Sparano Stays and Other Notes

It would seem that Sparano will at least stay as OL coach. He did a good job as TE coach but he does not impress me in his current position. Still and all, when you consider how many assistants that BP has trained for promotion; he probably does know a thing or two about Sparano that we don’t.

It’s probably (I’m hoping anyway) an implicit promise to Sparano to get him better talent this year. Keeping him shows he’s not being blamed for the line troubles.

I say a RT in free agency and a guard in either round 2 or 3 of the draft.

The ‘Boys need to upgrade at 3 positions on the OL. G: Larry Allen ain’t gettin’ younger and Peterman doesn’t seem to be developing. C: Johnson is too small (perhaps) and Gurode is inconsistent. RT: Will Pettiti improve? He might and then again he might not.

Young from Fresno St. is no longer in the mix at C. I haven’t had the time to look at the college gaurds out there. So those two positions are a good guess. Ashworth in FA at RT sounds like a good plan though.

Rafael:

You have finally found the perfect term to describe Al Davis: Raiders’ hegemon. I love it. I talked to former Raiders player a few years back and asked what exactly Al Davis does, if he is the owner, the president, or if he is just the GM, or what his official position is there. You’d think I was asking about the mafia. The best answer I got was that he is the “principal owner” but not the only owner, and he is the “managing partner” or some such title. It is all kind of mysterious. When I asked this former player what it was like to play for the Raiders he only uttered an expletive to describe what he thought of them.

I was reading just yesterday about the Redskins feeling so upbeat about next year. I think it’s funny that a team who caught as many breaks as they did this year in close games and got as much out of their big name players as they did thinks that they will be able to repeat that two years in a row. If they can get another 1,500 yard injury free season out of Portis and seasons for Brunell and Moss that are anything like last year I will be shocked. If they think they will sweep the Cowboys or even the Eagles next year like they did both last year they are the ones in for a shock.

Parcells praised Peterman late this year, which made his no-show against the Rams surprising. He had surgery the next week, which explained that. I think another guard is a no brainer. Rivera won’t play much longer and there’s nobody behind him.

Johnson had moments where he looked good and others where he didn’t. Line play depends so much on the guys next to you, I wonder how he would look to us if he had a healthy, capable guards on each side of him? I’m willing to give him the benefit of the doubt, for the moment anyway. There are so many holes on the line, you can’t fill them all at once.

Check out Charles Spencer of Pitt. He looks like the best guard prospect to me, though there will be several in rounds two and three. I don’t see an OG who is a certain first rounder and that position tends to fall anyway.

So by all accounts, the OLine meltdown was not the OLine coaches fault.

It wasn’t The Sixth Rounders fault – Petitti did more than expected for a late second day pick.

It wasn’t Flozells Fault – injuries happen in this game

It wasn’t the QB’s fault – Bledsoe is back next year and there is no one to come close to challenging him .

So the fault lies at the play of the entire OLine because As Raf noted OLine play depends so much on the guys beside you.

Does a Free agent RT and a second and a third round oline pick make this line work?

Johnson got bull rushed a lot this year. Is he the answer at Center?

I don’t know that this line is a FA RT and a second and a third round pick away from being as good as the Cowboys need next year.

I think our biggest need is a dominating Center. I haven’t given up hope for AJ yet but he sure plays under his weight, he seems too tall to get the necessary leverage against the fireplug/bulldozer types he faced. If we get a stud Center it will prolong the effectiveness of the 2 guards that will be soon be or are on the downside of their ability.
It would seem easier to cover the RT spot with TE help and a dominate Center would free up the RG to help RT as needed. I would prefer a weak right edge to a weak center of the line. You can run/roll away from edge pressure easier than a collapsed middle as well as running up the gut consistantly wins more games than giving up a sack every now and then.

I think we need linebacker help more
than center help.Lets not forget AJ is only in his second year.With a full year
of tape on him i think teams found some
tendencies that were exploited this year.

Sean:

Which Cowboys QB would be able to run/roll away from pressure on the right edge? Not Bledsoe, unless he suddenly gets some wheels in the off-season and dramatically improves his agility. I just wish he could dip and glide even a tiny bit and keep his poise a little better to make the play.

I do agree that Center is the most important position to fix on this O-Line. Preferably with new personnel… but with AJ/Gurode/whoever if it is determined it is simply a matter of improving technique, timing, and getting them in better shape through strength and conditioning. After that handoff that ended up going to the Giants’ DT it was obvious to me that Center is the biggest, but not even close to being the only problem. I have never seen anything like that at any level of football!! It seemed like every game there was constant pressure up the middle, and AJ seemed overwhelmed way too often.

Even with a new Center, a new RT HAS to be found. I will give Pettiti a pass for being thrown into the fire and playing as a rookie, Tucker is just beyond hope IMO and should be a backup at best. I don’t want to see any more green RT’s on this team next season. Take the easy route and fill it with a FA veteran. It was too tedious to watch DE’s pad their sack stats against us last year.

I agree that new Guards are going to be needed, probably even this offseason, but sorting out the Center and a new RT seems the more immediate and pressing issues to me.

the O-line needs help big time as we all can see. I for one am a little disappointed that we’re not getting the O line coach from Green Bay. sometimes a fresh face can re-energize things. once again we’re left trusting that Big Bill knows best. didn’t work too great last year – the O Line struggled most of the second half of the season regardless of what we tried. I knew we were in trouble when they asked that guy to come out of the stands and play right tackle… here’s to hoping it can get fixed SOON.

Johnson cannot get any stronger. BP said he had maxed out. Leverage and technique can help- but I doubt that will be enough.

Interesting that the one coach that so many want replaced, is a coach that Parcells won’t allow to leave.

Still, this does not mean that the Cowboys will NOT have a new offensive-line coach in 2006. Sparano was also the running-game coordinator last season. He could be promoted to offensive coordinator (with Parcells resuming the play-calling duties). If that happens, Sparano would probably relinquish his offensive-line duties to someone else. Who that ‘someone else’ might be, I have no idea.

JJ Taylor is also reporting that the Cowboys have given Gary Gibbs permission to seek the defensive-coordinator position in New Orleans, which would open up linebackers coach to some new candidate. Any ideas here? Pasqualloni, perhaps. That would leave us looking for a new tight-ends coach.

We’re batting 1.000. We lose a good OC and keep a an O-line coach that was very much part of the problem. BP’s thinking drives me up a wall. Until he has some success in January with this team I can only think he’s a washed up retread still getting mileage out of what he did 20 years ago.

Sparano as OC? That would be further proof of the Peter Principle. Let’s hope if that happens that is as high as he goes in this organization!!

If Gibbs leaves maybe Carl Banks or Brian Cox can come in and coach the linebackers. Banks would be my choice because he seems like a man who understands defensive football very well and has the gravitas to be an assistant coach.

Sterling-
1) If Bledsoe is so immobile, that that puts even more importance on solidifying the center of the line so he has time and play action will be more effective. (I think we agree here)
2) The little half-role they used the last few games worked well to move DB to the left to avoid the RT meltdown.

Both positions, RT and Center, need to be addressed. I’m just saying that if we have to do one or the other I’m fixing Center.

Burmafrd,
AJ was solid in 04 he didn’t seem to get
bull rushed etc. and that was with AG and TT on his right side.Alot of teams seemed to jump the count so i think all
6 people up front bear some
responsibility for the line play.

Sterling,
You say you hope that Cox will have the gravitas. But will he have the auctoritas? How will he motivate the players? With reason and positive feedback? Or will he be just a rotten sesquicullus?

eyeamkurgan-can you use words that are in my “Oxford English Dictionary” so I can interpret what you are saying? Sorry if I’m a dim bulb here but where did you get those words? I rather spend time here discussing the Cowboys and not brushing up on ancient Latin. LOL

I just heard on the Radio (the Ticket’s Norm Hitzges) that Parcels walked into a group of coaches and announced to the group, which included Sparano, that he “denied Sparano the opportunity to interview for the OC in New Orleans and had no remorse about it”. If thats true, and Hitzges is very reliable, I can’t think of a better way to undermine your coaches enthusiasm or “espirit de corps” (that’s for you eyeamkurgan). Hitzges also speculates that there is no way Sparano moves up to OC here.

Sean:

Don’t get down too hard on eyeamkurgan, he’s just joking around. You must have missed it when everyone learned a new word from Rafael last summer: balaclava.

wasnt there something that AJ was doing right before he snapped the ball, and was giving the d-linemen a headstart?? i remember hearing something about that.

I was trying to tease him back a little. Sorry if it came across other-wise

I just wanted to bring up the balaclava thing again…lol.

Rafe,
I agree with you and most of our members that the o-line is our number one priority but would like to get your comments on something I saw on another web site…..James Alder(who is he???)has a mock 2006 draft with the Cowboys taking QB Jay Cutler/Vanderbilt with their first pick….then I just read that Henson is going to NFL Europe this season…do you think we need a back-up QB and that an early draft pick will be used for that purpose?

how about dave meggett as a runningbacks coach, parcells did bring him into camp a couple of times to learn and help out players

Synergy-seems like Romo is adequate as a back-up. I’m hoping that by the draft (week 6 of NFL europe) we will have a better idea about what we have in Henson and how much depth we have at QB. I have liked what I’ve heard from Henson about going. He is looking forward to it as a chance to compete and play ball.

I have seem a few mock drafts and most have us taking an OT. I seen one with a qb and one with a FS. The only way I don’t want to see an OT drafted first is if the number one WR is still there or if we draft a QB. Some players you just can’t pass on.

Has anyone went to NFL Europe and came back to do something( qb that is)? The last guy we sent there is looking for work I think two years ago NE’s back up was on fire out there and he is looking of work now. If Henson doesn’t do well there its looks like its over and if he does its only nfl europe. I hope he kills them over there.

AW:
The only guys that made it overseas and had success in the NFL were Delhomme and Warner, at least those are the ones that I recall, and both came back to the NFL were backups for one more full year and became starters after that.

Synergy:
This teams draft before Dallas:
1 Houston
2 New Orleans
3 Tennessee
4 New York Jets
5 Green Bay
6T Oakland
7T San Francisco
8 Buffalo
9 Detroit
10 Arizona
11 St. Louis
12 Cleveland
13 Baltimore
14 Philadelphia
15 Atlanta
16 Miami
17 Minnesota
From those the teams that will be looking to draft a QB are: New Orleans, Tennessee, NY Jets, Oakland, St. Louis and Miami. Minnesota was thought to be also in the mix, but Childress is in Minny for a reason… and Culpepper has a stronger arm than the one of McChoke. I don’t see Cutler getting past Miami, BTW.

although we released Hutchinson he did get another chance in Chicago…..but then again they are perhaps the most desperate team ever at QB……but it was post NFLE….didn’t Kurt Warner play over there?

At least he will be taking snaps under center and throwing the ball when it actually counts…..it has been a while for him…….still you get that feeling that if the guy was going to be an NFL Quarterback he would have never put on pinstripes for George in the first place.

Do we bring Henson back as the third guy or will Dallas add another qb to the roster? Bledsoe was solid last year and played every down……gotta give him credit for that especially with all those sacks.

Jon Bartlett:
It’s possible that a $20 million contract from Steinbrenner persuaded 21 year old Henson to try 3rd base before QB.

Warner came from the AFL, not NFLEL.

Many non-skill positional players have proven their worth, our Keith Davis is a prime example. Not many skill positions are sent for fear of injury, tiring them out for the regular season, and wanting to tutor them in-house (like we did this past year with Henson and his throwing motion).

However, as the third QB, none of the arguments really hold water. We found out very quickly by sending Hutchinson to Europe that he can’t play.

And my favorite obscure reference by Rafael was the “flugen”.

I would also think Cleveland, Baltimore, Detroit, and Arizona would all be in the market for a 1st round QB if they got the chance. They all have other needs as well, but given their coaching, offensive styles, and draft histories I could see any of those teams biting if Cutler was still on the board. Other than Leinart and Young, Cutler is the only other QB I have heard being mentioned as a true 1st rounder.

I thought I heard somewhere back when the Cowboys traded for him that Henson only played 10 football games in college. He is either an incredible athlete or his agent if a huge con artist to get both the Yankees and Cowboys to pay him so much money for producing absolutely NOTHING for either team at this point in his career.

Sterling,
You make an excellent point….Henson has gotten a lot of money and never has produced anything yet, especially in a football uniform. I beleive that we were incredibly lucky last year with Bledsoe able to go all the way…maybe Henson can learn enough in Europe to become viable but I see him as imminently tradeable if anyone would have him…I just hope Romo can perform if he has to.

Figher 15

Kurt Warner did play in NFL Europe, he played in Amsterdam for 1 year, his team actually won the world bowl. Not saying that is a major thing, not sure if he did europe or arena league first.

I think detroit and arizona both need
wideouts …especially Detroit!!So count
them out for a QB…..

If the cowboys take a safety in the first round. whos better Bing or Huff

IMO, Pasqualoni would make an excellent linebackers coach. Granted, I’m a Syracusan and probably biased, but that aside I think it’ll work well.

Warner also bagged groceries……maybe Henson should should take a job at the local mart in Dallas. Maybe that improved Warners motion?

Lee,
Like Tiger Woods once said when he thought about skipping the Ryder cup and they asked him for his reasons……he said he could think of one million of them. The prize money of course. Yeah Georges money no doubt played a big part, I think he and George reached quite a settlement though……I don’t recall what it was but he took quite a pay cut to sit on our bench. Which Baseball money unlike football is guaranteed.

I wish him well in Europe. It will be interesting to see if Dallas drafts a qb this year. Funny Gibbs traded to get Jason Campbell on the team…..the future QB who is unlikely to see the field while Gibbs is the coach……wonder if Parcells would do the same.

Detroit needs a GM. How would you like Millen calling the shots for us? Now that’s scary.

Jon Bartlett:
Maybe bagging groceries teaches a form of discipline(like the Karate Kid waxing Mr. Miyagi’s car).
BECKER2:
I agree the Lions need to draft a WR, whichever is the best left on the board.

Sterling-I don’t think Henson has made that much $. Didn’t he sign a 10 year contract or something ridiculous like that?

Steeyeyed,
That is a scary prospect.The amount of changes the past two years make me wonder if the Coach and a GM system can
still work in todays NFL.Owners don’t
have enough patience and there don’tseem to be enough people capable of handling both jobs.

Becker2

The best thing that happened for Holmgren was to go back to just coaching. I think that is one thing that helped Payton. He made it clear he wanted to be part of a team and not the gatekeeper to the organization.

(I hit enter by mistake) CONT.
So when things go bad who takesthe blame
the coach or the GM?Look at Buffalo they
traded with us and now will Losman get a fair shot with a new coach or GM?Remains
to be seen.

I found Henson’s contract info:

Contract Details
Henson signed an eight-year deal that guarantees him at least $3.5 million over its first four years on March 16, 2004, according to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. He inked the deal with the Texans and was then traded to the Cowboys. The contract can be voided after four years if Henson meets certain playing time incentives.

So his cap hit is low. If he’s showing progress I say keep him. We’ll let BP make that call.

Steelyeyed,
I agree.Holmgren is a good example.He wanted total control and then got it with Seattle.He then relenquished the GM
(some say it was forced)part and is doing well as a head coach only.But there were alot calls for him to be fired in that time span.

Sean:

Ok, so he’s only made a million or two from football after only playing less than a dozen games in college. How much did he make in baseball? Even if he made zero from the Yankees that’s as much as he’s produced for two of professional sports biggest franchises. Now because he still is not ready to play in the NFL he gets a paid summer vacation in Europe!! That University of Michigan education is worth more than I ever guessed!!

A lot of people would be happy to make even a portion of what he’s made in his career, let alone be able to wear the uniform of two of the greatest sports franchises of all time!! Talk about a charmed career!!

Sterling-That is a working vacation he’s on, LOL. Even if he is a bust he has cost less than Chutch or Leaf and the jury is still out on him. Its a crap shoot and appearantly BP and JJ are not ready to toss in the towel. That may change after the NFLEL season which is the right time to evaluate him and his progress. He is a stud athlete. Can they turn him into an NFL QB?

He must be a stud athlete to get the chances he’s had in his career! I agree it’s no lose to send him to Europe on his working vacation at this point. Hopefully he’ll pan out. I will be watching every NFLEL game he is playing in as long as it’s on my cable tv.

This guy is so set professionally. If he succeeds he will be the quarterback of the Dallas Cowboys. If he doesn’t, he can go write a book about how to get a paid European vacation and make millions from Jerry Jones and George Steinbrenner without even doing anything more than put on a uniform.

And to think there are guys with Heisman Trophies on their mantles that never made a fraction of the money he has made. Funny how that works.

I read that Henson gave 12 of 20 million back to the Yankees, and then signed for 3.5 million and 8 years with the Cowboys…but I could be wrong, and it could have been only 4 years.

in pro sports dollars Henson has not cost very much money……3rd pick might have been a bit much for what he has done so far. He has had a lot of hype going back to Michigan where the coach was putting the freshman in over Tom Brady. Now that looks like a brilliant coaching move……..

I kind of see him as on the Farm Team……and in Europe he can decide if that is where he stays or if he has whatever “it” is that makes a guy an NFL QB. Brett Favre toiled on the Falcons squad as a backup til he was traded to GB. The Pats drafted a guy who just backed up Palmer and Leinhart without ever taking the feild in NCAA football in a meaningful game…Warner might never have won a Super Bowl without Trent Green getting hurt…..hech for that matter Bledsoe’s injury put Brady on the field……who knows he could pan out too. It is a crap shoot with quarterbacks……it really is. Who is to say Tony Romo is not legit…….he seems to be in the good graces of Parcells and Jones……

He cost the Cowboys a lot less than Leaf cost the Chargers……or Shuler cost the Redskins……maybe he turns the corner maybe not……

I fully hope he becomes a great QB, I am just amazed at the money and chances he has received in his career from such prestigious pro sports franchises. Especially considering how little quality game time he has ever played in.

I looked it up, and he started 8 games in college football and he played a grand total of 8 games in pro baseball. He had 9 at bats, striking out 3 times and he got one hit in his 2 year career. Of course he also played that half against the Bears on T-Day. I still remember the look on Parcells face at halftime.

He has made himself a millionaire though…I have complete respect for his savvy no matter how he turns out as a quarterback. Hopefully he will be at least as good as the 3rd round draft pick he cost JJ.

Delhomme did a couple years in NFLE also.

I think sending Henson to Europe is a good thing. At least it gives him a chance to play, and see what he can do running an offense. He makes a lot of money to be just a practice QB.

At least Romo is a FG holder, so he got to take the field in what was probably the scariest part of the game anyway. You never knew what would happen on those FG tries.

Regardless of who becomes our next OC, I think BP goes back to calling the plays.

Why did Gibbs add an OC? He calls all the plays anyways…..any chance they added Al Saunders just so Dallas could not??? Does he want somebody who can spend more time with Campbell maybe?

Jon Bartlett,

You could be right about Al Saunders being brought in to work with Campbell, since Gibbs does call the plays. I don’t know if they did it just so Dallas can’t sign him, but I wouldn’t put it past Danny Snyder to do something like that.

Maybe that 120 yard game against the Bucs was a wake up call to Gibbs and Snyder that he needs help. It will be interesting to see how those two coexist, since my impression was that Dick Vermeil was not terribly hands on and let his OC’s do most of the playcalling.

What does Gibbs have left to do?
Robinson handles the D ….maybe Joe
is getting ready to go back to racing
and escape danny boy?

With Snyder spending 2.67 million on defensive coordinator, and 2 million on offensive coordinator, would the other owners start thinking of a salary cap for coaching?

Good point lee.Thats almost 5 million
a year not including Gibbs and the rest
of the assistants…sure hope Santana
wasn’t a one year wonder!!!

Lee,

I read somewhere, in one of the ESPN guy’s column perhaps, that owners were not happy at Snyder blowing up the salary structure for assistants — and this was before he gave Saunders the big money.

Maybe the other owners will vote in a coaches salary cap. What they hear is that giant sucking sound on their wallets.

Too bad for the other owners though, Danny boy has the big bucks from FedEx Field……and he evidently intends to share the wealth.

But I always thought of Coaching decisions as the head coaches job. So really Joe Gibbs should get some of the anger. There are some assistants in the league worth their weight in gold……and why shouldn’t they get paid. Part of the reason the players respect a guy like Bill Parcells, or Joe Gibbs or in basketball Phil Jackson……they make as much money as some of the players and live the same lifestyle(well at least Jackson does)…….

that is a lot money to pay Saunders if he ain’t going to call plays…….but then again if he turns Jason Campbell into a Warner or a Trent Green……i guess it would be money well spent……

we’re all just wasting our time talking about coordinators.when you have to go out of your way to protect a bum that can’t roll out or buy some time.look at the quaterbacks in the playoffs there’s no one there that can’t make a play under a little pressure.i’m not trying to be negative but bledsoe is not taking us anywhere anytime soon.parcells is trying to win now and there’s no time to develop anybody!!and his boy ain’t the answer.you can blame the offensive line all you want but you better believe it’s more than that.i’f you don’t agree you have no business watching football.

“iâ€â"¢f you donâ€â"¢t agree you have no business watching football.”

Who made you the football police, biz?

if Joe Thiesman can win a Super Bowl……so can Trent Dilfer……or for that matter Drew Bledsoe……

me rafy like i said when you have to go out of your way to protect a guy that should be in a let’s see who throws the ball the farthest with no one in front of you competition you have a problem.all you here where ever bledsoe goes is well if he’s got the protection he can throw the ball. no shit so can everybody else.it’s not all the o line this team has got some other holes besides let’s put 5 pro bowlers in front of bledsoe and we should win.

jon bartlett trent dilfer had a defense that gave him about 17 points a game we don’t have a defense that causes many turnovers.we have a good defense not good enough to overcome not having an offense.

Jon Bartlett,

if Joe Thiesman can win a Super Bowl… …so can Trent Dilfer… …or for that matter Drew Bledsoe… …

You got that right! We could probably list several average to poor quarterbacks who have somehow managed to win a Super Bowl.

Let’s see now … Jim Plunkett (twice), Joe Theisman, Jim McMahon, Doug Williams, Jeff Hostetler, Mark Rypien, Trent Dilfer, and Brad Johnson. That’s 8 [9, if you count Plunkett twice]. Some of them were decent enough. A few had great years when their teams won the Super Bowl, amidst otherwise lackluster careers, like McMahon and Rypien. But, none of them will ever get strong consideration for the Hall of Fame.

Now, if you add in quarterbacks who have started in the Super Bowl, but not won it, you can add in Joe Kapp, Vince Ferragamo, David Woodley, Tony Eason, Stan Humphries, Neil O’Donnell, Chris Chandler, Kerry Collins, Rich Gannon, Jake Delhomme, and … oh yeah, Drew Bledsoe. [If any of them gets into the Hall of Fame, it will be Bledsoe.]

Other fans would probably add and/or subtract from this list, but the point is still valid. You can win a lot of games without a Troy Aikman or a John Elway as your quarterback, if your team is otherwise good enough. The corollary to this is that even Dan Marino or Dan Fouts or Peyton Manning doesn’t guarantee you a thing.

biz is winning,

Unknowledgeable as I am, I still intend to watch football. Sorry!

Mr. Bill:

I’m surprised you didn’t mention Phil Simms in your list.

I think Bledsoe’s definitely a good enough QB to win the Super Bowl if the Cowboys establish a strong enough running game and the defense gets better at stopping the run. That should be the first two priorities of any football team anyway. Once you do that you can win with a decent QB, and Bledsoe is a whole lot better than decent.

Galldamn,
I guess Biz is pissed at my “foriegn language usage” as well. I’m am very disappointed to hear that the %#&** foreskins hired Saunders. Also, if the earlier post is true about BP’s address to his assistants; it makes me wonder just what is going to happen with our staff.
(Sean’s post #19 referring to The Tickets Hitzges)

biz

The two quarterbacks considered the best in football, Tom Brady and Peyton Manning, both lost because they couldnâ€â"¢t get enough protection. Tom Brady, probably the best under pressure player in football, was missing open receivers in the second half as the Denver pressure had thrown of his rhythm. Peyton Manning was sacked five times and made some bad throws also including what should have been a game clinching interception to Polumalau. The point is even the best will struggle under constant pressure and Bledsoe was under constant pressure all year. In fact the pressure that Manning and Brady were under looked downright comfortable compared to what Drew Bledsoe endured this year. While I donâ€â"¢t think Bledsoe is in the class of Brady, we have seen this year that when Bledsoe has time he can be a very effective player and history shows he has lead a team to a Super Bowl before. If the oline play improves as does the defence it could happen again.

And speaking of my “foreign language usage”, where the hell is Oiler Troll when I need him to translate?

I was wondering where Oiler Troll was only the other day. Funny you should mention that. I was thinking maybe he’s like Beetlejuice and you have to call his name out loud three times in a row.

Maybe while Drew Henson is on his European adventure he can scout us out a really good field goal kicker for next season. That would raise his value to the Cowboys in my eyes, even if he doesn’t ever become a good QB.

Oh the Troll’s around. He’s helping the blog sort out some copyright issues so we can maybe sell some blog merchandise. (I know everyone is just dying to have a mug or mousepad to remind you of the site.)

He’s probably also going through his yearly “I don’t have a team, but I’m okay” meditations. (Don’t let the Troll know I told you this, but he confided in me that he watched a lot of Cowboys games this year and sometimes found himself, rooting.)

Plus, the Trollette did way better than him in roto, so he’s feeling even more put upon by football.

biz:
Dallas rushing Offense: ranked tied at 25th in average per run. How many times were the ball carriers hitted before or at the line of scrimmage? 40% of the time? 50? 60? I’ll bet on a 40 scratching 50.
Dallas passing Offense: ranked 4th in sacks allowed with 50, how much of those sacks came in 2 or 3 seconds counts? I’ll give you a number, 30%.

All this means that the OLine wasn’t a problem, it was a big MESS. A bad QB doesn’t throw for 3600+ yards and 23 TD’s while having 2 of the best OT’s allowing sacks and a mediocre to bad running game. You know, I’ll keep watching games, but I’ll recommend that you shouldn’t be seeing, because Bledsoe will be there and that’s not good for your liver.

Clowns like Bizzz aren’t worth the time
..notice all the alternatives he offered
to the current QB situation???

Raf,
Any shot at getting a Nick Eatme mug or
shot glass on the merchandise list?

Sterling,

I’m surprised you didn’t mention Phil Simms in your list

I considered Simms a slight cut above those I listed. But, it’s all subjective opinion. Your list will necessarily differ from mine.

I should also point out that two of the following quarterbacks will play in the Super Bowl (and one will win it): Jake Delhomme, Matt Hasselbeck, Jake Plummer, and Ben Roethlisberger; while (as Luke pointed out) Tom Brady and Peyton Manning will be watching the game on TV. Although several of the four remaining quarterbacks are young enough to become leaders who can carry a team, they aren’t there yet. They certainly aren’t up to the Brady or Manning standard … yet, they play on.

Mr. Bill,

You made an excellent list of mediocre or average at best qbs who have both won and lost Super Bowls. I remember David Woodley…….how was his luck……takes a team to a Super Bowl and then they go out and Draft Marino.

Brad Johnson best Culpepper this year simply by eliminating fumbles and interceptions. Smart savy old mediocre is often better than mistakes. I was actually pleasantly surprised by not only Bledsoe’s numbers……but his leadership on the field, in the media, and in Keyshawn’s face. The team has a field General. He also has quite a list of his own accomplishments.

Look at the games where we had a running game…….the first Philly Game and the Carolina Game. Bledsoe was a good manager….and even had to orchestrate a comeback in Carolina. Add in a few more sacks and turnovers from our D with another OLB and get a decent tackle along with FLO back and this offense will be plenty enough to go far into the playoffs and even a Super Bowl.

The mediots in almost the same breath say the Bills messed up by letting Bledsoe go and then say Dallas needs a more mobile qb? What gives? Bledsoe will be fine.

I WANT THAT NICKEATME MUG!

Becker2 and eyeamkurgan,

That might be a copyright violation. A man has a right to his own name, no? (And you know he took some serious abuse growing up with THAT name.)

Raf,
If nicks lame ass reporting(at least his “video updates”)are any indication of his youth I’d say he deserved all the abuse and then some.Besides you saw him up close and personal(lucky you).Can’t you have TRoll copyright
Nickeatme for the blog??
Or is he busy in Costa Rica with that Penguin again???

Hi Everybody!

YOu know, the Penguin and Oiler Troll came pretty close to setting out and having a beautiful life together, but there were just just too many cultural differences for it ever work out. Oiler Troll regretabbly is the jealous type. The trouble really started with that French documentary as narrated by Morgan Freeman – something about getting a new mate after each annual march. Plus Oiler Troll had no interest sitting on top of a nest in the cold while Honey-wings wandered off for a month. Penguins are weird.

It just was not going to work out – thanks for bringing it up, Becker. Good to hear from you, too.

As to the “Nickeatme” copyright – Oiler Troll would have to do some further research, but he suspects that some accomodation for a suitable
mug and other novelities (think of the possibilities) could be made. The question then is, would you really buy one? Ask your friends, shop the idea around the site, keep a buzz for them going.

Incidentally, you have not heard from Oiler Troll because he is too lazy and/or too technically incompetent to register with the site. That, and ESPN played the top 10 “Championship Game” highlights. Oiler Troll Tivo’ed the Renfro catch and reviewed it thoroughly. He was so in. Lord, please, make the Steelers lose badly tomorrow.

OT

Damn that Oiler Troll. Playing on my computer again!

Troll!!! your back!!! Always glad to hear from you.Sorry to hear about you and ‘Hotwings"….bet her parents are happy though something about dating outside her species ….anyway i’ve got this idea to drum up buzz about Nickeatme for the blog.Rafs holds the
annual Nickeatme award given to the
Mediot who reports the worst story or
fabrication about the Cowboys.Nominees
this year could be Ed Werder of Espn
for his report on Key holding out or
Mort for BP retiring or DMsnooze for
articles to numerous to list but you
get the idea.And yes if you make it I
will buy it.I will even do pre-orders.