ESPN Clayton: Discusses why he thinks Dallas finishes 3rd or 4th in NFCE

[casmith07]

Its understandable. The boy's have lost CB Anthony Henry. PR Adam Jones. DT Tank Johnson. SS Roy Williams. WR Terrell Owens ETC. Lets face it. The boy's have there work cut out

hahahahaha success

 

[Dallas]

Do any of you realize how hurt Flozell was playing last year?

Don't forget that part. With that injury and the injury to Kozier, our left side was a bandaid every week.

I think Bigg and Columbo do a fine job. I also think Gurode does a fine job. What is the issue is LG and LT. I think Holland will help out a lot.

 

[GoCowboysGo]

Last year I remember hearing, can't remember who, that Flozell's hands were so beat up he could barely shake hands with someone else.

Does anyone else remember that?

 

[bbgun]

Not buying into the cry that his struggles were ALL because of injuries last year.

Do any of you realize how hurt Flozell was playing last year?

You two need to chat.

 

[Dallas]

You two need to chat.

Call me crazy but I think Flozell's hand issue was a lot worse than what was being said to the media.

Some of the stories of him having to get it drained was pretty digusting. Now take that same hand and manhandle the 300lb guy in front of you.

It isn't an excuse but it certainly didn't help.

 

[cobra]

Holy ****, the sky has fallen so many times, I don't know how we are going to win a game.

Our QB is a choking spare.
Our RB are wusses.
Our WRs all suck.
Our OL are all about to kick the bucket.
Letting TO, Tank Pacman, and Ellis go were all a mistake.
We have no depth on DL.
Ware is going to leave and we are going to be stuck starting Barbie Carpenter.
Spencer will be a major step backwards from Ellis.
Newman can't stay healthy.
Jenkins and Scandrick will be a sophmore slump.
Hamlin is garbage who stole money from Jones.
Wade can never win a game when it counts and leads the team to be a bunch of pansies.
Garrett couldn't find his way out of a paper bag and only has 4 crappy plays in his playbook.
Jerry is too dumb to realize how awful team is and will never improve it.

Did I miss any?
I wonder why anyone would bother watching the games next year after reading this place.

 

[slick325]

I admire Flo's toughness and attempt to play thru pain BUT, if you are too hurt to play then don't. If he makes mistakes at his position he can set the franchise back. Romo is that important. If he was so hurt he should have been on the sidelines in street clothes.

It is sad that our backups aren't better than an average Flozell. And before the Flozell brigade gets all up in arms about my use of the words..."average Flozell", I am referring to his play in 2008.

I guess the blame should fall on the staff and management for not having someone to replace the "SO banged up" LT.

 

[21Savage]

For all the talk about this team not finishing strong in December, people don't seem to recognize any good done by this team last year, for instance, Flo finishing strong in December.

Really, he went against Kiwanuka, Harrison, Suggs and Cole in that sequence. The only sack he gave up was against Kiwanuka in a play where Romo had to dodge the inside pass rush, held on to the ball too long and eventually got dragged to the ground by Mathais.

Aikman also faulted him with a pressure against Cole, which was bogus because it was a screen being set up and Romo was late to give up on a busted play.

 

[Nexx]

im tired of tony having to pull a Houdini every time he drops back to pass. clayton is on the money with his assessment. if they dont block, 3rd it is. foreskins are stuck in 4th no matter what.

 

[gimmesix]

Aren't injuries "wear and tear" on your body?

That's why I said "other than injuries." That would be including them as wear and tear.

 

[burmafrd]

I hate to break this to you Tyke but everyone has injuries.

 

[Jay]

True. I will say this I know everyone wants a physical camp but i think Dallas needs to be smart as well and get ample playing time for the guys who will be backing up the starters on the Oline. 1 The starters are experianced vets who will not need alot of time and 2 the backups need to get in as much work as they can.

I did recently read that they would be resting Colombo and Flozell during 2 a days.

Someone in another thread was whining about it, but they're going to be practicing on turf which is rough on these big guys.

 

[ScipioCowboy]

Clayton raises valid concerns. This has far more merit than the myriad of Tony Romo choker threads.

The Cowboys finished third in the division last season. Why is it so far-fetched to predict the Cowboys will finish third or fourth next season?

 

[burmafrd]

IF Clayton had singled out the Hotel as a concern about aging it would have been valid. BUT when he includes a whole line none of whom other then the Hotel is older then 31 then that marks him as just another hack with an agenda.

 

[Stash]

You've hit on why I think the Cowboys will finish third or fourth in the NFC East. They have five offensive line starters in their 30s. The last two teams that did that in the past two years -- the Chicago Bears and Washington Commanders -- watched their lines collapse by the middle of the season. If Romo doesn't have protection, it will be tough. Don't get me wrong: The Cowboys will contend. They have talent. They have a good quarterback. I like the coach. The defense should be good. But the line is the key to the season. If the line crumbles, so will the Cowboys.

This is his 'insight'?

This is some revelation?

Can someone name a team that wouldn't suffer if their line crumbled?

I have my own concerns about the Cowboys' offensive line - specifically a failure to add any dependable depth - but I don't see where any claim he makes wouldn't apply to the league's other 31 teams as well.

The fact is that anyone who's ever listened to Clayton for any period of time knows that he knows all about the Seahawks of the world (other than the Julian Peterson trade) and absolutely nothing about the Dallas Cowboys.

 

[DeaconBlues]

Holy ****, the sky has fallen so many times, I don't know how we are going to win a game.

Our QB is a choking spare.
Our RB are wusses.
Our WRs all suck.
Our OL are all about to kick the bucket.
Letting TO, Tank Pacman, and Ellis go were all a mistake.
We have no depth on DL.
Ware is going to leave and we are going to be stuck starting Barbie Carpenter.
Spencer will be a major step backwards from Ellis.
Newman can't stay healthy.
Jenkins and Scandrick will be a sophmore slump.
Hamlin is garbage who stole money from Jones.
Wade can never win a game when it counts and leads the team to be a bunch of pansies.
Garrett couldn't find his way out of a paper bag and only has 4 crappy plays in his playbook.
Jerry is too dumb to realize how awful team is and will never improve it.

Did I miss any?
I wonder why anyone would bother watching the games next year after reading this place.

+1

My God, 0-16 are staring us in the face, based on the stuff that passes for knowledge around here.

 

[CoCo]

I have two primary concerns about this team in 2009.

1. OL play - Go back to the Giants PO loss in 2007 and see how our healthy O-lineplayed in the 4th quarter of that loss. Romo was absolutely running for his life. THAT is a recipe for disaster. The same was true too often late last year but at least in that scenario we were injured. Not everyone can bring the heat like the Giants & Philly, but BTW - they are both in our division.
2. Secondary play - Having watched both the Seattle and NYG playoff losses this weekend I can remind you that our secondary in both those games melted down at key moments. That has been the trademark of this defense over the last three years. If you REALLY need to stop a team, there's a good chance they'll break your heart.

I'm hopeful, but not confident, in both areas. I believe they are our achilles heel. I hope we can adequately protect them.

 

[sonnyboy]

This is his 'insight'?

This is some revelation?

Can someone name a team that wouldn't suffer if their line crumbled?

I have my own concerns about the Cowboys' offensive line - specifically a failure to add any dependable depth - but I don't see where any claim he makes wouldn't apply to the league's other 31 teams as well.

The fact is that anyone who's ever listened to Clayton for any period of time knows that he knows all about the Seahawks of the world (other than the Julian Peterson trade) and absolutely nothing about the Dallas Cowboys.

That's my issue with this drivel.

Maybe it's just me, but it appears most every negative prognostication on our 2009 Cowboys works hard to find the one or two reasons we won't do well.

And now we have this latest nugget. Our whole line is over 30 and the last two teams with an all-over 30 OL broke down.
Outside of QB, the OL is the one position with the longest shelf-life. 30 is not old for an OL, not even close.

I've followed the NFL long enough to know what I'm looking at.

I know when a team has more question marks than answers.
I know when a team has too much age and a higher risk of injury.

This not one of those teams.

But yet the negativity persists.

 

[cobra]

Last year: Super Bowl favorites with a dominant OL.

One year later: 3rd place in the NFCE b/c the one-year-older OL is now completely riddled with osteoporosis and Alzheimers.

 

[Idgit]

Clayton raises valid concerns. This has far more merit than the myriad of Tony Romo choker threads.

The Cowboys finished third in the division last season. Why is it so far-fetched to predict the Cowboys will finish third or fourth next season?

Coach Zorn.