Has a better core ever been wasted? (2006-2010)

[Cowboysfan1975]

The 13-3 team should have made the SB, but other than that, I see a team with a few pro bowl players and the rest of the roster filled with career backups or old players. It's been like that for a long time.

I hate to say it, because I head into every training camp believing that we have a legit shot at the SB, but I've been worn down by the last 3-4 years, But I don't see a real chance to win a SB in the foreseeable future. I hate to see guys whole career wasted, because of bad talent evaluation or bad cap management by the front office, but it is what it is.

Romo is never going to see a SB, probably the same for Witten. At least D Ware went to a real SB contender, but I'm sure if the Broncos do win it, it's going to feel a little hollow for Ware. It for sure won't be as special as if he had won it with the Cowboys.

 

[ThreeandOut]

There were a lot of poor drafts in 2004 and 2006-9. The problem wasn't so much with core as it was with the failure to add to the core.

 

[bsheeern]

Like I said 3 players. 3 to me doesn't make a Core Group when talking about a NFL Roster. Maybe the core of 1 unit, Ala Carson Palmer, TJ & Chad.

It's pretty much unheard of to keep more than 7 starters together for 5+ seasons

Romo, WItten and Ware were the core in 2006 and they were still the core in 2013.

 

[bsheeern]

To me, that "drought" was nothing compared to losing the championship games to the Packers in the 1960s and even Super Bowl to the Colts. That "Next Year's Champions" title hung around in Dallas for a long time.

People back in the late 1970s/early 1980s just usually chalked it up to Danny White not being as good as Roger Staubach.

Sure it may have felt like that at the time because we had never Won a championship.

Winning with Roger May have made it sting less at the time about Danny & the gang but that team never got over that hump.

 

[Toruk_Makto]

Winning is hard.

 

[Rockport]

Ok, I'm opening myself up to a ton of ripping but I've been pondering this topic over the past few days. My sample size of being a football fan is quite limited based upon my age, but since I've become competent enough to actually follow it, I don't think any team built up a really great core and did nothing with it outside of us and the San Diego Chargers. I think our core was better than there's. So I pose the question has a better core ever been wasted than the one that we had during the 2006-2010 period? This core produced a 2007 team which has the record for the most Pro-Bowl players (they had 13, think about that for a second...), and this was back when the Pro Bowl had some semblance of respect.

Scary to think how could those teams were, and how little we saw out of it - 1 playoff victory. So I pose the question, has a better core ever been wasted?

Obviously no.

 

[TrailBlazer]

Not a leader in the bunch. Most of the players were overrated. Never should've had so many pro bowlers. Couple that with bad coaching and it adds up to just one playoff victory in all these years.

When it mattered most, they found ways to lose. Whether it was tony throwing picks or the defense allowing last second GW TD's or just bad coaching decisions.

Tony's botched snap in Seattle set the tone for what would be a very underwhelming career in terms of postseason success.

 

[Nightman]

I can't believe all of you guys that are still obsessed with relaxing at a beach less than an hours flight away during a team imposed off-week. That trip had nothing to do with them losing. JEESH. As if sitting at home with your wife or girlfriend magically makes more prepared.

I'm pretty guys like Michael Irvin and Lawrence Taylor were getting high on coke and messing with hookers during game weeks. They lost to an inferior team that day for a number of reasons, but Romo and Witten going to the beach 9 days earlier wasn't one of them. Have you guys ever played sports? It's not a 24/7 type of thing.

 

[Nightman]

Those Hall of Famers didn't let coke or hookers blur their performance ambitions. Those players had serious inner demons they harnessed and that served to amplify their performance on the field. Romo and the group of pu**ies he led in those years didn't have the inner fortitude to bend those influences to their will.

It's real easy to call Romo, Ware and Witten names behind the anonymity of the internet. I'd pay to watch you say that to their faces.

 

[Blackspider214]

Really, this team only had a real shot of doing anything in 2007. That was the year the Super Bowl path was laid out with red carpet for us to stroll on. Homefield with matchups of NY and GB, two teams we were 3-0 against. But we had a bad December as always and then injuries happened. TO and Glenn were not healthy. Then we decide to change our whole offense that game and also start Barber. Just silly.

2008 had promise but the Romo injury killed any momentum. And we gave away too many games.

Even though we won a playoff game finally in 2009, did anyone really think that team was going places after?

Then 2010 was a lost cause starting 1-3 and then Romo going down for the season. So really it was just those 2 seasons.

I don't think this core is as good as some may believe it was. It was not terrible by any means but this wasn't like the Bills of the early 90s or the Jazz teams of the 90s in the NBA.

 

[Nova]

Can't believe so many people have let the more recent years poison what they knew about the pre-2010 teams.

I've seen the 13 probowlers from the 2007 team be discredited, but thinking back at least 7 of of them deserved to be there.

Romo: 3rd in passing yards, 2nd in passing TDs
Owens: 5th in receiving yards, 3rd in rec TDs
Witten: 2nd in receptions for TEs, 2nd in yds, 5th in tds
Barber: Can anyone argue that his guy was incredible in 2006 and 2007?

Flozell: Was an all pro selection
Davis: Was an all pro selection

Ware: Self explanatory, but the guy was 25 years old, 1st Team All-Pro

I could make a good case for Newman and a really good case for Ellis too.

 

[cej757]

Definitely those Houston Oilers teams in the late 80's to early 90's. The Cowboys better be happy they never had to play those Oilers because I don't think we would've won the two Superbowls in 92 or 93.

The oilers always had our number whenever we played them.

 

[Alexander]

The 13-3 team should have made the SB

The 13-3 record was as misleading as the number of Pro Bowlers. We beat up on a very weak AFC East that year.

 

[rags747]

2006 Tonys 1st year was wasted vs the Seahawks when Parcells refused to let Tony air it out against a guys off the street secondary Seahawks team. 2007 was our best chance but or OL failed miserably in the 2nd half of the Giants game and the whole thing quickly fell apart, Romo played admirably, Crayton will forever live in infamy. After that u can go to when we decimated the Eagles in the playoffs, we were finally starting to play some good defense and yet our OL once again crumbled like a cheap suit vs the Vikings.

This team has had a simply amazing run of nothingness, can even throw in Austin's loss of the ball in the lights for the game winner and friggin back breaker vs the Giants. Can go on and on with this stuff...that's why not so upset to see Ware let go...This team needs more DOG in it like Irvin, Haley, E Williams, Newton, Gogan, Allen, Norton etc. too many nice guys, Bryant is the only one that I see like those mentioned above.

 

[Boysathelm]

The 13-3 record was as misleading as the number of Pro Bowlers. We beat up on a very weak AFC East that year.

You mean the NFC East, right, and didn't NY win it all that year?

 

[waving monkey]

2007 rooster
how many players were making up that core? were they in key positions?
they dont all have to be HOF'ers
OFFENSE
Position Names
WR Terrell Owens
LT Flozell Adams
LG Kyle Kosier
C Andre Gurode
RG Leonard Davis
RT Marc Colombo
TE Jason Witten
WR Patrick Crayton
QB Tony Romo
RB Julius Jones
DEFENSE
Position Names
LE Marcus Spears
NT Jay Ratliff
RE Chris Canty
SLB Anthony Spencer (6)
Greg Ellis (11)
MILB Bradie James
MOLB Akin Ayodele
WLB DeMarcus Ware
LCB Jacques Reeves
RCB Anthony Henry (8)
Terence Newman (8)
FS Ken Hamlin
SS Roy Williams

Spears, wasnt all that,Spencer later,Canty was good,James good,Ayodele OK, WareHOF,Reeves OK,
Henry briefly, Newman very good, RWilliams has a couple of years
th offense was good but Romo had a learning curve

 

[silver]

The 1978 Cowboys was the best team ever assembled that didn't win the Super Bowl. Of course the 77 team won it, however that nucleus, with so many HOF's should've won multiple superbowls.

 

[Redball Express]

Ok, I'm opening myself up to a ton of ripping but I've been pondering this topic over the past few days. My sample size of being a football fan is quite limited based upon my age, but since I've become competent enough to actually follow it, I don't think any team built up a really great core and did nothing with it outside of us and the San Diego Chargers. I think our core was better than there's. So I pose the question has a better core ever been wasted than the one that we had during the 2006-2010 period? This core produced a 2007 team which has the record for the most Pro-Bowl players (they had 13, think about that for a second...), and this was back when the Pro Bowl had some semblance of respect.

Scary to think how could those teams were, and how little we saw out of it - 1 playoff victory. So I pose the question, has a better core ever been wasted?

We are all with you on this.

But I really blame it on the players..this core you speak of.

Not the owner, not the coaches, but the players collectively blew themselves up.

It's been disgraceful.

I'm glad Ware and Ratiff and Spencer are gone.

Same with Austin, MBIII and the rest of those overpaid underachieving dudes.

I want football players..not celebrities living off of past Cowboys glory and not writing any of their own.

 

[HappyOnions]

If we're talking about just our team...then I really don't know.

I didn't get to watch much of the Cowboys during their glory days. But in my opinion, after going back and researching; I'm pretty convinced that the 1994 Cowboys should have won their 3rd straight Super Bowl that year. They had no business losing to San Francisco after wiping the floor with them in prior years and would have probably put an even worse beating on the Chargers that year.

 

[Redball Express]

I can't believe all of you guys that are still obsessed with relaxing at a beach less than an hours flight away during a team imposed off-week. That trip had nothing to do with them losing. JEESH. As if sitting at home with your wife or girlfriend magically makes more prepared.

I'm pretty guys like Michael Irvin and Lawrence Taylor were getting high on coke and messing with hookers during game weeks. They lost to an inferior team that day for a number of reasons, but Romo and Witten going to the beach 9 days earlier wasn't one of them. Have you guys ever played sports? It's not a 24/7 type of thing.

Got to disagree with you here.

Capo changed the direction of the team.

It was a huge distraction when the news broke

and the team and players were roasted nationally as immature and not focused.

And then a media who had embraced the team as the next Worlds Champions began to withdraw support of the franchise and slowly it's all crumbled.

No..I think you need to rethink what happened there.