Question for those old enough to remember Staubach's rookie year (compared to Henson)

[ABQCOWBOY]

I agree.

And what has the guy done to make some hate him so? Nothing....just like every other QB situation that we have had in Dallas.

I never had the faith in him that some do, and that is all fine and dandy....I've never wavered on that. Others do based on his limited playing time.

Give him three years....that's fine with me....but if he is starting in that 3rd year, which is next year, don't expect greatness quite yet....it si actually 3 years of starting for most QB's (per Aikman's own words).

Jim, you and I have been on opposite sides of QB debates before but on this post, I do agree with you.

I believe we do have a QB but I have nothing other then my own personal opinion to base that on. I can not and would not dispute the fact that Romo is #2. He has clearly earned it IMO. I also agree that Henson needs to show the same kind of improvement that Romo showed from years 2 to 3. If he does this, it should clearly establish him as #2. Possibly challenge to start depending on Bledsoe. Beyond that, it's a learning experience as a starter.

If Henson has not improved, then I will agree with other's. We need to move on.

 

[Doomsday101]

Danny White had to sit for 4 years because he was behind the best QB in the league at the time. It wasn't because he was still a young QB learning the position and the coaches were reluctant to play him. Dallas had the luxury of letting him learn while a great QB was leading the team. I think many agree Dallas should have tried to do the same thing while Aikman was around. Bring in a young QB to learn the game.

I agree. It was a mistake not to have a young QB waiting in the wings behind Troy and we have paid the price for that mistake

 

[ABQCOWBOY]

I agree. It was a mistake not to have a young QB waiting in the wings behind Troy and we have paid the price for that mistake

In spades Josee, in spades.

 

[JackMagist]

Roger came into his first game in the regular season of his rookie year when Morton went out with an injury (I forget what it was...not severe). He lead the team to a touchdown on his first drive scoring the TD himself on a run of (if I remember right) about 12 yards. Many of us fell in love with him right then and there because the team had been struggling with Morton at QB.

It should be noted though that Staubach had been studying the playbook of the Dallas Cowboys during his entire tour in the Navy and had kept up (as much as possible) his throwing and conditioning. His heart was always in football and he came in and played that way; he never played like a rookie in the NFL. Roger Staubach was and is an exceptional man and expectations for others should not be set by his accomplishments as it is unrealistic to believe that just anyone can do things the way he did.

Terry Bradshaw took 3 to 4 years to develop even though he started as a rookie. He lost his job to the mediocre talent of Terry Hanratti (sp) and the hop-head "Jefferson St." Joe Gilliam before he "got it". The first year that the Steelers went to the Superbowl Bradshaw was benched during the early part of the season...then it clicked for him and he became what he is remembered as today. This is a more realistic expectation for our young QB's.

 

[Next_years_Champs]

he never played like a rookie in the NFL

Man I was a junior in Garland High School in 1964 when Roger and the Midshipmen played the Texas Longhorns in The Cotton Bowl for the National Championship, I of course was a Longhorn fan but I followed Roger all through college. When Starbach was drafted by my Dallas Cowboys I was elated and counted the days until he could join the team even though it was a longshot that he would ever play.

And all I can say is you are totally wrong if you think Roger Starbach didn't play like a rookie when he got to play. While his superior athletic ability bailed him out many times the fact is he played totally out of control in his early games. As a matter of fact the name "Roger the Dodger" came about because he would sometimes take-off running before he needed to and at other times he would hold the ball to long forcing him to scramble out of harms way. Roger was playing on a talented team with a very good offensive line and still ended up known as a scrambler mainly because he would take off running when he was in doubt.


Roger is a great man and one of my favorite all time players if not my favorite, but the fact is he struggled mightily at the start of his career and only his tremendous athletic ability allowed him to be moderately successful until the lights came on. But it didn't happen until his third season and one could argue it really didn't happen until the come from behind victory against the 49ers in the NFC Championship in 1970.......

 

[TruBlueCowboy]

It should be noted though that Staubach had been studying the playbook of the Dallas Cowboys during his entire tour in the Navy and had kept up (as much as possible) his throwing and conditioning. His heart was always in football and he came in and played that way; he never played like a rookie in the NFL.

Ya know, regardless of what they did during their off years, maybe that is what Henson is missing. The heart. Roger was always a football player, always wanted to lead the men on the field. Henson was ready to ditch the sport for baseball of all things.

 

[SultanOfSix]

Ya know, regardless of what they did during their off years, maybe that is what Henson is missing. The heart. Roger was always a football player, always wanted to lead the men on the field. Henson was ready to ditch the sport for baseball of all things.

I doubt it. Henson has enough money to retire comfortably, without really succeeding at any sport at a professional level. Yet, he decided to try and comeback to become a professional at another sport that he enjoys. You, nor I, know what the deciding factor was in Henson's mind to choose baseball over football. But that doesn't mean he can't be successful at football.

 

[Doomsday101]

Roger came into his first game in the regular season of his rookie year when Morton went out with an injury (I forget what it was...not severe). He lead the team to a touchdown on his first drive scoring the TD himself on a run of (if I remember right) about 12 yards. Many of us fell in love with him right then and there because the team had been struggling with Morton at QB.

It should be noted though that Staubach had been studying the playbook of the Dallas Cowboys during his entire tour in the Navy and had kept up (as much as possible) his throwing and conditioning. His heart was always in football and he came in and played that way; he never played like a rookie in the NFL. Roger Staubach was and is an exceptional man and expectations for others should not be set by his accomplishments as it is unrealistic to believe that just anyone can do things the way he did.

Terry Bradshaw took 3 to 4 years to develop even though he started as a rookie. He lost his job to the mediocre talent of Terry Hanratti (sp) and the hop-head "Jefferson St." Joe Gilliam before he "got it". The first year that the Steelers went to the Superbowl Bradshaw was benched during the early part of the season...then it clicked for him and he became what he is remembered as today. This is a more realistic expectation for our young QB's.

You have got to be kidding Roger 1st 2 years with Dallas saw him throw 10 ints and 3 TD those are not the numbers of a vet those are the numbers of a raw player trying to learn. I loved having Roger but he went through tough times.

 

[jobberone]

Staubach showed flashes of brillance early on just like Aikman. He beat out a pretty good QB in Morton and competed with him relatively early in his career. And while he did make mistakes causing Landry to shake his head and even turn from the field he never looked like Henson does.

I don't see in Henson what I saw in Staubach early on. I don't see the green in Staubach I see in Henson either.

And comparing Henson and Staubach is comparing apples and oranges. Roger did play ball in the service. And those semipro teams were still pretty good although not like the ones in the early 50s in the services. My father actually played on the same intraservice team as Mr. Inside and Mr. Outside in the late 40s early 50s. Those service teams were very very good at one time. Staubach was in camp every year courtesy of the Navy. And he played four years of ball and at a championship level in college.

I would love for Henson to be 80% as great as Staubach but I don't see it. In fact I don't think Henson has it in him. JMO. I know there are many here who disagree.

BTW, I don't see "it" in Romo either. Romo shows a great deal more than Henson although I suspect not enough.

My suggestion is to draft a freaking QB in the first round next year unless either Henson or Romo change their feathers. Sometimes you just have to pay the piper.

 

[noshame]

I was rooting for Morton, he threw a beauty of a deep ball. I thought Staubach was never going to amount to anything Oh well, I was young. lol

 

[Chuck 54]

I guess you'd have to be in your mid-50's to have been old enough to fully appreciate Staubach's career from day one, and I'm sure we have some lifelong Cowboys fans here who can claim that.

I was just wondering, seeing as how Staubach had a similar path as Henson, how rusty did Staubach look the first few years? I know Staubach had a chance to play in a few Cowboys training camps, but wasn't he also out of football longer than Henson? Staubach also had a coach who was as tough on his QBs as Parcells.

The stats show Staubach as not really picking up significant numbers until his 3rd year, and boy was it a whopper!

Is it unfair to compare Henson to Staubach? I know Captain Comeback is a one in a million player who also had more college experience, but the big reason for spending a 3rd on Henson was that he was allegedly a candidate for a #1 overall pick at one point in his college career which in my opinion, would place him up there with a Heisman winner like Staubach. Should we expect Henson to progress at a rate similar to Staubach? For you longtime Cowboys fans, did Staubach, at one point, look as hopeless as Henson?

the difference is that Staubach played throughout college and won the Heisman and the Navy layoff still cost him precious time....Henson lost even more time because he wasn't in any way connected to football during his layoff while Staubach was in training camp each year...and Henson's college training is totally worthless compared to Staubach.

If Staubach took 2 years to get it right, let's remember he was on a team with decent QB's in Meredyth and Morton. Henson is in his 2nd year, is no where near being STaubach and can't beat out Tony Romo.

 

[Juke99]

Staubach would pull the ball down and run at the first hint of a play not going well....Landry felt that he didn't let plays develop (which was an accurate assessment).

Funny thing, later on (even though Staubach could still scramble) he became a great pocket passer. My most vivid memories of him are of how he stood in the pocket.

I think Henson actually has more presence than Staubach did at the same point in his career. Roger was all this chaotic energy when he first arrived...that's what made Landry nutz. Henson seems pretty cool in the pocket.

That said, there was a "something" you could see in Staubach, even back then. I haven't seen that same something from Henson since he left Michigan.

 

[Cbz40]

I can't add anything different than what's been said about Staubach in his early years.. I'll say this about Roger, he was electrifying....when he entered the game, even as a young professional, you knew something exciting was going to happen....and more times than not it was good. He beamed of confidence and Leadership was his middle name.

Henson does not have that yet.....he may one day...then again he may not. The tools are there he simply needs time to put everything together.

Every QB that has ever played the game, even Big Ben, has had a few problems in their first year as starters, and yes, even in their deveopmental years.......it's ineviitable. Some just take longer to shed their flaws and some never do.

 

[JackMagist]

I was rooting for Morton, he threw a beauty of a deep ball. I thought Staubach was never going to amount to anything Oh well, I was young. lol

There is no shame in rooting for Morton...many people did. Morton had a much better arm than Staubach and was a bigger and stronger QB. And Morton was no slouch either; he is still (I believe) the only man to lead two different teams to the SB as the starting QB. He took Dallas to SB V and then he took Denver to the SB where he lost to Roger Staubach and the Dallas Cowboys. Still quite an accomplishment; he just did not have Staubach's intangibles and charisma

 

[Hostile]

I guess you'd have to be in your mid-50's to have been old enough to fully appreciate Staubach's career from day one, and I'm sure we have some lifelong Cowboys fans here who can claim that.

I was just wondering, seeing as how Staubach had a similar path as Henson, how rusty did Staubach look the first few years? I know Staubach had a chance to play in a few Cowboys training camps, but wasn't he also out of football longer than Henson? Staubach also had a coach who was as tough on his QBs as Parcells.

The stats show Staubach as not really picking up significant numbers until his 3rd year, and boy was it a whopper!

Is it unfair to compare Henson to Staubach? I know Captain Comeback is a one in a million player who also had more college experience, but the big reason for spending a 3rd on Henson was that he was allegedly a candidate for a #1 overall pick at one point in his college career which in my opinion, would place him up there with a Heisman winner like Staubach. Should we expect Henson to progress at a rate similar to Staubach? For you longtime Cowboys fans, did Staubach, at one point, look as hopeless as Henson?

Mid 50's?

No friggin way. I'm in my early 40's and I remember his first year. Barely, but I remember it.

 

[Cbz40]

I was rooting for Morton, he threw a beauty of a deep ball. I thought Staubach was never going to amount to anything Oh well, I was young. lol

Ditto ...what Jack said. Morton was a fine QB...with a rifle arm. I don't remember him throwing one short .

 

[jobberone]

Morton made too many mistakes and did not have Roger's ability to lead and win. There are only three other QBs I would put in same league with Roger's comeback ability and those are Johnny U, Elway, and Montana.

 

[Juke99]

Morton made too many mistakes and did not have Roger's ability to lead and win. There are only three other QBs I would put in same league with Roger's comeback ability and those are Johnny U, Elway, and Montana.

....and Clint Longley

 

[burmafrd]

The light came on about halfway through the 8th game of the 71 season- Roger had just been named the starter; and he just put it in overdrive and off he went.
BUt the comeback string started in the playoff game in 72 against the 49rs. Roger had been on the bench after recovering from a shoulder injury he got when he tried to challenge a skins LB near the goal line. THAT injury woke him up and that was when he really started to work at being a pocket passer. Morton took over and Landry left him in since the team was winning. I have always thought that Landry did that deliberately to drive home the point that Roger was going to have to learn to stay in the pocket unless it collapsed- not take any oppurtunity to run. ANd it worked.
73 on it was Roger all the way through the 79 season. That season you could start to see that he was physically starting to break down- it was just starting to become apparent. Roger retired after that season- a very smart move.

 

[Nors]

As a kid in early 70's. Its truly unfair to compare him to Henson. Staubach had football skills and instincts rare. Thats why he's in Canton. He did not have a "gun" of an arm. In many repects he had timing and an ability to get the ball to the right receiver at the right time.

I see none to zero similarities to Roger in Henson.

Roger ran the team, had a presence and just knew what to do. A lot of that is just lacking in Henson - JMO And Roger spent training camps in Dallas in his offseasons.....