What makes you optimistic of the 2013 Cowboys

[Bay10]

Why do you think this team will be better than lasts years?

 

[Frozen700]

Why do you think this team will be better than lasts years?

Romo having more control/freedom....(running hurry up, calling more plays of his own, being more involved)

Dez getting better.

Defense younger, and much more of a simple defense(less thinking more of reacting), and scheme that fits our DBs better imo

or

If anything we can just sit up and panic, and scream we have not gotten better, while blaming Jerry all at the same time.

 

[Red Dragon]

I am not optimistic, but I will continue to hope for the best. I'd be surprised to see them make the playoffs.

 

[Romonater]

Number of things

1. This year's rookie class and several players who didn't get to play last year.

2. The new defense

3. Romos playcalling

4. A new offensive line led by Frederick

5. Wide receiver corp led by dez Bryant

6. A whole season under film to learn rg3 game

7. Better coaching by Garrett

8. Deeper running corp

 

[Gameover]

They're a talented group of players.

The Cowboys have been the most talented team in this division since 2006.

Hopefully we won't blow it, like San Antonio Spurs did in the NBA Finals!

I'm concerned about Demarcus Ware.He seems to be in a steady decline.

Dez Bryant's good but I'm not sure he's a good as some(media included) think.

He still disapeared at times last year.And he wasn't exactly shacking DeAngelo Halls' coverage in that last game either.

 

[jobberone]

We scored 23 ppg and gave up 25. Obviously that has to change. The offense put up the yards and should have scored 30ish ppg. The defense was decimated by injury and should improve with health and a few additions.

On offense I think the OL improves enough to create more drives not stalled, fewer drives stalled by penalties, more TDs in the RZ and not turning the ball over as much. Add in Escobar, Williams and Randle to a healthy Murray and improving Dez and Hanna and you should see the points go over 25 ppg toward the 30+ range.

On defense you have healthy players returning in Ware, Ratliff, Lee, Carter, Johnson and Church. You've added Moore, Wilcox and Webb along with a starting Sam. The depth of the team overall continues to improve. We may not get to the goal of 17 ppg or less but I suspect we'll be in the 18-19 range.

I hope STs improves some and that's an unknown. We have a decent PR, kicker, punter and LS. Disappointed we didn't get a homerun threat at PR but Harris is solid. I have no idea what we'll have at KR. Maybe someone will drop out of the heavens.

Coaching should be improved with Callahan here for another year and the addition of the new defensive coaches. I don't see them having a huge problem getting used to the changes although there will be some growing pains esp at first.

The last two years I've been on the money with predicting the overall record and I hope I'm lucky enough to be right again. I see a 10-6 team here assuming Romo takes the majority of snaps. That makes us a 8-8 to 12-4 team. I think we'll win 10-11 games which should win the East.

 

[Bay10]

Romo having more control/freedom....(running hurry up, calling more plays of his own, being more involved)

Dez getting better.

Defense younger, and much more of a simple defense(less thinking more of reacting), and scheme that fits our DBs better imo

or

If anything we can just sit up and panic, and scream we have not gotten better, while blaming Jerry all at the same time.

good post

 

[Bay10]

They're a talented group of players.

The Cowboys have been the most talented team in this division since 2006.

Hopefully we won't blow it, like San Antonio Spurs did in the NBA Finals!

I'm concerned about Demarcus Ware.He seems to be in a steady decline.

Dez Bryant's good but I'm not sure he's a good as some(media included) think.

He still disapeared at times last year.And he wasn't exactly shacking DeAngelo Halls' coverage in that last game either.

I know he isn't getting any younger but Ware was very banged up last year. I believe his play last year had more to do with injury than a decline due to age and wear and tear.

 

[Lonestar94]

Getting Sean Lee, Bruce Carter, and Barry Church back for one

Dez Bryant

Travis Frederick

Tyron Smith's growth

LB Depth

Demarcus Ware & Anthony Spencer putting their hand in the dirt

 

[Bay10]

Getting Sean Lee, Bruce Carter, and Barry Church back for one

Dez Bryant

Travis Frederick

Tyron Smith's growth

LB Depth

Demarcus Ware & Anthony Spencer putting their hand in the dirt

I like that. Hopefully Rat can stay healthy and prosper in the 4-3 like we always wanted him to be in.

 

[noshame]

Top 5 defense.
Better play caller, how man times did Garrett run the ball outside last year, netting significant yardage, then abandon it? Geez, you do it until they defend it, opening up other areas......

 

[TheSport78]

Sean Lee and Bruce Carter.

 

[Ren]

Schedule, healthy Lee and Carter

 

[BIGDen]

We scored 23 ppg and gave up 25. Obviously that has to change. The offense put up the yards and should have scored 30ish ppg. The defense was decimated by injury and should improve with health and a few additions.

On offense I think the OL improves enough to create more drives not stalled, fewer drives stalled by penalties, more TDs in the RZ and not turning the ball over as much. Add in Escobar, Williams and Randle to a healthy Murray and improving Dez and Hanna and you should see the points go over 25 ppg toward the 30+ range.

On defense you have healthy players returning in Ware, Ratliff, Lee, Carter, Johnson and Church. You've added Moore, Wilcox and Webb along with a starting Sam. The depth of the team overall continues to improve. We may not get to the goal of 17 ppg or less but I suspect we'll be in the 18-19 range.

I hope STs improves some and that's an unknown. We have a decent PR, kicker, punter and LS. Disappointed we didn't get a homerun threat at PR but Harris is solid. I have no idea what we'll have at KR. Maybe someone will drop out of the heavens.

Coaching should be improved with Callahan here for another year and the addition of the new defensive coaches. I don't see them having a huge problem getting used to the changes although there will be some growing pains esp at first.

The last two years I've been on the money with predicting the overall record and I hope I'm lucky enough to be right again. I see a 10-6 team here assuming Romo takes the majority of snaps. That makes us a 8-8 to 12-4 team. I think we'll win 10-11 games which should win the East.

Sounds about right to me. The health of our defense alone should get us another couple of wins. I think we'll get more turnovers with this defense which has been a huge issue with this team for years. Throw in the emergence of some young players and I think we'll have 10-11 wins as well. If we stay relatively healthy at key positions, I think we go 11-5 with this group. Although this is not a major factor, I also like that we do not have to close the season on the road. Late season road division games are tough, regardless of how well a team is playing.

Nice thread topic BTW! A pleasant change from the Romo/Jerry/Jason stuff.

 

[Yakuza Rich]

I think the defensive change was needed. We now have, IMO, the best scheme for the modern NFL. It's not a Zimmer type 4-3. And I think the addition of Marinelli should quell any doubts if Kiffin can defend a read-option.

I think our D-Line is underrated. I think with Marinelli, known as the best D-Line coach in the game, we'll see some great play from the D-Line this year (although there may be a learning curve). And if you look at Kiffin's defenses in the past, he seems to know how to find safeties that can fit what he wants to do. I think safety play has hurt this team more than anything since 2004. So I feel much better about that.

I am happy with the move to Callahan as a playcaller. If anything, I think it's easy for playcallers to become predictable over time and some coaches to have a feel for their playcalling. So a fresh face is nice. But, looking at Callahan's offenses with the Raiders, they were quite impressive. My main issue with Garrett as a play caller became that if something wasn't working, he often struggled to counter it. I believe good/great playcallers either know how to fix it or don't put themselves in that position very often.

I like the idea of the O-Line personnel. To me, Romo needs stout interior guys to give him a clean pocket and quality right tackle play. His best years have come when the RT play was solid. And 2 of his best years we had a stout interior that couldn't be pushed backed (Kosier, Gurode and Davis) with either Columbo or Free at RT. I think we need to be able to run the ball effectively to take the pressure off Romo and we seem to be headed in this direction with Leary and Frederick and I think if we can get the same play from Parnell and Free we got at the end of last year...we are 3/4 of the way there.

I am hopeful that we are serious about speeding up the snaps, switching to some no huddle, etc.

I like our playmakers on offense. Murray, Dez, Witten, Austin and Harris.

I think Dez could be scary great. I have never quite seen a WR like Dez. He has a bit of a Anquan Boldin in his, but he has better hands, is more athletic and runs even better. If he's on cue with his routes this year and stays healthy, he could flat out embarrass defenses because he's so great at beating double teams.

I like that we did NOT win the division last year. We needed the easier schedule and the better draft position.

Overall, I like how Garrett has been developing players. To me, THAT is what the NFL and being successful in the NFL is about. Player development. I think that's why Wade was doomed. He was a sound schematic coach and often times quite intelligent and innovative with the schemes. He could spot weaknesses, cover them up and game plan. But for all of that, he was poor at developing talent.

The players we drafted under Wade more or less were drafted where they were projected by the league. Wade's style of coaching didn't lead to consistently good player development. And eventually that was going to come back to haunt him.

I tend to feel that the opposite will happen with Garrett. I feel that since he's been good at developing players, those 8-8 seasons will eventually turn around into something. At least I hope. It's tried my patience and belief in the importance in player development. But, it gives me optimism.







YR

 

[Bay10]

I think the defensive change was needed. We now have, IMO, the best scheme for the modern NFL. It's not a Zimmer type 4-3. And I think the addition of Marinelli should quell any doubts if Kiffin can defend a read-option.

I think our D-Line is underrated. I think with Marinelli, known as the best D-Line coach in the game, we'll see some great play from the D-Line this year (although there may be a learning curve). And if you look at Kiffin's defenses in the past, he seems to know how to find safeties that can fit what he wants to do. I think safety play has hurt this team more than anything since 2004. So I feel much better about that.

I am happy with the move to Callahan as a playcaller. If anything, I think it's easy for playcallers to become predictable over time and some coaches to have a feel for their playcalling. So a fresh face is nice. But, looking at Callahan's offenses with the Raiders, they were quite impressive. My main issue with Garrett as a play caller became that if something wasn't working, he often struggled to counter it. I believe good/great playcallers either know how to fix it or don't put themselves in that position very often.

I like the idea of the O-Line personnel. To me, Romo needs stout interior guys to give him a clean pocket and quality right tackle play. His best years have come when the RT play was solid. And 2 of his best years we had a stout interior that couldn't be pushed backed (Kosier, Gurode and Davis) with either Columbo or Free at RT. I think we need to be able to run the ball effectively to take the pressure off Romo and we seem to be headed in this direction with Leary and Frederick and I think if we can get the same play from Parnell and Free we got at the end of last year...we are 3/4 of the way there.

I am hopeful that we are serious about speeding up the snaps, switching to some no huddle, etc.

I like our playmakers on offense. Murray, Dez, Witten, Austin and Harris.

I think Dez could be scary great. I have never quite seen a WR like Dez. He has a bit of a Anquan Boldin in his, but he has better hands, is more athletic and runs even better. If he's on cue with his routes this year and stays healthy, he could flat out embarrass defenses because he's so great at beating double teams.

I like that we did NOT win the division last year. We needed the easier schedule and the better draft position.

Overall, I like how Garrett has been developing players. To me, THAT is what the NFL and being successful in the NFL is about. Player development. I think that's why Wade was doomed. He was a sound schematic coach and often times quite intelligent and innovative with the schemes. He could spot weaknesses, cover them up and game plan. But for all of that, he was poor at developing talent.

The players we drafted under Wade more or less were drafted where they were projected by the league. Wade's style of coaching didn't lead to consistently good player development. And eventually that was going to come back to haunt him.

I tend to feel that the opposite will happen with Garrett. I feel that since he's been good at developing players, those 8-8 seasons will eventually turn around into something. At least I hope. It's tried my patience and belief in the importance in player development. But, it gives me optimism.







YR

Good stuff man,you really got me hyped for the start of the season with this post.

 

[cajuncocoa]

I'm not really optimistic about the upcoming season. I'm just going to take things one week at a time.

 

[Lodeus]

Hopefully a healthy team going into the season. You never what can happen during the season, good or bad.

 

[DBOY3141]

1. Attitude of team. The way they fought all the way to the end last year showed me a little something. I think that will carry over.

2. Health. Can't get worse than last year (crossing my fingers as I type).

3. Progression of Smith and Dez on offense.

4. Adding Fred to the middle of the OL. I like his attitude and think he will be a huge improvement to the middle of the OL.

5. Lee and Carter on defense.

6. Athletic TE's. Hanna, Escobar I think will really show something this year.

7. Callahan calling the plays.

8. Switch to a 4-3 and bringing in Kiffin and Marinelli. Great coaches and teachers.

 

[Eskimo]

1. We have a franchise QB in Romo.

2. We have a top 5 offensive skill player (non-QB) in Dez Bryant

3. We have a top 5 pass rusher in DeMarcus Ware

4. Our OL will be much improved and should be average to above average this year.

5. Our Safety position should be much improved this year

6. There is depth all across the roster now including OL, DL, DB, WR, RB, TE, QB and LB.

7. We have a very good HC who is building a physical, tough, smart team that loves to play football and refuses to quit competing

8. We have a new OC who has been very successful in the past and will try to re-establish the running game in Dallas now that the OL has been upgraded.

9. We have a new OL asst coach who has been very successful in building the top zone stretch blocking team in the league the last few years.

10. We have a new DC who put together 10 top 10 defenses in Tampa Bay and his right hand man has been putting together top 10 defenses in Chicago the last few years. He will revamp our defense with his simple scheme through execution and simplicity. He will improve our coverage by making better use of our top 10 CBs by pressing other teams. He has put in a new set of LBs who have tremendous speed and range and will be skilled in executing the new zone defense. He has put in new, faster, instinctive Safeties with good range who will provide more assistance to the CBs and LBs than they did in the past.

11. We have a new DL coach who will improve QB pressure through his proven techniques of aggressive 1-gapping DL who penetrate and disrupt plays and will provide regular and quick pressure on QBs which is the main focus of the defensive philosophy. He has 3 Pro Bowlers to work with and the 4th guy has probably been a top 10 interior DL in the league over the last 2 years. He will hopefully revitalize our former 2-time All-Pro NT by utilizing him as a 1-gap 3-tech DT who will not have to face double teams anymore. He will re-invigorate the best pass rusher in the NFL over the past decade by letting him play in space and make use of his elite speed, agility and flexibility.

12. We have a new special teams coach with a proven track record of success everywhere he has been. The HC has decided to further prioritize special teams play and will make more use of starting players to improve play on the units.

13. We will be re-instituting the 12-offensive personnel system but will be doing it now with 3 TEs who will represent hard matchups in the passing game for defensive coaches around the league. They all have good hands and good size. One has elite ball skills for intermediate and deep routes and the other has elite speed and athleticism and the 3rd guy is the most productive TE in league history over his first ten years in the league and just set a new league record for receptions by a TE in a season. We will force defenses to play us with nickel personnel and we will be to run the ball against them consistently.

14. We will play uptempo more this year which maximizes Romo's skills and will pressure defenses to keep up with our 12 personnel without being able to sustitute personnel by down and distance or risk not having the players they need on the field when the ball is snapped.

15. We are just coming off 4 consecutive good drafts. The first wave from 2010 are now just entering their peaks and those from 2011 and 2012 are going to make big jumps in their level of play. We have made an emphasis of getting young players playing early in their careers and they will re-invigorate the veterans who may have grown weary of missing the playoffs the past 3 years. Players that I expect to be better this year are:

Dez
Sean Lee
Sean Lissemore
Albright
Barry Church
Tyron Smith
Bruce Carter
Demarco Murray
Dwayne Harris
Phil Costa
Killer
Parnell
Mo
Tyrone Crawford
James Hanna
Cole Beasley
Ronald Leary
Lance Dunbarl
Matt Johnson
Kyle Wilber
Ben Bass

16. We finished 8-8 last year despite a record number of injuries to key personnel and mutliple injuries at key positions that forced us to start players off the street all season long at Center, Safety and LB. Ware was a shell of his former self in the second half last year playing with only one usable arm down the stretch. Ratliff and Lee missed most of the year. Our breakthrough defensive player Bruce Carter was missed down the stretch. We had the worst pair of Safeties in the league and both have been shown the door.

17. All of the troubled personnel who don't buy into our new philosophies have been removed from the club and other similar players won't be allowed back in.

18. Miles Austin has adjusted his training techniques and says his hamstrings feel great. We should be able to get more mismatches for him in the slot with twin deep threats on the outside in Dez Bryant and Terrance Williams.

19. We have a great Kicker who can win games with clutch kicks.

20. We are very unlikely to repeat a season with a record low of 7 INTs if only through pure luck. But we will actually be better because our new defensive philosophy is a proven TO generating defense with Kifin's defenses usually averaging about 30/yr and Marinelli's defense last year produced 45 TOs.