Wade's Draft Habits

[Hoofbite]

Im not sure if this person posts over here or not but he/she did a little reasearch and dug up some of Wade's tendenceis. Heres just a little bit of their original post. The rest was opinion and speculation but here is the factual stuff they found.

(SoutherStar @ DCFU)

With his #1 pick:

When Wade Phillips was defensive coach for the Saints, they took linemen 3 out of 4 times.
When he coached with Philadelphia, they took linemen 2 out of 3 times.
When he coached at Denver, they went defense 5 out of 6 years. (the only exception was Tommy Maddox)
When he coached at Buffalo, they took defense (or linemen) 2/3s of the time.
When he coached at Atlanta, they went defense 50% of the time (but he was there only 2 years...)
When he coached at San Diego, they went defense 2 out of 3 times.
* The only time they DIDN'T was when they already had a deal in place to take Eli Manning and trade him to the Giants in an incredibly profitable deal (that took them from the AFC West outhouse to the AFC West penthouse in one year....)

Conclusion?
With his first pick, Wade drafts defense and he likes linemen (either offense or defense).

Of course he wasn't head coach on several of those teams, but it's easy to see he had "influence" on whoever was......

As a head coach, Phillips' teams have gone either defense or lineman 5 out of 6 times!! The only exception being wide receiver (a position that we are stocked at.....even if they are getting old).

What else do I know about Phillips' draft preferences?
Well, it would appear that he sticks with the "big name" players and doesn't gamble on "value players" (like Parcells did). He stays where he is and doesn't move down much. And it would seem that this strategy has "paid off" because most of his selections have become productive starters in the league and have longevity, too. (about 8 to 10 years generally)

If what is said in the upper half is true, I like the way Phillips drafts. I think the two lines are areas that teams cannot afford to slack on and I like the fact that Wade sticks with what he knows and thats defense. Doesn't seem to venture outside of his comfort zone too much and does what he knows works.

That said, staying in the comfort zone isn't something that I like to see when Dallas is in the position they are this year. There aren't really any gaping holes on the D. Providing at least 85% recovery for Ellis, depth is the only problem I really see right now. FS is a boggle because Hamlin isn't a sure thing but hes an upgrade.

It really appears that the defense is fairly set so Im not really too hot on another defender, 1st round. Moving to the other side, it appears most likely that Wade goes OL which I wouldn't have a problem with if it is the right OL. I really like Blalock but 22 might be a little ahead of where he "could be" had. Could be because if Dallas could trade down a few picks, they could probably still take him but I don't see a trade down possibility. I can't see any of the teams behind #22 just dying to move up. They were all solid teams last year and I don't think any 1 player at #22 could boost any team into the stratosphere. But, different strokes for different folks......1 team could get anxious and make a move but I don't think its too likely. Given that Dallas probably won't be able to lure a trade, Blalock @ 22 would be okay with me.

And then thers what appears to be a slim chance that he goes elswhere. WR would have to be it if it isn't defense or OL. Nothing else is left unless the moon aligns with venus and dallas goes trade nuts, ditches jones and a million other "what ifs" happen.

So at WR, who'd he pick? The original poster suggests a low risk guy. I don't think that would be Ginn. From a pure WR production view, Ginn (15 TDs) is the low guy in comparison to the other potential 1st round WRs who might be available (Meachem - 17 TDs, Bowe - 26 TDs, Rice - 23 TDs and Jarrett - 41 TDs). Granted, these numbers are a little untrustworthy because of each players' playing time but for the most part Bowe, Jarrett and Ginn had a similar number of starts (Bowe - 30 Starts/50 games, Jarrett - 31 Starts/38 Games, Ginn - 31 Starts/37 Games). The other two had fewer starts (Meachem - 15 Starts/37 Games, Rice - 23 Starts/24 Games).

Just looking at the numbers alone, I don't think the pick can be Ginn. Up next to those other guys, he hasn't done as much as a WR. Now, his ST ability makes up for what he hasn't done but I can't justify picking a guy who hasn't produced as much as the others becuase he can return kicks. I think it would be nice to have a guy like that but its not necessary. Better to go with the more proven player IMO. Jarrett fits the bill nicely.

I actually think Dallas is lucky that he ran slow because his stock might have slid enough for him to be there at 22. I'm not totally sure how a guy like Ginn can run slower then expected (With lingering Injury, I suppose) and suffer no slippage when his entire game is based off speed. Yet a guy like Jarrett can run slower then expected, have his stock drop a good amount when his game is based on being a damned good, well rounded WR whos production speaks for itself.

Anyway. Just thought those stats up there were a little interesting. Would really like to know more about the Blue section but thats all the original poster put.



P.S. Sorry for the bold type.....copy-paste did it. Tried to fix it but have been up for too long and almost botched the thrad......my bad.

 

[jps_tex]

It looks like you put a lot of thought into that, BUT it doesn't really matter how Coach Phillips picked in the past. It has already been publicly stated that the Cowboys will rely heavily on their scouts. Each team does that. It is not just the head coach. It is a combination of the Head Coach, GMs, scouting departments, and sometimes owners that collectively make a choice. I think Phillips will have a voice, but ultimately it will be the combination of Jones, Stephen Jones, Jeff Ireland, and Wade Phillips that makes the choice. Therefore, making Wade Phillips picks from the past useless for predicting the future.

 

[Woods]

I keep flip-flopping between CB and WR at 22.

However, I think if we stay at 22, we probably take a CB. That's my final flip flop for this year's draft.

My gut feeling is that if Ross is there at 22, he could be the guy.

Anyway, at the minimum this should be a VERY interesting draft for us, as we took care of most of our needs in FA. There are so many different ways we can go.

As long as we're true to our board, we will hopefully be o.k.

 

[BLT]

im almost positive we wont be picking at 22

 

[rickster14]

If Jerry keeps his word, then we can't predict our picks on anything but BPA. WP might have some tendencies in drafting, but I keep hearing theat the Boys will "stick to their board" and take waht the draft gives them.

 

[AbeBeta]

im almost positive we wont be picking at 22

I positive we won't WANT to be picking at 22. But that there won't be much interest in the pick

 

[Hostile]

I still think we're going WR. We haven't had a 1st round pick on offense since 1997. Wade is inheriting a defense he and Brian Stewart can work with and shape. This draft will be about solidifying the future so we don't rely on Free Agency to fill needs.

 

[sago1]

Our defense certainly does not help. While our starters are okay, some are long in the tooth and we gotta get their successors on board. That said:

1. CB is major need cause Glenn is 35 and Henry turns 31. Reeves/Jones are backup/nickle/dime guys and not starters.
2. NT is a priority cause Ferguson was good in 07 but he's 32. We've got no viable backup if he gets hurt & need his replacement on board asap to help now and become future starter within 2 years.
3. We need quality depth at LB with the loss of Fowler unless Hoyte returns from FB duties to ILB. But we still need another LB unless Glymph or someone else on the team has the right stuff.
4. FS is set for this year w/Hamlin & hopefully Watkins development but we can't address all our needs this year--just the most pressing.

On offense:
1. Need quality depth on several OL positions.
2. TO is 33/turns 34 in Dec; Glenn is 33. Unless Cowboys very confident Austin and/or Hurd show big time potential, we should draft a WR who shows he can be a #1 WR. I don't want use our first round on a #2 WR.
3. In Garrett's offense, do we need a real FB but this is later round pick
4. Julius Jones in last year of his contract and Thompson hasn't shown anything but straight ahead speed. Is this the time to grab another RB who has the potential to start down the road to continue our dual running backfield if Jones not around in 08?

 

[Sandyf]

Have to remember also that Jerry is going to be running the draft so Wade may have influence but Jerry makes the final decision.

I do think there will be interest at 22 because several WRs will be there and a team like San Diego or even Chicago may be interested in moving up.

A trade of 22 and 53 would get Chicago's 31 and 37 or

a trade of 22 and 200 could net San Diego's 30, 93 and 125.

Either way would be okay.

 

[CrazyCowboy]

Nice job with your input.......I would love to pick Ginn......I just believe his break away speed would cause the other team problems all day long

 

[bigE79]

ross is good,but do we really need to draft a guy who will be 25 in september?

 

[Woods]

ross is good,but do we really need to draft a guy who will be 25 in september?

We like to do that with CBs

I think Newman was around that same age.

 

[JBS]

rickster pretty much hit this 1 on the head.....a buddy of mine was just telling me yesterday how jerry jones was on tv the other day discussing how hes much more comfortable this year allowing his scouts make the draft decisions. In years past he (and parcells for the last 4 yrs) have been studying players for a few months prior to the draft and have been calling the shots. Now he believes it is much wiser to allow the guys who scout and rate players all year long do their job to the fullest and will allow them to make these draft decisions. So as rickster said as long as jerry sticks to his word it doesnt matter what has happened in the past with phillips or jones as the scouts are more than likely to select the best player available - no matter which position that player plays....This information goes hand in hand with the no pets article im sure we all have read....So it all comes down to our board and who is available when we pick.

 

[WoodysGirl]

The problem with that analysis is that includes the times when he was DC. The only time his opinion is relevant is when he's been the HC, not the DC and that was in Buffalo and Denver.

In ATL, he was the interim HC and was let go at the end of the season along with everyone else.

It doesn't mean he won't go defense, but I think opinion needs to be based on the actual teams where his opinion had some influence.

 

[ddh33]

I do think there is a good chance that Jerry will look to move down. I don't know if that will happen, and even if the opportunity presents itself, I don't know how wise that would be. You always hate to move down and miss better players...

Anyway, I keep looking over this draft class, and I am believing more and more that Dallas takes a receiver first. (I think Meachem has got a really good chance.) I just think there will be a run on receivers in the late first and second that will take most of the quality players off the board.

In the second, I think you can probably get a good defensive back. Looks to me like there should still be plenty of value there in the second round.

Of course, I'm not a GM. What do I know?

 

[Apollo Creed]

Everyone knows our offense can score, I'd like to think he wants to go sure up our secondary and go find a pass rusher. I'd have no problem with OLB/DE in the 1st and CB in the 2nd. We scored 425 points last year with a conservative offense, scoring wasn't the problem - allowing people to play to their potential on both sides of the ball was the problem.

 

[mmillman]

none of that matters, Dallas take whomever Jones wants using input from Ireland.