Our 2009 starting lineup is...

[Shotgun Dave]

Offense

QB - Romo
WR - Owens, Williams
RB - RBBC, but I see Barber at 40%, Jones at 35%, and Choice at 25%
TE - Witten, but a lot of 2 TE sets with Bennett
FB - Anderson
OL - Flozell, Kozier, Gurode, Davis, Columbo

Overall, this unit remains unchanged to start the season. I do expect that we will brig in (through the draft or FA) offensive line depth and, depending on how the draft falls, an eventual replacement for Flo. Holland will go through TC and be much better prepared for a full season. By the end of the season, it's not impossible that our o-line would look a little different. The following players are gone: Brad Johnson, Proctor, McQuistan.

Defense

DL - Canty, Ratliff, Hatcher
LB - Spencer, Brady, Burnett, Ware
CB - Newman, Scandrick
S - Hamlin, Patrick Chung

I see Chung possibly coming to us in the draft but under no circumstances do I see us starting the season with Henry on the team. Chung looks to be available with our 2nd round pick, and reports suggest he's not far off the pace from the top SS's in the draft. I also see us likely bringing in a MOLB to replace Zach and push Burnett, but unless we go that route instead of SS I don't see that person starting ahead of Burnett. I think the following players are gone: Roy 38, Spears, Ellis, Pac-Man, Henry, Zach, and Carpenter.

Special Teams

P - McBriar is back (and thank God for that)
K - Folk (although he'll be pushed again in TC by a kicker with more leg)
H - Johnson and Paulescu are gone so I believe it'll be Romo again

Kickoffs will be returned by either Felix or Austin. Punts will be returned by Crayton or (outside shot) Stanback.

That's what Shotgun Dave says. Your thoughts?

 

[Rampage]

Offense

QB - Romo
WR - Owens, Williams
RB - RBBC, but I see Barber at 40%, Jones at 35%, and Choice at 25%
TE - Witten, but a lot of 2 TE sets with Bennett
FB - Anderson
OL - Flozell, Kozier, Gurode, Davis, Columbo

Overall, this unit remains unchanged to start the season. I do expect that we will brig in (through the draft or FA) offensive line depth and, depending on how the draft falls, an eventual replacement for Flo. Holland will go through TC and be much better prepared for a full season. By the end of the season, it's not impossible that our o-line would look a little different. The following players are gone: Brad Johnson, Proctor, McQuistan.

Defense

DL - Canty, Ratliff, Hatcher
LB - Spencer, Brady, Burnett, Ware
CB - Newman, Scandrick
S - Hamlin, Patrick Chung

I see Chung possibly coming to us in the draft but under no circumstances do I see us starting the season with Henry on the team. Chung looks to be available with our 2nd round pick, and reports suggest he's not far off the pace from the top SS's in the draft. I also see us likely bringing in a MOLB to replace Zach and push Burnett, but unless we go that route instead of SS I don't see that person starting ahead of Burnett. I think the following players are gone: Roy 38, Spears, Ellis, Pac-Man, Henry, Zach, and Carpenter.

Special Teams

P - McBriar is back (and thank God for that)
K - Folk (although he'll be pushed again in TC by a kicker with more leg)
H - Johnson and Paulescu are gone so I believe it'll be Romo again

Kickoffs will be returned by either Felix or Austin. Punts will be returned by Crayton or (outside shot) Stanback.

That's what Shotgun Dave says. Your thoughts?

burnett is too injury prone to be a starting linebacker

scandrick needs to stay in the slot he's not strong enough yet to deal with big wrs outside

i don't want chung as our ss

i'd rather keep spears than Canty. canty is probably not gonna be resigned.

other than that i like it

 

[Clove]

Defense

DL - Canty, Ratliff, Hatcher
LB - Spencer, Brady, Burnett, Ware
CB - Newman, Scandrick
S - Hamlin, Patrick Chung

No true NT?

 

[LRcowboy Fan]

There is no way Tony holds again.

 

[Shotgun Dave]

No true NT?

Unfortunately, we traded our shot at a true NT to Detroit for sloppy routes and a bad attitude. All the worthwhile NT's will be long gone by the time we pick in the 2nd, and our run defense has been stellar compared to our safety play this year. Roy 38 will be gone, Henry can't play with his wooden leg, and we will need someone who can step in straight away. That's why I see Chung being a likely pick for us, and the only starter in '09.

 

[AdamJT13]

Why would we ever get rid of Spears, who is under contract and extremely cheap?

 

[Shotgun Dave]

There is no way Tony holds again.

Never say never. And unless you can give me some idea who DOES, and I don't know of ANYONE on our current roster (besides Johnson and Paulescu) who can, then I'm going to assume it's Romo. Maybe they spend TC working someone else into the role, but I don't know who that would be. They certainly aren't going to DRAFT a holder.

 

[Clove]

Unfortunately, we traded our shot at a true NT to Detroit for sloppy routes and a bad attitude. All the worthwhile NT's will be long gone by the time we pick in the 2nd, and our run defense has been stellar compared to our safety play this year. Roy 38 will be gone, Henry can't play with his wooden leg, and we will need someone who can step in straight away. That's why I see Chung being a likely pick for us, and the only starter in '09.

I think we need to seriously consider finding a true NT like Ferguson, although our running game was pretty good, a patient team could eventually wear us down.

Plus putting Rat 1 on 1 is something we truly need IMO. I just believe that if a team is committed to running the ball no matter what, they can eventually succeed with the front 7 we have.

 

[Shotgun Dave]

Why would we ever get rid of Spears, who is under contract and extremely cheap?

I remember reading somewhere that Jones was really high on Hatcher and wanted to him to start a while back. Spears hasn't performed all that well, in my opinion, so cheap only gets you so far. I was hoping you'd reply to this thread because I'm basing my roster off of performance but YOU, my friend, are the all-knowing, all seeing master of all things cap-related. How do YOU see this playing out?

 

[alancdc]

For some reason I think Roy will be back. Also believe Spears stays, and should, and Canty is probably gone. I would love for them to play 2 TE's and get MBIII, Felix and TC going. I, for one, called a local show after the GB game when we ran for over 200 yards and proclaimed that this is why we will be different in December this year. We get rid of JJ, and get MBIII full time and add Felix. Man, in theory I was right on, but reality was off. Still, it should have been the case! Remember that game....We killed GB coming off that big Philly game and in that GB game TO had, I know, less than 4 catches, but we ran it and ran it and they couldn't do anything about it. WHAT HAPPENED?

 

[dstew60105]

I remember reading somewhere that Jones was really high on Hatcher and wanted to him to start a while back. Spears hasn't performed all that well, in my opinion, so cheap only gets you so far. I was hoping you'd reply to this thread because I'm basing my roster off of performance but YOU, my friend, are the all-knowing, all seeing master of all things cap-related. How do YOU see this playing out?

Not understanding why you'd cut Spears. Had a decent year and if not starting would be a nice backup.

 

[Shotgun Dave]

burnett is too injury prone to be a starting linebacker

scandrick needs to stay in the slot he's not strong enough yet to deal with big wrs outside

i don't want chung as our ss

i'd rather keep spears than Canty. canty is probably not gonna be resigned.

other than that i like it

We kind of agree on a lot of this. I agree on Burnett which is why I think we bring in someone to push him, but I still think his experience at least starts the season. Scandrick, I believe, will be a STAR at some point. I see him really turning the corner (no pun intended) after a year in a conditioning program.

Curious why you don't like Chung? I'm no expert there, but from what I have read he's a good fit.

I'm ready to see what Canty can do. Spears has been OK, but he disappears in too many plays. I like Canty's upside...and size.

 

[Shotgun Dave]

Not understanding why you'd cut Spears. Had a decent year and if not starting would be a nice backup.

I thought this was the final year of his contract. My bad. I agree he's been OK...but just OK. Nothing stellar. I don't know how he'd feel moving to a backup spot, but I still start Canty instead.

 

[jday]

Proctor, McQuistan, Pacman and Spears will still be here. Proctor and McQuistan are young, late 20's to early 30's are typically the years Offensive Linemen excel. Of all the positions, the transition from college ball to NFL takes the longest.

Pacman, despite the headache, is a very underpaid CB for his talent and upside. In 2006, he was considered to be in the top 5 by many analyst. Any chance of a return to that form is worth what we are currently paying him. The DL for the exception of Tank will most likely stay. In 3-4, if you don't here their names too often, it's a good thing. Their job is to occupy the line. An improvement in that area late in the 2008 season coupled with how difficult it is to bring in someone else and have them execute the scheme seemlessly, will likely lead to the Cowboys resigning Spears. Albert Haynesworth would be a nice addition, if we can't keep Tank, but I doubt we have the cap for it. I would not be suprised if a few higher paid players are forced to take a pay cut in order to restructure our cap situation to afford a few key additions, particularly in the draft.

I could see Jerry using a few veteran players as trade bait to possibly move back into the first round: players such as Flozell Adams, Anthony Henry, Roy Williams (SS), Patrick Crayton and few others may be among a few that will not return next year for this reason.

In terms of the use of the RB's, for the first half I see a steady dose of Marion in the first series, followed by Choice and Felix sharing carries until late in the 2nd quarter, where Marion will close. Repeat in the second half. Pacman and Felix will most likely both be field kick returns, dependent on where we are at in the game. Either can be threat.

Chung is more of a developmental Safety then starting quality, especially with his inability to matchup well to most NFL TE's. This would force Hamlin out of his natural position. I don't see him as an upgrade to what we currently have, considering our defensive scheme. Curtis Taylor from LSU would be my first choice.

Dependent on what happens in Free Agency in terms of our losses and possible acquisitions, the Cowboys won't be looking for two many starting material players, except at possibly Safety.

 

[LRcowboy Fan]

Never say never. And unless you can give me some idea who DOES, and I don't know of ANYONE on our current roster (besides Johnson and Paulescu) who can, then I'm going to assume it's Romo. Maybe they spend TC working someone else into the role, but I don't know who that would be. They certainly aren't going to DRAFT a holder.

I am guessing whoever they bring in to be the backup QB will be the holder. Surely they are not going to make Bollinger the backup.

 

[Shotgun Dave]

I am guessing whoever they bring in to be the backup QB will be the holder. Surely they are not going to make Bollinger the backup.

You may be right, but don't call me Shirley.

 

[Shotgun Dave]

Proctor, McQuistan, Pacman and Spears will still be here. Proctor and McQuistan are young, late 20's to early 30's are typically the years Offensive Linemen excel. Of all the positions, the transition from college ball to NFL takes the longest.

Pacman, despite the headache, is a very underpaid CB for his talent and upside. In 2006, he was considered to be in the top 5 by many analyst. Any chance of a return to that form is worth what we are currently paying him. The DL for the exception of Tank will most likely stay. In 3-4, if you don't here their names too often, it's a good thing. Their job is to occupy the line. An improvement in that area late in the 2008 season coupled with how difficult it is to bring in someone else and have them execute the scheme seemlessly, will likely lead to the Cowboys resigning Spears. Albert Haynesworth would be a nice addition, if we can't keep Tank, but I doubt we have the cap for it. I would not be suprised if a few higher paid players are forced to take a pay cut in order to restructure our cap situation to afford a few key additions, particularly in the draft.

I could see Jerry using a few veteran players as trade bait to possibly move back into the first round: players such as Flozell Adams, Anthony Henry, Roy Williams (SS), Patrick Crayton and few others may be among a few that will not return next year for this reason.

In terms of the use of the RB's, for the first half I see a steady dose of Marion in the first series, followed by Choice and Felix sharing carries until late in the 2nd quarter, where Marion will close. Repeat in the second half. Pacman and Felix will most likely both be field kick returns, dependent on where we are at in the game. Either can be threat.

Chung is more of a developmental Safety then starting quality, especially with his inability to matchup well to most NFL TE's. This would force Hamlin out of his natural position. I don't see him as an upgrade to what we currently have, considering our defensive scheme. Curtis Taylor from LSU would be my first choice.

Dependent on what happens in Free Agency in terms of our losses and possible acquisitions, the Cowboys won't be looking for two many starting material players, except at possibly Safety.

Proctor and McQuistan have 4 and 3 years experience respectively, and both proved to be no more than weak backups. I honestly don't see us keeping them unless we can't find ANY o-linemen in the draft or FA.

Pac-Man is one burp away from a lifetime ban, and this *potential* that everyone keep stalking about only prevents guys like Scandrick and Jenkins from getting valuable experience. I bet a month's pay that Pac-Man is GONE. Why make plans on a guy that's so close to being banned forever whose play has been, at best, good. Not great, just good. I think it's insane personally.

From everything I've read, Chung is 6'00 and 210 pounds. He's been considered a top 3 SS pretty widely. I don't know the LSU guy but he's been listed as the 15 - 20th best safety available, and he's 6'3", 210. No reason we couldn't get them both considering Chung is thought to be a late 1st - mid 2nd round guy. I saw Taylor listed as a 4-5 round pick (but who knows really and, like I said, I haven't watched SEC football since '05).

I definitely see us bringing in safety this year (instead of corner's like we have since FDR was in office), and we'll need LB and o-line as well.