News: Cowboys’ Offensive Line Could Be Better in 2017

[rkell87]

Configuration:

1A: Smith, Collins, Fredrick, Martin, Green
1B: Smith, Cooper, Fredrick, Martin, Collins
1C: Smith, Bell, Fredrick, Martin, Collins
1D: Smith, Collins, Fredrick, Martin, Bell

 

[FuzzyLumpkins]

Speaking of the oline, if Theaker impresses and makes the team, who gets cut? Bell or Cleary?

You keep 9 at that point.

 

[CCBoy]

You keep 9 at that point.

Fuzzy, I'm as anxious as a pack of hounds around a meat truck...I can't wait to see how deep and strong the offensive line and defense are going to play out.

 

[Stash]

Fuzzy, I'm as anxious as a pack of hounds around a meat truck...I can't wait to see how deep and strong the offensive line and defense are going to play out.

Same here. And it should definitely show up in the preseason, where the Cowboy shouldn't be handcuffed offensively by an undermanned offensive line.

 

[Pants]

I love this stuff:
"2017 line could be better...." or, maybe not
"Offense will be better when they use Rico on the goal line and Swizter in the slot" or, maybe Rico doesn't make the team and Switzer just returns punts
" Secondary will be better in 2017 with the infusion of youth" or, their inexperience causes little problems for opposing QB's

I could go on

my opinion:
- I liked Free more than many on here...XWalker's disdain for him notwithstanding, the guy didn't just happen to stretch an 11-year career together by luck...and, it is easy to say negative nonsensical things like he can't play for college teams when he is being compared to 3 Pro-bowlers on his own line.....Collins has the potential to be better than Free and if he does, we are looking at 4 pro-bowlers on the line
- Looking forward to seeing BOTH Switzer AND Beasley sneaking around and then having DEz sitting out there...combine that with a pass-catching TE (whether that be Witten, Rico, or one of the others)....Dak could have a special year if he stays on his feet
- the secondary is going to have their growing pains, and by the end of the year, I think they will be sharp - this year, for the first time in a while, no one seems to have a "set" starting role, other than Byron....the competition will make the unit better...until then, the offense may have to out-score other teams and control the clock...of course, when Dallas creates leads in games, the other team will have to throw more to catch up, thus, giving that experience to the young secondary (we must get the pass rush to work)....this bodes well for future seasons

 

[Deep_Freeze]

It could happen!

Gotta like the Angels of the Outfield reference.

 

[NorthwestDallas40]

If Collins can be better than Free at stopping edge pressure (he has to be right?), he is a great run blocker and the right side of the line becomes a dominant run-blocking side. And with less edge pressure, Dak won't have rushers coming free in his face. I see an upgrade on the right side. On the left side, definitely a big downgrade in the running game from Leary to Cooper. Cooper is just not as strong and won't get that push. But. If running right becomes more prevalent with Collins at RT, Cooper will be a far better backside and second level blocker than Leary. He is far more mobile and one of the most athletic Gs to be drafted in a while. For zone blocking backside, he is ideal. He also should be decent in pass pro because he's got good feet. But won't be as good as Leary against bill rushers. He doesn't have Leary's strength or base not to get pushed back. So there will be a bit of a trade down there. Overall, I think it could be a minor improvement. At a minimum, the line is more athletic.

 

[FiveTime]

The Cowboys had a RT that couldn't start on most college teams. They can definitely improve.

Sadly they'll never be as good as those glorious 7 games in 2014.

Jeremy Parnell??

 

[Stash]

If Collins can be better than Free at stopping edge pressure (he has to be right?), he is a great run blocker and the right side of the line becomes a dominant run-blocking side. And with less edge pressure, Dak won't have rushers coming free in his face. I see an upgrade on the right side. On the left side, definitely a big downgrade in the running game from Leary to Cooper. Cooper is just not as strong and won't get that push. But. If running right becomes more prevalent with Collins at RT, Cooper will be a far better backside and second level blocker than Leary. He is far more mobile and one of the most athletic Gs to be drafted in a while. For zone blocking backside, he is ideal. He also should be decent in pass pro because he's got good feet. But won't be as good as Leary against bill rushers. He doesn't have Leary's strength or base not to get pushed back. So there will be a bit of a trade down there. Overall, I think it could be a minor improvement. At a minimum, the line is more athletic.

For the record, Cooper bench-pressed 225 lbs 35 times during his workout, while Leary did it 30. Not saying Cooper is stronger, but that he's certainly no slouch, and in the only on-record measurement of strength, Cooper performed better.

 

[Titleist]

I realize that Free had his issues, but that's pretty harsh man.

Yeah, I'm no fan of Free but he wasn't as bad as some people make him out to be. On top of that he was the leader in the locker room of the OLine

 

[Deep_Freeze]

If Collins can be better than Free at stopping edge pressure (he has to be right?), he is a great run blocker and the right side of the line becomes a dominant run-blocking side. And with less edge pressure, Dak won't have rushers coming free in his face. I see an upgrade on the right side. On the left side, definitely a big downgrade in the running game from Leary to Cooper. Cooper is just not as strong and won't get that push. But. If running right becomes more prevalent with Collins at RT, Cooper will be a far better backside and second level blocker than Leary. He is far more mobile and one of the most athletic Gs to be drafted in a while. For zone blocking backside, he is ideal. He also should be decent in pass pro because he's got good feet. But won't be as good as Leary against bill rushers. He doesn't have Leary's strength or base not to get pushed back. So there will be a bit of a trade down there. Overall, I think it could be a minor improvement. At a minimum, the line is more athletic.

For all his pass blocking faults, Free was actually a pretty good run blocker. Collins has been inconsistent, great at times, horrible in others. Almost like a lack of concentration.

I would say Collins is a lil upgrade on pass blocking if he earns the position from Free, but in run blocking on a constant basis, Free is underrated.

 

[xwalker]

Jeremy Parnell??

Yes. He gave up 1 sack in 7 games and destroyed people in the running game. He punished Kerrigan in Washington to the point that I almost felt bad for Kerrigan. Zack Martin and Parnell annilated people when they ran power right but they didn't run that with Free.

The real reason the Parnell story fascinates me is that many fans and other media can't see a good OLineman if somebody is not telling them what to believe.

Fans media were expecting it from Martin and Collins, but it took a long time for people to see that Leary was good. Most never understood it with Parnell because Broaddus and Mickey were pumping up Free with moronic stuff about him being a great leader. In reality Frederick has been the leader almost from the 1st snap he took with the Cowboys.

Bob Sturm did point out Parnell's attributes, but that was primarily after that season. Broaddus as he almost always does, will state an opinion about a player and continue to try to prove himself correct. He had predicted Weems would be great and Parnell would be cut. Once he makes a prediction that a player will be good or bad, he will continue to make those claims for years afterwards despite evidence to the contrary. The vast majority of media and fans will just parrott what he says.

 

[CCBoy]

Yes. He gave up 1 sack in 7 games and destroyed people in the running game. He punished Kerrigan in Washington to the point that I almost felt bad for Kerrigan. Zack Martin and Parnell annilated people when they ran power right but they didn't run that with Free.

The real reason the Parnell story fascinates me is that many fans and other media can't see a good OLineman if somebody is not telling them what to believe.

Fans media were expecting it from Martin and Collins, but it took a long time for people to see that Leary was good. Most never understood it with Parnell because Broaddus and Mickey were pumping up Free with moronic stuff about him being a great leader. In reality Frederick has been the leader almost from the 1st snap he took with the Cowboys.

Bob Sturm did point out Parnell's attributes, but that was primarily after that season. Broaddus as he almost always does, will state an opinion about a player and continue to try to prove himself correct. He had predicted Weems would be great and Parnell would be cut. Once he makes a prediction that a player will be good or bad, he will continue to make those claims for years afterwards despite evidence to the contrary. The vast majority of media and fans will just parrott what he says.

X, your observations are always appreciated by this fan...

 

[Stash]

Parnell hasn't been anything great and not worth what the Jaguars paid him. Anyone who wants to look into things can see for themselves that the Jaguars continue to vigorously look for upgrades, trading for Branden Albert and drafting Cam Robinson this year.

 

[JohnsKey19]

You keep 9 at that point.

If one of the UFAs like Theaker proves worthy of keeping on the 53 and developing, I believe Looney is the odd man out. Bell can play either G spot. They've already worked Cooper at C in practice last season in case of emergency. I have a hard time letting a young guy like Cleary go for nothing who has already proven in limited duty he can respectfully perform at LT. So I would keep Bell, Cleary, Green and rookie(Theaker).

 

[gimmesix]

With Collins at right tackle, the left guard spot could be taken over by Jonathan Cooper. Again, if you’re trying to get the best talent on the field, the former first-round pick would go a long way to doing that. Cooper has had his issues finding his groove since he entered the league, but he has flashed some skills and he now gets to work with Frank Pollack, who is one of the better line coaches in the business. He’s still young and has time to figure it out, especially playing in-between two All-Pro players in Tyron Smith and Travis Frederick. Speaking of Smith, remember that he played hurt almost all of 2016 with neck and back issues that zapped him of some of his ability and strength. With Smith returning to full health this year, expect him to get back to a more dominant form in 2017...

I think Pollack's ability as a line coach might be tested some this year. I don't know think it's accurate at this point to called him one of the better line coaches in the business. He came in and worked with one of the better line coaches in the business while Callahan was shaping the careers of Smith, Frederick, Martin and even Leary.

The only returning lineman we have who has only worked with Pollack in the pros is Chaz Green. If Pollack can polish Cooper into the starting guard he was supposed to be, then he'll deserve the kind of credit he's being given in this article.

 

[gimmesix]

I realize that Free had his issues, but that's pretty harsh man.

xwalker is to Doug Free what Risen Star is to Dak Prescott, except for the obvious craving for attention (likes).

 

[gimmesix]

It's not a stretch at all to think Cooper/Collins will be better or at least a push compared to Leary/Free. I would rather have a better ROT than LOG and Collins provides that over Free.

I'm all for Collins being better than Free at right tackle, but right now that's purely an assumption. Free wasn't our starting right tackle because he was Jason's nephew or something, he started because he was the best man we had for the job for a variety of reasons warts and all.

 

[FiveTime]

Yes. He gave up 1 sack in 7 games and destroyed people in the running game. He punished Kerrigan in Washington to the point that I almost felt bad for Kerrigan. Zack Martin and Parnell annilated people when they ran power right but they didn't run that with Free.

The real reason the Parnell story fascinates me is that many fans and other media can't see a good OLineman if somebody is not telling them what to believe.

Fans media were expecting it from Martin and Collins, but it took a long time for people to see that Leary was good. Most never understood it with Parnell because Broaddus and Mickey were pumping up Free with moronic stuff about him being a great leader. In reality Frederick has been the leader almost from the 1st snap he took with the Cowboys.

Bob Sturm did point out Parnell's attributes, but that was primarily after that season. Broaddus as he almost always does, will state an opinion about a player and continue to try to prove himself correct. He had predicted Weems would be great and Parnell would be cut. Once he makes a prediction that a player will be good or bad, he will continue to make those claims for years afterwards despite evidence to the contrary. The vast majority of media and fans will just parrott what he says.

I was just poking at you X ;-)

 

[xwalker]

I was just poking at you X ;-)

I didn't have any angst against you. Just taking the opportunity to share my thoughts on the subject.

I still find the whole thing fascinating. As I mentioned, it was similar with Leary until it became more than obvious that Leary was actually a good player. People were crying about Leary leaving this year, but he was often denigrated in the early years of his career. I was a fan of Leary in his first preseason and I was disappointed that he was placed on the practice squad. They did give him the extra money to stay, but it another team had offer a spot on their 53 he could have accepted.

Broaddus and his minions can say something and it will get parroted by other media and fans continuously to the point that people start to believe it as fact. Doug Free was not a good run blocker but that idea got propagated by media and fans. The Cowboys schemed to allow Free to function within their scheme as a wall-off run blocker which had good results; however, if Free was compared to his piers, he would rate poorly as a run blocker. He could not get movement on DLinemen. The Cowboys would scheme to get him on LBs where he could get movement due to his 85 pound weight difference, but good blocking TEs could do that.

It's much like American and World history. There is the story most people believe and then there is what really happened.