Dallas Cowboys Wednesday night links
by Brandon Worley on Aug 6, 2008 6:47 PM CDT
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PrintHard Knocks premieres tonight at 10 EST on HBO. Tune in if you can, I already have my popcorn ready to go!
Here's some news and notes to tide you over in the meantime.
The DMN has some details on what to expect from the NFL Films crew tonight.
Since May, really, when the NFL Films camera crews arrived for organized team activities, the Cowboys have adjusted to their Hard Knocks life. "Every once in a while they'll stick a camera in your face and you kind of notice them," Phillips said, "but other than that, they've been good."
Read the Star-Telegram story here as well.
Tim Cowlishaw says that enough is enough; Patrick Crayton is our No. 2 receiver and he's a pretty good one at that.
Only four teams had No. 2 wide receivers that caught balls for more yards and touchdowns than Crayton. And in all four cases – New England's Wes Welker, Cincinnati's T.J. Houshmandzadeh, Arizona's Anquan Boldin and Green Bay's Greg Jennings – the players came from offenses that did not feature the tight end in the passing game.
DC.com has a good story on camp standout Evan Oglesby.
Calvin Watkins says that Roy Williams may finally be happy on the football field again and on top of that, is content in a more limited role.
"I'm good; I'm good, real good," Williams said. "It's not what they're doing. It's just really me, and I feel comfortable in what I'm supposed to be doing and I know what my role is supposed to be and I'm going out there and doing it."
The Cowboys haven't had much luck lately with second-round draft picks.
Deon Anderson says he has never seen players as big as Leonard Davis and Flozell Adams.
“You know what Lil Wayne says in his rap? What's a goon to a goblin?” said Anderson, a second-year fullback. “I've seen some goons in my day, but they are goblins. Not in college, not in my life have I seen anybody that big. They're monsters.”
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I AGREE about Crayton
it’s like having a Ferrari and only the single disk changer in the dash… if you could you would get the 6 cd changer, wouldn’t you??!?
700 yards and 7 TDs, and you are really the third option in the passing game, that is quite impresive…
I was ALL for getting Williams, Boldin, or someone like that if and only if the price was reasonable, AND because those guys are fairly young and T.O. is not getting any younger, one of those guys might be able to be out #1 in two years or so.. when T.O. is all done…
however, i was not of the belief that we HAD to have a ‘legit’ #2, i think the press just needed to find that weakness to talk about..
let’s say we did have T. Glenn back OR Roy Williams, OR Boldin, OR Chad Johnson, what would the press find in our offense as our weakness?!?
?
- the fact that Romo has only really played a year and a half?
- that T.O. is getting up there in age?
- that MB III has never ‘really’ carried the load, can he do it?
the second reciever thing was really a thing of the press, and some ‘thinking outloud’ by Jerry Jones..
i think we are LOADED, now an injury to T.O. or Crayton would hurt, and hurt bad
I strongly disagree.
First, an injury to Crayton would not affect our offense whatsoever. Second, it’s not more production that is needed, it’s more versatility – even if that means less production. Obviously our offense was about as good as can be last year, except toward the end of the season. The Cowboys need someone that can open up the field, besides T.O. With T.O., Crayton, and Witten, the defense knows that only one of those guys has a chance of beating them deep, if there is any type of pass rush. So you jam and double T.O., and there is no repercussion to blitzing or stacking the line every single down. A speed guy that teams think is actually a threat to catch the ball makes them think twice about doing so, or allows us to make big gains if they do. Crayton as our 2 is part of the reason that the running game struggled last year as well.
Now, do I think the offense will be strong and high scoring again? Absolutely. I’m just worried about teams like the Eagles, Giants, and Redskins that can generate a pass rush and effectively cover T.O., because those teams will shut us down without another speed threat. Hopefully by the time the playoffs come around, Miles Austin will be a legit deep threat.
by Baked Potato Soup on Aug 6, 2008 7:59 PM CDT up reply actions
I disagree
You don’t have to have speed to get open and one on one coverage.
I have said it before Crayton has gotten behind corners and score. A lot of the guys fans are clamoring for aren’t faster then Crayton.. Boldin isn’t faster and TJ Housh isn’t faster. Crayton isn’t a burner, but gets open and can beat one on one coverage..
You don’t think Jason Garrett will game plan for teams who try to double TO?
"If you see me up in the mountains with a lion, I ain't lyin
don't help me, help the mountain lion"
He didn't last year.
He really hasn’t gotten behind any corners. He’s broken some tackles and made long plays, but he doesn’t really burn anyone. Those other guys might not be faster than Crayton, which is debatable, but they beat one on one coverage much better. Crayton had one huge game against the Rams and was pretty much average the rest of the way. No team in the league game plans for him or is scared of him in any way. He’s like Keyshawn lite. You could put Hurd or any other decent receiver in his spot on this offense and they would put up the same numbers. The point is, he’s not burning anyone when they smother the line or blitz, so they’ll take their chances. They have to be thinking: as long as we double T.O. and force Witten to stay in and block, all we have to worry about is Crayton getting 7 or 8 yards. That’s pretty much what the Eagles and Giants did.
As great a season as the ‘Boys had, they lost to every team in their division and got trounced by the Patriots. They addressed the defensive issues that might have helped against the Pats, but not the offensive ones that lost them games against the Eagles and Giants – 6 total points against the Eagles and 3 points in the second half against the Giants – both blitz heavy teams.
by Baked Potato Soup on Aug 6, 2008 11:29 PM CDT up reply actions
He did a few times, but
that wasn’t how they used him because of what they did with Witten. Witten was used on deeper routes and Crayton was often used in the traditional short-medium routes used by ordinary TEs. It’s one of the reasons people call Witt the number 2, not just because of his number of catches but also where they used him on the field.
Never wrestle with a pig. You both get dirty and the pig loves it.
And here I thought you only covered the NBA
well done, stephena
Never wrestle with a pig. You both get dirty and the pig loves it.
Deon Anderson's quote
Is great..
"If you see me up in the mountains with a lion, I ain't lyin
don't help me, help the mountain lion"
So is Roy's comfort
the result of the “Return of Campo”? It seems plausible to me…
Never wrestle with a pig. You both get dirty and the pig loves it.
Love the Cricket quote!
Sometimes when I see football players in real life, I think they’re saying another Weezie lyric:
We are not the same, I am a Martian.
Cowlishaw is absolutely correct
I can’t believe so many fans are worried about our #2 receiver and backup qb, thats simply amazing to me.
We are absolutely stacked at all other positions and all everyone wants to do is bitch and moan about getting a really good #2 receiver and backup qb. Unfreakinbelievable.
Do you realize how many teams in the league, including many playoff teams, would love to have those 2 problems?
Having a very good #2 receiver (and you guys are really talkin about #1s in Smith, R Williams, and Boldin) and backup qb are simply luxuries, not necessities. Give this #2 receiver and backup qb talk a rest, its getting older than Brett Favre.
In Romo we Trust
+1
Out here on the West Coast, these Bay teams are freaking out about stuff we Cowboys fans take for granted.
That #38 sure can hit!
by Aaron Novinger on Aug 7, 2008 8:56 AM CDT up reply actions
-1
Terry, I recall you using the same “don’t worry about it” last year when I posted about how poorly the Cowboys were playing down the stretch. Well, they didn’t step it up in the playoffs, particularly the #2 receiver that we aren’t supposed to worry about this year. Our offense hasn’t changed at all from last year, so people are concerned about what’s going to be different when we play the Giants and Eagles again. It’s great to score 40 against teams with losing records, but the 3 teams in our division all have great pass rushes and good defensive backs, and all shut us down at the end of the season when we should have been hitting our stride. I think that teams have a bit of a blueprint on how to play Romo, T.O., Witten, and Garrett now, as long as they have the personnel. That’s why many of us were hoping that another receiver that can beat one on one coverage consistently would be added or developed, because that was clearly missing from our offense in the last 4 games and it cost us wins and got us bounced from the playoffs.
by Baked Potato Soup on Aug 7, 2008 11:06 AM CDT reply actions
Agreed, but
This offense did add a weapon in Felix Jones, and I think getting rid of Julius was addition by subtraction as far as MB3 goes. Our younger WRs are continuing to develop and it’s reasonable to assume they will be better this year. And, really, the problem down the stretch was that TO was hurt. When TO is hurt, the offense will slow down. I understand that is what adding the #2 threat is all about, but you just can’t have an all-pro backing up every all-pro.
I understand the concern, and we all share it, but injuries are the real worry. The team as constituted is good enough to not fade, if the key players are healthy. I also understand the team has worked very hard to add a impact WR and one was simply not available.
It’s really up to the coaching staff to avoid an outcome like last year, should TO go down again. We may pick up a veteran castoff from another team. But there’s only so much you can do, and the considerable defensive improvements will hopefully take some pressure off the offense.
great point grapjoos
this isn’t the same offense as last season, its much better with the Cat as a receiver and Hurd, Austin and Stanback are all a year more developed and better.
The fact is nobody is going to replace T.O. if he goes down just like nobody is going to replace Romo if he goes down. There is going to be a significant drop off in production regardless of who the #2 receiver or backup is.
In Romo we Trust
CO-SIGN
We are definitely not the same team. Romo another year as the starter, MB3 starting, Crayton preparing to be the #2 in the off-season, El Gato, and host of other players developing..
Way to much what if going on..
"If you see me up in the mountains with a lion, I ain't lyin
don't help me, help the mountain lion"
Everyone is still scarred
from the horrible “thud” last season as all our hopes and dreams fell to the earth like a giant sack of turds. That’s why everyone is micro-analyzing the team and all our percieved weaknesses because it is still a bit painful to be optimistic.
Having said that, I make these predictions -
1. El gato will compete for ROY and add a huge dimension to our offense.
2. Romo and TO will be the #1 passing combo in the league
3. Pac man will do for our defense what Moss did for the Patriots offense – this kid has come to play!
potatoe soup
we didn’t lose against the GMen because of our lack of #2 receiver, we lost because the GMen played better that day, sometimes that happens.
Pats had great weapons and lost too.
In Romo we Trust
VERY TRUE.
I think Potato Soup pointed out the Patriots in a previous post. They had the speed threat you love to mention and still lost..
"If you see me up in the mountains with a lion, I ain't lyin
don't help me, help the mountain lion"
The boys should keep an eye on
Koren Robinson. He would be ideal to plug in if we get an injury at WR and is still available due to his personal issues.
thats the only scenario the Cowboys sign a vet WR
if one of our top 4 WRs go down with an injury.
In Romo we Trust
Didn't his house get raided not to long ago
and that his brother was arrested for illegal drug possession for the purpose of selling while livinf with Koren. I dont know for sure but I thought I read something along those lines and right after Green bay cut him. If that’s true, I wonder if there is something connecting Koren to this since it was his house.
I think cleared him
Either way, no thanks. Damaged goods, if I wanted some damaged goods, I would asking for TG back..
Still no TG signing. things that make you go hmmm… Didn’t Jerry say he thought no other team would sign him?
They me trying to avoid having to have him come to TC?
"If you see me up in the mountains with a lion, I ain't lyin
don't help me, help the mountain lion"
Great point by Cowlishaw
I guess everybody comes up with one eventually.
The facts are hard to argue with, only 4 teams had better production from the #2 WR, and none of them also featured a TE anything close to Witten. That is amazing.
As great as our defense looks to be on paper, our offense looks like it will be impossible to stop due to the number of ways they can attack teams.
T-New, shutting down WR's for Dallas since 2003
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