Have Cowboys done enough to help the Defense?

[quickccc]

So after the NFL draft and free agency additions, what are your expectations for the Cowboys defense this year ?

- we've added byron jones replacement in Travon Diggs - i expect him to start at some early point if not game one

- we've added a heir apparent 3 tech in DT Gallimore who can develop as he finds rotation time behind McCoy (Team decided not to chance waiting on Trysten hill)

-Dunno what becomes of less heralded CB Reggie Robinson and edge rusher Anae - as they find a role and assuming they make the team.

- McCoy and Poe and Ha Ha Clinton Dix - they are stopgap -decent players, they are not pro bowlers anymore at this point, but the hope is they have enough left to allow us to change how we play defense and give us enough to operate and get by while we develop better players long term.

- frankly i dunno what will become of a significantly heavier Alden Smith from 260 to 285 lbs, as
well as a guy that has been out of football for 4 years.
That time away is quite a bridge of a challenge. and i've no idea how DC Nolan will package
and use him in the scheme.

- Gregory is still only age 27, and though he's missed time himself in a year away,
he may offer a quicker bridge back vs Alden - he has a faster get off than Alden..
and like Smith, he's exceptionally agile and wiry. and now with new CBA theres not the worry
of long term suspension should there be another " hiccup" to marijuana addiction.

Theres the hope that Dlaw has had key time to fully receover from his post-shulder surgery, where he simply was not right all year long. We need his
12-14 sack ability,

Do we get the return of a healthy LVE ? never seem the same all year and it's obvious that
had to be about that neck condition that eventually IR'ed him/ and who is our depth help should he
go out again ? Joe Thomas ? switching Lee to WLB ? i really prefer way stronger LB depth than
Thomas, Gifford and Covington.

Pass rush, run defense and more turnovers will be front liner headlines for this defense
- i'm still not sure we did enough for the defense in this off season.

 

[darthseinfeld]

So after the NFL draft and free agency additions, what are your expectations for the Cowboys defense this year ?

- we've added byron jones replacement in Travon Diggs - i expect him to start at some early point if not game one

- we've added a heir apparent 3 tech in DT Gallimore who can develop as he finds rotation time behind McCoy (Team decided not to chance waiting on Trysten hill)

-Dunno what becomes of less heralded CB Reggie Robinson and edge rusher Anae - as they find a role and assuming they make the team.

- McCoy and Poe and Ha Ha Clinton Dix - they are stopgap -decent players, they are not pro bowlers anymore at this point, but the hope is they have enough left to allow us to change how we play defense and give us enough to operate and get by while we develop better players long term.

- frankly i dunno what will become of a significantly heavier Alden Smith from 260 to 285 lbs, as
well as a guy that has been out of football for 4 years.
That time away is quite a bridge of a challenge. and i've no idea how DC Nolan will package
and use him in the scheme.

- Gregory is still only age 27, and though he's missed time himself in a year away,
he may offer a quicker bridge back vs Alden - he has a faster get off than Alden..
and like Smith, he's exceptionally agile and wiry. and now with new CBA theres not the worry
of long term suspension should there be another " hiccup" to marijuana addiction.

Theres the hope that Dlaw has had key time to fully receover from his post-shulder surgery, where he simply was not right all year long. We need his
12-14 sack ability,

Do we get the return of a healthy LVE ? never seem the same all year and it's obvious that
had to be about that neck condition that eventually IR'ed him/ and who is our depth help should he
go out again ? Joe Thomas ? switching Lee to WLB ? i really prefer way stronger LB depth than
Thomas, Gifford and Covington.

Pass rush, run defense and more turnovers will be front liner headlines for this defense
- i'm still not sure we did enough for the defense in this off season.

Its probably a 2 or 3 year process considering we are changing scheme. I think its been a good start though.

 

[yentl911]

The biggest thing for me that will dictate how the defense plays is our Linebackers. We need LVE back and healthy and we need Jaylon to play much better than he did last year where he looked totally lost at times.

 

[PJTHEDOORS]

With Gregory & Aldon Smith added to the DL, we are deep. Smith from what i've read is up to 287 lbs.

Mike Fisher
Apr 7, 2020

FRISCO - A first-hand look at Aldon Smith? Jay Glazer, the reporter/trainer who had a great deal of involvement in the long-troubled star's return to the NFL via his recent signing with the Dallas Cowboys, is among the new people who've had a first-hand look.

And his look at Smith - after four years of NFL suspension that he hopes is about to come to the end, allowing his re-entry into football - is glowing.

Glazer on Smith in the workout room: "We trained him at Unbreakable Performance and got him up (from 260) to about 287 pounds, completely rocked up, solid as can be, very low body fat. He has trained his butt off. His conditioning is great. ... He is just freaking monstrous.

"We had him on these resistance cords connected to the wall on a machine called the Raptor. I’ve had a ton of guys on it — big huge guys, monsters. Smith ripped it off the wall ... No one has ever done that. He is an absolute freak of nature. I don’t know who to compare him to because he’s 287 with a V. It’s ridiculous.''

 

[ChuckA1]

I sure hope we find out pretty soon that the commissioner will OK their return to the NFL.

 

[quickccc]

Its probably a 2 or 3 year process considering we are changing scheme. I think its been a good start though.

Cowboys insist they are in a " win-now" mode. So they are counting on much quicker than a 3 year plan.
They are gonna want an overnight success, in order to legitimately compete for a title championship, and i'm counting
in 4 new starters in McCoy, Poe, Ha Ha and the rookie Diggs, ..and frankly i'd be egg shell-worried that Alden could be gone tomorrow.
do we have enough new difference makers and impact factors?

 

[Williamsboys]

If Gregory stays clean and we add a safety I think we'll be fine. You can only count on rookies to a certain extent, but they do have potential.

 

[JBell]

It was a solid effort.

Helluva lot better than trying to plug holes with guys like Stephen Paea and Nolan Carroll.

 

[charron]

On paper we have addressed the positions we needed to. That does not mean we will win more games.

 

[Deep_Freeze]

We will have to depend on coaching for most of our improvement on D, not personnel additions.

We did lose Quinn and Byron, even if minimized here, it is significant to be able to replace their production.

 

[Hennessy_King]

We will have to depend on coaching for most of our improvement on D, not personnel additions.

We did lose Quinn and Byron, even if minimized here, it is significant to be able to replace their production.

Byron had production? Quinn was terrible against the run. I don't think these guys will be as hard to replace as we think.

 

[Deep_Freeze]

Byron had production? Quinn was terrible against the run. I don't think these guys will be as hard to replace as we think.

Not saying they were world beaters in my estimation, but they did get paid for a reason.

 

[blueblood70]

So after the NFL draft and free agency additions, what are your expectations for the Cowboys defense this year ?

- we've added byron jones replacement in Travon Diggs - i expect him to start at some early point if not game one

- we've added a heir apparent 3 tech in DT Gallimore who can develop as he finds rotation time behind McCoy (Team decided not to chance waiting on Trysten hill)

-Dunno what becomes of less heralded CB Reggie Robinson and edge rusher Anae - as they find a role and assuming they make the team.

- McCoy and Poe and Ha Ha Clinton Dix - they are stopgap -decent players, they are not pro bowlers anymore at this point, but the hope is they have enough left to allow us to change how we play defense and give us enough to operate and get by while we develop better players long term.

- frankly i dunno what will become of a significantly heavier Alden Smith from 260 to 285 lbs, as
well as a guy that has been out of football for 4 years.
That time away is quite a bridge of a challenge. and i've no idea how DC Nolan will package
and use him in the scheme.

- Gregory is still only age 27, and though he's missed time himself in a year away,
he may offer a quicker bridge back vs Alden - he has a faster get off than Alden..
and like Smith, he's exceptionally agile and wiry. and now with new CBA theres not the worry
of long term suspension should there be another " hiccup" to marijuana addiction.

Theres the hope that Dlaw has had key time to fully receover from his post-shulder surgery, where he simply was not right all year long. We need his
12-14 sack ability,

Do we get the return of a healthy LVE ? never seem the same all year and it's obvious that
had to be about that neck condition that eventually IR'ed him/ and who is our depth help should he
go out again ? Joe Thomas ? switching Lee to WLB ? i really prefer way stronger LB depth than
Thomas, Gifford and Covington.

Pass rush, run defense and more turnovers will be front liner headlines for this defense
- i'm still not sure we did enough for the defense in this off season.

by September 1st ill say yes..

 

[DenCWBY]

I really wanted to pick a top 5 safety in the draft but cant argue with Lamb pick. Hope we keep looking as I'm not convinced (at this point) Dix and crew can get the job done to help bolster the D secondary.

 

[Hennessy_King]

Not saying they were world beaters in my estimation, but they did get paid for a reason.

Both are overrated. Quinn balled because of D law opposite him. Plus he didn't care about stopping the run. Byron had pedestrian numbers when thrown at. QBs had a qb rating of 87 when throwing at Byron. He didn't get thrown at a lot because chido, jeff heath, x woods, and linebackers not being the best in coverage. Byron never even covered the other team's best wr most of the time.

 

[CATCH17]

No..

 

[CF74]

Poe and McCoy alone really bolstered the line. Then we got Dix in the backfield, that’s another upgrade. If anything teams will struggle to run on us. Overall I’d say we improved it by about 60% if not more...

 

[ItzKelz]

If we are to believe Stephen we are not done adding potential players to the team. With that said I personally think that a different coaching approach defensively will have the biggest impact.

 

[DanA]

Defensive End:
Robert Quinn vs Randy Gregory - It's a downgrade even if Gregory is re-stated but Gregory has sky high potential.
Kerry Hyder vs Tyrone Crawford - Lets see if Crawford is healthy and even makes the team
Michael Bennett vs Aldon Smith - If Smith is 285lbs I think he could be a tweener edge/tackle
Bradlee Anae vs Jalen Jelks - I think Anae beats out Jelks at the bottom of the roster

It's probably worse but we don't know that for sure. The potential is sky high. Plus Lawrence was hampered by injury so I expect we might get more out of him.

Defensive Tackle:
Dontari Poe vs Christian Covington Huge upgrade at 1T
Gerald McCoy vs Maliek Collins: I think McCoy is better, more versatile
Neville Gallimore vs Daniel Ross: Huge upgrade in the rotation

It's a heap better across the board. More talent, more versatility, better depth.

LB: No change
It's the same. LVE neck will decide things

CB:
Trevon Diggs vs Byron Jones: Lost a pro-bowl caliber CB
Reggie Robinson vs CJ Goodwin: minimal impact

Diggs is likely to be a sizable downgrade for 2020. Goodwin only played a handful of plays on defense so that change is probably minor.

Safety:
Haha Clinton-Dix vs Jeff Heath: Similar but I see it as a small upgrade
Maurice Canady vs Kavon Fraizer: Minimal impact

I think it slightly improved considering Fraizer was injured a fair chunk of the season. Canady is a DB change (not really safety) that more effects special teams.

Overall:
I think it's better mostly off the back of the DT's but we need to see if Diggs can hit the ground running and what we have at RDE. We could use an edge rusher but that could also just be throwing away money if Smith/Gregory pay off and play to their potential.

 

[reddyuta]

not yet,Safety is huge concern and so is our LB situation.