Defensive Passer Rating will once again doom this team

[Zimmy Lives]

We need more cornerbacks.

No. WE need more grandpas on the d-line. Forget young blue-chippers.

 

[jterrell]

The thing about defense is, offenses will find and attack whatever weakness you do have. It doesn't matter where it is. It's not like on offense, where you can slide protection or roll away from pressure or just not run the ball, or just put the ball up to a playmaker and watch him go. On offense, you're taking the most favorable matchup you can exploit. On defense, you need to eliminate every favorable match up, or you're going to lose on the play. So, good defenses have both pressure and coverage. It's a least-common denominator thing. We've got average pressure and poor coverage, and we need to upgrade in both areas if we want to get better.

I'm actually with most of the 'upgrade the trenches' guys when it comes to the DL. We need to add another high pick and at least one impact player via FA there. At the same time, our S play has to improve, and our coverage LBs have to improve. It's not an either-or situation.

That said, if we had our planned DL on the field right now, I think we'd be a better-than-average coverage team. This defense, though, is built around DL pressure, and addressing that is the best way to get a quick impact. I'd love to see an impact S available to us in the draft, but don't think one will be there where we're drafting. Short of that, Wilcox is actually adjusting well to the NFL, and I think his natural trajectory will get us some improvement. I'm torn about spending more resources at the S position. We've neglected it forever, but I actually do like Church and Wilcox, and I think both Heath and Matt Johnson both show some potential. I'm tempted to roll the dice there, again, knowing we need help elsewhere. At the same time, our pass defense is killing us against good teams and it absolutely has to be fixed.

good post.

if we let Hatcher and Spencer both walk, you darn right we better invest in a DL. That's 13 or so million of salary cap dollars. And if we think even an R1 pick where we select int he draft is replacing that next year we are smoking a glass pipe.

but right now at DL we have rights to: Spencer, Ware, Hatcher, Bass, Hayden, Crawford, Selvie. --the 7 or 8 guys we cycle through here that no on can remember week to week but were generally mid round NFL draft picks.
As Safety we have: Church, Wilcox, Heath ( rookie UDFA), Matt Johnson(of the amazing health history) and Danny McCray(of the special teams).

an R1 safety next year could certainly be a major upgrade.

A DL guy is going to be depth.
So I'd prefer that be an R2/R3 target after we keep one of Hatcher/Spencer and promote Bass/Crawford.

 

[jterrell]

No. WE need more grandpas on the d-line. Forget young blue-chippers.

Ahh, you mean like Shariff Floyd? Did he even play versus us? He has what 6 tackles on the year?
Can't believe we passed him for TFred and Terence Williams.

 

[Iago33]

I'm not a ref conspiracy guy, but is there a correlation to penalties and bad pass defense. To be honest, this is the one area of the game where refs can determine how the game is played. We saw that with Williams, and we've seen Claiborne struggle with the arm bar calls. Have we not figured out how to be physical without being called?

 

[Zimmy Lives]

Ahh, you mean like Shariff Floyd? Did he even play versus us? He has what 6 tackles on the year?
Can't believe we passed him for TFred and Terence Williams.

No, he's a cow chipper.

I have been a proponent of drafting d-linemen/o-linemen since Wade became HC. I actually loved the Fred/Williams deal but not so much the recent past picks except for Smith.

You can't keep counting on your past blue-chippers to produce at a high level.

 

[KJJ]

If this DL could have been healthy and in order- maybe things would have been different.

Maybe not...

I'm really tired of everyone using the health of the team as an excuse every year. Every team suffers injuries some have been riddled by them but the good teams have players who come in and step up.

 

[Corso]

Name those teams decimated by injuries and are still good.

I'm not trying to be a jerk, but what teams are "riddled" by injuries and still playing winning ball?

 

[KJJ]

Name those teams decimated by injuries and are still good.

I'm not trying to be a jerk, but what teams are "riddled" by injuries and still playing winning ball?

There's teams that have won SB's despite a number of injuries. The 2010 Packers had 15 players on injured reserve and still won the SB. FANS here say they would love to see how the Cowboys would play totally healthy but no team goes through an entire season totally healthy. Injuries happen to every team so you need players who can come in and step up.

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/599611-green-bay-despite-injuries-and-setbacks-packers-are-champs

 

[KJJ]

Last season the Ravens had to endure injuries to some key players like Ray Lewis who missed several games. Suggs who was out until Oct with an achilles injury and Lardarius Webb suffered a season ender.

 

[Corso]

One team in one year winning despite multiple injuries does not convince me that losing almost you're entire DL shouldn't be considered as a hindrance to the team winning.

I agree about a team going healthy through a season- it's near impossible.

But when a rash of injuries strike the same position repeatedly- including taking out the already signed depth, it should be mentioned. It's a legit excuse. No matter how tired you are of hearing it.

I know this team doesn't have great depth. I also think they don't have great talent, except for a few positions- but this team's injuries hit almost the entire Defensive Line from the very beginning.

What teams absorb that and keep playing strong D?

And please don't give me ONE team from 1983 or 2002. I'm looking for substance, not outliers.

 

[Corso]

Last season the Ravens had to endure injuries to some key players like Ray Lewis who missed several games. Suggs who was out until Oct with an achilles injury and Lardarius Webb suffered a season ender.

Ray Lewis was already a cooked turkey last year. Suggs, yes.

Did the Ravens nearly lose an entire position group last year?

 

[KJJ]

Ray Lewis was already a cooked turkey last year. Suggs, yes.

Did the Ravens nearly lose an entire position group last year?

Lewis was still a key player on their defense which is why he came back despite not being 100%. Losing their starting corner Lardarius Webb was a huge loss for the Ravens. Webb is a franchise CB hard for any defense to survive that and go on to win a championship. Even with the Cowboys entire starting DL it's an average unit. In 2012 FANS made excuses about all the injuries to the defense pointing to the loss of Lee and Carter but even when the defense was healthy early in the season with Lee and Carter the defense was still getting shredded.

Even Jerry pointed that out as part of the reason why he fired Ryan. When Lee went out vs New Orleans FANS and even some in the media said the defense looks horrible without Lee but it looked horrible with him. Two weeks prior to Lee's injury the defense gave up a then franchise record 623 yards to Detroit.

 

[KJJ]

I'm tired of the injury excuses...

Then stop using them as an excuse.

If this DL could have been healthy and in order- maybe things would have been different.

 

[KJJ]

You deleted your comment but not quick enough.

 

[DanteEXT]

Wow KJJ, 6 posts in the same thread without mention of "elimination games" or "spotlight games". Congrats. That has got to be a record for you.

I'm really tired of everyone using the health of the team as an excuse every year. Every team suffers injuries some have been riddled by them but the good teams have players who come in and step up.

Yes, every team has injuries. And yes, the good teams have players that can come in and step up. The good teams though are not the ones with players they counted on to come in and step up in case of injury being gone as well. There's a big difference between suffering some injuries on a team and having TWO players left on your DL that were on your team when the offseason program started. Hell, the Cowboys have had 2 teams worth of different DL since the season started. That is completely ridiculous. Which goes back to your response to Corso post that related to the OP. IF the Cowboys hadn't been forced to shuffle through 19 or so different DL this season MAYBE the teams defensive passer rating would NOT be as bad as it is.

 

[big dog cowboy]

Ahh, you mean like Shariff Floyd? Did he even play versus us? He has what 6 tackles on the year?
Can't believe we passed him for TFred and Terence Williams.

Floyd is up to 6 solo and 6 assisted for 12 total and 2.5 sacks.

 

[KJJ]

Wow KJJ, 6 posts in the same thread without mention of "elimination games" or "spotlight games". Congrats. That has got to be a record for you.



Yes, every team has injuries. And yes, the good teams have players that can come in and step up. The good teams though are not the ones with players they counted on to come in and step up in case of injury being gone as well. There's a big difference between suffering some injuries on a team and having TWO players left on your DL that were on your team when the offseason program started. Hell, the Cowboys have had 2 teams worth of different DL since the season started. That is completely ridiculous. Which goes back to your response to Corso post that related to the OP. IF the Cowboys hadn't been forced to shuffle through 19 or so different DL this season MAYBE the teams defensive passer rating would NOT be as bad as it is.

I just mentioned "elimination games" in another thread. Cowboy FANS use injuries as an excuse every year. FANS search for excuses when their team isn't winning. The Cowboys lost Romo in 2010 who's without a doubt the Cowboys most valuable player but still went 5-3 on a team that was 1-7 with him. Even that team that's been dismantled showed it could step up even when losing it's most valuable player. The Packers are nothing without Rodgers just look at them. The Cowboys spent $50 million on a free agent corner and used the 6th pick in the draft 2 years ago on another corner to improve their pass coverage and it's gotten worse. No matter who they put in there players are always caught out of position.

Everyone made a big deal last season about Carter and Lee being out but this season with them the D has been giving up a franchise record number of yards. Carter got benched for awhile and so did Claiborne. No matter who the Cowboys have on their DL or a LB or in their secondary they can't stop anyone. There's coaching issues and some of the players they've been counting on like Claiborne just aren't that good.

 

[bayeslife]

We need more cornerbacks.

You've finally seen the light.

 

[KJJ]

We need more cornerbacks.

The Cowboys need one great cornerback who's a difference maker.

 

[Risen Star]

The Cowboys need one great cornerback who's a difference maker.

It seems we've been stuck in that rut for some time. We're just one more CB away from some serious pay dirt.