Sham: 'A lot of folks' think Alabama's Mark Barron can step in and play for Cowboys

[Manwiththeplan]

Dez thus far has proven he's an adequate #2 WR.

900+ yards and 9 TDs? even if he never improves I'd say he's one of the better #2 WRs or possibly a low end #1.

 

[Gaede]

They went to the playoffs at 15-1.

So? Where'd they end up?

We were 1 play away from the playoffs.

Tebow not only made it, but actually won a playoff game.

Making it there doesn't mean jack.

If you have a major weakness, it will be exploited and you will lose. I'd rather shore up our major weaknesses, pass rush and pass defense, before spending #14 on a LG.

 

[kmd24]

Our offense would look a lot better if we could get the opposition off the field. Some of the statistically worst offensive games last year were games in which the opponent rattled off 3 quick scores in the first quarter and the offense became one dimensional.

I've thought about this a lot, and I really can't get behind DeCastro over Cox or Barron. I'm fairly certain we won't pick DeCastro after what went down in free agency - not because he's not an instant starter - but because we've decided not to have steak at those positions.

From what I understand, Cox won't be around at 14, so, barring a trade up, we're either taking Barron or trading down. Barron looks fairly likely, and I think it's the second most glaring weakness on the team, to be honest. I'm not that crazy about taking a safety so high, especially one who's likely to be close to his ceiling coming from a relatively well-coached and sophisticated defense.

The most glaring weakness, in my mind, is center, and I think we'll fill that role in this draft, either with Konz via a trade down or a second round pick if he's still available that late.

One of the nicer developments in this draft is the number of DE's that have played or project to play a 5-tech DE. Coples, Cox, Crick, Still, and Worthy, and maybe even Poe could all play there with some pass rush ability. Brockers needs a lot of work on his pass rush, but someone will take him in the first round and force the other guys further down in the draft.

If we could come out of this draft with a guy or two to address each of these positions, I'd call it a successful draft. The trick will be to get the best total haul. Looking at different scenarios, it's looking like Barron is the guy that makes the total haul the best because of the dropoff at S and the relative depth at DE and C/G.

Barron isn't a rare talent at S, and he's really not the type of player I'd normally want to spend a mid-first rounder on. However, it's just a peculiarity of this draft that we can take him there and still get good value in the second and third rounds at positions where the draftees can have an immediate impact.

 

[CATCH17]

900+ yards and 9 TDs? even if he never improves I'd say he's one of the better #2 WRs or possibly a low end #1.

And entering his 3rd year.

That's when a lot of these receivers break out.

 

[Manwiththeplan]

And entering his 3rd year.

That's when a lot of these receivers break out.

the point he was making was, right now, Dez is this. however I just think even right now he's better than an adequate #2.

 

[kmd24]

And entering his 3rd year.

That's when a lot of these receivers break out.

IIRC, he's never had a full offseason with Romo either. Injured in 2010 and lockout last year.

Those plays against Washington gave me hope that he and Romo may eventually develop a rapport like Romo seemed to instantly have with Robinson.

 

[CATCH17]

Yet GB beat the Steelers who had the #1 ranked defense in the SB one year ago.

GB's defense played a lot better that year. Their front 7 was much better in 2010. Secondary play too.

Plus Clay Matthews on roids is basically = to Ware. Now he looks much smaller and nowhere near Demarcus. Cullen Jenkins gone, and Woodson with another year of wear on him.


Packers defense was the type of defense the Cowboys need. Saints 09 defense is a good one to look at too.

Pass rush + turnovers.. Who cares where they rank? Just get our offense the ball.

 

[CATCH17]

IIRC, he's never had a full offseason with Romo either. Injured in 2010 and lockout last year.

Those plays against Washington gave me hope that he and Romo may eventually develop a rapport like Romo seemed to instantly have with Robinson.

I remember Broadus saying that down the stretch Dez was getting open and that Romo just wasn't looking to him. Hopefully there is more trust there and Romo feeds him the ball more.

the point he was making was, right now, Dez is this. however I just think even right now he's better than an adequate #2.

Dez is a playmaker. Like Austin, we just need to get the ball in his hands. Our receivers are built for YAC but we still insist on running them downfield into coverage every play.


Im sure we'll all be crying for more slant and drag routes next season like we always do.

 

[fortdick]

Pretty much where Green Bay was when you remove Aaron Rodgers QB sneaks ... I think they had a pretty good offense last year.

Meanwhile, the Vikings were 3rd in the NFL in rushing TDs ... I don't think they had a very good offense.

I'll start putting a lot of stock into rushing TDs when they start counting for more points on the scoreboard than passing TDs.

In our case, rushing inside the 5 equals three points, so if we could push the ball in from inside the 5, it would be worth seven. So, in a way, they do count more.

It is too hard to count on passing from short yardage. There is no room for receivers to work and we fail to score a TD too often from inside the 5.

 

[Bowdown27]

I agree with alot of other posters. We really need a safety to step right in and play and that's Barron. No way the cowboys signed pool to be the starter for years to come. Rex and rob have obviously discussed this.

I seriously believe we take Barron at 14 IF we stay put. If a deal comes in that blows our socks off.

 

[fortdick]

I'm referring to the offense in general. Fans think that this team wins with offense. Why draft a DE in the first round when we need a G/T/WR/RB? We need to use all our resources to surround Romo and the offense with allpros and then we'll be guaranteed to not lose. That's the general attitude around here.

But why does Romo need everyone to be an all pro in order to succeed? Why does Garrett need to have a ridiculous amount of 1st round picks to make his offense work?

Help me out here. On defense, we have the following first round pick's as starters:

Ware
Spears
Spencer
Jenkins

On offense we have:

Smith
Bryant
(Jones)


So, where have we spent our first rounds? Defense. The fact is, we win or lose based on Romo's play. Unfortunately, every QB in the league needs help to get the job done. Don't you think giving him some protection is at least as important as drafting another Spears or Spencer?

 

[Hostile]

You mentioned them being 15-1. So I mentioned New England being 16-0. Not only that but having one of the most dominate offenses in history. They trucked through the regular season with ease and then got beat by the Giants in the Super Bowl.

Oh, so you're plan is that a team has to be unbeatable or it simply isn't good enough.

See, I'm dealing in the real world where on a given day a Giants team that was not better than those 2 teams can beat them. I thought the goal is to build a team. New England and Green Bay and the Giants have done that by...wait for it...focusing on one side of the Line of Scrimmage and making it as dominant as they can.

Funny, that's my plan. We are closer to that on Offense than we are on Defense.

 

[Gaede]

So, where have we spent our first rounds? Defense. The fact is, we win or lose based on Romo's play. Unfortunately, every QB in the league needs help to get the job done. Don't you think giving him some protection is at least as important as drafting another Spears or Spencer?

I was more referring to fan preferences in round one. Get Romo weapons, protect Romo and then we can't lose. That type of attitude.

 

[CATCH17]

In our case, rushing inside the 5 equals three points, so if we could push the ball in from inside the 5, it would be worth seven. So, in a way, they do count more.

It is too hard to count on passing from short yardage. There is no room for receivers to work and we fail to score a TD too often from inside the 5.

2 things happen when we can run the ball.

1. we score inside the 5. Last year it was like we couldn't score unless it came off a big play.

2. It takes the passing playcalls out of Garretts hands. What a chaotic mess it is at times watching our guys trying to figure out where to line up and where to be.

 

[fortdick]

"Enlighten Me" for a second...

Who won the Superbowl last year? I could have sworn it was the Giants with a mediocre offensive line and running game. I thought it was that voracious Giants defensive front that put QB's in the dirt.

So please, "enlighten" us all and explain this...

This is a red herring. The Giants were dead in the water with minimal running game UNTIL Bradshaw came back, then they ran the ball over everyone. When Bradsaw came back, the offense started to put together the games they were designed to do and Eli suddenly turned into the best QB in the galaxy.

To say the had a mediocre running game is just not true. They jsut didn't have a great running game the whole year.

 

[fortdick]

I was more referring to fan preferences in round one. Get Romo weapons, protect Romo and then we can't lose. That type of attitude.

The fact is, if we get Romo a piece or two that he needs, we probably won't lose very often. You said that we wanted a ridiculous amount of first round picks on offense. I think a few would be nice.

I didn't bring up the fact that Newman was a first rounder starting last year. We also remember spending a first on Carpenter. Why is spending all your firsts on defense okay, but not on offense?

At least our offensive first round picks have produced for us.

 

[kmd24]

Help me out here. On defense, we have the following first round pick's as starters:

Ware
Spears
Spencer
Jenkins

On offense we have:

Smith
Bryant
(Jones)


So, where have we spent our first rounds? Defense.

What difference does that make? Probably every team in the league has a similar breakdown because only one or two interior linemen and 0-1 TE are taken in the first round every year, while 8 DL and 4 CB's, and 3-4 LB's are selected.

The other first round heavy positions are OT, WR, and QB. We have a 1st round WR and OT, as one might expect.

 

[Gaede]

I didn't bring up the fact that Newman was a first rounder starting last year. We also remember spending a first on Carpenter. Why is spending all your firsts on defense okay, but not on offense?

At least our offensive first round picks have produced for us.

Touche. Good points.

 

[fortdick]

What difference does that make? Probably every team in the league has a similar breakdown because only one or two interior linemen and 0-1 TE are taken in the first round every year, while 8 DL and 4 CB's, and 3-4 LB's are selected.

The other first round heavy positions are OT, WR, and QB. We have a 1st round WR and OT, as one might expect.

You only saw one part of the discussion I guess.

 

[Doomsday]

Take the best player regardless if he is plays on offense of defense. If DeCastro is clearly the best player on the board when Dallas is on the clock, it would be a big mistake to pass on him.