Some late offseason thoughts

[darthseinfeld]

- Pre draft they were Breece Hall was one of the guys they were inquiring about. Now they are apparently not interested. For me this speaks to what they think of Blue. I believe he is their guy. My guess is when they looked at the top 90, they were thinking 1) The OSU guys wouldnt make it to 44 2) There would be better players than HB's available at 76. The drop off in interest makes me think they had Blue somewhere in that top 90. Honestly, If Hall was available for a 5th, Id still do it

- Another positive to the Pickens trade is moving Tolbert down a notch. Tolbert as a #3 WR should be much more effective and efficient than him as a #2. Especially considering the attention Lamb and Pickens will get. His ability to play both slot and boundary gives our offense alot of flexibility. I think we can get a better version of what we got from Cedric Wilson in 2021 from Tolbert

- Post draft @Cowboyny said Tyler Guyton was the key to the season. I believe both of our past 1st rounders are major keys to our success this year. With Guyton, if we arent able to protect the blindside, it would make our strength on the interior practically moot. Especially if we are hoping to compete with the top tier teams. Smiths continued improvement is very key to our run defense. Where he was the 2nd half of 2024 was good enough for us to stop teams with a middling run game, however quality running teams like Hoston, Philadelphia and Altalnta gashed us. If he can become at minimum Dj Jones that would go a long way

- CB is still a position that may cost us games. Even is Revel has a strong rookie year, you are likely looking at significant playing time from Elam or Carson. Bland is a much better boundry CB than a slot, so playing Elam to me is a last resort. Carson was a good prospect, but got picked on and gave up alot as a rookie. You hope for a year 2 bump, but that bumb making him a quality player is alot to ask. Mukuamu as a big slot may be your best option as a #3 CB until Diggs returns

-LB looks pretty dire to me. There isnt a player in the roster righ now we can look at and say " this is someone we know is giving us solid play". We just dont have any bankable players. We can probably count in progression from Liufau, but is any progression enough to make him a quality every down LB? Sanborn is an ok 2 down LB, but he is more a quality reserve type player. Murray has struggled everywhere he has been. It takes an awful lot of hopium to project anything meaningful from James this year. If we have another significant move up our sleeve, LB might be the place to make it.

 

[shabazz]

- Pre draft they were Breece Hall was one of the guys they were inquiring about. Now they are apparently not interested. For me this speaks to what they think of Blue. I believe he is their guy.

This is the same FO that decided that Rico Dowdle was "their guy" over Derrick Henry that they could have gotten for 7 million......the same guy that went for 1930 yards last season

 

[John813]

-LB looks pretty dire to me. There isnt a player in the roster righ now we can look at and say " this is someone we know is giving us solid play". We just dont have any bankable players. We can probably count in progression from Liufau, but is any progression enough to make him a quality every down LB? Sanborn is an ok 2 down LB, but he is more a quality reserve type player. Murray has struggled everywhere he has been. It takes an awful lot of hopium to project anything meaningful from James this year. If we have another significant move up our sleeve, LB might be the place to make it.

Definitely feels like a LBBC until 2 guys definitely solidify the position.

Sanborn and Liufau should be run down guys, but can they handle 3 down duties? I think the answer is there for Sanborn, but hopefully Liufau he can develop into one.
Murray to me is a package LB as well. I'm not sold it clicks here for him.

Shame Overshown got injured that badly, 2025 may be a wash for him and long term it's still unknown on how he recovers to 100% or 90% etc...

 

[thunderpimp91]

Definitely feels like a LBBC until 2 guys definitely solidify the position.

Sanborn and Liufau should be run down guys, but can they handle 3 down duties? I think the answer is there for Sanborn, but hopefully Liufau he can develop into one.
Murray to me is a package LB as well. I'm not sold it clicks here for him.

Shame Overshown got injured that badly, 2025 may be a wash for him and long term it's still unknown on how he recovers to 100% or 90% etc...

Yeah LB is the biggest question mark to me. They have a deep group that can all play roles, but I still struggle to see a true 3 down player on this roster. If we dont get someone to step up and be that 3 down guy we will likely see a LB unit that is up and down all year. Being dependent upon subbing on defense is a dangerous game as offenses are not afraid to play with tempo if you get caught in bad personnel groupings.

 

[Ranching]

This is the same FO that decided that Rico Dowdle was "their guy" over Derrick Henry that they could have gotten for 7 million......the same guy that went for 1930 yards last season

With a totally different skill set and healthy OL and a stud QB that stayed healthy all year. Cmom, I expect more than that from you.

 

[Rayman70]

This is the same FO that decided that Rico Dowdle was "their guy" over Derrick Henry that they could have gotten for 7 million......the same guy that went for 1930 yards last season

They decided this only because they refused to help Mike McCarthy. They weren't going to improve the team period. They knew they were moving on from him. I know it's childish, but when Jerry holds a grudge, he would certainly do this. I believe he did. No way he thought Rico was anything special or better than Henry. We would have resigned him here if that was the case. The ire of the Jones clan is real.

 

[darthseinfeld]

Definitely feels like a LBBC until 2 guys definitely solidify the position.

Sanborn and Liufau should be run down guys, but can they handle 3 down duties? I think the answer is there for Sanborn, but hopefully Liufau he can develop into one.
Murray to me is a package LB as well. I'm not sold it clicks here for him.

Shame Overshown got injured that badly, 2025 may be a wash for him and long term it's still unknown on how he recovers to 100% or 90% etc...

I think Liufau can be a very good all around LB, but I think thats more of a year 3 thing than a year 2 thing. I think if you are going to get really mixed results this year

 

[darthseinfeld]

They decided this only because they refused to help Mike McCarthy. They weren't going to improve the team period. They knew they were moving on from him. I know it's childish, but when Jerry holds a grudge, he would certainly do this. I believe he did. No way he thought Rico was anything special or better than Henry. We would have resigned him here if that was the case. The ire of the Jones clan is real.

The line was saving cap space for this offseason. Yet here we still mid may with over 30m in space

 

[Rayman70]

The line was saving cap space for this offseason. Yet here we still mid may with over 30m in space

Exactly right

 

[Flamma]

- Pre draft they were Breece Hall was one of the guys they were inquiring about. Now they are apparently not interested. For me this speaks to what they think of Blue. I believe he is their guy. My guess is when they looked at the top 90, they were thinking 1) The OSU guys wouldnt make it to 44 2) There would be better players than HB's available at 76. The drop off in interest makes me think they had Blue somewhere in that top 90. Honestly, If Hall was available for a 5th, Id still do it

Breece Hall would have likely cost us a 2nd, and that's why they didn't do it. We're likely not going to be contenders this year. So if Blue doesn't work out, picking up Hall next year might be worth it. If we have a good draft. But then again, there's a whole Pickens problem.

 

[John813]

I think Liufau can be a very good all around LB, but I think thats more of a year 3 thing than a year 2 thing. I think if you are going to get really mixed results this year

Same. Hopefully he can surprise us this year.

Yeah LB is the biggest question mark to me. They have a deep group that can all play roles, but I still struggle to see a true 3 down player on this roster. If we dont get someone to step up and be that 3 down guy we will likely see a LB unit that is up and down all year. Being dependent upon subbing on defense is a dangerous game as offenses are not afraid to play with tempo if you get caught in bad personnel groupings.

I think we could see UDFA LB make the roster depending on it all goes down. Someone like Barron, probably inactive, or strictly STer this year. If Clark still looks lost, he could be a goner.
Feels like a retool/development for the 2026 year. Especially with James needing at least a year too.
That's my thought too on subbing and the issues if going against an uptempo offense or matchups where someone like Sanborn all of a sudden is forced to play zone vs a TE that can create space quickly.

 

[darthseinfeld]

Breece Hall would have likely cost us a 2nd, and that's why they didn't do it. We're likely not going to be contenders this year. So if Blue doesn't work out, picking up Hall next year might be worth it. If we have a good draft. But then again, there's a whole Pickens problem.

I definitely dont see any way Hall costs a 2nd. 1 year left on his contract, never had a 1,000 yard season, has had some injuries. The most they could get is a 4th, and I don't even see them getting that

 

[Rayman70]

Not understanding all the breece hall love. Did I miss something? What are his accomplishments? Glad we aren't getting him. The guy wouldn't make much difference here.

 

[darthseinfeld]

Not understanding all the breece hall love. Did I miss something? What are his accomplishments? Glad we aren't getting him. The guy wouldn't make much difference here.

It would all depend on the compensation we give up for him. We dont have a bankable back on the roster and Hall is much better than Williams and Sanders. With our OL, he could possibly give us 1,100 yards. If you can get that for a day 3 pick, I make that trade

 

[Rayman70]

It would all depend on the compensation we give up for him. We dont have a bankable back on the roster and Hall is much better than Williams and Sanders. With our OL, he could possibly give us 1,100 yards. If you can get that for a day 3 pick, I make that trade

Now on a day 3 flier, I'm in. Otherwise, I think we are fine at RB until we see different.

 

[Flamma]

I definitely dont see any way Hall costs a 2nd. 1 year left on his contract, never had a 1,000 yard season, has had some injuries. The most they could get is a 4th, and I don't even see them getting that

The 1000 yard thing means nothing. He's on the Jets. Anyone can see he is a very good RB. Barkley didn't get 1000 yards the last year on the Giants. Meant nothing. They might have taken a 3rd, but we used that on Pickens. A 4th was out. No sane GM would trade him for a 5th.

I honestly think the trade for Pickens was to simply keep the Cowboys head above water. Not for anything meaningful beyond that. They never have any offseason where they actually go for it.

 

[Creeper]

The Cowboys seem to like Tolbert for some reason. I think if they give him a chance Flournoy would beat out Tolbert for WR3. That's my hot take at this point in the season.

I agree that Guyton is a key to this season. But the entire OL is a key to the season.

Dak is a key to the season too. If he plays like 2024 Dak, pre-injury, the team will struggle. He needs to play like 2023 Dak. Maybe a year separation from his ridiculous contract deal will allow him to play with less pressure to prove he is worth it.

I think the secondary could be okay depending on where all the injuries are. Where is Butler with his rehab? Bland is a year removed from his injury and may look better this year. I am not counting on Elam. Or Carson for that matter. I think it comes down to Diggs and Revell.

I think they will be okay at LB. Can Sanborn be our Zack Baun? Probably not, but I think the group will be good enough. The problem is still the DL. They have got to occupy blockers to give the LBs a chance. This is Mazi's 3rd year and it is time for him to put up are get lost.

 

[Chocolate Lab]

This is the same FO that decided that Rico Dowdle was "their guy" over Derrick Henry that they could have gotten for 7 million......the same guy that went for 1930 yards last season

Actually, if you remember, broken down Zeke was their (Jerry's) guy. Dowdle was just a backup and good special teamer. Even into the season, Jerry was still saying Zeke could do what Henry could do.

Just mind-numbing stupidity and arrogance from our uniquely advantaged structure.

 

[Jipper]

It would all depend on the compensation we give up for him. We dont have a bankable back on the roster and Hall is much better than Williams and Sanders. With our OL, he could possibly give us 1,100 yards. If you can get that for a day 3 pick, I make that trade

i disagree - at this point you dont put any more draft capital into RB unless the 4 guys they have picked up between FA and the Draft do not pan out this year - have to see what you have gotten at some point..

 

[Hawkeye0202]

-LB looks pretty dire to me. There isnt a player in the roster righ now we can look at and say " this is someone we know is giving us solid play". We just dont have any bankable players. We can probably count in progression from Liufau, but is any progression enough to make him a quality every down LB? Sanborn is an ok 2 down LB, but he is more a quality reserve type player. Murray has struggled everywhere he has been. It takes an awful lot of hopium to project anything meaningful from James this year. If we have another significant move up our sleeve, LB might be the place to make it.

I am surprised how much they neglected this position ............