Mid-Season Grades

I have to preface this post by saying that I got the idea from listening to the Randy Galloway radio show (yeah, I know, but he is not nearly as bad in radio form.)  They were going all of the starters this year and giving them grades on their performances this year.  There were a lot of the grades that they were giving out that I didn't agree with (big suprise) but it made me really think about what grades I would give out.  So here is my list.

• A's are given if the player has consistently met and exceeded my expectations for the majority of the first 8 games of this season.
• B's are given if the player has met expectations or exceeded expectations, but may have had several "off" games.
• C's are given if the player has been average and just barely meeting expectations.
• D's are given if the player has played poorly and not lived up to expectations at all.
• F's are given if the player hasplayed far below expectations.

OFFENSE:

• Romo- I give him a B or a B+.  I think Romo has been playing well, but has had a couple of games where he hasn't played quite to the level of last season.  However, I think that it's hard to tell how much has been Romo and how much has been the O-line.
• Barber- I would give Marion a B.  He's played pretty well, but he's had a few games where he's struggled to get yardage.  Again, not sure how much is Marion and how much is the O-line.
• Witten- A.  Need I say more?
• T.O.- At this point I would have to give him a C- or D+.  I still think that TO can be a beast, but the press coverage and double teams have been killing him this year.  He can not consistently get open.  Again, is this a product of the crappy O-line not giving the QB enough time?
• Crayton- I had a hard time grading Crayton.  Based on expectations I would give him a C.  I didn't have high expectations for him, but I don't want to give the impression that he is playing better than TO.  Still I think a C is fair.  He hasn't shown up in a lot of games, but he has had some clutch performances.
• Adams- Flozell deserves a big fat F.  He has been a human turnstile this year.  I hope that this isn't Flozell taking a break after getting his big contract, but I don't see how his game can drop off so much in such a short time frame.
• Proctor- This is another hard one to grade.  I didn't have high expectations for Proctor, but I would probably have to say a F or D-.  I think that Kosier being out is the major problem with the line.  While not everyone is coming through the line at LG, I think he has thrown off the rhythm of the entire line.
• Gurode- Probably a C or C+.  He hasn't been terrible, but he's had a few bad games and bad snaps.
• Davis- I am giving Bigg a B.  He has played pretty well overall, but I don't think anyone on the line deserves any great grades.
• Colombo- After the TB game, I am giving Colombo a B+.  While he was beaten badly in Arizona, he has played good and shown some heart on a unit that needs a leader.

DEFENSE:

• Ratliff- The Rat has been playing lights out and definetely deserves an A.
• Spears- While Spears hasn't been playing great, he has definetely done more than I've expected.  I would have to give him a B- or C+.
• Canty- I am really disappointed in Canty this year.  After showing tons of promise last season, he has shown almost nothing this year.  He is getting a D.
• Ware- Another beast, deserving of his A.
• James- Bradie has been pretty decent overall.  I'll give him a B-.
• Thomas- Zach has been playing better than Ayodele in every facet of the game.  He seems to sometimes get pushed around in the run game, but I think he deserves a B.
• Ellis- After playing at a pro bowl level last year, he hasn't done a whole lot this year.  I'm giving him a C.
• Hamlin- He hasn't been making a lot of big plays, but has been pretty decent and our QB in the secondary.  I give him a B.
• Henry- A big fat F.  He has been a liability in the secondary this season and even once he get's healthy, I would prefer to leave one of the rookies in the starting lineup to get them meaningful playing time.

INCOMPLETES:

• F. Jones- I almost gave Felix an A for his work so far, but felt it wasn't fair as he has only seen playing time in 6 games, and one of those he didn't get any carries at RB.
• Bennett- I like what I've seen from Tellus so far and he's had a few good plays for us.  The next game should tell quite a bit because I don't see Witten playing much if at all.
• Scandrick/Jenkins- I think both of these guys have played pretty well so far and have been more impressed with Scandrick's work so far.  Again, I think this next game especially will be telling as to how they can hold up under the pressure

Well, I know that was a long winded post, but I felt like it would be interesting to put everything down on paper.  Some of the grades I gave I don't feel 100% postive about, but let me know what grades you guys feel everyone deserves.