Dallas in Post-Draft Power Rankings

[Nation]

NFL.com: Sixth. "Plenty of folks were disappointed with Dallas not drafting a running back. After hearing Stephen Jones speak on SiriusXM NFL Radio, I think the Cowboys felt that no running back after a certain point (like, late in Day 2) was going to beat out Darren McFadden, Joseph Randle and Lance Dunbar anyway. The 'Boys carry three backs ... McFadden has had huge days in the NFL before. Randle averaged 6.7 yards per carry last year. And Dunbar is flat-out explosive -- he will be a third-down guy, for certain. So let's put a muzzle on the "Why didn't they replace DeMarco?" whining."
Eagles 12th, Giants 26th, Commanders 28th

ESPN: Sixth. "The Cowboys rushed more than any other team last season, but didn't draft a RB to replace DeMarco Murray. That leaves Darren McFadden, who has one 16-game season in his career, as the lead back."
Eagles 11th, Giants 23rd, Commanders 27th

CBS Sports: Seventh. "The Cowboys enter 2015 with more talent in the secondary and more pass rushers. If they don’t acquire Adrian Peterson, we will find out if DeMarco Murray was truly a product of his offensive line. The Cowboys were one of the best offenses in 2014 because they ran the ball to open up the pass."
Eagles 11th, Giants 16th, Commanders 26th

Fox Sports: Fourth. "Their Super Bowl chances may come down to character guys in Greg Hardy and second-round pick Randy Gregory. If both get on the field without issues, they will get after the passer late in the season"
NFC East: Eagles 12th, Giants 18th, Commanders 32nd

 

[Longboysfan]

After week 6, if the Hardy suspension is shortened, we will be getting after the QB at a good rate.
We should also see our interception count go up.

 

[jazzcat22]

They mentioned McFadden having one 16 game season...well didn't Murray only have one 16 game season also...last year and over used....
Not into rankings and power rankings all that much. But I am surprised they had us this high. Usually they find a way to knock us down further.
I am more surprised the Eagles are ranked below us.

Could it be they are truly giving a real opinion for once....LOL...

Who were the teams above us?
Is there a link to this?

 

[Alexander]

I see Dallas as 4th in the CBS rankings.

http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/powerrankings

 

[Nation]

I see Dallas as 4th in the CBS rankings.

http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/powerrankings

CBS Sports = Fox Sports and vice versa, thanks for catching this

 

[ShiningStar]

the hardest factor that no one includes, what did the rest of the NFL do for the teams? What i mean is how much competition do the Pats get? How weak are some divisions? How many teams do we call out for making money and not worrying about competition. Factor in some of that and some teams are really lucky. Was Dallas 12-4 last year? No, bad defense played better but the Giants rolled over, Washington was all cellar all the time and we split with the Eagles. Okay, so maybe not a strong 12-4, BUT also beat the Seahawks and improved on offense to play with the big boys. Its stragatey and dare i say Garrett came up with some good plans and stayed committed.

Do i like everything Dallas did, no, no team is perfect, you play who you play but if you are going to rank teams, be consistent with what the rest of the NFL offers.

 

[FuzzyLumpkins]

NFL.com: Sixth. "Plenty of folks were disappointed with Dallas not drafting a running back. After hearing Stephen Jones speak on SiriusXM NFL Radio, I think the Cowboys felt that no running back after a certain point (like, late in Day 2) was going to beat out Darren McFadden, Joseph Randle and Lance Dunbar anyway. The 'Boys carry three backs ... McFadden has had huge days in the NFL before. Randle averaged 6.7 yards per carry last year. And Dunbar is flat-out explosive -- he will be a third-down guy, for certain. So let's put a muzzle on the "Why didn't they replace DeMarco?" whining."
Eagles 12th, Giants 26th, Commanders 28th

ESPN: Sixth. "The Cowboys rushed more than any other team last season, but didn't draft a RB to replace DeMarco Murray. That leaves Darren McFadden, who has one 16-game season in his career, as the lead back."
Eagles 11th, Giants 23rd, Commanders 27th

CBS Sports: Seventh. "The Cowboys enter 2015 with more talent in the secondary and more pass rushers. If they don’t acquire Adrian Peterson, we will find out if DeMarco Murray was truly a product of his offensive line. The Cowboys were one of the best offenses in 2014 because they ran the ball to open up the pass."
Eagles 11th, Giants 16th, Commanders 26th

Fox Sports: Fourth. "Their Super Bowl chances may come down to character guys in Greg Hardy and second-round pick Randy Gregory. If both get on the field without issues, they will get after the passer late in the season"
NFC East: Eagles 12th, Giants 18th, Commanders 32nd

We added a TON of talent to defense with 4 of the top 5 picks going to D and then Hardy and LB depth in FA.

Yet not one of those seems to consider that. This defens have a fair chance to transform particularly if Lee can stay healthy to help cover the middle of the field. We've stacked so many pass rushers that some of them are going to pan out. If they all do. . . .

 

[ShiningStar]

We added a TON of talent to defense with 4 of the top 5 picks going to D and then Hardy and LB depth in FA.

Yet not one of those seems to consider that. This defens have a fair chance to transform particularly if Lee can stay healthy to help cover the middle of the field. We've stacked so many pass rushers that some of them are going to pan out. If they all do. . . .

the talking part is easy, lets see what happens on the field, and im not putting any stock in Lee, even if last year was a freak accident, lets get serious that body is glass. All talent in a glass case. And we dont even know how the defense will mesh. Lets just see who is able to get on the field and produce. If you remember last year on teh board, all we needed was Melton and look who was the big suprises on teh field.

So yes, if people dont factor that, thats fine, this defense doesnt have a solid core yet. Lets wait til we have something on the field to say "yea we can rely on that"

 

[FuzzyLumpkins]

the talking part is easy, lets see what happens on the field, and im not putting any stock in Lee, even if last year was a freak accident, lets get serious that body is glass. All talent in a glass case. And we dont even know how the defense will mesh. Lets just see who is able to get on the field and produce. If you remember last year on teh board, all we needed was Melton and look who was the big suprises on teh field.

So yes, if people dont factor that, thats fine, this defense doesnt have a solid core yet. Lets wait til we have something on the field to say "yea we can rely on that"

If Lee cannot go then we have Wilson, Smith, Gachkar, Brinkley, and the German guy plus probably a UDFA type or two to compete for the spot. If nothing else Hitchens moves over and one of the above plays SAM.

I am just saying that Lee is one of the best coverage LB the Cowboys have ever had. I get that he is glass but if we can keep him on the field it will go a long way towards solving the middle coverage that plagued us. The ceiling is pretty high. Of course you can have personal meltdowns and injuries which makes for a troubling floor but otoh there is a ton of depth at every position but S with White Heath and Spillman. Even DTs Crawford, Bishop, Brent, McClain, Coleman, Crawford, Whaley, Hayden is a deep prospect pool.

 

[endersdragon]

This talk of McFadden being our lead back is a bit silly as well... I would put $20 on Randle having more yards this year DMC

 

[ShiningStar]

If Lee cannot go then we have Wilson, Smith, Gachkar, Brinkley, and the German guy plus probably a UDFA type or two to compete for the spot. If nothing else Hitchens moves over and one of the above plays SAM.

I am just saying that Lee is one of the best coverage LB the Cowboys have ever had. I get that he is glass but if we can keep him on the field it will go a long way towards solving the middle coverage that plagued us. The ceiling is pretty high. Of course you can have personal meltdowns and injuries which makes for a troubling floor but otoh there is a ton of depth at every position but S with White Heath and Spillman. Even DTs Crawford, Bishop, Brent, McClain, Coleman, Crawford, Whaley, Hayden is a deep prospect pool.

One hit, Lee can go down. That can not be pushed to the side. Now lets talk FS position, still a position that has haunted Dallas. A problem that stares them in teh face year in and year out. How did we solve it this year?

 

[endersdragon]

One hit, Lee can go down. That can not be pushed to the side. Now lets talk FS position, still a position that has haunted Dallas. A problem that stares them in teh face year in and year out. How did we solve it this year?

Have Byron Jones play it duh. Trust Mo to be our nickelback so we can move Jones over to free safety

 

[ShiningStar]

Have Byron Jones play it duh. Trust Mo to be our nickelback so we can move Jones over to free safety

in power rankings and taking into account other factors, than yes, you already assume what a player who has never played a down in teh NFL can do. Fantasy should always trump reality. We are still waiting for Bobby Carpenter to bust out. Or Pat Watkins. these are examples, dont get literal. So peopel doing rankings shouldnt take into account what they think a player would do. But the fact is, we ignored FS again.

 

[Nation]

Have Byron Jones play it duh. Trust Mo to be our nickelback so we can move Jones over to free safety

Mo will be lucky not to start the year on the PUP list let alone playing a significant role

 

[endersdragon]

in power rankings and taking into account other factors, than yes, you already assume what a player who has never played a down in teh NFL can do. Fantasy should always trump reality. We are still waiting for Bobby Carpenter to bust out. Or Pat Watkins. these are examples, dont get literal. So peopel doing rankings shouldnt take into account what they think a player would do. But the fact is, we ignored FS again.

And the Eagles have a QB who is one of the worst in terms of QBR over the last 5 years. We ignored FS (though we ignored FS no matter what according to you because it is all just a guessing game, even free agency) the Eagles are in fantasyland when it comes to QB, as are the Giants and Skins for that matter. I like where we are at more.

P.S. If the draft is fantasy and trading is fantasy (we are still waiting for Roy Williams to bust out) and free agency is fantasy (we are still waiting for Brandon Carr to bust out) how exactly do you address a position?

 

[gmoney112]

in power rankings and taking into account other factors, and yes, you already assume what a player who has never played a down in teh NFL can do. Fantasy should always trump reality. We are still waiting for Bobby Carpenter to bust out. Or Pat Watkins. these are examples, dont get literal. So peopel doing rankings shouldnt take into account what they think a player would do. But the fact is, we ignored FS again.

Every team has a weakness. Your logic could be applied to every single team. You can't address every issue on every team every year.

We already drastically overhauled our defense beyond mosts expectations.

If our defense stays healthy, especially Lee, we'll easily have a top 10 unit, regardless of FS.

 

[ShiningStar]

Every team has a weakness. Your logic could be applied to every single team. You can't address every issue on every team every year.

We already drastically overhauled our defense beyond mosts expectations.

If our defense stays healthy, especially Lee, we'll easily have a top 10 unit, regardless of FS.

let me address this first, because this post is more of where i am going. Yes i know every team has a weakness. Goes without saying, my first couple psots was about Dallas only. But you are correct.

Now let me address the FS problem Its a problem thats been staring at us for years. Thats the difference between us and some teams. Some teams see a problem staring at them and fix it. We stare at the problem and keep staring. It hasnt been and its fix is not on the team yet until we take the person manning the position and toss him.

 

[ShiningStar]

And the Eagles have a QB who is one of the worst in terms of QBR over the last 5 years. We ignored FS (though we ignored FS no matter what according to you because it is all just a guessing game, even free agency) the Eagles are in fantasyland when it comes to QB, as are the Giants and Skins for that matter. I like where we are at more.

P.S. If the draft is fantasy and trading is fantasy (we are still waiting for Roy Williams to bust out) and free agency is fantasy (we are still waiting for Brandon Carr to bust out) how exactly do you address a position?

I dont care what the Eagles and Giants do. but my assessment of rankings has got to take it all into effect, and yes, let me make this clear, Giants lost to the Jags and had a lead by half time. If people doing these rankings ignore half the factors, i dont care what they come up with. Staring at that problem and glossing it over is not taking their job serious. Coughlin should have whipped the coaches for that debacle, and it should show in the rankings.

Your assesment of the eagles by stats is correct, heres the one stat (this is why i hate stat people because they can pick and choose) I dont care if the Eagles have a QB with a .00004 stat, they won and expect for a few bad chocies they would have gone into teh playoffs and Dallas would have been sitting home. Dallas got very lucky last year and not a lot of fans want to admit that. Im not a fan of it but its what happened. Did we get robbed as well, sure, do we accept karma if we play that game no. We ranted and blamed everyone else. Its what happened.

I like where Dallas is at too, im glad certain coaches are gone and im thrilled the scouting department has been changed. But when it comes to factors and doing the rankings they should all be labeled OPINION AT BEST.

 

[jday]

ESPN: Sixth. "The Cowboys rushed more than any other team last season, but didn't draft a RB to replace DeMarco Murray. That leaves Darren McFadden, who has one 16-game season in his career, as the lead back."

Leave it to ESPN to ignore the fact that the same could be said of Demarco Murray...

 

[ShiningStar]

Leave it to ESPN to ignore the fact that the same could be said of Demarco Murray...

non one should ever accuse ESPN of being impartial or fact based or all about the sports.