Similar quest mark on offense, have they really improved?

[thunderpimp91]

Milton is unproven til camp if he's better than Rush.
no clue who adams is but i believe sanders will be better than dowdle.
is cook really that good though?? his size alone is a negative, can't throw jump balls to him and he has lost some speed.
Martin and booker is right.

Milton vs Rush will be an interesting one to watch. Rush wasnt nearly as flashy as Milton can be, but just got results. I think its a fair argument to give the edge to Milton due to his ceiling

I wish I was as optimistic that Sanders would be better than Dowdle, but Carolina basically passed on bringing sanders back in favor of a higher salary Rico....The guy also put up 4.6YPC last year. I think replacing him is going to be tougher than people realize, although we should have a chance at more splash plays at RB this year.

Cooks wasnt very good last year I fully agree that the bar for WR2 is fairly low. Issue is that neither Tolbert nor Mingo are all that great either. Campbell probably gives you a similar skillset to Cooks so I'd say this one is probably a push? They still lack a legitimate guy for that role.

 

[JonesBoys]

Slightly improved that’s about it so far. Certainly not enough to move the needle.

 

[thunderpimp91]

This is not a simple bash Dak post, but Dak didn't look that great prior to his injury in 2024.

I'm hopeful he can bounce back, but I'm not sure he can simply turn back the time to the 2023 season when on paper his weapons haven't improved or could of gotten worse. And he's still having Guyton and Steele as his Tackles, compared to Smith and Steele

Agreed. Dak feels like a total wild card here. His performance in 2024 was certainly not on par with what he did in 2023 and the injuries in combination with his age are at a point where you can't just let him heal and expect him to be the same guy. Its certainly possible that he gets back to 100% health and his 2024 play was more of a reflection of a bad team around him than bad QB play. Its also possible that hes simply starting to enter a physical decline in his 30s.

 

[KingCorcoran]

but but but, a RG is going to help us with rushing and ball control, we are going to hold the ball like 38 minutes per game now and if we lose its Dak's fault.

yeah, who is #2 WR?

this team is a mess, not just the offense. it reminds me of post Johnson era with campo et. al. and it was rudderless then and its rudderless now. until we hired Parcells.
prepare for a top 5 pick next year.

I agree the team is a mess. I believe it’s because of how Jerry Jones runs the Cowboys. Being retired and living in the Pacific time zone allows me to enjoy countless college football games. Just a fan’s perception, Booker is not going to just good, he’s going to be very, very good. I understand a guard with the 12th pick is rich for that position, but Booker has no quit in him. He’s precisely the kind of guy all 32 teams would love on their roster. And the same can be said of Ezeiruaku. Perhaps even more so.

Mess or not, those are two great picks. Cowboys are still going to finish in 3rd at best. This draft represents a legitimate start. Long way to go.

 

[CowboysFaninHouston]

I agree the team is a mess. I believe it’s because of how Jerry Jones runs the Cowboys. Being retired and living in the Pacific time zone allows me to enjoy countless college football games. Just a fan’s perception, Booker is not going to just good, he’s going to be very, very good. I understand a guard with the 12th pick is rich for that position, but Booker has no quit in him. He’s precisely the kind of guy all 32 teams would love on their roster. And the same can be said of Ezeiruaku. Perhaps even more so.

Mess or not, those are two great picks. Cowboys are still going to finish in 3rd at best. This draft represents a legitimate start. Long way to go.

oh, I think booker is going to be very good too. but like you said, with the 12th pick you pick an impact player not a RG. you can get good to very good RGs in mid rounds. no team in the past 15 years playing in CCGs has had 3 first round OL men on the team. none of them picked a guard in top 12.

a DT, a MLB or a CB would have had a lot more impact at 12...than a RG, the 5th most important OL position.

and yes, at best 3rd. we are falling behind eagles even further and falling behind commanders as well.

 

[Mikexike]

Milton vs Rush will be an interesting one to watch. Rush wasnt nearly as flashy as Milton can be, but just got results. I think its a fair argument to give the edge to Milton due to his ceiling

I wish I was as optimistic that Sanders would be better than Dowdle, but Carolina basically passed on bringing sanders back in favor of a higher salary Rico....The guy also put up 4.6YPC last year. I think replacing him is going to be tougher than people realize, although we should have a chance at more splash plays at RB this year.

Cooks wasnt very good last year I fully agree that the bar for WR2 is fairly low. Issue is that neither Tolbert nor Mingo are all that great either. Campbell probably gives you a similar skillset to Cooks so I'd say this one is probably a push? They still lack a legitimate guy for that role.

my hope is they hit on those 2 RB's we drafted and WR2 is coming soon, he is not on the roster.

 

[Cowboyny]

I wasn't a fan going into the season, but Dowdle turned into quite a respectably average starter.

Blue brings you different things, and maybe better things, but we still need a prototype RB to move the chains.

I give Dowdle credit, but 3 rushing TD's and he did struggle to run against the better teams, we needed an upgrade.

 

[Cowboyny]

Martin was not nearly Martin last year. Retiring tells you that.
https://www.pff.com/nfl/players/zack-martin/8651

I think Booker can be better than Martin was last year. I'd say that's probably his floor.
And I expect every other lineman to be better than last year. Just a bunch of young guys.

Young guys are nice come the playoffs. Have more gas left in the tank.

I agree Martin on the field was a shell of himself, what is lost is his leadership, where they are hoping Booker to replace that.

 

[Cowboyny]

Keep in mind, MM was a lame-duck, and Jerry chose to sit out the free agency. Add to that, Dak only played 4-6 games. Addressing and/or improving these 3 issues alone should be worth 2-3 additional wins from last season, which would put us around 500. In other words, don't expect us to be a serious contender postseason.

Just look at both the Eagles/Commanders, they have better receivers and strong ground attacks with mobile QB's. Our offense just not on their level.

 

[Cowboyny]

both Tackles huge liability in pass protection,lets see if Guyton improves his game.

This will be the key for the offense, even if they get a capable #2 WR. Not worried so much about Steele as he played better once Martin came off the field, but Guyton is a huge concern.

 

[Cowboyny]

I don't expect Steele to get any better at this point.

Steele's best trait is his run defense, a more balanced attack could help hide his issues in pass pro

 

[Cowboyny]

This is not a simple bash Dak post, but Dak didn't look that great prior to his injury in 2024.

I'm hopeful he can bounce back, but I'm not sure he can simply turn back the time to the 2023 season when on paper his weapons haven't improved or could of gotten worse. And he's still having Guyton and Steele as his Tackles, compared to Smith and Steele

There were issues all throughout the offense last year: losing Cooks/Ferguson really hurt, playing a rookie LT who was a penalty machine killed drives, Zeke was a waste of a roster spot. Dak struggled with protecting the football, etc.

 

[Gameover]

Points For: 509 (29.9/g) 1st of 32


2023 with similar personnel

 

[75boyz]

oh, I think booker is going to be very good too. but like you said, with the 12th pick you pick an impact player not a RG. you can get good to very good RGs in mid rounds. no team in the past 15 years playing in CCGs has had 3 first round OL men on the team. none of them picked a guard in top 12.

a DT, a MLB or a CB would have had a lot more impact at 12...than a RG, the 5th most important OL position.

and yes, at best 3rd. we are falling behind eagles even further and falling behind commanders as well.

Spot on yet again.
I think you have now explained the definition of an impact position and all the circumstances surrounding it in its entirety at least 10 times.
Good job.
Nice patience, lol

 

[CT Dal Fan]

This is not a simple bash Dak post, but Dak didn't look that great prior to his injury in 2024.

I'm hopeful he can bounce back, but I'm not sure he can simply turn back the time to the 2023 season when on paper his weapons haven't improved or could of gotten worse. And he's still having Guyton and Steele as his Tackles, compared to Smith and Steele

I agree about Dak. But at the risk of sounding like an apologist, the line was still gelling and finding it's way the first half of the season when he was playing. And the offense didn't even try to run the ball until a few weeks after Cooper Rush took over at QB.

I am a Dak fan but I also recognize what he is. If the Cowboys call a balanced offensive attack in which he doesn't have to throw 40 passes, Dak is going to win a whole lot of games. As he has in the past.

 

[Proof]

31st in Red Zone offense only the Giants are worse
Dead Last in Rushing TD's with just 6, yes that isn't a misprint
4th Worst in Penalties committed

Players lost-Cooks WR, Edoka (who was the starting LT), Dowdle (1K rusher not starting until mid-season), Zach Martin HOF
Additions-Campbell WR (3rd team in 3rd year), Sanders RB (barely played), Williams RB (hasn't been the same since knee injury)

Draft-Booker, Blue, 7th RD Back, Depth Tackle

Overhauled the offensive staff

On paper, this is a worse unit, just like the run defense, convince me otherwise. This isn't about Dak either, they lack necessary talent. Hell, our corners might be our best wide receiving options after Lamb, that is how bad they are!

I have my concerns as well, for the exact reasons you stated. my optimistic take is that last season was just a lost season and trying to draw from it will lead to some faulty conclusions. I think the team was better than they looked, but just fell apart. So hopefully, that won't be the case this year. Mikes gone, a new era is here, guys who didn't want to be here and who may not have given their best are gone. Zack was a shell. He was actually a net negative out there and I don't think it's any coincidence the line improved once he was out. So as crazy as it feels to say we should be better off with out him alone. But we also added a DOG in his place and I am VERY excited about what he can do. If we can get progression and improvement out of Guyton, Beebe and Steele ( or any of the three) then that adds to the chances we have a wholesale improvement. Coupled with getting new OL coaches and philosophies, and the staff appearing to be lockstep, I'd say that really improves the odds as well. NO ZEKE lol. self explanatory. The receiving corps is a mystery, but there IS talent there. Obviously Lamb is all world. Ferg has flashed even if he regressed, and I'm of the mind if I've seen you do it, then I believe you can. So I think he can be a significant contributor. And Schoon looked like he was turning a corner as well and displaying some of what they loved about him. Turpin, Fluornoy, Mingo, Paris, Tolbert is a shaky collection, but between them, and playing opposite of lamb and hopefully a rejuvenated Ferg, and theres a not zero chance someone emerges as competent enough. We've seen the cedrick wilsons and Noahs step upunexpectedly, it's not that difficult to envision one of those lottery tickets hitting. And lastly the speedy addition of jaydon blue. just a new element to incorporate and some homerun hitting ability. We don't need all the pieces to fall into place, but if a few of those things pan out, then yeah it's a whole different dynamic.

 

[Proof]

Not sure how good they'll be, but the offense will be better than in 2024

QB: Prescott > Rush (see 2023 vs 2024)
RB: Wiliams/Sanders/Blue/Mafah >> 2024
Oline: Booker is a great addition and Guyton should improve from rookie year

and beebe! this time last year he was being touted as the steal of the draft and one of the highest floor players. I don't think we've scratched the surface with him. and being bookended by stud guards.... whew

 

[DFWJC]

and beebe! this time last year he was being touted as the steal of the draft and one of the highest floor players. I don't think we've scratched the surface with him. and being bookended by stud guards.... whew

Assuming better health, I presume both the offense and defense will be improved this year.

Not sure what that means, as the bar is so low.

 

[Proof]

oh, I think booker is going to be very good too. but like you said, with the 12th pick you pick an impact player not a RG. you can get good to very good RGs in mid rounds. no team in the past 15 years playing in CCGs has had 3 first round OL men on the team. none of them picked a guard in top 12.

a DT, a MLB or a CB would have had a lot more impact at 12...than a RG, the 5th most important OL position.

and yes, at best 3rd. we are falling behind eagles even further and falling behind commanders as well.

I think guards are going to become more and more important because the league is clearly placing an outsized emphasis on interior pressure. and specifically in our division.

 

[Proof]

right, between the low bar, better health, additional year for young guys, and the law of averages, I cant help but feel improvements are practically a given. but i never underestimate the cowboys ability to suck lol