Interesting Camp battles shaping up

[stilltheguru]

romo is better.yep

 

[lspain1]

I
Rob Petitti vs. Marc Columbo. Nothing is ever set in stone but assuming good health I have penciled Jason Fabini in as the starter at RT. Fabini will also be the first backup to Flozell Adams. So in the event of an injury to either Adams or Fabini, we will see a new face at RT. Petitti has the inside track because he was the starter last year and he’s only a 2nd year guy, but I believe Marc Columbo will give Rob a run for the primary backup slot at RT. The loser will still likely make the team but won’t dress unless a tackle is injured.

There are a couple you listed I'm not sure I agree with but I'll focus on this one. I think Petitti will battle with Fabini for the starting RT position. Columbo might be in the mix but I see him becoming the backup LT if he performs well. If he performs very well and Flozell has a hit and miss season he might actually compete for a starting spot at some point but there is no way to tell right now. Columbo was a LT for the Bears before he got hurt.

 

[RCowboyFan]

What the hell? Didn't Hutch get a 7 year deal? How long did he last? Don't gauge whether or not someone will be here because of their contract. How about Glover's contract... I don't think it was set to expire.

With that said, if Henson performs in TC like he has in NFLE, the coaching staff will have some serious discussions going on. I think the consensus right now is Romo is the 2nd QB until Henson and beat him.

No Hutch had voided that deal when he achieved certain incentives I think or playing time. But I don't remember Hutch's and Henson deal being anywhere near the same. Hutch's deal was required to be in Rookie Pool cap, which Henson had to be paid like 6th rounder with incentives that fit into cap of previous year Rookie cap I belive.

That was a big issue when Henson was signed. Second, Henson hasn't voided any clauses that accelerates his money or option to get out of Contract or be a FA. So he has lots of time left, unless I believe he plays certain number of Snaps this year, third year, which voids last three years or four years of his 8 year contract.

 

[Billy Bullocks]

i dont see how beiault has better speed then davis.alot of people on this site seem to overrate the hell out of him.

I agree with you. People liked his story, and I think they saw alot of Bill Bates in him...sadly, Keith Davis is twice the special teams player that Berry-O is.

Also, Berry-O is the most likely of our safeties to get cut.

FS - Watkins, Coleman, Davis

SS - Williams, Davis

Because Watkins makes it, and we keep Coleman just in case, that doesn't leave alot of room for Berry-O. Davis is a special teams ace, and we didnt resign him for no good reason. Also, he could step in at SS

 

[jps_tex]

Stephen Peterman vs. EJ Whitley. Yeah I know, EJ who? But when you get down to it, Peterman’s roster spot is anything but secure. I think he has to step WAY up, maybe even start to guarantee himself a spot if Whitley shows significant promise. The simple reason is Peterman only can play LG and Whitley can play any position on the line. I know Whitley’s a 7th rounder but he will be given a good chance of making this team IMO. If Peterman does step up, Whitley is headed for the practice squad.

I think it would be more accurate to say Stephen Peterman vs. Kyle Kosier

 

[Billy Bullocks]

There are a couple you listed I'm not sure I agree with but I'll focus on this one. I think Petitti will battle with Fabini for the starting RT position. Columbo might be in the mix but I see him becoming the backup LT if he performs well. If he performs very well and Flozell has a hit and miss season he might actually compete for a starting spot at some point but there is no way to tell right now. Columbo was a LT for the Bears before he got hurt.

And how good were the bears, particularly their offense in the last, say, 10 years? Adams is MILES ahead of Columbo...Adams got a real contract, Columbo got released.

 

[DLCassidy]

There are a couple you listed I'm not sure I agree with but I'll focus on this one. I think Petitti will battle with Fabini for the starting RT position. Columbo might be in the mix but I see him becoming the backup LT if he performs well. If he performs very well and Flozell has a hit and miss season he might actually compete for a starting spot at some point but there is no way to tell right now. Columbo was a LT for the Bears before he got hurt.

Petitti is going to give it his best shot. Noone is dissing the guy. But quite frankly he needs to have a monster offseason to compete with Fabini, who has a big edge in experience over Rob.

It would not be logical to gamble with LT unless you absolutely had to. Fabini has over 5 years of starting LT experience and he will be the backup if Flo gets hurt. Columbo was a former first round pick but that in itself does nothing for him, especially compared to a guy BP drafted and knows what to expect. And Columbo beats out Flo as a starter when pigs fly.

 

[DLCassidy]

well see what he does this preseason.cause i didnt see any of this athletic ability last year in preseason.

It all comes down to health. The kid was having his knee drained every day and he was still making plays. Davis's knees are fine and he makes no plays. I give the edge to the incumbant Davis but again if Beriault is healthy, a huge if, he has more upside IMO than Davis.

 

[Dough Boy]

8 guys fighting for 4 to 5 spots. I think it is pretty much a given that Ware,
James, Ayodele and Carpenter will be on the final roster. Advice to those 8 guys bust your butt on special teams that will at least give you a leg up on the competition

I think all of these guys are a given:

Ware, James, Ayodele, Caprenter, Boiman (special teams, can play OLB or ILB), Burnett (2nd rd pick, can play OLB and ILB), Singelton (listen to Jerry, he is underappricited but greatly missed after his injury).

 

[DLCassidy]

I think it would be more accurate to say Stephen Peterman vs. Kyle Kosier

Ok. It's true Peterman will be battling Kozier for the starting slot. If he steps up and grabs it it would be great. But if he doesn't he will be battling Whitley for a roster spot. Starter's don't need to be versatile, backups do. But Peterman really needs to impress. We gave Kozier starter money for a reason.

 

[CriscoKidd]

I really hope Miles Austin makes the team. I like what I've read about him and think the cowboys might have gotten a steal with him signing as a UDFA.

Was kind of surprised he wasn't drafted but I'm not complaining.

 

[lspain1]

Petitti is going to give it his best shot. Noone is dissing the guy. But quite frankly he needs to have a monster offseason to compete with Fabini, who has a big edge in experience over Rob.

It would not be logical to gamble with LT unless you absolutely had to. Fabini has over 5 years of starting LT experience and he will be the backup if Flo gets hurt. Columbo was a former first round pick but that in itself does nothing for him, especially compared to a guy BP drafted and knows what to expect. And Columbo beats out Flo as a starter when pigs fly.

You are probably correct, but as Fabini will logically be the starting RT who is on the depth chart behing Flo? I think it will be Columbo regardless of who would actually play LT in the event Flo goes down.

 

[Funxva]

Am I the only one who thinks that Pile might get cut? Wasn't he in the FS position also? I also think Davis has it made, as we just resigned him to a nice deal. Coleman only has a 1 year deal and Beriault seems to be more athletically gifted, not to mention younger.

 

[FuzzyLumpkins]

I have quite a few I’m curious about. Please feel free to add any others.

Tony Romo vs. Drew Henson. From the Cowboys standpoint, its fish or cut bait this year for Henson. He’s shown progress in Europe, now he has to show he’s ready to move past Romo. If he can’t, this will be his last year in Dallas.

I dont see how after three years, Henson is on his last leg while after four, Romo is some entrenched incumbent. Fact is that I have yet to ever see Romo play well in preseason or anywhere else. i see a lot of mediocre production from him. Toss in the fact that the coach who was all over his jock, Peyton, is gone and this is final year of his contract and it makes sense that this is Romo's last shot to do something with the Cowboys.

Romo has to do something meriting him deserving another contract.

Henson is still under contract for a few more yearsand at the very least put together a good half against Baltimore and is playing well in NFLE.

That all being said this will be a matchup to watch.

AL Johnson vs. Andre Gurode. I think the Cowboys would love to see both players improve significantly on their weaknesses and IMO the preference would be for Al to start and Andre to backup both center and RG. But Al will not be handed the job. He’s supposedly working out hard and has put on some weight. I’m excited to see how he performs.

Dont disagree here.

Stephen Peterman vs. EJ Whitley. Yeah I know, EJ who? But when you get down to it, Peterman’s roster spot is anything but secure. I think he has to step WAY up, maybe even start to guarantee himself a spot if Whitley shows significant promise. The simple reason is Peterman only can play LG and Whitley can play any position on the line. I know Whitley’s a 7th rounder but he will be given a good chance of making this team IMO. If Peterman does step up, Whitley is headed for the practice squad.

Peterman is hitting the three year mark so its time to put up or shut up.

At the same time, fans around here remind me of the media speculating on Parcells when it comes to Peterman. Parcells says the guy is only playing at LG and all of a sudden its interpreted as he sucks.

Now I can think of several alternate scenarios as to why he would only get reps at LG that dont involve him sucking which begins with the fact that last year was his first season that he actually got practice reps after being hurt his rookie year.

Bottomline is that if Peterman pllays well hell be competing with Kosier and not the 7th rounder.

Rob Petitti vs. Marc Columbo. Nothing is ever set in stone but assuming good health I have penciled Jason Fabini in as the starter at RT. Fabini will also be the first backup to Flozell Adams. So in the event of an injury to either Adams or Fabini, we will see a new face at RT. Petitti has the inside track because he was the starter last year and he’s only a 2nd year guy, but I believe Marc Columbo will give Rob a run for the primary backup slot at RT. The loser will still likely make the team but won’t dress unless a tackle is injured.

Cant argue much here. If either really begins playing well there will be mutters of having them start.

Greg Ellis vs. Chris Canty. Ellis is a good and proud player and he wasn’t happy at all last year to see his playing time reduced substantially near the end of last year. But Canty is a better fit for the 3-4 and is an emerging talent. This situation has the potential of being divisive. I’m interested to see how BP handles it because we’re a better team with Ellis on it. But if he can’t make it work we could be forced to trade Ellis.

If Ellis wants to be a jackass i say trade him. Jim Jeffcoat excelled in a role that Ellis would have to if Canty won out and thus extended his career. Ellis is solid but will never be the allpro that it appears he thinks he is.

Terrence Copper vs. Miles Austin. Copper has shown he’s worth a roster spot by being a strong special team’s player but that won’t be enough to keep his slot this year. With Terry Glenn getting older and TO being TO, we need to have WR’s that are capable of starting down the road. Copper has yet to do that, although he has speed to burn. Miles Austin is an intriguing prospect with good size and speed. If Austin shows he’s a good ST player I would not be surprised to see him beat Copper out.

UDFA vs. established and developing WR. Excuse me if Im not buying into this 'battle.'

Kai Parham vs. Oliver Hoyte. If you look at their profiles these two are almost the same player- excellent run stuffers that lack speed to cover the pass or to go sideline to sideline. The 3-4 minimizes that issue, but both are likely two down players. Both can’t make the roster but one probably will. I think this battle will be very close.

Shanle and Fowler and Burnett and Singleton and Boimn all say hello. Its going to take a miracle for these UDFA to make the squad.

Pat Watkins vs. Marcus Coleman. I think both guys should make the team, Watkins for his potential and Coleman for his experience. But all of Cowboy nation is praying that the physical freak that is pat Watkins can be quickly coached up to start. If Watkins shows he’s willing to work hard and can minimize the mental mistakes in camp he’s got a real shot to start this year, no matter what the reporters might think.

Keith Davis vs. Justin Beriault. Davis is the heavy favorite in this match up because of his experience but I admit to rooting for Beriault. Justin showed he’s a hitter in TC last year and he has better speed than Davis. If he’s healthy Beriault could make it very tough for BP to cut him, but he’s going to have to show his knee problems are behind him. If he’s draining fluid from his knee every day in camp he’ll be an early cut.

You really need to combine these two into one big battle and add Pile. I doubt more than three of the five make the team. Williams and Davis are guaranteed spots but I cant help but feel that if Pile Beriault or Watkins show something that Coleman is going to get the Izell Reese treatment.

Coleman was downright horrible last season and apparently has been boozing it up lately.

 

[vicjagger]

Kai Parham vs. Oliver Hoyte. If you look at their profiles these two are almost the same player- excellent run stuffers that lack speed to cover the pass or to go sideline to sideline. The 3-4 minimizes that issue, but both are likely two down players. Both can’t make the roster but one probably will. I think this battle will be very close.

Kai Parham has a big leg up on this one. Hoyte's playing for the Vikings.

 

[kiheikiwi]

If Parham cant beat out Shanle, Ill eat my hat! (figureativly Speaking)

 

[twa]

Am I the only one who thinks that Pile might get cut? Wasn't he in the FS position also? I also think Davis has it made, as we just resigned him to a nice deal. Coleman only has a 1 year deal and Beriault seems to be more athletically gifted, not to mention younger.

Pile ,Coleman and Beriault are in a three way battle for the final spot.imo

Beriault depends on his operation coming out well and Coleman could easily be dropped . We can pickup a safety of Coleman's caliber without much trouble,plus with his baggage Jerry could get him a side gig to keep him available.

 

[DLCassidy]

Kai Parham has a big leg up on this one. Hoyte's playing for the Vikings.

No he isn't.

 

[AsthmaField]

Beriault is a terrific athlete. He has rare change of direction skills, speed, explosion... had he played at a bigger school, he would've been drafted a good bit higher.

I can't fathom why so many people have a hard time believing that Beriault is a good athlete.

Not to mention that in the little time he played in games last preseason, he was all over the place. Also, Parcells mentioned that he was making a lot of plays in camp.

He very well might make the team.

 

[LeonDixson]

May the best man win in each and every case. It makes the team better.