xwalker
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Mods, I’m asking for some leeway here. Instead of just going back and forth over and over on some of these topics, I wanted to summarize my thoughts and hopefully get some other people’s summarized thoughts collected in this thread.
I can’t really determine each person’s overall take on things by digging through 22+ pages of back and forth. I’m asking people to post a good summary of their take on these issues in this thread.
I’m going to address some questions to Waldo because about ½ of the posts in some of the other recent threads were from him. I’m going to try really hard to ask questions in a respectful manor.
I’m sure that @FuzzyLumpkins , @waldoputty , @big dog cowboy , @Idgit and several others probably have a good summary they can share.
The 3-4 defense:
The 3-4 is not a cure-all. If it was, everyone would be using it. The Patriots switched from a 3-4 to a 4-3 in the past few years.
I’ve seen no evidence presented that shows why it would be good for the Cowboys specifically. They have very few if any current players that would be better in the 3-4 than in the 4-3. Just because some could function in the 3-4 does not make it a good idea. Scrapping the current scheme to accommodate players that are not even on the current roster (future draft picks) seems like a bad idea and I’m being nice with that statement.
Tanking the season when you have a playoff type team is another very odd idea. I would have been OK tanking some years in the past when the team appeared to have no chance at the playoffs, but doing it now would be crazy.
Nobody in the summer of 92 thought the Cowboys defense was good enough to win a Super Bowl. Should they have tanked the season that year?
Enhancing the Marinelli 4-3
The Cowboys can add many things to the current 4-3 to make it less predictable and to take advantage of certain players. They seemed to blitz a little more last year but they need to really practice their blitzes because timing is everything.
They showed some things in the HOF game that they had not done much in the past. For example, Moore played some snaps as a stand-up DE. The LDE sometimes lined up far to the outside. They had a couple of LBs up on the end of the line on one snap. Both Taco and Tapper dropped into coverage at least once.
In the future Jaylon could be used similar to Vic Beasley in Atlanta. Beasley had 15.5 sacks last year and his primary position is 4-3 LB.
Waldo:
I’ve been very patient with you because you seem like a likable poster and you’re not blasting us with smirky negative one-liners like “Dak sucks, Wentz is great” and those types of troll-ish posts.
Having said the above, I have a few issues for you to consider. You don’t appear to really listen to multiple people that have given you terrific feedback on Taco, the 3-4, etc.
You appear to base everything on something that you’ve read in the media or somewhere and very little on just watching/studying the games and players.
It appears that you believe scouting can be done strictly by numbers (i.e. Just rank pass rushers by their forty times, etc.). You can’t seem to conceive of the concept that other people (other posters or the Cowboys scouting dept.) might have already thought through some of the concepts that you believe are the answer to all problems.
It is really odd that you have absolute and extreme opinions, yet you don’t seem to remember a lot of basic history from the past decade. How does a Cowboys fan not remember Jim Johnson and his pressure defenses that caused the Cowboys a lot of problems? How do you not remember the details about Rob Ryan? Where were you during those times? You’ve indicated that you’ve been watching the Cowboys since the Seventies.
It would also be good to be aware that some posters around here might have a clue or two in regards to football.
I don’t care if people disagree with me and in fact it would be boring here if everyone was in agreement; however, the repetitive rants without really giving any credence to the information that other people provide, is something that just gets old.
There was a discussion in another thread the other day about self-awareness. I highly recommend that people check out that link. My new plea to America "Don't be Freddy Kreuger" (Dunning–Kruger effect).
Please consider that you had near zero support in your demand to return to the 3-4. In the past when the Cowboys were a 3-4 team and the subject came up around here, it would be near 50-50 or maybe 40-60 one way or the other on the topic. The fact that it’s basically you against everyone else should give you a hint that you might be off-base.
The Cowboys Franchised Anthony Spencer twice (20% more the 2nd time) when they were a 3-4 team. They did this despite Spencer not being an elite pass rusher. There was a reason they did it. The vast majority of "240 pound LBs" couldn't do all the things that Spencer did for the Cowboys (pass coverage, run defense, pass rush and knowing when to do which of the 3).
Taco and Waldo:
If it was as easy as just drafting based on forty times, teams would not need to spend big money on a scouting dept and 1st round busts would never happen.
Will McClay knows the forty times of all the pass rushers in the draft. He didn't just forget that Taco is not as fast as DWare. He knew the forty times and drafted Taco anyway. Watt is 6-4, 252. If they thought he was going to be an elite pass rusher, they would have drafted him. He is bigger than Mayowa and Randy Gregory. FYI, the difference in Watt's 10-yard time and Taco's time is very minimal (1.59 vs 1.63). Also note that Barnett (#14 overall) had the following times (4.88/4.92 and 1.69/1.75).
In preseason games coaches/scouts look for things other than just sacks. I’m really curious if you have any other method of distinguishing a good pass rusher from a mediocre or bad one other than strictly by how many sacks they have in a game or how fast they appear to run. I’m not trying to be a smart-arse, I’m actually curious. You appear to assume that Tapper is better than Taco because he is faster. Many people have tried to discuss issues like “bend”, strength, leverage, agility, etc. but it seems to fall on deaf ears. If Tapper can’t turn the corner, it won’t matter how fast he can run in straight line.
You’ve continually complained about drafting Taco; however, the only thing you seem to know about him is that he ran a “slow” forty time as compared to DWare or Von Miller. You can’t seem to acknowledge that many good to great pass rushers have had similar forty times (Greg Hardy, JPP, Terrell Suggs, Michael Strahan, etc.). Those players were not all top 10 picks.
There also the issue that Hardy, JPP, Strahan and others didn't do much in their 1st year. It takes time to develop pass rushers. That's why they're one of the most expensive positions in free agency.
Last item, I might agree with you on some things if you just start using Capital letters to start sentences and follow other general punctuation guidelines. Yes, I post from a Phone also.
I can’t really determine each person’s overall take on things by digging through 22+ pages of back and forth. I’m asking people to post a good summary of their take on these issues in this thread.
I’m going to address some questions to Waldo because about ½ of the posts in some of the other recent threads were from him. I’m going to try really hard to ask questions in a respectful manor.
I’m sure that @FuzzyLumpkins , @waldoputty , @big dog cowboy , @Idgit and several others probably have a good summary they can share.
The 3-4 defense:
The 3-4 is not a cure-all. If it was, everyone would be using it. The Patriots switched from a 3-4 to a 4-3 in the past few years.
I’ve seen no evidence presented that shows why it would be good for the Cowboys specifically. They have very few if any current players that would be better in the 3-4 than in the 4-3. Just because some could function in the 3-4 does not make it a good idea. Scrapping the current scheme to accommodate players that are not even on the current roster (future draft picks) seems like a bad idea and I’m being nice with that statement.
Tanking the season when you have a playoff type team is another very odd idea. I would have been OK tanking some years in the past when the team appeared to have no chance at the playoffs, but doing it now would be crazy.
Nobody in the summer of 92 thought the Cowboys defense was good enough to win a Super Bowl. Should they have tanked the season that year?
Enhancing the Marinelli 4-3
The Cowboys can add many things to the current 4-3 to make it less predictable and to take advantage of certain players. They seemed to blitz a little more last year but they need to really practice their blitzes because timing is everything.
They showed some things in the HOF game that they had not done much in the past. For example, Moore played some snaps as a stand-up DE. The LDE sometimes lined up far to the outside. They had a couple of LBs up on the end of the line on one snap. Both Taco and Tapper dropped into coverage at least once.
In the future Jaylon could be used similar to Vic Beasley in Atlanta. Beasley had 15.5 sacks last year and his primary position is 4-3 LB.
Waldo:
I’ve been very patient with you because you seem like a likable poster and you’re not blasting us with smirky negative one-liners like “Dak sucks, Wentz is great” and those types of troll-ish posts.
Having said the above, I have a few issues for you to consider. You don’t appear to really listen to multiple people that have given you terrific feedback on Taco, the 3-4, etc.
You appear to base everything on something that you’ve read in the media or somewhere and very little on just watching/studying the games and players.
It appears that you believe scouting can be done strictly by numbers (i.e. Just rank pass rushers by their forty times, etc.). You can’t seem to conceive of the concept that other people (other posters or the Cowboys scouting dept.) might have already thought through some of the concepts that you believe are the answer to all problems.
It is really odd that you have absolute and extreme opinions, yet you don’t seem to remember a lot of basic history from the past decade. How does a Cowboys fan not remember Jim Johnson and his pressure defenses that caused the Cowboys a lot of problems? How do you not remember the details about Rob Ryan? Where were you during those times? You’ve indicated that you’ve been watching the Cowboys since the Seventies.
It would also be good to be aware that some posters around here might have a clue or two in regards to football.
I don’t care if people disagree with me and in fact it would be boring here if everyone was in agreement; however, the repetitive rants without really giving any credence to the information that other people provide, is something that just gets old.
There was a discussion in another thread the other day about self-awareness. I highly recommend that people check out that link. My new plea to America "Don't be Freddy Kreuger" (Dunning–Kruger effect).
Please consider that you had near zero support in your demand to return to the 3-4. In the past when the Cowboys were a 3-4 team and the subject came up around here, it would be near 50-50 or maybe 40-60 one way or the other on the topic. The fact that it’s basically you against everyone else should give you a hint that you might be off-base.
The Cowboys Franchised Anthony Spencer twice (20% more the 2nd time) when they were a 3-4 team. They did this despite Spencer not being an elite pass rusher. There was a reason they did it. The vast majority of "240 pound LBs" couldn't do all the things that Spencer did for the Cowboys (pass coverage, run defense, pass rush and knowing when to do which of the 3).
Taco and Waldo:
If it was as easy as just drafting based on forty times, teams would not need to spend big money on a scouting dept and 1st round busts would never happen.
Will McClay knows the forty times of all the pass rushers in the draft. He didn't just forget that Taco is not as fast as DWare. He knew the forty times and drafted Taco anyway. Watt is 6-4, 252. If they thought he was going to be an elite pass rusher, they would have drafted him. He is bigger than Mayowa and Randy Gregory. FYI, the difference in Watt's 10-yard time and Taco's time is very minimal (1.59 vs 1.63). Also note that Barnett (#14 overall) had the following times (4.88/4.92 and 1.69/1.75).
In preseason games coaches/scouts look for things other than just sacks. I’m really curious if you have any other method of distinguishing a good pass rusher from a mediocre or bad one other than strictly by how many sacks they have in a game or how fast they appear to run. I’m not trying to be a smart-arse, I’m actually curious. You appear to assume that Tapper is better than Taco because he is faster. Many people have tried to discuss issues like “bend”, strength, leverage, agility, etc. but it seems to fall on deaf ears. If Tapper can’t turn the corner, it won’t matter how fast he can run in straight line.
You’ve continually complained about drafting Taco; however, the only thing you seem to know about him is that he ran a “slow” forty time as compared to DWare or Von Miller. You can’t seem to acknowledge that many good to great pass rushers have had similar forty times (Greg Hardy, JPP, Terrell Suggs, Michael Strahan, etc.). Those players were not all top 10 picks.
There also the issue that Hardy, JPP, Strahan and others didn't do much in their 1st year. It takes time to develop pass rushers. That's why they're one of the most expensive positions in free agency.
Last item, I might agree with you on some things if you just start using Capital letters to start sentences and follow other general punctuation guidelines. Yes, I post from a Phone also.
