plenty of time between now and the start of the regular season for the Dallas Cowboys, just about one month. But soon, preseason will be here and the the camp battles will really take off. So it's not too early to start thinking about the potential roster construction conundrums that could appear as the season approaches. In that spirit, let's take a look at a projected 53-man roster. .
Offense - 25
Quarterback - 3
Romo, Tony
Prescott, Dak
Showers, Jameill
Running Back/Full Back - 5
Elliott, Ezekiel
Morris, Alfred
Dunbar, Lance
Jackson, Darius
Smith, Rod
Wide Receiver - 5
Bryant, Dez
Williams, Terrance
Beasley, Cole
Butler, Brice
Whitehead, Lucky
Tight End - 4
Witten, Jason
Hanna, James
Escobar, Gavin
Gathers, Rico
Offensive Line - 8
Smith, Tyron
Collins, La'el
Frederick, Travis
Martin, Zach
Free, Doug
Green, Chaz
Leary, Ron
Looney, Joe
Breakdown:
The offense will wind up forcing the front office into some very interesting positions. Drafting Dak Prescott makes keeping three quarterbacks almost imperative, which will force the team to carry smaller numbers at other positions. There are likely names missing from every position group that most would expect to be on the "final" 53. Names like Andy Jones, Darren McFadden, and Geoff Swaim don't appear here, while Rico Gathers makes an NFL roster after not participating in organized football since middle school. While this may seem nonsensical, the Cowboys drafted Gathers in order to avoid a fight in undrafted free agency to sign him, and they did so knowing he would not be a polished on-field product in his first training camp. While Jones and Swaim are having very good training camps, and they likely are viable NFL players, neither have the long-term upside that Gathers brings to the table. Knowing this, and understanding the landscape of the NFL, it's extremely unlikely that Gathers would make it through waivers to the practice squad.
Defense - 25
Defensive Line - 10
Crawford, Tyrone
Thornton, Cedric
Mayowa, Benson
Irving, David
Russell, Ryan
Tapper, Charles
McClain, Terrance
Collins, Maliek
Crawford, Jack
McAdoo, Mike
Linebackers - 7
Lee, Sean
Hitchens, Anthony
Wilber, Kyle
Nzeocha, Mark
Wilson, Damien
Gachkar, Andrew
Durant, Justin
Corner Backs - 4
Scandrick, Orlando
Claiborne, Morris
Carr, Brandon
Brown, Anthony
Safety - 4
Jones, Byron
Church, Barry
Heath, Jeff
Frazier, Kavon
Breakdown:
For all the talk about the defense throughout the off-season, it probably breaks down more simply than the offense. Whether that's a good thing or a bad thing remains to be seen, but it is the story nonetheless. The two biggest surprises on this side of the ball are probably Mike McAdoo and Kavon Frazier, McAdoo who has shown well early in camp will get plenty of opportunity in the preseason to earn a chance to serve as a placeholder for DeMarcus Lawrence for the first four weeks. Frazier has yet to make much of an impression to observers in Oxnard, but he should get opportunities on special teams as well as some extended playing time on defense in the four preseason games, and a splash play or two in either area is likely enough to secure Frazier a spot as the fourth safety if the team looks to move on from the failed experiment that was J.J. Wilcox.
Practice Squad
Swaim, Geoff
Jones, Andy
Coe, Rodney
Brendel, Jake
Olatoye, Deji
Swanson, Dax
Eagan, Ed
Continue reading...