News: The surprising progress stoppers on the Dallas Cowboys defensive line

[waving monkey]

I dont think anybody has a problem with Crawford hitting the road its just having some reasonable replacement on board.
IMO a 1DT and & 7 tech DE at minimum. We have choices because we have Will McClay

 

[gmoney112]

Progress stopping only happens if you have guys with legitimate talent that aren't getting reps because an older/lesser talent is taking them.

We don't really have that problem right now, especially in this scheme.

 

[FuzzyLumpkins]

Crawford thread!

Shoutout to Stash.

 

[Ranching]

Sometimes the coaches can be the "progress stoppers".
A solid veteran with great work ethic and leadership qualities can do wonders for a young line. Someone that has been there, done that, ala Jason Witten would be a great role model for these guys. That being said, those guys aren't easy to find.

 

[Chuck 54]

The surprising progress stoppers on the Dallas Cowboys defensive line

http://cowboyswire.usatoday.com/201...toppers-on-the-dallas-cowboys-defensive-line/



...When Bill Parcells took over as the head coach of the Dallas Cowboys in 2003, he brought the idea of “progress stoppers” with him. Aptly named, progress stoppers prevent others from developing into even better players at a given position.

Often, these are typically older, veteran players who may have once been stars or solid contributors but are now on the tail-ends of their careers. But, even younger players can be progress stoppers if better replacements exist lower on the depth chart. The current Cowboys front office philosophy seems to ignore the second possibility, however.

Despite the worries about pass rush before the season, the Cowboys front office rebuffed the idea of getting outside veteran help. Instead they argued their young players just needed time to develop and a veteran would only hinder that progress.

Name Snaps Sacks Avg Salary (Millions)
Jack Crawford 529 3.5 1.1
Benson Mayowa 381 6 2.8
David Irving 485 4 0.5
Demarcus Lawrence 327 1 1.4
Maliek Collins 656 5 0.9
Terrell McClain 467 2.5 1
Tyrone Crawford 624 4.5 9
Cedric Thornton 278 1.5 4.25 ...

First, clearly the current front office has not rebuffed the idea. If they had, we wouldn't have drafted Zeke with Morris and McFadden already signed. When Romo was healthy, they would have reinserted him as the starter.

Besides that, it's really stupid to list Mayowa, Collins, or thornton as progress stoppers since they were all in their first year with Dallas. McClain? Who's progress did he stop? Irving? I think he's one of the key players actually making progress. Jack Crawford is merely depth.

Maybe the argument can be made that DLaw is a progress stopper, but how? He's still considered the best DE on the team when healthy.

A progress stopper isn't a guy who stops you from drafting or signing a better FA. A progress stopper is a guy you play, knowing he is all he's going to be, while keeping young, talented players like Miles Austin on the bench because they have no experience.

 

[Idgit]

Progress stopping only happens if you have guys with legitimate talent that aren't getting reps because an older/lesser talent is taking them.

We don't really have that problem right now, especially in this scheme.

We've got, what, 2, 3 legitimate holes in the DL rotation right now where there aren't quality players worth developing? I'm not including Gregory because he can't or won't stay available to play. You don't stop the progress of players physically incapable of progressing. And you don't build a rotation by cutting guys who give you starting snaps at multiple positions. Especially when there aren't better/cheaper/other alternatives available.

And DLs with position flex aren't a liability because they don't only play one position. What matters is whether or not they're productive for you in the snaps they give you. Both Crawford and Thornton are productive role players. They're overpaid for their contracts, but that's a different issue.

With 53 contracts and counting on an NFL roster all based on projections of future production, you're going to end up upside down on some of them. When you do, and if you have leverage, you squeeze. When you do, and you don't have leverage, you don't squeeze. The team doesn't have DL leverage right now because injuries have hobbled Lawrence and T Crawford, VFA signings like Hardy have whiffed, and the Gregory pick was a whiff (or was it a puff, I forget). Creating holes that are expensive to fill on a contender the month before the start of free agency doesn't make any sense. When we have the leverage, we'll approach Crawford like we did Doug Free and Brandon Carr in recent years and get a better deal. Until then, fans just need to be realistic about what the options really are.

 

[jrumann59]

I think Crawford got a raw deal, first bulk up you are the starting 3t oh wait we have no one that knows how to play DE lose weight and rush the qb from the DE position which we know will yield next to nothing but better than the nothing we already have on the roster.

 

[Stash]

Crawford thread!

Shoutout to Stash.

Hey! The guy who wrote the article started it! I just chimed in, continuing to brutally beat the dead horse.

 

[Chuck 54]

I think Crawford got a raw deal, first bulk up you are the starting 3t oh wait we have no one that knows how to play DE lose weight and rush the qb from the DE position which we know will yield next to nothing but better than the nothing we already have on the roster.

Not a bad point, and like Carr, it's not his fault the Cowboys rushed their gamble on paying him based on one promising year at DT. If you can salvage all his money by replacing him, then that's an option, but to view him as a progress stopper is silly. He's a guy who can play 3-T or LDE; that does have some value to a rotation until you find enough guys better than he is.

 

[xwalker]

Progress stopping only happens if you have guys with legitimate talent that aren't getting reps because an older/lesser talent is taking them.

We don't really have that problem right now, especially in this scheme.

The mainstream media is dumb enough, but these days bloggers have taken dumb reporting to a new low.

If Collins had barely played, then maybe they could claim somebody in front of him was a progress stopper at DT, but instead Collins played the most snaps.

Jack Crawford played too many snaps, but that was mainly due to Mayowa struggling early, in part due to a linger leg injury.

My only complaint would be that Irving didn't play enough snaps, but I get the impressing from comments by Marinelli, that he wants Irving to earn his snaps because he might be the type that will get too big for his britches if success comes to easily.

 

[LocimusPrime]

The D line was a progress stopper. They stopped our playoff progress

 

[Stash]

I think Crawford got a raw deal, first bulk up you are the starting 3t oh wait we have no one that knows how to play DE lose weight and rush the qb from the DE position which we know will yield next to nothing but better than the nothing we already have on the roster.

That's definitely a big part of it. And that's why I keep referring to him as a round peg in a square hole. The guy was drafted to be a 3-4 DE and that's really what he is. And we've asked him to play everything but that. To his credit, he's given his best effort to do anything asked.

 

[Sydla]

And how bad would that suck? To lose your starter at 1T because you're overpaying two backups!

Something about McClain though.............. he shows flashes but then I am often left wanting more. Would be nice to have a dominant 1 tech next to Collins but I know they don't prioritize 1 techs in Marinelli's system.

 

[Idgit]

The mainstream media is dumb enough, but these days bloggers have taken dumb reporting to a new low.

If Collins had barely played, then maybe they could claim somebody in front of him was a progress stopper at DT, but instead Collins played the most snaps.

Jack Crawford played too many snaps, but that was mainly due to Mayowa struggling early, in part due to a linger leg injury.

My only complaint would be that Irving didn't play enough snaps, but I get the impressing from comments by Marinelli, that he wants Irving to earn his snaps because he might be the type that will get too big for his britches if success comes to easily.

Irving implied mid-season that he needed to continue working on conditioning to earn the snaps. I think Marinelli wanted to see a sustained level of effort from him as he earned the opportunities.

 

[ShiningStar]

Good thing we didnt bring in Freeny because we know he would have stopped some super star we have being held back. Whos stopping Heaths amazing career thats about to take off? Kavon Frazier? Leon McFadden? I want names, these players have been grossly neglected.

 

[Stash]

Something about McClain though.............. he shows flashes but then I am often left wanting more. Would be nice to have a dominant 1 tech next to Collins but I know they don't prioritize 1 techs in Marinelli's system.

I'd like one too, and it's tough to judge how much money to pay a player in McClain who has missed a lot of time to injury as well. I've wanted a true, big-bodied one technique inside for years, and I think teams have shown that it pays to have at least one. I've never seen the return in terms of pass rush that Marinelli seems to put a priority on in having smaller, quicker guys there.

 

[CCBoy]

Irving and Mayowa showed talent, youth, and the need to grow both physically and in applied techniques. There may be more of a role for both, this next season...and the point of the OP.

The point with Lawrence, was that his price tag and low production level don't justify a starting role by their own presence. Can't really argue that in his third season, Lawrence was breath taking. Does he deserve further development and growth? Sure...but it's time to start earning on the carpet, a starter's role. And why one questions role with each and every player in a team setting. There is team direction involved, and not having a descriptive concept sophisticated enough doesn't deter a team need to continue making improvements until a dye set standard is reached. That takes booting around thoughts that don't look sufficient in it's own declaration, but add to a good view. How good is good? That is how it plays out on the field. Against Green Bay, there was failure involved.