i want to take a minute to list some of the reasons i'm optimistic. agree or not, this is simply my take on it. i won't list the bad, as i think that list is as speculative as this one, admittedly...
1. from the coaching staff on down we have improved, but let me start by saying the indoctrination of the team - molding it into Parcells' image - is nearly complete. the coaches we have brought in will improve this team on several levels.
2. QB Drew Bledsoe, i have to believe, will be an upgrade. i watched vinny throw a couple of games away last season with bone-headed mistakes. the kind of losses that killed all hope for a winning season. bledsoe won't make as many of those kinds of mistakes, and whoever may be called in as backup will be better prepared and with a better supporting cast than previously. more likely to succeed, i should think.
3. we WILL have a serious running game this year, and all year. not only jones but thomas and barber plus the FB position give us needed depth and needed change of pace as the situation dictates. it will be nice to have a smashmouth offense again, and be the smasher not the smashee.
4. the OL will be leaps and bounds over last year. allen especially seems poised to return to dominance - he will be viewed come season end as an overachiever not an underachiever. Johnson at center is a guy everyone seems high on, and being flanked opposite LA by a veteran leader like Rivera will give us a very formidable front, whoever wins the RT spot. Adams on the other end didn't go to the pro bowl just because of good looks - Flozell "the Hotel" Adams will carry his share. having campbell back healthy and rested and rarin' to go as one of the finest blocking TEs in the league won't hurt either, but i digress...
5. DL i wont go into too deeply, but anyone who believes the arrivals of Ferguson, Spears, Canty, Ratliff, and at times Ware isn't going to improve this unit - under whatever scheme - isn't paying attention. Ellis and/ or Glover may grumble a bit, but having these veterans healthy and fresh late in the game and the season will pay dividends down the stretch. when we grab a championship trophy again, whether division or league, those sounds will be drowned out by cheers.
6. the LB position is a little harder to gauge, but nevertheless the additions of Ware and Burnett and the improved play of guys like shanle and thornton should hold up their end. i think they'll do ok.
7. the secondary should be a bright spot in our forecast, and nobody will argue this unit won't be much improved over last year. newman enters his third year a bit older and wiser, as well as healthier. he knows this year he'll have help on the other side, as well as an expectation of a pass rush to force the throw. Henry is the quiet one, and he'll go quietly about his business. Glenn is the veteran presence we lost with Woodson (all praise his name...) having to retire, and we'll have a solid nickle defense to match up with. Roy Williams will be able to play his game - let the others set them up and Roy will knock them down. real hard. nothing would please me more than to watch TO try to get past him again - i'll bet TO would lay down if he caught Roy in the corner of his eye...
8. what am i forgetting? WRs can't be worse and can only be better. Glenn will hopefully stay healthy longer, crayton is said to be pushing for the third spot so he must be impressing someone, morgan is supposedly working hard to refine his technique, and KJ is solid if unspectacular. it would be nice if this crowder kid turned out to be something.
9. let me not forget special teams. we may have found a very good punter in McBriar - he is still relatively new to this but appears to be getting better all the time, and he wasn't bad last year. Kicking is status quo - solid but unspectacular. overall, with a new position coach here as well, this group should be at least slightly improved.
10. attitude. this game is all about attitude. its something we haven't seen in Cowboyland for quite a while. the players, coaches, Jerry himself as well as the media and the fans - everyone can smell something cooking in Big D. this team is better across the board, and everyone knows it. the players feel it too, and since this game is played on the field, that's where it will manifest itself. the hunger, the desire, call it whatever you will - it translates to pancake blocks and leaping sideline catches and 4th-and-inches stops. and wins. lots more wins.
so there you have it, my reasons for optimism. sorry to ramble so long, but i have every reason to believe this team is destined to succeed. enjoy the show!
.
