Chocolate Lab
Run-loving Dino
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It's a slow day, so...
-- Like everyone else, I can't wait to see our new pressure defense. The ghost of Donovan McNabb running around for 29 seconds and laughing in our faces like Krusty the Clown still haunts me. We will give up more long plays this year and there will be some cries that our secondary suxors because of it, but I'm confident that at least we won't have career retreads like Jon Kitna laughing at us anymore.
-- For the last three years, I and others have noticed how our defense plays with far less emotion than most other defenses. Other teams whoop and holler and jump around and high five, while we look like we're going to a funeral. And when we do show some excitement, it's quickly quelled, almost as if the players doing it feel like they're doing something wrong. I predict that will change this year. I can't put my finger on it, but I think it had something to do with Parcells' constant insistence on keeping players' heads from getting too big.
-- I haven't seen it mentioned yet, but I wonder if Greg Ellis might see some time at DE this year instead of LB. The "Phillips 34" (love that term) has some elements of the 43 in it, and there's more emphasis on being a quick, aggressive, penetrating defense. Ellis might work at times at DE since he won't be simply lining head-up on and sumo wrestling 320 lb tackles. Phillips will sometimes let his ends shade outside of the tackles and use their quickness, and that's Ellis' game. It's something to look for. (And if I see this in a DMN article, do I get to take credit like so many others?)
-- This isn't that original, but I think Burnett will either show up this year or get the bust label. Phillips doesn't need 250+ lbs inside LBs, and he favors quickness and aggression more than just slugging it out with guards. Time to show up, Kevin.
-- Same goes for you, Spears. No more *****ing and moaning about the scheme. Lay off the jambalaya this offseason and get it in gear. Otherwise, get ready to be run out of town. I don't know if you noticed, but there's a kid named Hatcher behind you who has tons of ability and WANTS it.
-- There's a camp in Cowboys Fandom that thinks Julius Jones is Spare City and Marion Barber hung the moon. I'm not a member of that club, but I did notice that at the press conference, Phillips mentioned Barber by name but not Julius. Hmm. Wonder if that means anything or not. But this is another reason I'm glad we got a new RB coach and a mostly new offensive coaching staff.
-- I am absolutely fascinated by what Phillips thinks, or will think, about our personnel on defense and what our needs are. He's going to move some people around from where they've been, and he's going to promote some players who were fringe guys. He'll also eliminate or demote some of Parcells' old favorites. Right now we don't know what those evaluations will be, but we'll start getting clues soon when FA starts. I cannot wait to see what happens, because I think Phillips really does know his defense and he'll be right a lot more often than not when he makes these calls.
-- Speaking of that, did anyone else love the fact that Phillips didn't kowtow to Parcells? Yes, Parcells has had a great career and he was just what this team needed at the time he was hired. But Phillips has an unmistakable quiet confidence about his abilities on defense, and he pretty much assured us that he WILL fix this defense. It went unsaid, but I got the feeling he knows the talent on this team was not properly utilized. I'm not here to bash Parcells right now, but I liked how Phillips talked about how he and his dad introduced the 34 to the NFL full time, and how he called the system that was here "the Giants" 34, not the Parcells one.
-- And on that note, who else loved it when Phillips referred to our best coach ever as "The Immortal Tom Landry"? How could you not love that?
-- Offense? Meh, I'm a defense kind of guy. But I am very glad that Tony Sparano will continue have a large role, especially on the O-line. For the first time in this decade, we finally made some good progress there in 2006, and I'd hate to see a completely new philosophy and resulting new type of O-lineman come in here. Now, I think we can build on last year instead of starting over. And I think the promising younger guys like McQuistan and possibly Procter won't get thrown out with the bath water like they might have with a new O-line coach.
-- Finally, back to defense. Demarcus Ware, I hope you have your smile muscles tuned up, because Phillips is going to make you a mega-star. Between Merriman's steroid fiasco and the coaching upheaval in SD, he and that team will fade a bit while your career explodes. I expect us to get another passrusher in FA or the draft, and Phillips will know how to utilize him. Add that to a still-effective (even if in smaller doses) Ellis, a more seasoned Carpenter, and DEs who are free to do something other than waltz with the OTs in front of them, and you won't be able to be doubled so often. I hope you have financial advisors in place who know how to deal with *really* large sums of money.
-- Like everyone else, I can't wait to see our new pressure defense. The ghost of Donovan McNabb running around for 29 seconds and laughing in our faces like Krusty the Clown still haunts me. We will give up more long plays this year and there will be some cries that our secondary suxors because of it, but I'm confident that at least we won't have career retreads like Jon Kitna laughing at us anymore.
-- For the last three years, I and others have noticed how our defense plays with far less emotion than most other defenses. Other teams whoop and holler and jump around and high five, while we look like we're going to a funeral. And when we do show some excitement, it's quickly quelled, almost as if the players doing it feel like they're doing something wrong. I predict that will change this year. I can't put my finger on it, but I think it had something to do with Parcells' constant insistence on keeping players' heads from getting too big.
-- I haven't seen it mentioned yet, but I wonder if Greg Ellis might see some time at DE this year instead of LB. The "Phillips 34" (love that term) has some elements of the 43 in it, and there's more emphasis on being a quick, aggressive, penetrating defense. Ellis might work at times at DE since he won't be simply lining head-up on and sumo wrestling 320 lb tackles. Phillips will sometimes let his ends shade outside of the tackles and use their quickness, and that's Ellis' game. It's something to look for. (And if I see this in a DMN article, do I get to take credit like so many others?)
-- This isn't that original, but I think Burnett will either show up this year or get the bust label. Phillips doesn't need 250+ lbs inside LBs, and he favors quickness and aggression more than just slugging it out with guards. Time to show up, Kevin.
-- Same goes for you, Spears. No more *****ing and moaning about the scheme. Lay off the jambalaya this offseason and get it in gear. Otherwise, get ready to be run out of town. I don't know if you noticed, but there's a kid named Hatcher behind you who has tons of ability and WANTS it.
-- There's a camp in Cowboys Fandom that thinks Julius Jones is Spare City and Marion Barber hung the moon. I'm not a member of that club, but I did notice that at the press conference, Phillips mentioned Barber by name but not Julius. Hmm. Wonder if that means anything or not. But this is another reason I'm glad we got a new RB coach and a mostly new offensive coaching staff.
-- I am absolutely fascinated by what Phillips thinks, or will think, about our personnel on defense and what our needs are. He's going to move some people around from where they've been, and he's going to promote some players who were fringe guys. He'll also eliminate or demote some of Parcells' old favorites. Right now we don't know what those evaluations will be, but we'll start getting clues soon when FA starts. I cannot wait to see what happens, because I think Phillips really does know his defense and he'll be right a lot more often than not when he makes these calls.
-- Speaking of that, did anyone else love the fact that Phillips didn't kowtow to Parcells? Yes, Parcells has had a great career and he was just what this team needed at the time he was hired. But Phillips has an unmistakable quiet confidence about his abilities on defense, and he pretty much assured us that he WILL fix this defense. It went unsaid, but I got the feeling he knows the talent on this team was not properly utilized. I'm not here to bash Parcells right now, but I liked how Phillips talked about how he and his dad introduced the 34 to the NFL full time, and how he called the system that was here "the Giants" 34, not the Parcells one.
-- And on that note, who else loved it when Phillips referred to our best coach ever as "The Immortal Tom Landry"? How could you not love that?
-- Offense? Meh, I'm a defense kind of guy. But I am very glad that Tony Sparano will continue have a large role, especially on the O-line. For the first time in this decade, we finally made some good progress there in 2006, and I'd hate to see a completely new philosophy and resulting new type of O-lineman come in here. Now, I think we can build on last year instead of starting over. And I think the promising younger guys like McQuistan and possibly Procter won't get thrown out with the bath water like they might have with a new O-line coach.
-- Finally, back to defense. Demarcus Ware, I hope you have your smile muscles tuned up, because Phillips is going to make you a mega-star. Between Merriman's steroid fiasco and the coaching upheaval in SD, he and that team will fade a bit while your career explodes. I expect us to get another passrusher in FA or the draft, and Phillips will know how to utilize him. Add that to a still-effective (even if in smaller doses) Ellis, a more seasoned Carpenter, and DEs who are free to do something other than waltz with the OTs in front of them, and you won't be able to be doubled so often. I hope you have financial advisors in place who know how to deal with *really* large sums of money.
I actually mentioned it a few times,