Your Excitement & Concerns for this year going into TC

[jazzcat22]

Now since TC is a month away, what are your excitements and concerns, worries?

I'm excited that the FO shown they could change, rethink their philosophies and use the cooler calmer collective thoughts to have a very good off season. And to have changes in the coaching staff that makes more sense than in the past. Now that we have defined HC, OC, DC.

I am excited to see how all the young players brought in produce and learn and get better as things move along. We have what may be one of the better OL in the NFL now, or should be. Potential of an even more powerful offense, and what could develop into one of the best WR and TE groups in the NFL.

We have much more competition and maybe depth on the DL than we have had in years. And going into the defensive schemes 2nd year for all these players to hopefully find some cohesiveness.

But that is also the cause of my concerns and worries, that youth, and all the rookies, will they pan out like we hope, how long will it take them to learn. Question marks every where on Defense. Sure looks great on paper and high hopes, as usual at this time of year. So all we can do is watch and see how it all plays out.

Then there are the injuries, will we be hit with them again. As we start watching for TC news everyday, we all wait to hopefully not hear of any injuries, even hamstrings.

I am usaully on the optimistic side, and think all this will come together and be a productive season. I don't look at the glass half empty or half full crap. But I ask the question how it it get that way. If it was full and poured out it's half empty, it it was empty and is being filled it's half full.

Well I look at this roster this year as half full and filling up. They emptied much of it in the off season, and started filling it back up. Hopefully the glass doesn't break. LOL

 

[Doomsday101]

my excitement is the season is coming up soon and concerns are injuries something this team has had too many of over the last 2 to 3 years. I think if this team can stay relatively healthy they have a good chance of winning the east.

 

[xwalker]

My concerns would be injuries and keeping low upside veterans over higher upside young players.

Realistically, this is a building year and all moves should be done to maximize the roster for 2015 not for 2014.

I don't see the need to keep a guy like Hayden.

The exception is on OL. You have to protect Romo and if that requires keeping veteran backups, thats fine.

I'm not concerned about Romo per se. If he gets injured, then they will probably have a losing record and will be in a good position to draft a QB in the top 10. If he stays healthy then he should be good for 2015.

 

[Zordon]

excited about the OL and new faces on the DL.

concerned about the linebackers and FS position. I'm surprised Wilcox has not stepped up and taken control of that starting spot.

 

[Rockport]

I can't wait to see how the offensive philosophy has changed, if it has changed, from last year. I'm hoping for a run first offense. Once the run is established, then the passing game will open up even more. Use that run game when we have the lead.

 

[cowboyeric8]

I'm excited to see this offense perform. And excited to see the young guys on defense.

Concerned about the entire defense of course, but they should be hungry. Also concerned about health to Romo, Dez, and Murray, if those three guys stay healthy all year we are in the playoffs.

 

[big dog cowboy]

Excitements - OL, new DL, Mo

Concerns - LB, FS, health (hammys)

 

[casmith07]

Excited to see the re-tooled offense and the defense with a bunch of fresh faces.

Concerns are health, largely, and also I suppose you could call it cautious optimism or apprehension about the defense as well.

 

[5Stars]

Romo's health is a concern, and IMO the strength of schedule is also a concern.

What I am excited to see is if the Cowboys defense can grow some balls and take their pride back from being the worst team in History, or close to it.

 

[jday]

Now since TC is a month away, what are your excitements and concerns, worries?

I'm excited that the FO shown they could change, rethink their philosophies and use the cooler calmer collective thoughts to have a very good off season. And to have changes in the coaching staff that makes more sense than in the past. Now that we have defined HC, OC, DC.

I am excited to see how all the young players brought in produce and learn and get better as things move along. We have what may be one of the better OL in the NFL now, or should be. Potential of an even more powerful offense, and what could develop into one of the best WR and TE groups in the NFL.

We have much more competition and maybe depth on the DL than we have had in years. And going into the defensive schemes 2nd year for all these players to hopefully find some cohesiveness.

But that is also the cause of my concerns and worries, that youth, and all the rookies, will they pan out like we hope, how long will it take them to learn. Question marks every where on Defense. Sure looks great on paper and high hopes, as usual at this time of year. So all we can do is watch and see how it all plays out.

Then there are the injuries, will we be hit with them again. As we start watching for TC news everyday, we all wait to hopefully not hear of any injuries, even hamstrings.

I am usaully on the optimistic side, and think all this will come together and be a productive season. I don't look at the glass half empty or half full crap. But I ask the question how it it get that way. If it was full and poured out it's half empty, it it was empty and is being filled it's half full.

Well I look at this roster this year as half full and filling up. They emptied much of it in the off season, and started filling it back up. Hopefully the glass doesn't break. LOL

Excited:

The Offensive Line - With the addition of Zach Martin, this offensive line could be one of the best, if everything I've read about Zach is true. Furthermore, during OTA's they were able to bolster their G position with guys who have actually started on other NFL teams for significant periods of time, meaning that they have pretty good depth across the board, as well.
Scott Linehan - He resurrected Reggie Bush's career with the Lions last year, using him in a variety of different way's that maximized his skill sets. This is an aspect of our offense we have been sorely lacking with players like Beasley and Dunbar. Nor did he allow defenses to forget about their top tier receiver Megatron, so you can expect the same approach with the other cast of characters. In fact, overall, I think our offense has far more fire power than the Lions do. Consider: Dez Bryant, Jason Witten, Demarco Murray, and Tony Romo - these are the proven players. You know what you are going to get from these guys and many teams have won championships with less. Add to that Escobar, Dunbar, Bealsey, Terrance Williams, Dwayne Harris - these are the guys we think we know, but also understand there is definite potential for these players to improve on what they have done so far. Lastly, behind them we have Ryan Williams, Ben Malena, Hanna, Devon Street, L'Damian Washington, Laron Byrad, Tim Benford, Chris Boyd, J.C. Copeland, Tyler Clutts - these are the unknown quantities with potential. The Cowboys have created competition across the board on offense. It all comes down to how much freedom Garrett gives Linehan with this offense and if Linehan utilizes these players to their potential.
The defense - is there really something to the Marinelli magic. Many people argue he did the best he could with what he had to work with, but at the end of the day the Cowboys defense still ranked dead-last by the end of the year. Clearly, injuries played a part in that, but this only leads to more questions: 1. How much of an impact did injuries truly have. 2. How will this year be any different with so many players coming back from injury - will the injury bug hit again? 3. With the loss of Ware and Hatcher, can the replacements truly improve on their production? Having said all that, I am excited to see how these players respond to being a true no name defense, that very few have any respect for, including their own fans.

Not so excited:

Injuries - They are going to happen. And I am preparing myself for the worse, after the last two years decimated the Cowboys ranks.
Brandon Carr - He's not a #1 corner and at his age you really can't expect him to improve. There will be receivers coming into this year that will abuse him and we have no idea if we have the Safety help to cover up his deficiencies as a corner
MLB - We may find a good player, in the end, to man the position, but I'm not sure you truly can completely replace Sean Lee as a player or a leader, let alone both.
Tony Romo - He gives the Cowboys the best chance to win, but I'm not sure he will be the same Romo after back surgery and I am seriously worried about his ability to stay healthy for 16 games.

 

[TwoDeep3]

Concern:

Defensive front. It seems the interior of the defensive front seven could be a real question mark. Can the offensive lines double an interior lineman and then get on the linebacker because of questionable talent?

This plays out for me as a running game which continues to move the sticks against Dallas in short yardage. I don't see a true middle linebacker of the caliber of Lee to coordinate the defense. Now we're without a leader that understands and moves the pieces in place on the field. But the concern also grows into the pass rush. Lawrence is the savior here, supposedly. He may turn out to be the next Ware. But it will take time. This means the team will rely on the corner backs to stay on the receivers until this make-shift line can put on pressure. This type of thinking is what caused the team to pay 50 million for Carr and move up to take Mo. But there is a flaw in this because coverage, while important, can't cover the receivers in this passing age long enough for a poor defensive line to get pressure or sacks. This is the same song as last year for me. Both the interior and outside linemen, along with a journeyman linebacker corp lends itself to being bottom ten again this year.

Now factor in this management cannot seem to draft or acquire a real free safety and my opinion is this defense will again be a sieve, gifting points to teams and detracting from all the positive the offense brings.

Strength:

The offensive line surely at this stage looks to be a strong point. Health will dictate this, but the addition of the Zach Attack should settle this line down and offer protection for Romo and running lanes for Murray and company. I actually like the acquisition of the Jags lineman - if that went through. He adds depth, and frankly an alternative to Bernadeaux, whom I dislike as much as my ex-wife's lawyer. If Free is the weak link, then this team is in good shape. He can be assigned help with his blocking.The running game could be a real strength which means so much. Ball control, less passing, and the element of surprise in both the lead draw and the play action.

If Escobar can take some of the work off Witten, that makes Witten much better. But I am excited at moving Escobar outside, as well. If I were to name several players that will make a difference in this offense it would start with Martin. But soon find its way to Murray and then TWill. These three will have the most influence outside of Romo, who is always the difference maker.

Finding a solution to force defenses to look away from ganging up on Dez is of primary importance. Again, Beasley is like junk jewelry for me. His slot play is short yardage and he doesn't - in my mind - have the type of physicality to be significant on the outside. I believe they were looking for a poor man's version of Woodhouse or Welker. He isn't that at all. He has a function, but it takes all the other pieces to work for his small contribution to come to fruition.

So Harris or Street need to step up in the slot, as well as moving Dez and TWill, and perhaps Escobar to the slot to create mismatches. But if nothing else, Dez needs to be put in motion!!!

Strength of schedule, in regard to the defense, looks to be the real big hang up here.

I am leaning toward 8-8 being a successful season but something far worse is my expectations, unless the offense becomes last year's Bronco's offense. And considering the defense of this team, that may not be good enough.

 

[JBS]

I wouldn't absolutely disagree that this is the wrong era for a run first offense... running the ball is quickly getting back in style.

Look at denver. New England. New Orleans. Philly. Seattle. San diego.

These teams are running the ball more and more

I would absolutely agree that we do not have the defense to sustain being a run first offense

 

[TwoDeep3]

I wouldn't absolutely disagree that this is the wrong era for a run first offense... running the ball is quickly getting back in style.

Look at denver. New England. New Orleans. Philly. Seattle. San diego.

These teams are running the ball more and more

I would absolutely agree that we do not have the defense to sustain being a run first offense

This game has now been fashioned after the NBA where the last team to score wins most of the time.

 

[waving monkey]

I responded to a comment and gave my opinion that's what we do here. You didn't even bother to answer my question. What do you want to hear that the Cowboys have the team to play the style of offense the Cowboys did in the early 90's? How many successful run first offenses can you name in todays NFL other than Seattle? I'll ask you again do you think the Cowboys have the defense to win with a run first offense?

The Cowboy have the offensive line to get those critical third down yards and red zone yards. That's what has changed. The opponent can't focus
on our passing game now.If that's not good for ya ,meh, get out the old 90's Cowboy games

 

[KJJ]

You know what they say about passing Only three things can happen and two of them are bad.

If that's true then how come the NFL has turned into such a passing league?

 

[TwoDeep3]

If that's true then how come the NFL has turned into such a passing league?

Ask They, KJJ. They said it.

 

[jobberone]

I'm excited about watching the offense this year. I'm concerned about the defense and I'm not sure how to prioritize it. I think the DL will be better than expected by many, the LBers ok, the CBs better than expected by a good bit and I have nada on Safety.

If you want to talk the running game yada then please start your own thread which is perfectly fine and will likely be uh....spirited.

 

[Seven]

Excited to see the re-tooled offense and the defense with a bunch of fresh faces.

Concerns are health, largely, and also I suppose you could call it cautious optimism or apprehension about the defense as well.

Thief.............. ;0)

 

[dmq]

I'm excited about the entire offense. I hated the predictability of Garrett's Offense and can't wait to see someone else running it. I'm pretty excited about the new additions on defense too, but I have a feeling offenses will be able to throw all day long on our defense's back end.

 

[FuzzyLumpkins]

This game has now been fashioned after the NBA where the last team to score wins most of the time.

Buzzer beaters are promoted in the NBA. that is not the same as them happening very often over 82 games.