I've Never Been Afraid To Predict Good Things For The Cowboys

[casmith07]

I guarantee you it won't be less than 10 wins and a playoff appearance. The M.O. is 11-5 or 12-4.

I agree with you. I'm thinking 10-6. Good positive post! Change of pace for you.

 

[casmith07]

That's not his actual opinion..

Optimism seems to be creeping in the closer we get to the start of the season.

But My expectations are tempered because of all the past failures. I don't think Dallas did enough to correct the problems; I also don't think Dallas will sweep the skins and giants again.

I expect more of the same. (8-8)

You missed the joke.

 

[TellerMorrow34]

We lost a dominant player in Ware who teams had to scheme for. People will talk about his down year last year, show me another one like it. That wasn't his norm and I doubt you'll see it again this year in Denver.

Hatcher had a career year. Better than anything Henry Melton has ever done.

Now if you "Rod Marinelli" me you'll win this debate but I can't see how you can improve your defensive line this year losing those two players. You might have put some pieces in place to improve it down the road but not in 2014.

If you look at it objectively, the defensive talent on this team is woefully lacking. On all three levels of the defense. You combine that with a 34 year old QB with back issues and you have to admit this season has the possibility to be a real train wreck.

The Ware comments specifically I couldn't agree more with. I think people are going to see a fresh, returned to form from injury D-Ware, and realise that Dallas made a mistake in letting him go.

I know everyone cries about the money thing but you find a way to work that out and you don't lose a guy like Ware. His loss will be felt a lot more than people seem to realise.

 

[TellerMorrow34]

I think in two years time we'll be out of this Tampa 2 scheme.

All due respect to Rod Marinelli.

Especially if they continue to employee Corners who are far better suited for man coverage rather than zone.

 

[TheDude]

I guarantee you it won't be less than 10 wins and a playoff appearance. The M.O. is 11-5 or 12-4.

If the first line of the OP was 8-8 or 6-10 were both crap, I would have assumed >10-6 as 9-7 is one game off from 8-8.

 

[BrAinPaiNt]

Especially if they continue to employee Corners who are far better suited for man coverage rather than zone.

We might pay a high priced FA CB to come to the team and trade up for another in the draft...but the will be zone CBs when we finally switch over to a base man to man secondary.

 

[DOUBLE WING]

I'm not seeing this defensive line "depth" that people keep talking about. At end, we lost our best passrusher and only true difference maker, and to replace that production we're relying on two rookies, another guy who is essentially a rookie given his lack of experience, and Anthony Spencer on the wrong side of 30 coming off a major injury.

Inside, we lost our best player and another guy who at least last year, was a game changer and are replacing him again with a bunch of unknowns. Melton is a good player but working back from an injury. The rest of the guys are JAGs.

The same hoping beyond hope faith that people are putting into our young unproven lineman this year was going on last year with the Marvin Austin's and Everette Brown's of the world. "Wait until Marinelli gets his hands on these guys.. they were high draft picks for a reason!"

 

[TrailBlazer]

The Ware comments specifically I couldn't agree more with. I think people are going to see a fresh, returned to form from injury D-Ware, and realise that Dallas made a mistake in letting him go.

I know everyone cries about the money thing but you find a way to work that out and you don't lose a guy like Ware. His loss will be felt a lot more than people seem to realise.

Dallas couldn't win with him, and they wont win without him either. Not in the near future anyway. You don't pay older players in decline big bucks. Something Jerry hopefully has figured out by now.

16M cap hit?' No way. I'd rather suck defensively knowing I'm not overpaying so egregiously.

 

[Ratmatt]

I hear everyone saying we're 8-8 again, or 6-10, even worse. I think that's a load of crap and I'll tell you why. The Defense is going to be a lot better in 2014, and we now have the makings of a really great OL.

How can I say the Defense will be better? It's real simple, it is no longer a M*A*S*H unit. When this team does improve a lot of people are going to have to explain why they were wrong about the injuries hurting us in 2013. They did hurt us. Way more than people realize.

We lost the best 2 pieces of our Defensive Line and I still say we're going to be better than last year. The reason is we finally have some decent depth. Nothing against Nick Hayden, but when he's a starter, you're in some trouble.

Let's look at DE from last year and this year.

2013...DeMarcus Ware, Anthony Spencer (1 game), George Selvie, Landon Cohen, Edgar Jones, Caesar Rayford, Jason Vega, and Jarius Wynn.

2014...DeMarcus Lawrence, Anthony Spencer, Tyrone Crawford, Ben Gardner, Jeremy Mincey, George Selvie, and Martez Wilson.

I figure 6 of that group will make the team with Crawford getting work inside and out. Martez Wilson is probably the odd man out.

Now let's look at DT from last year and this year.

2013...Jason Hatcher, Nick Hayden, Jerome Long, Marvin Austin, Everette Brown, Everett Dawkins, Corvey Irvin, David Carter, Drake Nevis, and Frank Kearse.

2014...Henry Melton, Terrell McClain, Amobi Okoye, Josh Brent?, Ben Bishop, Ben Bass, and Davon Coleman.

I think people are really going to like Davon Coleman. Put him or Bishop with that first 4, or both of them and drop Brent.

With the Offense clearly looking to control the clock more with the ground game setting up the passing game, and the Defense actually having better depth for a fresh legs rotation I am saying the Defense is going to be better than people give it credit for. I just can't understand why people think last year's Defense wasn't the easy biggest issue with what was wrong with this team.

Enjoy the season, it's going to be a lot better than people think right now. I look forward to some excitement. Get excited now for your Cowboys. You won't regret it.

It's not about being afraid or not.It's about using some common sense!

 

[ShiningStar]

I'm not seeing this defensive line "depth" that people keep talking about. At end, we lost our best passrusher and only true difference maker, and to replace that production we're relying on two rookies, another guy who is essentially a rookie given his lack of experience, and Anthony Spencer on the wrong side of 30 coming off a major injury.

Inside, we lost our best player and another guy who at least last year, was a game changer and are replacing him again with a bunch of unknowns. Melton is a good player but working back from an injury. The rest of the guys are JAGs.

The same hoping beyond hope faith that people are putting into our young unproven lineman this year was going on last year with the Marvin Austin's and Everette Brown's of the world. "Wait until Marinelli gets his hands on these guys.. they were high draft picks for a reason!"

I dont think we lost quiet as much as people think, I do think however Denver will get more production than we could have. I think our coaches vs what Denver have even if might be better, our coaches are not know for the simple yet effective approach. So i think Denver will just tell Ware, go do your thing, and than let other guys work around him. Where as we tried to let the other guys just show up and let Ware try to do to much. I believer Denver will get more out of Ware than Dallas will ever do.

As for the rest, i agree with you, but Dallas had to do this one year or another. It jsut turned out to be this year. So lets roll the dice and see what happens.

 

[TellerMorrow34]

Dallas couldn't win with him, and they wont win without him either. Not in the near future anyway. You don't pay older players in decline big bucks. Something Jerry hopefully has figured out by now.

16M cap hit?' No way. I'd rather suck defensively knowing I'm not overpaying so egregiously.

If you believe he's declining. I personally don't and I think people will see that this season in Denver.

Id have found a way to work the contract out to make it workable for everyone but there is no way I'd have let Ware go.

 

[BoysFan4ever]

We've already lost our best defensive player in Lee who when he does play is a difference maker.

The offense will have to carry the team. Again.

 

[AsthmaField]

We already lost the best player on defense for the year. There may be 3 new starters on the DL. Two that didn't play a down in the NFL last year and 1 coming off of a major injury. We have huge question marks at MLB, SLB, FS, and 3rd and 4th CB. We have question marks concerning how well Carter and Carr will play this year.

Yeah, but besides that... we should be good.


Seriously though, I have hopes that the defense will play ok this year.

Claiborne, Carr, and Scandrick are solid corners.

Church is a pretty damn good safety. I think between JJ Wilcox and Johnson, we will be ok at the other spot.

I think Carter will play better this year and he has fantastic athleticism.

The SLB should be fine. That is and always has been a position that is easy to fill in this defense.

Melton is a really good player, and now days guys almost always come all the way back from ACL's.

Lawrence is a really good prospect at WDE and the rotation of him and Mincey should be able to put some pressure on the QB. How much? I'm not sure, but I am pretty sure it will be more than Ware did last year.

McClain is WAY better than Hayden at the 1. Hayden coming in as a rotational guy behind McClain should be a big difference for the better.

Crawford is a good player and him coming back and forming a rotation with Selvie... who was good himself... should be a very nice combo on the strongside.

I fully expect Bishop and Coleman to contribute to the DL rotation. Maybe I'm wrong, but what Marinelli asks DL to do in his system isn't that complicated and I think the young guys will be able to step in and play in a rotation from the start. They both certainly have the physical ability to do so, and are significantly better than the guys we had in reserve last year.

So, basically... we have more talent on the DL as a whole and because of how Marinelli asks them to play, I think they'll contribute right away. The LB spots should be fine in year 2 of this 43 and I think Marinelli is going to use the DB's in a manner that they are built for (more man coverage).

Add in that there will be a significant jump in year 2 of the defensive system and I honestly feel like there is a good chance for improvements in a number of defensive spots. Even if nothing else changed, just playing in a second year in this system would make for big improvements.

Personally, I love getting younger and more aggressive on defense, and as much as Ware once did for this franchise, it has been a while since he has had much of an impact. I see guys who are going to play with more of an edge than the players we've had for a while, and that too gives me a lot of hope.

I like the direction, but I understand why some don't... and that is up to the individual.

 

[Blackspider214]

The reason people are predicting this is because of the last 4 or 5 years with this team. We have heard this stuff before every season. How this year is going to be the year we turn the corner. And we never do. You are also assuming all the people you listed on defense actually stay healthy. Something they rarely do. Secondary is still a huge question mark, especially the safety position.

And on offense, it comes down to will we have any identity? No one could tell you the identity of this team unless no identity would be considered a type of identity. And I am not confident in Garrett as HC at all. 3 full seasons plus the interim in 2010 and he is still making bone headed decisions that are unacceptable.

8-8 will be my prediction until the prove me wrong. We always seem to drop games we are not supposed to (Lions, Packers) and pull a few rabbits out the hat (Vikings, Commanders). We can never string wins together but never really have any losing streaks of any significance. That usually gets you about an 8-8 season.

 

[DFWJC]

I don't think that was his predict

I agree with you. I'm thinking 10-6. Good positive post! Change of pace for you.

You may want to read his earlier posts. This was a negative post aimed at Hos.

 

[TrailBlazer]

I don't think that was his predict

You may want to read his earlier posts. This was a negative post aimed at Hos.

Sarcasm. Sometimes hard to recognize on here.

 

[DFWJC]

Sarcasm. Sometimes hard to recognize on here.

Yeah, it zoomed right past me. Little slow today, I guess

 

[ABQCOWBOY]

I'm OK with people selling us short. We've had the hype and that hasn't worked out so well recently. I think this Defense will be better but at some point, you gotta show it. I hope this team will.

 

[Joe Realist]

Not being afraid to predict good things is fine- however there have not been good things since 2009.

 

[KJJ]

Cowboy FANS are never afraid to predict good things for the Cowboys they do it every year because they have nothing to lose. It's not like they have a track record for being right to protect. There's no method behind these glowing predictions it's just the FAN in them coming out every spring and summer. When it comes to predicting a season for any team especially the Cowboys you have to look at their previous season to gage the direction they're heading in. Some say it doesn't matter what happened the previous year this is a new season but how a team performed and finished the previous season can tell you a lot about the direction they're heading in. Heading into the 2013 season everyone knew Seattle would be a serious SB contender based off their 2012 season that produced a playoff win. You could see something special was on the horizon by how the Seahawks performed in 2012 with their rookie QB. The arrow was pointing up and continued to go up. How they performed in 2012 gave the team confidence and it carried over to the the following year.

If you examine the history of the NFL most teams that have gone from bad/mediocre for a period of years to a championship contender over night was due either to a head coaching change or a change at QB. The 99 Rams who were 4-12 the year prior came out of nowhere to win the SB after Kurt Warner took over. The 01 Pats went from a 5-11 team the year prior to winning the SB after Brady took over. The 2011 49ers who hadn't made the playoffs in years and were 6-10 the year prior went 13-3 and reached the NFC title game after Harbaugh took over. They've been a strong contender ever since.

The Cowboys have never in their history gone from years of mediocrity to turning it around overnight. When Landry arrived in 1960 the Cowboys made steady improvement each season until they became a championship contender by the mid 60's. Landry's teams weren't built overnight it took time but you could see progress being made each season. When Jimmy took over the Cowboys in 89 the team was awful that first season but improved their win total each season.. After the 91 season you could see something special was on the horizon. The Cowboys have been stuck in an 8-8 rut under Garrett since his first full season in 2011. It's been like groundhog day with him as HC. In Landry's first 3 years in Dallas the teams win total improved every year and he started with an expansion team that didn't even have a draft pick their inaugural season. The 1960 Cowboys are ranked as one of the 10 worst teams in NFL history.

The Cowboys improved from 0-11-1 in 1960 to 4-9-1 in 61 to 5-8-1 in 62. When Jimmy took over in 89 he was forced to clean house and trade his best player. Like the 1960 Cowboys the 89 Cowboys are also ranked as one of the 10 worst teams in NFL history. In Jimmy's first 3 seasons in Dallas the team steadily improved from 1-15 in 89 to 7-9 in 1990 to 11-5 in 91 that included a playoff win on the road with the teams backup QB. Unlike Landry and Jimmy Garrett inherited a talented team with a top 10 QB. Garrett inherited the the top pass rusher in the league and one of the top TE's in the game. He also inherited one of the best young rookie WR's in the league.

Garrett inherited a team that was only one year removed from a playoff win and was picked by many prior to the 2010 season to represent the NFC in the SB. When you hire a HC who inherits a talented team that has a top 10 QB and stay stuck at 8-8 three straight seasons you hired the wrong HC. The Cowboys are 2 games below 500 the last 4 years and have a long way to go to becoming a solid, consistent football team. It's not going to happen over night for a team that's been stuck at 8-8 for the past 3 seasons.