Night & Day

[jday]

jday... i love your writeups, man. Thanks so much for your incredible input.

Thanks for reading and the kudos.

 

[Corso]

I'd like to see Cooper Rush get some snaps with the #2's in PS3 if possible.

Never happen, wait...

 

[chagus]

Epic response, as usual Cas...thanks for stopping by!

I honestly don't know how anyone can argue Kellen's side anymore with a straight face...listening to Babe during the broadcast was hilarious because it was so painfully obvious that Kellen will never be a viable option. I actually felt kinda bad for both him and Broadus, who was a bit of an *** on 105.3 Friday about Kellen being better than Rush. Saturday night made Broadus (and Babe) look like complete idiots. I'm not saying they are idiots, but they have clearly missed the proverbial boat on Kellen.

I think you are spot on with Jaylon with one slight caveat; given his commitment to improvement, we may see some vast improvement over the course of this year and by the end he could be as advertised. But, you are probably right about 2018.

That's the over/under I have in mind for Taco: Solid. Not special...you have to find your defensive end sooner than 28 to find special, as a general rule. But solid seems to be a reasonable expectation.

Like I said, with or without Zeke, this offense is going to be a handful to slow down.

I noticed that as well. During the broadcast, Babe says "I have no problem with Kellen as the backup. I really don't." Then... SILENCE. Dale Hansen SAYS NOTHING. It was painful. Dale wanted nothing to do with that comment.

 

[jday]

I noticed that as well. During the broadcast, Babe says "I have no problem with Kellen as the backup. I really don't." Then... SILENCE. Dale Hansen SAYS NOTHING. It was painful. Dale wanted nothing to do with that comment.

I'm betting Babe wishes he could have that comment back now.

 

[CowboyRoy]

1. Gregory is a different type of a passrusher; he's more of a passrush specialist. Taco is a 3 down player who is not a liability against the run; Gregory was a liability against the run.

2. Before pissing hot at the combine, Gregory was slotted to go top of the first, so he wouldn't have been available to us at 28 this year in a world where Gregory is not an idiot.

Yah, but we are looking for a pass rusher. RDE is the pass rush specialist, not the run stopper. That is the LDE. And I havent seen Taco do much stopping the run.

 

[jday]

Yah, but we are looking for a pass rusher. RDE is the pass rush specialist, not the run stopper. That is the LDE. And I havent seen Taco do much stopping the run.

I've said from the beginning that Taco looks more like a LE than RE, but having said that, Marinelli doesn't seem to be a respecter of the traditional difference. I suspect in Marinelli's ideal world, his defensive ends can do any job across the line and simultaneously not be a liability against the run. For Gregory, his liability is not a lack of ability but size...or at least that was the case when we drafted him...he came into the league at 245 or less if I recall correctly. As a result it was too easy for him to get pushed out of the eventual hole in the run game by NFL caliber offensive lineman which made it a necessity for him to be used primarily in obvious passing situations. Taco may not bring more in the way of passrush or speed to get to the ball carrier, but his size affords him the ability to hold the point of the attack and force the ball carrier to find a new hole, which allows the linebackers/corners to make plays on the perimeter.

In essence, there are pros and cons to both types of Defensive Ends, however, to compare them is unfair to both parties dependent on the narrative you are attempting to prove.

 

[CowboyRoy]

I've said from the beginning that Taco looks more like a LE than RE, but having said that, Marinelli doesn't seem to be a respecter of the traditional difference. I suspect in Marinelli's ideal world, his defensive ends can do any job across the line and simultaneously not be a liability against the run. For Gregory, his liability is not a lack of ability but size...or at least that was the case when we drafted him...he came into the league at 245 or less if I recall correctly. As a result it was too easy for him to get pushed out of the eventual hole in the run game by NFL caliber offensive lineman which made it a necessity for him to be used primarily in obvious passing situations. Taco may not bring more in the way of passrush or speed to get to the ball carrier, but his size affords him the ability to hold the point of the attack and force the ball carrier to find a new hole, which allows the linebackers/corners to make plays on the perimeter.

In essence, there are pros and cons to both types of Defensive Ends, however, to compare them is unfair to both parties dependent on the narrative you are attempting to prove.

The narrative is quite simple. Despite being just a rookie and not expecting much out of him, young DE's still show up and we see the pass rush skills. Even with a guy like Gregory we saw more. Say what you want about Marinelli, they drafted him to be a RDE. We both agree, he wont be a good enough pass rusher for that spot.

In summary, Taco has NOT been impressive even for a rookie in my opinion. Its early and I didnt expect much anyway. But it would have been nice to see more. Maybe we will this weekend.

 

[dallasdave]

1. Gregory is a different type of a passrusher; he's more of a passrush specialist. Taco is a 3 down player who is not a liability against the run; Gregory was a liability against the run.

2. Before pissing hot at the combine, Gregory was slotted to go top of the first, so he wouldn't have been available to us at 28 this year in a world where Gregory is not an idiot.

 

[dallasdave]

Never happen, wait...

 

[jday]

The narrative is quite simple. Despite being just a rookie and not expecting much out of him, young DE's still show up and we see the pass rush skills. Even with a guy like Gregory we saw more. Say what you want about Marinelli, they drafted him to be a RDE. We both agree, he wont be a good enough pass rusher for that spot.

In summary, Taco has NOT been impressive even for a rookie in my opinion. Its early and I didnt expect much anyway. But it would have been nice to see more. Maybe we will this weekend.

One of the things I've been noticing about Taco in particular is he either explodes out of his stance and tries to bend around the corner, or he engages followed by a quick and polished inside spin move. He has the move down pat...the problem is he uses it all the freaking time. I knew with him coming in he would have to add some passrush moves, but to see him try the same thing over and over expecting a different result is very frustrating.

That said, as I have echoed since we drafted him, to say you expect more from a first rounder is too simplistic. One, you have to consider where he was taken. 2. You have to consider how many of his particular position were taken before him. 3. You have to consider the talent pool as it compares to other drafts.

Therein is the issue with having concrete expectations based on draft round; there are far too many variables to consider to simply make blanket statements in regards to first rounder expectations and that is particularly the case when considering the defensive end position.

Just to be clear, I don't have high hopes for Taco either...especially in the early going of his career. What he develops into is on him and this coaching staff. But it will likely be the end of the season before he really starts developing...or we might not really see him develop until he's had a year in a strength & conditioning program. Lastly, he may be bust. That is certainly a possibility. One way or the other though, the Cowboys hopes this season fortunately do not hinge on Taco in any way.

 

[CowboyRoy]

One of the things I've been noticing about Taco in particular is he either explodes out of his stance and tries to bend around the corner, or he engages followed by a quick and polished inside spin move. He has the move down pat...the problem is he uses it all the freaking time. I knew with him coming in he would have to add some passrush moves, but to see him try the same thing over and over expecting a different result is very frustrating.

That said, as I have echoed since we drafted him, to say you expect more from a first rounder is too simplistic. One, you have to consider where he was taken. 2. You have to consider how many of his particular position were taken before him. 3. You have to consider the talent pool as it compares to other drafts.

Therein is the issue with having concrete expectations based on draft round; there are far too many variables to consider to simply make blanket statements in regards to first rounder expectations and that is particularly the case when considering the defensive end position.

Just to be clear, I don't have high hopes for Taco either...especially in the early going of his career. What he develops into is on him and this coaching staff. But it will likely be the end of the season before he really starts developing...or we might not really see him develop until he's had a year in a strength & conditioning program. Lastly, he may be bust. That is certainly a possibility. One way or the other though, the Cowboys hopes this season fortunately do not hinge on Taco in any way.

Its seems we are both in agreement.

 

[diefree666]

most young DE's and pass rushers only have one or two moves; it takes time and hard work to develop more. That is one reason most pass rushers show relatively little their first year. Now there are exceptions like Ware and Mack and a few others.