DC.COM/DMN Blog: Five to Watch Tonight vs. Vikings

[WoodysGirl]

Posted by rphillips at 9/4/2009 12:17 PM CDT on truebluefanclub.com

The Cowboys’ remaining open roster spots – at least for their initial 53-man roster – will be decided tonight against Minnesota.

The starters will sit. The bubble guys will fight for jobs.

With that in mind, here’s five to watch:

LB Matt Stewart: Chances improved with injuries to rookie linebackers Jason Williams (ankle) and Stephen Hodge (knee). Hodge didn’t travel with the team to Minnesota after being limited in practice this week with soreness in his surgically-repaired knee. Stewart should get plenty of reps inside.

CB Mike Mickens: The seventh-round pick is pushing for one of the final defensive back spots, and combo corner/safety Alan Ball’s concussion last week might have given him better odds. Ball’s status for the opener is uncertain at this point; he didn’t practice this week. Still, Mickens needs a good showing tonight.

WR Isaiah Stanback: Can the Cowboys keep six receivers? Wade Phillips says it’s possible. Rookie free agent Kevin Ogletree has made a strong case for a job, but don’t count out Stanback yet.

C Duke Preston: Preston’s minimum ’09 salary would be much cheaper than Cory Procter’s one-year, $1.545 million deal. But the newly-acquired center needs to show the coaches something tonight. He should have lots of chances.

LB Victor Butler: Butler’s job is safe, but tonight he’ll get plenty of reps at outside linebacker. With Greg Ellis gone and rookie Brandon Williams injured, the Cowboys need Butler to step up.

-Rob

 

[Doomsday101]

They left out the 6th thing to look for in the game. Which is the clock going down to 00:00 and the start of the regular season. :laugh2:

 

[Stash]

Matt Stewart's chances to make this team have definitely gone up.

Definitely in the right place at the right time with regard to the recent injuries.

Unfortunately, Hodge looks like a candidate for IR.

 

[Rampage]

I wana see mad dog Octavien again. anybody know what number Octavien(i forgot I think 52) and Duke Preston are?

 

[Chocolate Lab]

Matt Stewart's chances to make this team have definitely gone up.

If nothing else, I love how he bulldozed Vince Young after that INT. :laugh2:

 

[Stash]

If nothing else, I love how he bulldozed Vince Young after that INT. :laugh2:

Yeah, it's just too bad that the INT wasn't more of a big deal.

Everybody seems to get 'em from Vince...

:laugh2:

 

[adamknite]

I wana see mad dog Octavien again. anybody know what number Octavien(i forgot I think 52) and Duke Preston are?

Doc Oc is 53

Preston is 69

 

[DMOB]

Any word on how long Ogletree is gonna play? I'm looking forward to watching him.

 

[WoodysGirl]

DMN Blog

Five who could say farewell if they don't play well in preseason finale
3:26 PM Fri, Sep 04, 2009 | Permalink | Yahoo! Buzz
Tim MacMahon/Blogger Bio | E-mail | News tips

Let's be honest: The preseason finale won't be pretty football.

Vikings coach Brad Childress has already said his starters won't play. Wade Phillips kept tight-lipped about his plans, but do you really think Tony Romo will play a down?

This is the Bottom of the Roster Bowl. It's a game featuring guys fighting for spots on the 53-man roster. I'd advise local sports fans to go to a high school football game or watch the Rangers on TV, but if you insist on tuning into Cowboys-Vikings, here are five guys to watch.

CB Mike Mickens: The seventh-round pick struggled during camp and hasn't had a strong preseason, but he still has a chance to make the cut due to the Cowboys' lack of cornerback depth. Mickens' best attribute is his ability to come up with the ball (school-record 14 picks at Cincinnati). We saw flashes of that when he wasn't giving up big plays during camp. This would be a good time to remind the coaches.

OLB Steve Octavien: Fourth-rounder Victor Butler, the highest pick in this class left standing, is guaranteed one backup OLB spot. Waiver wire pickup Curtis Johnson will probably get another. Can Octavien convince the Cowboys to keep five OLBs? AT 6-0, 246, he's undersized, but he's shown good burst off the edge. He'd help his cause significantly with a standout special teams performance.

C/G Duke Preston: This one is a cop-out since I blogged about Preston this morning.

LB Matt Stewart: He's kind of a utility guy, having worked at ILB, OLB and deep snapper. Stewart wasn't consistent enough to threaten L.P. Ladouceur's job. However, with all the injuries at linebacker, Stewart has a shot. He's another guy who would do himself a lot of good with a strong special teams performance.

WR Isaiah Stanback: Kevin Ogletree has claimed the fifth WR job. It's hard to envision the Cowboys keeping six receivers again, but if Stanback makes a big play or two, he could tempt them with his potential again. But he's more likely auditioning for the other 31 teams, as is the case with 22 guys on each team tonight.

 

[MONT17]

Stanback and Procter/or both make the team... Jerrys kids!

 

[LeonDixson]

Matt Stewart's chances to make this team have definitely gone up.

Definitely in the right place at the right time with regard to the recent injuries.

Unfortunately, Hodge looks like a candidate for IR.

I agree, but it's probably the best thing for him. Having a full year to rehab the knee may work out best in the long run. If he could pass waivers and land on our practice squad I'd be all over that, but I don't want to lose him.

 

[Doomsday]

Any word on how long Ogletree is gonna play? I'm looking forward to watching him.

Mosley reported on ESPN that he was going to get the start tonight.

 

[jobberone]

I'd cut Stewart because he can likely be resigned after week one if we need him. I know its cold. His ties to Wade may save him. That and the fact he still has something in the tank. He just isn't the future of the team. Tough call here.

Hodge the same. Depends on what the docs say is my guess. How chronic is this thing going to be? How many rookies are we gonna carry 'for awhile' who are hurt?

 

[TD-33]

A couple of weeks ago they were showing several TCU games and so I made a point to watch Hodge pretty much every snap that he played.

Maybe the games they re-aired were bad for him but he looked awful most of the time.
He seriously reminded me of a recent RW31. He never seemed to "get ready" for a snap like the other guys, he was almost always jogging up to the play after it was over and though he made a couple of good plays he missed tackles and looked out of place a lot. He just struck me as lazy, kind of like MartyB does at times.
I have nothing against Hodge and hope he his our best player someday but what is it about him that makes him so special? Just raw talent? Or did I miss something?


edit: put Victor but meant Hodge

 

[Ren]

A couple of weeks ago they were showing several TCU games and so I made a point to watch Hodge pretty much every snap that he played.

Maybe the games they re-aired were bad for him but he looked awful most of the time.
He seriously reminded me of a recent RW31. He never seemed to "get ready" for a snap like the other guys, he was almost always jogging up to the play after it was over and though he made a couple of good plays he missed tackles and looked out of place a lot. He just struck me as lazy, kind of like MartyB does at times.
I have nothing against Hodge and hope he his our best player someday but what is it about him that makes him so special? Just raw talent? Or did I miss something?


edit: put Victor but meant Hodge

Watch TCU's bowl game from last year against Boise state, Hodge was a beast in that game

[youtube]<object width="560" height="340"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/ScAP30KW_h0&hl=en&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/ScAP30KW_h0&hl=en&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="560" height="340"></embed></object>[/youtube]

 

[5Stars]

I'd cut Stewart because he can likely be resigned after week one if we need him. I know its cold. His ties to Wade may save him. That and the fact he still has something in the tank. He just isn't the future of the team. Tough call here.

Hodge the same. Depends on what the docs say is my guess. How chronic is this thing going to be? How many rookies are we gonna carry 'for awhile' who are hurt?

I say three years...maybe four.




Oh, the irony...

 

[BAT]

I am curious as to which TCU games you watched. The last word I would think to describe Hodge is "lazy".

A couple of weeks ago they were showing several TCU games and so I made a point to watch Hodge pretty much every snap that he played.

Maybe the games they re-aired were bad for him but he looked awful most of the time.
He seriously reminded me of a recent RW31. He never seemed to "get ready" for a snap like the other guys, he was almost always jogging up to the play after it was over and though he made a couple of good plays he missed tackles and looked out of place a lot. He just struck me as lazy, kind of like MartyB does at times.
I have nothing against Hodge and hope he his our best player someday but what is it about him that makes him so special? Just raw talent? Or did I miss something?


edit: put Victor but meant Hodge

 

[TD-33]

I am curious as to which TCU games you watched. The last word I would think to describe Hodge is "lazy".

Well they had I think 4 of them they played over and over a couple of days on CBS C, I can't remember the t eams.

 

[TD-33]

Watch TCU's bowl game from last year against Boise state, Hodge was a beast in that game

yeah definitely looked good there. looks fast.

 

[Bluefin]

I'd cut Stewart because he can likely be resigned after week one if we need him. I know its cold. His ties to Wade may save him. That and the fact he still has something in the tank. He just isn't the future of the team. Tough call here.

If Matt Stewart is on the roster for the first game, his base salary will be guaranteed for the entire season.

I don't see why we'd want to do that.

We can always re-sign Stewart after week one.