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I've been wanting to talk about the depth Dallas has for a few weeks now, and after yesterday's loss, now is as good a time as any.
In the NFL, depth isn’t always just a way of not losing much when a starting player goes out… it’s also a way of keeping a whole unit fresh and adapting to down and distance. The Cowboys are becoming one of the best in the NFL at doing that, in large part because they are a very deep team.
Dallas has one of the deepest defensive lines that I’ve seen since the advent of free agency. The starters, Marcus Spears, Jay Ratliff, and Chris Canty are all three from the terrific ’05 draft class that Dallas had. All three are young and talented and should continue to improve. Spears does have a way to go with his pass rush, but he's terrific against the run. Their backups are also young and talented. Jason Hatcher, Tank Johnson, and Stephen Bowen might be starters on a lot of teams in the NFL. All three of those guys play a big part in each game and any could play for extended periods with no drop-off from the starting three. Two of those three players are better pass rushers than the guys they back up. Bowen and Hatcher are both very good at getting pressure on the QB and at the end of games when offenses are tired, they come in fresh and give offensive linemen fits. Tank Johnson is a very good interior pass rusher and only Ratliff being so good against the pass keeps all three backups from being better rushers than the starters. Bowen, in particular is playing more and more and is seeing action earlier in games. He played well in Canty's absence yesterday.
I don’t know of any other team where the entire second string defensive line is just about as good as the starters. In certain situations, the backup DL is probably better than the starters. Truth be told, Dallas has six starters for three DL positions and they all get to stay fresh and continue to stay effective throughout the entire game. Jerry Jones can thank very good second day drafting and a little luck for that fact. Canty and Ratliff both came to Dallas on the second day of the draft, with Canty only being there because of injuries he sustained before the ’05 draft. Tank Johnson was only available because of his fluke-ish gun charges and of course Bowen wasn’t drafted at all.
Dallas did a terrific job of finding late talent and taking advantage of a guy like Johnson being available. That kind of player isn't typically on the street looking for a job at his young age. You also don't usually find players like Ratliff in the 7th round and players like Bowen as UDFA’s.
The Cowboys can rotate guys in and out of the lineup and use their talented DL in any number of combinations. Tank is good against both the run and pass… but so is Ratliff. Hatcher and Bowen come in on passing situations. Spears and Canty play the run extremely well. Four man line… three man line… there are many combinations and Phillips finds a way to use them all.
Heck, even Greg Ellis is still playing a little DE in some pass rushing packages, allowing Anthony Spencer to come in at OLB.
The DL isn’t the only place Dallas has depth though. There are solid reserves in nearly every position, making Dallas one of the deepest teams in the NFL.
Dallas’ backup running back is better than the starter. Barber just makes things happen when he's in the game.
Brad Johnson isn’t Tony Romo, but he’s won plenty in the NFL and could play a game or two in place of Romo without screwing the pooch too badly. Romo though, is the engine that drives the Cowboys. Without him the whole team is different. Still, Johnson is about as good an any backup in the league.
Sam Hurd and Miles Austin are pretty good players, given the chance. If Terry Glenn comes back healthy, they will be one of the deeper WR corps in the NFL.
Witten is one of the best TE’s in the game. Fasano is one of the better blocking TE’s in the NFL and given more chances would be able to put up very good numbers. I’ve heard him compared to Washington’s Chris Cooley a few times and he has that type of potential. Tony Curtis… well, all he does is catch touchdowns. Oh, and recover crucial onsides kicks. And recover fumbles. He’s smart and probably the best third TE in football.
OLB Anthony Spencer had 1 sack and 1 forced fumble in limited chances yesterday. It’s difficult to find him playing time behind DeMarcus Ware and Greg Ellis, but that’s what Phillips is trying to do. If Dallas could have given him more playing time, his numbers would probably put him smack in the middle of the DROY consideration. He’s much better than he was at the start of the season when he was forced into the lineup by Greg Ellis’ lingering injury problem. He is better rushing the QB but he’s also out of position less and isn’t making many mistakes. His strength is rare for a rookie. Spencer’s hands are particularly strong and help him shed blocks and get the QB to the ground quickly. His combination of strength and burst is made for pass rushing. Getting him on the field along with Ware and Ellis is going to pay dividends down the stretch and into the playoffs.
OLB Justin Rogers is a guy the Patriots really liked and tried to sneak on their practice squad. We don’t know much more than he’s pretty good on special teams… but if Bill Belichick and Wade Phillips both like him… I feel pretty good about his chances.
ILB Kevin Burnett is Dallas’ best coverage LB and is also one of their most explosive players. He’s really starting to make some plays and his situational rotation with Akin Ayodele is working out very well for the team. Having a guy like him coming in on passing down is a real luxury in the NFL.
CB Jacques Reeves has played a lot this season because of the injuries to Terence Newman and Anthony Henry and has developed quite nicely. He’s a very good third corner and if the starters can remain healthy, the CB depth is nice through the first three. Nate Jones has had his share of problems, but really for a 4th corner hasn’t done too badly.
FS Ken Hamlin has pushed promising second year safety Pat Watkins back on the depth chart and allowed him to grow at a slower pace. Watkins is a nice option to bring in with his size and athleticism. Keith Davis isn’t starting material in this league, but he’s very good on special teams and can help in dime packages. You’d rather have a better backup, but really in today’s NFL, it’s hard to have much more backing up the safety position.
Which leads me to the OL. Because the starters have remained so healthy this year, we haven’t seen too much of the backup OL. However, the staff really likes some of the guys who are there, starting with Pat McQuistan. He was going to compete with Kyle Kosier at the LG position at the start of camp until Marc Colombo had to have minor surgery, making McQuistan have to play RT most of camp. He’s very athletic and can play any position along the OL except for center. The coaches like him a lot and the few times he’s had to play for Colombo this year, he’s looked good. He likely will take Kosiers place next year. Doug Free looked even better than the coaches thought he would in his rookie camp and if pro bowler Flozell Adams wasn’t here, we might would have seen him playing LT. His pass protection is pro ready and he only needs to get stronger to be ready to go at LT. Cory Procter is a player the staff likes a lot. He understands the center and guard positions so well that he’s the guy the starting OL goes to with questions during a game. He might not have looked that great yesterday coming in for Gurode… but given time to prepare as a starter, the team has complete confidence in him. If Gurode comes back next week, the Cowboys OL depth will remain very good.
Overall, the Dallas roster is as deep and talented as any in the NFL. As Phillips continues to learn how to use that depth on defense, they keep getting better and better. The depth will pay dividends as the playoffs near, and it isn't just because Dallas can replace starters that might go down with injury.
Now, if they can just get the offense back on track, the Cowboys will be a very, very dangerous team in January and February.
In the NFL, depth isn’t always just a way of not losing much when a starting player goes out… it’s also a way of keeping a whole unit fresh and adapting to down and distance. The Cowboys are becoming one of the best in the NFL at doing that, in large part because they are a very deep team.
Dallas has one of the deepest defensive lines that I’ve seen since the advent of free agency. The starters, Marcus Spears, Jay Ratliff, and Chris Canty are all three from the terrific ’05 draft class that Dallas had. All three are young and talented and should continue to improve. Spears does have a way to go with his pass rush, but he's terrific against the run. Their backups are also young and talented. Jason Hatcher, Tank Johnson, and Stephen Bowen might be starters on a lot of teams in the NFL. All three of those guys play a big part in each game and any could play for extended periods with no drop-off from the starting three. Two of those three players are better pass rushers than the guys they back up. Bowen and Hatcher are both very good at getting pressure on the QB and at the end of games when offenses are tired, they come in fresh and give offensive linemen fits. Tank Johnson is a very good interior pass rusher and only Ratliff being so good against the pass keeps all three backups from being better rushers than the starters. Bowen, in particular is playing more and more and is seeing action earlier in games. He played well in Canty's absence yesterday.
I don’t know of any other team where the entire second string defensive line is just about as good as the starters. In certain situations, the backup DL is probably better than the starters. Truth be told, Dallas has six starters for three DL positions and they all get to stay fresh and continue to stay effective throughout the entire game. Jerry Jones can thank very good second day drafting and a little luck for that fact. Canty and Ratliff both came to Dallas on the second day of the draft, with Canty only being there because of injuries he sustained before the ’05 draft. Tank Johnson was only available because of his fluke-ish gun charges and of course Bowen wasn’t drafted at all.
Dallas did a terrific job of finding late talent and taking advantage of a guy like Johnson being available. That kind of player isn't typically on the street looking for a job at his young age. You also don't usually find players like Ratliff in the 7th round and players like Bowen as UDFA’s.
The Cowboys can rotate guys in and out of the lineup and use their talented DL in any number of combinations. Tank is good against both the run and pass… but so is Ratliff. Hatcher and Bowen come in on passing situations. Spears and Canty play the run extremely well. Four man line… three man line… there are many combinations and Phillips finds a way to use them all.
Heck, even Greg Ellis is still playing a little DE in some pass rushing packages, allowing Anthony Spencer to come in at OLB.
The DL isn’t the only place Dallas has depth though. There are solid reserves in nearly every position, making Dallas one of the deepest teams in the NFL.
Dallas’ backup running back is better than the starter. Barber just makes things happen when he's in the game.
Brad Johnson isn’t Tony Romo, but he’s won plenty in the NFL and could play a game or two in place of Romo without screwing the pooch too badly. Romo though, is the engine that drives the Cowboys. Without him the whole team is different. Still, Johnson is about as good an any backup in the league.
Sam Hurd and Miles Austin are pretty good players, given the chance. If Terry Glenn comes back healthy, they will be one of the deeper WR corps in the NFL.
Witten is one of the best TE’s in the game. Fasano is one of the better blocking TE’s in the NFL and given more chances would be able to put up very good numbers. I’ve heard him compared to Washington’s Chris Cooley a few times and he has that type of potential. Tony Curtis… well, all he does is catch touchdowns. Oh, and recover crucial onsides kicks. And recover fumbles. He’s smart and probably the best third TE in football.
OLB Anthony Spencer had 1 sack and 1 forced fumble in limited chances yesterday. It’s difficult to find him playing time behind DeMarcus Ware and Greg Ellis, but that’s what Phillips is trying to do. If Dallas could have given him more playing time, his numbers would probably put him smack in the middle of the DROY consideration. He’s much better than he was at the start of the season when he was forced into the lineup by Greg Ellis’ lingering injury problem. He is better rushing the QB but he’s also out of position less and isn’t making many mistakes. His strength is rare for a rookie. Spencer’s hands are particularly strong and help him shed blocks and get the QB to the ground quickly. His combination of strength and burst is made for pass rushing. Getting him on the field along with Ware and Ellis is going to pay dividends down the stretch and into the playoffs.
OLB Justin Rogers is a guy the Patriots really liked and tried to sneak on their practice squad. We don’t know much more than he’s pretty good on special teams… but if Bill Belichick and Wade Phillips both like him… I feel pretty good about his chances.
ILB Kevin Burnett is Dallas’ best coverage LB and is also one of their most explosive players. He’s really starting to make some plays and his situational rotation with Akin Ayodele is working out very well for the team. Having a guy like him coming in on passing down is a real luxury in the NFL.
CB Jacques Reeves has played a lot this season because of the injuries to Terence Newman and Anthony Henry and has developed quite nicely. He’s a very good third corner and if the starters can remain healthy, the CB depth is nice through the first three. Nate Jones has had his share of problems, but really for a 4th corner hasn’t done too badly.
FS Ken Hamlin has pushed promising second year safety Pat Watkins back on the depth chart and allowed him to grow at a slower pace. Watkins is a nice option to bring in with his size and athleticism. Keith Davis isn’t starting material in this league, but he’s very good on special teams and can help in dime packages. You’d rather have a better backup, but really in today’s NFL, it’s hard to have much more backing up the safety position.
Which leads me to the OL. Because the starters have remained so healthy this year, we haven’t seen too much of the backup OL. However, the staff really likes some of the guys who are there, starting with Pat McQuistan. He was going to compete with Kyle Kosier at the LG position at the start of camp until Marc Colombo had to have minor surgery, making McQuistan have to play RT most of camp. He’s very athletic and can play any position along the OL except for center. The coaches like him a lot and the few times he’s had to play for Colombo this year, he’s looked good. He likely will take Kosiers place next year. Doug Free looked even better than the coaches thought he would in his rookie camp and if pro bowler Flozell Adams wasn’t here, we might would have seen him playing LT. His pass protection is pro ready and he only needs to get stronger to be ready to go at LT. Cory Procter is a player the staff likes a lot. He understands the center and guard positions so well that he’s the guy the starting OL goes to with questions during a game. He might not have looked that great yesterday coming in for Gurode… but given time to prepare as a starter, the team has complete confidence in him. If Gurode comes back next week, the Cowboys OL depth will remain very good.
Overall, the Dallas roster is as deep and talented as any in the NFL. As Phillips continues to learn how to use that depth on defense, they keep getting better and better. The depth will pay dividends as the playoffs near, and it isn't just because Dallas can replace starters that might go down with injury.
Now, if they can just get the offense back on track, the Cowboys will be a very, very dangerous team in January and February.
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