VACowboy
Well-Known Member
- Messages
- 7,006
- Reaction score
- 3,896
QB
Tony Romo
Brad Johnson
I'd really like to see a younger guy with a better arm backing up Romo, but I don't see it happening in '08. Maybe next season, when Bartel is in his third year. There is a real down-side to replacing Johnson, though. When he goes we say goodbye to one of the very best holders in the League, and that is a much bigger deal than most people think.
RB
Marion Barber III
Felix Jones (R)
Tashard Choice (R)
I think we're stacked at RB. Barber pounds defenders then Jones comes in and runs by them. Choice will be active on gameday, lots of special teams and a few touches showcasing his pass-catching ability. I bet we'll all be surprised at the number of times we see Barber and Jones on the field together.
FB
Deon Anderson
We didn't learn much about Anderson's ability as a blocker last year but he showed pretty good receiving skills. We need a FB who can block, of course, but Garrett likes a receiving threat at the position. What surprises me a little is that on draft day the team didn't add any competition for Anderson. Hillis was right there in the 6th and we instead selected a linebacker project who would probably have ueen there in the 7th, or even free agency. To me, this says Garrett has complete confidence in Anderson, and in the case Cricket doesn't pan out, is ready to go with no fullbacks and four TEs.
TE
Jason Witten
Tony Curtis
Martelius Bennett (R)
Unlike a lot of people, I love the selection of Bennett. He needs some work when it comes to blocking, but he's a huge, athletic, red zone/down the field target that Fasano wasn't. I know we need new blood at wide receiver, but I think Bennett has the skills to fill some of those roles. He has the size and speed to split wide and be nasty mismatch for corners and safeties. He can line up in the slot and abuse linebackers. He was drafted to make plays, not just catch five-yard dump offs when Romo needs to check down. I think it's possible that Curtis could be first off the bench in two TE sets. He really developed under John Garrett. The really intriguing guy, though, is Rodney Hannah. He has apparently progressed tremendously in all areas and is looking, physically and athletically, like Bennett's twin. And then there's Witten. (nuff said)
WR
Terrell Owens
Terry Glenn
Patrick Crayton
Sam Hurd
Isiah Stanback
Danny Amendole (R)
If Glenn is healthy, the top three on the depth chart are a given. Crayton deserved the criticism he received for his play in the playoffs, but I think it's interesting how easily we forget the way he helped move the chains during the regular season. I think the drops against the Giants were an anomoly and that we'll see Crayton revert to his status as the guy with the surest hands on the team. Would it be great to upgrade our third WR? You bet. More quickness would be great. But if Crayton does in '08 what he did last year, he'll be hard to replace.
I think Amendole makes the roster because he offers abilities different from any other receiver on the team. He's a quick, precise guy in the slot who catchhes everything thrown his way. (Well, doesn't that sound a lot like Terry Glenn.) Hurd is great on special teams and has been pretty steady as a possession receiver. Austin has talent but it doesn't show up on the field--except on kick returns, and we have a bunch of new players who are better at that. Austin's the odd man out.
OL
Flozell Adams
Marc Colombo
Kyle Kosier
Leonard Davis
Andre Gurode
Pat McQuistan
Cory Procter
Doug Free
James Maarten
Joe Berger
No changes here, except I think we may see McQ pushing Kosier at LG. We've been really lucky with OL health the past few years. Here's hoping that continues. I was hoping we'd upgrade backup center, as Procter proved to be a huge dropoff from Gurode.
NT
Jay Ratliff
Tank Johnson
Ratliff is a total beast but I'd rather see him at DE than NT. Oh well. Someone on TV on draft day mentioned that the Cowboys really like Junior Siavii. He's a fourth year guy who measures in at 6-5 and 330, but that's all I know about him.
DE
Jason Hatcher
Chris Canty
Marcus Spears
Stephen Bowen
I think the position is pretty set, though Hatcher beats Spears out for the starting job at LDE. A lot of people think Bowen will be losing his roster spot to Dixon, but I don't see that happening at all. Bowen played very well during the limited time he saw the field and he is a better pressure player than Spears.
LB
Demarcus Ware
Greg Ellis
Bradie James
Zach Thomas
Anthony Spencer
Kevin Burnett
Bobby Carpenter
Justin Rogers
Erik Walden (R)
The way I see it, there are two roster spots and two starting jobs up for grabs at the LB position. Rogers, Walden and Robertson are fighting to make the final 53. I think it will be Rogers and Walden because Rogers has played extremely well on special teams and Walden was drafted. I think Robertson will be the best of the three when all is said and done, though, eventually sliding in behind Spencer to replace Ellis in the rotation. I think starting weak-side ILB and strong-side OLB are open for competition, with Spencer battling Ellis and Burnett pushing Thomas. I hope the young guys win.
CB
Terrence Newman
Anthony Henry
Adam Jones
Mike Jenkins (R)
Orlando Scandrick (R)
Alan Ball
What was once a glaring weakness of the team is now an overwhelming strength. Gone are Jaques Reeves, Nate Jones and whoever our last corner was. Assuming Pacman is reinstated, we're looking at what my be the best, deepest group of corners in the League. We can put three Pro Bowl-caliber cover guys on the field, behind them three very talented young players who are the very bright future. The way it sounds, the idea is to play one more corner and one less safety in the dime package, which sounds like a plan to me. This time last year we were debating whether we'd keep five or six corners and who among Reeves, Jones, Oglesby and Butler the last couple guys would be. Now, there's no question. The nth cornerback spot is no longer a roster slot to churn. We have quantity. We have quality--experience, youth, size and speed. I bet Wade is so excited over the prospect of the blitzing that these fellas will allow him to do that he can't hit his *** with both hands.
S
Roy Williams
Ken Hamlin
Pat Watkins
Courtney Brown
What was once seen as a position of weeakness really hasn't changed much, although now we know that Hamlin is a player. Many people say Campo is an improvement over Bowles. I wholeheartedly agree. In fact, I think at the end of the season, when we're revelling in the glow of our sixth Lombardi trophy and remsniscing about 2008, we'll look back and realize that of all the comings and goings in the offseason, the return of Campo was one of the biggest.
K
Nick Folk
He's ice. He's money. He was a Pro Bowler in his rookie year. He needs to be more consistent on his kickoffs, but with Nick in Dallas, we won't be auditioning kickers for a very long time.
P
Matt McBriar
Another Pro Bowl leg.
LS
L.P. Ledouceur
LPL is accurate and consistant. He's as good as long snappers come.
Tony Romo
Brad Johnson
I'd really like to see a younger guy with a better arm backing up Romo, but I don't see it happening in '08. Maybe next season, when Bartel is in his third year. There is a real down-side to replacing Johnson, though. When he goes we say goodbye to one of the very best holders in the League, and that is a much bigger deal than most people think.
RB
Marion Barber III
Felix Jones (R)
Tashard Choice (R)
I think we're stacked at RB. Barber pounds defenders then Jones comes in and runs by them. Choice will be active on gameday, lots of special teams and a few touches showcasing his pass-catching ability. I bet we'll all be surprised at the number of times we see Barber and Jones on the field together.
FB
Deon Anderson
We didn't learn much about Anderson's ability as a blocker last year but he showed pretty good receiving skills. We need a FB who can block, of course, but Garrett likes a receiving threat at the position. What surprises me a little is that on draft day the team didn't add any competition for Anderson. Hillis was right there in the 6th and we instead selected a linebacker project who would probably have ueen there in the 7th, or even free agency. To me, this says Garrett has complete confidence in Anderson, and in the case Cricket doesn't pan out, is ready to go with no fullbacks and four TEs.
TE
Jason Witten
Tony Curtis
Martelius Bennett (R)
Unlike a lot of people, I love the selection of Bennett. He needs some work when it comes to blocking, but he's a huge, athletic, red zone/down the field target that Fasano wasn't. I know we need new blood at wide receiver, but I think Bennett has the skills to fill some of those roles. He has the size and speed to split wide and be nasty mismatch for corners and safeties. He can line up in the slot and abuse linebackers. He was drafted to make plays, not just catch five-yard dump offs when Romo needs to check down. I think it's possible that Curtis could be first off the bench in two TE sets. He really developed under John Garrett. The really intriguing guy, though, is Rodney Hannah. He has apparently progressed tremendously in all areas and is looking, physically and athletically, like Bennett's twin. And then there's Witten. (nuff said)
WR
Terrell Owens
Terry Glenn
Patrick Crayton
Sam Hurd
Isiah Stanback
Danny Amendole (R)
If Glenn is healthy, the top three on the depth chart are a given. Crayton deserved the criticism he received for his play in the playoffs, but I think it's interesting how easily we forget the way he helped move the chains during the regular season. I think the drops against the Giants were an anomoly and that we'll see Crayton revert to his status as the guy with the surest hands on the team. Would it be great to upgrade our third WR? You bet. More quickness would be great. But if Crayton does in '08 what he did last year, he'll be hard to replace.
I think Amendole makes the roster because he offers abilities different from any other receiver on the team. He's a quick, precise guy in the slot who catchhes everything thrown his way. (Well, doesn't that sound a lot like Terry Glenn.) Hurd is great on special teams and has been pretty steady as a possession receiver. Austin has talent but it doesn't show up on the field--except on kick returns, and we have a bunch of new players who are better at that. Austin's the odd man out.
OL
Flozell Adams
Marc Colombo
Kyle Kosier
Leonard Davis
Andre Gurode
Pat McQuistan
Cory Procter
Doug Free
James Maarten
Joe Berger
No changes here, except I think we may see McQ pushing Kosier at LG. We've been really lucky with OL health the past few years. Here's hoping that continues. I was hoping we'd upgrade backup center, as Procter proved to be a huge dropoff from Gurode.
NT
Jay Ratliff
Tank Johnson
Ratliff is a total beast but I'd rather see him at DE than NT. Oh well. Someone on TV on draft day mentioned that the Cowboys really like Junior Siavii. He's a fourth year guy who measures in at 6-5 and 330, but that's all I know about him.
DE
Jason Hatcher
Chris Canty
Marcus Spears
Stephen Bowen
I think the position is pretty set, though Hatcher beats Spears out for the starting job at LDE. A lot of people think Bowen will be losing his roster spot to Dixon, but I don't see that happening at all. Bowen played very well during the limited time he saw the field and he is a better pressure player than Spears.
LB
Demarcus Ware
Greg Ellis
Bradie James
Zach Thomas
Anthony Spencer
Kevin Burnett
Bobby Carpenter
Justin Rogers
Erik Walden (R)
The way I see it, there are two roster spots and two starting jobs up for grabs at the LB position. Rogers, Walden and Robertson are fighting to make the final 53. I think it will be Rogers and Walden because Rogers has played extremely well on special teams and Walden was drafted. I think Robertson will be the best of the three when all is said and done, though, eventually sliding in behind Spencer to replace Ellis in the rotation. I think starting weak-side ILB and strong-side OLB are open for competition, with Spencer battling Ellis and Burnett pushing Thomas. I hope the young guys win.
CB
Terrence Newman
Anthony Henry
Adam Jones
Mike Jenkins (R)
Orlando Scandrick (R)
Alan Ball
What was once a glaring weakness of the team is now an overwhelming strength. Gone are Jaques Reeves, Nate Jones and whoever our last corner was. Assuming Pacman is reinstated, we're looking at what my be the best, deepest group of corners in the League. We can put three Pro Bowl-caliber cover guys on the field, behind them three very talented young players who are the very bright future. The way it sounds, the idea is to play one more corner and one less safety in the dime package, which sounds like a plan to me. This time last year we were debating whether we'd keep five or six corners and who among Reeves, Jones, Oglesby and Butler the last couple guys would be. Now, there's no question. The nth cornerback spot is no longer a roster slot to churn. We have quantity. We have quality--experience, youth, size and speed. I bet Wade is so excited over the prospect of the blitzing that these fellas will allow him to do that he can't hit his *** with both hands.
S
Roy Williams
Ken Hamlin
Pat Watkins
Courtney Brown
What was once seen as a position of weeakness really hasn't changed much, although now we know that Hamlin is a player. Many people say Campo is an improvement over Bowles. I wholeheartedly agree. In fact, I think at the end of the season, when we're revelling in the glow of our sixth Lombardi trophy and remsniscing about 2008, we'll look back and realize that of all the comings and goings in the offseason, the return of Campo was one of the biggest.
K
Nick Folk
He's ice. He's money. He was a Pro Bowler in his rookie year. He needs to be more consistent on his kickoffs, but with Nick in Dallas, we won't be auditioning kickers for a very long time.
P
Matt McBriar
Another Pro Bowl leg.
LS
L.P. Ledouceur
LPL is accurate and consistant. He's as good as long snappers come.
