I think they are doing it now because they couldn't get Waters for what they were willing to pay. Now, they have to figure out a different way to form a starting lineup that doesn't include Arkin or Costa or any of the other spare parts, and probably to ultimately form a lineup that doesn't include Bernadeau (when Leary returns).
Although I feel Arkin has performed well (better than Bernadeau), Dallas doesn't seem to have any regular-season trust in him.
I finally got the chance to watch the Arizona game tonight (this Time Warner/CBS feud has been a pain in the butt...I finally got a replay on the NFL network dvr'd today). Just a couple of very late observations on the guard play:
I thought Berny looked better, and Arkin worse, than I was expecting to see after reading the writers and zoners reports on the game. Bern had a bad first series - I counted two negative plays on the series (which I think was six plays and a punt), and one other that could have been called negative. He got beaten badly on a backside block on a stretch play and his guy made the tackle for no gain, and he got pushed back into Romo on a pass protection. But after that, through the first series of the third quarter, I had no notes of any negative plays. He looked pretty solid in pass pro, held his ground and anchored well, and did his job on the few runs we attempted.
I was curious about watching Arkin, since Broaddus and Vela had good things to say about him, he got pretty good reviews here on the zone...but Garrett wasn't exactly complimentary about him in his comments. He said something like "we saw some of the same issues we've been seeing". So I watched him play by play. I didn't see any of the strength problems. But he looked slow on two stunt handoffs with Smith. He got the corner turned on him on a couple of pass plays. He was late picking up a linebacker on a screen - granted, the lb made a good quick read and blew up the screen to Witten, but Arkin didn't get over to cut him off (this was the play that Smith got called for holding on Campbell, I think the second offensive series). He let his guy get across his face and beat on a stretch play, and his guy forced the rb wide into other defenders.
He had some nice plays. He turned his guy (I think Campbell) and he and Fred created a beautiful hole on Murray's nice run on the first possession. But I thought he was missing in some of the areas that should be strengths of his - quickness, and blocking on the move. Granted, I was being picky with him. I like the guy and root for him, so maybe I'm being too picky to not be biased in his favor. But I'd put him behind Bern at this point. I think either he or Bern could be okay, like I said a couple of weeks ago, as the weakest link on a good line. But I think right now, based on the past two games, he is more of a marginal starter than Bern.
One play stood out to me that was worth pointing out, involving Arkin and Fred. Several here have pointed out Arkin seeming to be slow on a stunt handoff with Smith and getting beat inside on a sack of Tanney in the second half. The same thing happened in the first half, but he was bailed out by Fred. It was the first play of the second quarter. Romo back to pass, Arkin and Smith's guys stunt, and Arkin was slow to hand off and cut off the inside stunter. But Fred was all over it. At the snap he immediately helped Bernardeau with his guy, just put his right hand on the tackle, and while helping Bern, heimmediately had his head turned left to see the stunt coming. He moved over and cut off the guy cutting inside Arkin. Romo might have gotten the ball off anyway, but it could have been a qb hit. I mention this because it was a really nice head-on-a-swivel awareness by that multi-tasking engineer of a center we picked up somewhere this offseason.
