jday
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It is an age-old question; a cliché that is likened to many other paradoxes that exist in our world. And the question, despite the redundancy of it all, dangles a really big answer at the end, because it comes down to what you believe in regards to how we, everything, came about. Was there intelligent design or did an unlikely random sequence of events ultimately lead to what we are today; kings of paradise, masters of our fellow creatures, and wielders of great power – consciousness.
Not that it matters, but I lean towards the former explanation; no judgment, should you lean towards the latter. After all, we are but a similar being, that inherit different inclinations from our ancestors and layer over that filters created from life experience. Given the variety that arises from those various conditions of our genes and catalogues of living, belief in our origin is personal and, unless solicited, should for the most part remain that way…unless specifically chosen to be part of a narrative such as this where I am merely buying time with words to sacrifice minutes between now and watching a game I’ve been waiting too long to watch as it is. I suspect you have engaged in this read for similar reasons so my waxing poetic, in a sense, is a win-win. You’re welcome!
Without further ado, I will get to the plot:
Is Dak great or is he made great by his surroundings? Great offensive line. Great running back. Great mix of different types of weapons among their wide receivers and tight ends. He really couldn’t ask for a better situation.
But you could say the same thing of every player on that side of the ball. The offensive line is in a great situation to not only be surrounded by like talent up front but to also have the right blend of offensive weapons to accentuate and punctuate their dominance. Where would the skill positions be (running back, wide receivers, tight ends) without that offensive line and Dak Prescott who has exhibited the ability to take advantage of the talent provided by both groups (offensive line and skill positions)?
The problem is that the question is flawed. The question does not take in consideration the possibility that all parties involved are great and only make each other greater as a result. One need only look at the Giants who are seemingly brimming with talent in terms of receiving options to see what happens when you take shortcuts everywhere else. It simply doesn’t work and therefore despite the potential of some of those weapons being great, they simply don’t have the surroundings necessary to shine.
The other aspect of this conversation that it should answer for most is the reasons why despite their talent the Cowboys weapons do not “shine” in every game and therefore seem inconsistent. Take Dez, for instance:
There is a recent narrative being discussed based on his 2 catch of 9 targets stats garnered against the Giants last weekend that one, he lost the battle with Janoris Jenkins and that he is on the fringe of being considered top 10 among his receiving peers…but no longer in the top 10 discussion.
There may be truth to that. Compared to other starting receivers over the last handful of games, his stats achieved by comparison may even support that assertion. But the problem with simply looking at his stats against the Giants last Sunday night is three-fold:
1. It doesn’t take in consideration the routes he won when Dak didn’t see him, which from what I’ve heard/read there were quite a few.
2. Dak blatantly missed on a few of those attempts, not sure how many…and yet those misses, for the most part are being put on Dez.
3. The refs were being ridiculously lenient with Jack Rabbit being all over Dez. Particularly if you re-watch the deep ball from Dak to Dez in the front corner of the endzone towards the end of the game, Janoris impeded one of Dez’s arms in a very sneaky way to prevent Dez from getting both hands on the ball. To me, it was pass interference; you may disagree.
The point is, if Dak’s sees Dez running free and throws it to him, if Dak is on target with those passes that were not in Dez’s zipcode, and if the refs call pass interference on the several occasions where it could have been called, the narrative would have been completely different today and Dez would probably be in the top 5 conversation as a result.
The same conversation could be had in relation to every weapon simply due to their presence being all on the same team. Many of the receivers on other teams that edge out the Cowboys weapons in terms of stats often times represent the best option on their perspective teams. That simply isn’t the case for the Cowboys. They have a great option anywhere Dak chooses to look…and, as such, he doesn’t have to force it to anyone…like he admittedly did to Dez against the Giants. But as an end results to all the viable options the Cowboys have to move the ball down the field, it detracts from the greatness of every single player.
Fortunately, the Cowboys have a group of unselfish, team-first players. Stats, records, brand…they all mean nothing when compared to their ultimate goal; which is hoisting a trophy at season end. They do that, and all the stats, records, brand will be meaningless next to the hardware…especially when it comes to negotiating their next contract…be it here or elsewhere.
Thoughts?
Not that it matters, but I lean towards the former explanation; no judgment, should you lean towards the latter. After all, we are but a similar being, that inherit different inclinations from our ancestors and layer over that filters created from life experience. Given the variety that arises from those various conditions of our genes and catalogues of living, belief in our origin is personal and, unless solicited, should for the most part remain that way…unless specifically chosen to be part of a narrative such as this where I am merely buying time with words to sacrifice minutes between now and watching a game I’ve been waiting too long to watch as it is. I suspect you have engaged in this read for similar reasons so my waxing poetic, in a sense, is a win-win. You’re welcome!
Without further ado, I will get to the plot:
Is Dak great or is he made great by his surroundings? Great offensive line. Great running back. Great mix of different types of weapons among their wide receivers and tight ends. He really couldn’t ask for a better situation.
But you could say the same thing of every player on that side of the ball. The offensive line is in a great situation to not only be surrounded by like talent up front but to also have the right blend of offensive weapons to accentuate and punctuate their dominance. Where would the skill positions be (running back, wide receivers, tight ends) without that offensive line and Dak Prescott who has exhibited the ability to take advantage of the talent provided by both groups (offensive line and skill positions)?
The problem is that the question is flawed. The question does not take in consideration the possibility that all parties involved are great and only make each other greater as a result. One need only look at the Giants who are seemingly brimming with talent in terms of receiving options to see what happens when you take shortcuts everywhere else. It simply doesn’t work and therefore despite the potential of some of those weapons being great, they simply don’t have the surroundings necessary to shine.
The other aspect of this conversation that it should answer for most is the reasons why despite their talent the Cowboys weapons do not “shine” in every game and therefore seem inconsistent. Take Dez, for instance:
There is a recent narrative being discussed based on his 2 catch of 9 targets stats garnered against the Giants last weekend that one, he lost the battle with Janoris Jenkins and that he is on the fringe of being considered top 10 among his receiving peers…but no longer in the top 10 discussion.
There may be truth to that. Compared to other starting receivers over the last handful of games, his stats achieved by comparison may even support that assertion. But the problem with simply looking at his stats against the Giants last Sunday night is three-fold:
1. It doesn’t take in consideration the routes he won when Dak didn’t see him, which from what I’ve heard/read there were quite a few.
2. Dak blatantly missed on a few of those attempts, not sure how many…and yet those misses, for the most part are being put on Dez.
3. The refs were being ridiculously lenient with Jack Rabbit being all over Dez. Particularly if you re-watch the deep ball from Dak to Dez in the front corner of the endzone towards the end of the game, Janoris impeded one of Dez’s arms in a very sneaky way to prevent Dez from getting both hands on the ball. To me, it was pass interference; you may disagree.
The point is, if Dak’s sees Dez running free and throws it to him, if Dak is on target with those passes that were not in Dez’s zipcode, and if the refs call pass interference on the several occasions where it could have been called, the narrative would have been completely different today and Dez would probably be in the top 5 conversation as a result.
The same conversation could be had in relation to every weapon simply due to their presence being all on the same team. Many of the receivers on other teams that edge out the Cowboys weapons in terms of stats often times represent the best option on their perspective teams. That simply isn’t the case for the Cowboys. They have a great option anywhere Dak chooses to look…and, as such, he doesn’t have to force it to anyone…like he admittedly did to Dez against the Giants. But as an end results to all the viable options the Cowboys have to move the ball down the field, it detracts from the greatness of every single player.
Fortunately, the Cowboys have a group of unselfish, team-first players. Stats, records, brand…they all mean nothing when compared to their ultimate goal; which is hoisting a trophy at season end. They do that, and all the stats, records, brand will be meaningless next to the hardware…especially when it comes to negotiating their next contract…be it here or elsewhere.
Thoughts?
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