Taco: What should we expect?

[Spectre]

Based on?

My opinion.
Draft position : Production.
Apparent potential.

 

[1972COWBOY]

I expect for taco celebrations when he should be staying focused and returning to the line for the next play.

 

[aria]

You clearly had you expectations set far too high. All off season there was a constant thread on the first page about keeping expectations realistic for Taco. That's clear from your comment about considering him a let down. There is obviously a lot to be optimistic about Taco but your dislike for the pick is distorting your view.

Yeah, god forbid I expect our first round draft pick to contribute more than he did which was minimal at best. I guess I should lower my expectations for the entire season as well. Here’s to hoping we win 5-6 games this year!

 

[OmerV]

That's a significant jump

Not saying he can't do it..but I think you are underestimating that leap

8 sacks and continued improvement really isn't too much to expect from a 1st round draft pick, and It's really not that significant a leap from last year considering he had 3 sacks in limited playing time. Assuming a significant increase in snaps, which I would expect, plus a year of NFL experience behind him, 8 sacks isn't that dramatic a gain. If we find he isn't capable of that kind of step up, he will start looking like a flop.

 

[Verdict]

He has time; this year and next.

Yes. He has time to eventually pan out. I'm not suggesting otherwise unless he regresses from his rookie year which was already pretty anemic.

I'm just saying in order to justify his draft slot he needs to turn it on sooner rather than later. You can find projects who make a player in year 4 in the later rounds.

 

[Hawkeye0202]

Sacks are often a misleading stat. Causing disruption and havoc at the LOS impacts the throws and can cause more incompletions and 4th downs along with turnovers without adding to sack total.

Excellent point ......Taco had 13 tackles for loss, along with 3 sacks, not bad. I would expect him to least double his numbers.

 

[Stash]

Yes. He has time to eventually pan out. I'm not suggesting otherwise unless he regresses from his rookie year which was already pretty anemic.

I'm just saying in order to justify his draft slot he needs to turn it on sooner rather than later. You can find projects who make a player in year 4 in the later rounds.

I can see how you could be a bit impatient with Taco. We’ve had several recent draft picks that we haven’t gotten early returns on.

DeMarcus Lawrence
Jaylon Smith
Randy Gregory

It would be nice to not have to wait until year three or four to see some production from Taco.

 

[JoeKing]

Improvement. No Taco Supreme just yet but a diffenant improvement.

 

[CowboysFaninHouston]

One of the big question marks for the upcoming season is Taco Charlton. What is he? What should we expect? What should his contribution be?

He was a first round pick. From my point of view a first round pick should not be a complete project. A bottom of the first round player may not be "starter ready" but he should "flash potential" on a frequent enough basis to justify the pick and inspire confidence that he will eventually be "the guy".

In my eyes Taco failed that reasonable test last year and underperformed his draft status. That does not mean he is a bust, can't redeem himself, or eventually be "the man" but it does seem to indicate that he was a bit of a reach.

What are reasonable expectations for him this year, after a year of weight training, NFL experience and NFL coaching? I think the floor expectations are that he "should be" a starter. If not he is way behind his draft position. Moreover, he should also be at least an average starter at his position in his second year. Otherwise he is behind the curve.

What do I expect out of Taco? I expect him to be way above average against the run. He should be sealing off the end with the best of them. Reality? I think he will be close to that this year.

What do I expect out of Taco in pass rushing? I expect him to get at least 8 sacks. I think barring a bit of luck he will fall short of that.

Summary. I expect Taco to underperform his draft status. I think he will eventually be a solid but very unspectacular player for the first few years of his contract. He will eventually be an average starter at DE even if it's not this year.

I think Taco was drafted two rounds to early for his skill level. That's not the end of the world, but it was not a great use of a first round pick. I believe we could have drafted a player of Taco's ability level in the 3rd round. That's not the end of the world, obviously, but getting any less than an average starter out of Taco is significantly underperforming his draft status.

Side note: For those of you who think it's ok that Taco finally perform in the last year of his contract and then we are forced to let him walk or sign him to a big contract (THATS A BIG FAIL) because you can sign a guy like that in free agency.

not sure what your expectations were, but his performance was not far from other first round DEs drafted in the same part of the draft....if you expected 8-10 sacks...then your expectations were wrong. very difficult for a rookie DE, who didn't go in the top 10 or top 5 to get high number of sacks...

reasonable expectations this year are about 8 sacks. I like to see pressures go up...coming close, but perhaps not converting to sacks. that would be a good indicator of his progress

 

[Hennessy_King]

If he can't beat out Ty craw, its a wasted pick.

 

[jobberone]

Yes. He has time to eventually pan out. I'm not suggesting otherwise unless he regresses from his rookie year which was already pretty anemic.

I'm just saying in order to justify his draft slot he needs to turn it on sooner rather than later. You can find projects who make a player in year 4 in the later rounds.

A lot of R1 never make it.

 

[Bullflop]

I expect a healthy measure of improvement in this, Charlton's second year on the team. He'll be back better acquainted with the NFL's opposing offenses, how they operate and more comfortable in the Cowboys' defensive scheme. He should be considerably stronger as well, according to what I've read about him recently. I think it was either Spags or Broaddus who noticed that Taco's upper body looked a lot thicker.

 

[LocimusPrime]

Man with all the DEs we have splitting snaps, it really depends on who gets the bulk

Randy, Ealy, Taco, that new dude we drafted, Tapper? Who knows.

 

[ItzKelz]

Improvement

 

[CyberB0b]

I'd like to see him get earn more snaps. He seems like he has the tools to be a good player.

 

[DiResta]

he looks like he bulked up
dude is looking absolutely yuge

 

[beware_d-ware]

Taco was legitimately playing well at the end of the season vs Oakland and Seattle. My expectation for him is to play at a starter level this year - and to be honest, for a second year 1st round pick that kinda should be the expectation anyway.

 

[ThreeandOut]

he looks like he bulked up
dude is looking absolutely yuge

He's been upgraded to a Taco Supreme.

 

[ShortRound]

Some meat, lettuce, tomatoes, cheese and salsa in a crispy or soft corn tortilla. Unless you order a different taco like chicken or fish, then you should expect chicken or fish instead of meat. Unless you want something like a Tofu taco, in which case I will hold your head under water in the bath tub until you stop wiggling.

 

[Verdict]

I can see how you could be a bit impatient with Taco. We’ve had several recent draft picks that we haven’t gotten early returns on.

DeMarcus Lawrence
Jaylon Smith
Randy Gregory

It would be nice to not have to wait until year three or four to see some production from Taco.

That's right. We need more production earlier in their rookie contracts.