We Have Great Players - Why Aren't We Great...?

[InmanRoshi]

It's okay, no one else is "great" in the NFL either. The fact that the NFL holds a single elimination tournament at the end of the season means pretty much anyone can win in any given year as long as they can get into the playoffs. The Giant's lost four consecutive regular season games last year. It's probably the only sport in the world where a team can lose a full quarter of their regular season games consecutively and still be regarded as the best team in their sport.

 

[Gameover]

I'm not sure if we have great players.

 

[Cowboy_Shawn]

The talent's been overrated. We've been a weak team in the trenches for years and years. We remain weak today, IMO. Until that changes expect to be flabbergasted at the end results every year.

The key to next season, other than staying healthy of course, lies with the play of Livings, Costa/Kowalski/Arkin/Nagy, Bernadeau, Free, Lissemore, Brent, Hatcher, maybe even Crawford.

As they go, we go.

Bingo. Which is why I think we'll be in that 7 to 9 win range again.

 

[Cowboy_Shawn]

I'm not sure if we have great players.

We have a couple. I'd call Ware and Romo great. Witten slipped a bit last year, IMO.

And frankly I think we've seen his best years and it's all downhill from here. Hopefully it's a gradual decline and not a rapid one.

I still classify Witten as very good but I wouldn't classify him as great anymore.

 

[jterrell]

We have a couple. I'd call Ware and Romo great. Witten slipped a bit last year, IMO.

And frankly I think we've seen his best years and it's all downhill from here. Hopefully it's a gradual decline and not a rapid one.

I still classify Witten as very good but I wouldn't classify him as great anymore.

Romo is very, very good but he isn't quite top 5 at his position.
And if you use that at a criterion we really have Ware and possibly Witten/Ratliff.
We under rate many of our role players but over rate our stars IMHO.

 

[Gameover]

We under rate many of our role players but over rate our stars IMHO.

#truth

 

[jobberone]

I totally agree. Garrett & Remus need to utilize these players to maximize their abilities. That was the great thing about Don Shula, he designed schemes around the key players he had. Unitas in the 60s, Csonka & Kiick in the 70s, Marino in the 80s.

Landry did it a bit differently in that he drafted specifically for certain types of players and skillsets to fit HIS system. It can work either way as long as you know what you are doing and can get the players to buy into it.

I think the lack of confidence in the coaching staff has caused a lot of players to not buy into their systems. Switzer didn't know what the heck he was trying to do, Gailey wanted to run a system that we didn't have the players for and seemed incapable of making an adjustment. Campo was an idiot. Parcells had "old man's disease", coaching from fear, "Playing not to lose" rather than "Playing to win". Wade was in over his head, again! And now we have Jason Garrett.

I like some of the things I see from Garrett but some others are real head-scratchers. Overall, I like the direction the team is going but we need to see dramatic improvement this season, especially from the defense and that means Remus needs to either sell his system to the players or adjust it to what we have. Either way he needs to do a much better job of utilizing the skills that are available and motivating the players to exceed their perceived limitations and laziness.

Great coaches convince the players that they know what they are doing and get them to buy into the system but that means hat that really do need to know what they want to do as well as how to get there. Landry's systems were complex and difficult to master but once the right players were in place and bought into it we went on a 20 year run of winning seasons!

Garrett needs to look like he knows what he is dong more than he does so far and have a plan for getting there. Hopefully we will see that this year. Same for Ryan.

There are two things about Landry and esp Lombardi that's missing for the most part anymore.....fear. Landry had 'the look' and Lombardi had the temperament of a watch dog.

You can't cut players the way you used to be able to do but you can send them to the bench. You can not start them.

 

[Beast_from_East]

Hos had a very nice and optimistic thread, and I am of like mind when it comes to our strengths at the skill positions, etc. With all the great players who have worn the Star recently, we've always managed to underachieve. So, if it isn't the players, it must be the coaching, right?

We've shuffled the coaching staff this offseason, and I can only hope they manage to instill the kind of passion and work ethic it will take to bring out the best in this team. Winning isn't just about players, or scheme, or coaching alone. Its about "chemistry" or the elusive mix of ingredients that leads to a trophy.

I can only pray (and I do) that we've finally found the answers. That JG has enough play-calling experience to maximize our talent. That our veterans can show the leadership we seem to be missing. That our youngsters can pick up their games and contribute when called upon. And that we have regained the confidence as an organization to go from playoff-caliber to championship team.

I get excited every year as the season approaches, and this year is no different. Lets end this stretch of being an also-ran. Let's give Cowboys fans the right once again to say we're America's Team - and mean it...

The problem is that we have about 8-10 really, really, good players and the rest are average to below average. When you have the type of secondary we had last season (Barry Church at one point was playing starting corner), then you just cant compete.

Second problem we have is that our offensive line freaking blows. When your starting QB has had a broken collarbone, fractured ribs, collasped lung, and injured hand all in the last 2 seasons, its probably time to start upgrading the line.

Third and final problem we have is that when we compare ourselves to other teams in the NFC, they have just as much or even more talent than we do. The New York Giants have won 2 SBs in the last 5 seasons, Philly swept us twice last year, the Green Bay Packers lost only 1 game last year, the San Fransisco 49ers were a muffed punt away from going to the SuperBowl. In other words, the other teams "get checks too" as the old saying goes.

 

[CowboyRoy]

Hos had a very nice and optimistic thread, and I am of like mind when it comes to our strengths at the skill positions, etc. With all the great players who have worn the Star recently, we've always managed to underachieve. So, if it isn't the players, it must be the coaching, right?

We've shuffled the coaching staff this offseason, and I can only hope they manage to instill the kind of passion and work ethic it will take to bring out the best in this team. Winning isn't just about players, or scheme, or coaching alone. Its about "chemistry" or the elusive mix of ingredients that leads to a trophy.

I can only pray (and I do) that we've finally found the answers. That JG has enough play-calling experience to maximize our talent. That our veterans can show the leadership we seem to be missing. That our youngsters can pick up their games and contribute when called upon. And that we have regained the confidence as an organization to go from playoff-caliber to championship team.

I get excited every year as the season approaches, and this year is no different. Lets end this stretch of being an also-ran. Let's give Cowboys fans the right once again to say we're America's Team - and mean it...

Here are your reasons why:

-bad coaching

-Poor lockeroom leadership

-no heart

-Bad offensive line/bad defense overall

 

[perrykemp]

I have brought this up before but it tails very well with Hos' post:

When Vince Lombardi came to Green Bay in 1959 6 future HoFers were already on the team but that team had sucked for several years even with all that talent.

Lombardi came in and got them to play as a TEAM, added some key defensive players and away they went on the road to 5 championships in 9 years. They had talent before he got there but it wasn't until they bought into his philosophy and started playing as a TEAM that they began to win games.

Wow, just wow. Great Post.

I never thought of it that way. Tremendous job of making a point about talent, by itself, not meaning much.

 

[perrykemp]

There are two things about Landry and esp Lombardi that's missing for the most part anymore.....fear. Landry had 'the look' and Lombardi had the temperament of a watch dog.

Landry and Lombari were OC and DC for the NY Giants in the 50s. I've never read or heard if these two legends were friends, respected one another (I assume they did), or had any sort of relationship outside of football.

I don't recall much being said about it when I read "When Pride Still Mattered" about Lombardi. I have to admit I haven't done a lot of reading on Laundry.

Anybody know anything about this?

Man, it would have been something to be a fly on the wall as those two sat next to each-other after a game on the bus/plane/etc listening to them.

 

[Lonestar94]

We under rate many of our role players but over rate our stars IMHO.

You got it backwards.

 

[jayhouston12]

our trench play is average

a game is won in the trenches.......we have awesome SKILL players but SKILL players don't win games......

you can have Troy Aikman throwing to jerry rice, randy moss, tony gonzalez, and michael irvin all in their prime and barry sanders to run it

if your trench play is average your going to have a average team

 

[jobberone]

When you win the talent level goes up dramatically.

 

[nablives]

When you win the talent level goes up dramatically.

That's true, but I think many of us have finally accepted that they're not loaded. Missing the playoffs 3 out of the last 4 seasons solidified that stance for some.

 

[Everson24]

Another great post Hos. As much as I want to criticize Jason Garrett at times, I just get this feeling that he will be a very successful long term head coach. If not here then elsewhere. I'm just glad that Jerry gave him that chance in Dallas. I think Jason has the ability to handle Jerry's very large ego without sacrificing what he needs to do to win. I really think the key element to working with Jerry is to make him feel that he is running everything, while at the same time implementing your philosophy. It is a rare and special coach that can be the main reason for a team's success yet defer it to an owner for the betterment of that team. I think Jimmy Johnson was able to do it the first few years but success ruined the relationship. I don't see that happening with Jason. It is in this area where I have the most confidence in Jason Garrett as a head coach.

 

[Risen Star]

We have a couple. I'd call Ware and Romo great. Witten slipped a bit last year, IMO.

And frankly I think we've seen his best years and it's all downhill from here. Hopefully it's a gradual decline and not a rapid one.

I still classify Witten as very good but I wouldn't classify him as great anymore.

Tyron Smith and Sean Lee are on their way to being great. Dez Bryant can be if his brain allows it.

Morris Claiborne could easily be a top 3-5 CB in all of football.

So we do have some players on the come. It's not all downhill.

 

[CyberB0b]

We only have 1 great player on each side of the ball, IMO: Romo and Ware. Witten is an honorable mention, but he can't do what he used to do.

 

[Risen Star]

Another great post Hos. As much as I want to criticize Jason Garrett at times, I just get this feeling that he will be a very successful long term head coach. If not here then elsewhere. I'm just glad that Jerry gave him that chance in Dallas. I think Jason has the ability to handle Jerry's very large ego without sacrificing what he needs to do to win. I really think the key element to working with Jerry is to make him feel that he is running everything, while at the same time implementing your philosophy. It is a rare and special coach that can be the main reason for a team's success yet defer it to an owner for the betterment of that team. I think Jimmy Johnson was able to do it the first few years but success ruined the relationship. I don't see that happening with Jason. It is in this area where I have the most confidence in Jason Garrett as a head coach.

My first thought to that is we shouldn't have to operate that way. We shouldn't have to find a coach who can actually be the GM too if he has the eye for talent and the ability to handle Jerry.

I don't doubt Garrett's head coach ability but I do have questions with talent acquisition. He's in the least conducive environment for winning in the NFL. It's hard enough to be a rookie head coach, especially with his relatively short resume as a coach. It's even harder when you have to do it with no GM and no Director of Player Personnel.

It's gonna come down to can he get the players he needs to win and I don't know the answer to that right now. But if he can win here, he can win anywhere, IMO. I'd have taken the Ravens job if I were Garrett.

 

[jterrell]

You got it backwards.

that is the popular theory but i believe it fails every real world test.
give me your top 10 cowboys to start 2011 and let's see how your theory holds up.