Garrett, entitlements, and an idea

[cannonball44]

I'm happy that you were all able to see some fruition from Garrett's long term plan at the end of this year. Hopefully Garrett keeps learning and continues on his Dez Bryant like trajectory of improvement as a head coach. I know he's going to be great, I really hope that its with the Cowboys. Believe me I understand how hard it is to see a long term picture when you have a 3-5 record staring you in the face. I wont lie, with injuries mounting, and a woeful record, I entertained the idea of tanking for high draft picks. Shame on me, I should atone for my sins i know. Thats why I'm not in the front office.

We are all aware of the theory of the entitled, seemingly non-chalant, country club atmosphere that the Cowboys normally bring to the table, and how it manifests itself into a soft team, incapable of stepping up when needed. With the mounting injuries, do you think that all of these new fringe players, with their "paid in gum" contracts are giving this team a hungrier, more desperate attitude? or is it all Garrett coming of coaching age, the team bearing the process fruits of his good day stacking labor??

finally, with Bruce Carter's superior speed and strength, do you think its possible to move him to SOLB next year? I understand that its largely predicated on ability to rush the passer, but we got away with Spencer providing the minimal amount of sacks for years. I have no fears whatsoever about him being able to hold the edge. that would still give an inside LB rotation of Lee, Albright, Sims, Connor/Lemon(?)

please discuss

 

[Eskimo]

I actually think the entitlement attitude stopped after the 2010 season when the old overpaid vets were shown the door.

I think we finished weak in the 4th quarter last year because we didn't have much depth. When other team's were in come from behind situations they were usually facing a gassed DL and a pathetic secondary so it is not surprising that were bad in those situations. I don't put that on coaching or entitlement. We actually did fine last year late when we were playing from behind. We would have been really, really good if a couple of FGs were made - the miss in Arizona for the win and the blocked FGA against the Giants in the loss.

As for moving Carter to OLB it is a decent thought and a possible strategy. However, we would still need an edge rusher for the 4-man DL in the nickel alignment. Carter would not play that role as that is not his forte. There aren't many rushers in the league as small as him - Von Miller is the only good one that comes to mind.

As to whether Garrett is becoming a better HC over time I do believe this is likely but I'm not sure this is what accounts for the midseason turnaround. I think more of it has to do with the strength of schedule and just luck evening out over time as a lot of breaks seemed to go against us early but have gone for us as of late. When you look at our early season losses Seattle is actually much better than anyone realized and Chicago was very strong at 7-1 to start the season before they ran into trouble. The Giants barely beat us in a game where we got off to a horrific start with turnovers and fell far, far behind - we almost got that one. The Falcons are tough to beat at home and they played great ball control offense to beat us. OTOH, Cincinnati really outplayed us most of the game and yet we pulled that one out.

I do think the toughness to keep battling even when we are down and even after the injuries is a reflection of the HC. No matter the situation Garrett maintains his composure and just looks forward and marches on. This is the attitude he has been trying to instill the last 2.5 seasons and his players seem to have bought in and that is half the battle. The other half of the battle is the FO giving him a better roster to work with and that is slowly happening. I do believe we were in a deeper hole when he took over than anyone realized.

 

[Proximo]

I'm happy that you were all able to see some fruition from Garrett's long term plan at the end of this year. Hopefully Garrett keeps learning and continues on his Dez Bryant like trajectory of improvement as a head coach. I know he's going to be great, I really hope that its with the Cowboys. Believe me I understand how hard it is to see a long term picture when you have a 3-5 record staring you in the face. I wont lie, with injuries mounting, and a woeful record, I entertained the idea of tanking for high draft picks. Shame on me, I should atone for my sins i know. Thats why I'm not in the front office.

We are all aware of the theory of the entitled, seemingly non-chalant, country club atmosphere that the Cowboys normally bring to the table, and how it manifests itself into a soft team, incapable of stepping up when needed. With the mounting injuries, do you think that all of these new fringe players, with their "paid in gum" contracts are giving this team a hungrier, more desperate attitude? or is it all Garrett coming of coaching age, the team bearing the process fruits of his good day stacking labor??

finally, with Bruce Carter's superior speed and strength, do you think its possible to move him to SOLB next year? I understand that its largely predicated on ability to rush the passer, but we got away with Spencer providing the minimal amount of sacks for years. I have no fears whatsoever about him being able to hold the edge. that would still give an inside LB rotation of Lee, Albright, Sims, Connor/Lemon(?)

please discuss

Nice post. I think the "country club atmosphere" idea (which really blew up with those Jimmy Johnson comments a couple of months back) was blown out of proportion and based largely on assumption. Nobody knows what goes on behind the closed door of Valley Ranch, besides the people that are actually there.

I think this team has showed through it's play that it's not "soft" as the media and many others would have you believe. They've clawed their way back from deficits all year, have fought through injuries and tragedy, and are in the thick of the playoff hunt. That is not a soft team. They had a chance to throw in the towel when they were 3-5, and now we sit at 8-6. I think that is a testament to the will of the players on this roster as well as the philosophy of Jason Garrett. I think the team has bought into his "processes" and as a result I think fans should be feeling good about the remainder of this season and what's in store next year.

As far as Bruce moving to the outside, I don't think that's a real possibility for this coming season (as intriguing as it is). I really expect the team to retain Spencer, whether it's by Franchising him again, or coming to terms on a contract that would probably keep him here for the majority of his career. Also, as interesting as it would be to see Bruce play on the outside, I REALLY am looking forward to seeing him and Lee together on the inside after the way they played in limited games this year. Especially with the way Carter came into his own after the Lee injury.

 

[MapleLeaf]

...culture was much worse than people including Jones realized IMO. The changes made were probably debated, but necessary to get the team aligned for a common purpose.

 

[ElGatoGrande]

having Ware, Lee, Carter, and Spencer all on the field at the same time would suit me fine,,, it's no time to get cute with the linebackers. Sims, Albright, Butler, Conner, Wilber can fight it out for the depth spots.

 

[xwalker]

From a physical, athletic standpoint, Bruce Carter is the prefect model of a 3-4 ILB. You couldn't draw up a better one.

As a 3-4 OLB, he is shorter and lighter weight than the average player at that position and not close the prototype like he is at ILB.

If they get into a bind due to injuries during a season, I'm sure that Bruce Carter could take some snaps at OLB and do an OK job.

DeMarcus Ware is the prototype 3-4 OLB at 6-4, 260 with long arms.

Bruce Carter is the prototype 3-4 ILB at 6-2, 240 while being faster than some CBs and most Safeties.