Reason we have trouble with blitzers: Andre Gurode may not be smart enough

by quincyyyyy on Nov 16, 2009 5:33 PM CST

The reason why we have trouble with blitzers may be this guy:

There was good reason why he started off here as a guard. Because he is just not smart enough to play center. The average wonderlic for a center is 25. Andre Gurode's is 15. The reason why centers tend to be the highest scoring players on the wonderlic is because they need to be able to read defenses and make line adjustments. Gurode may not be able to do that.

Grizz expressed his concern in '06's training camp concerning this very topic:

if he can conquer the mental aspects of being the center, there’s no way he won’t start the season as the #1.

Now I don't have any direct evidence that this is Gurode's fault, but I'm suspecting his lack of intelligence has a lot to do with it, and there is a history of it being a problem.

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I've gotten this feeling too

But I really don’t have enough knowledge to talk about it. I don’t know what his responsibilities are, and I haven’t examined the plays and seen whose at faul for the blown assignments.I know for sure he and one of the guards blew back to back plays sometime last game, I forget when it happened, I remember making a comment about it on the game thread.

by foyesboys on Nov 16, 2009 5:55 PM CST reply actions

yeah maybe someone smarter than us (and definitely smarter than Gurode) can break it down for us

hint hint…

I just wanted to throw this out there and see if others have the same suspicions.

by quincyyyyy on Nov 16, 2009 5:59 PM CST up reply actions

I'm sure it didn't help him out much

when Haynesworth stepped on his head.

by Boo. on Nov 16, 2009 6:10 PM CST reply actions

That is funny

Dallas should have drafted one of the top centers last year. Or signed someone like Birk from the Vikings as a free agent. Then we would be in a position to put Gurode at right guard and Bigg at right tackle.

by Iowacowboy on Nov 16, 2009 7:05 PM CST up reply actions

we tried Gurode at guard...

by quincyyyyy on Nov 16, 2009 7:42 PM CST up reply actions

I would feel so much more comfortable about the state of this OL

if we had just managed to get Unger. O well.

by foyesboys on Nov 16, 2009 7:59 PM CST up reply actions

no use crying over spilled milk

In Romo we Trust

by Terry on Nov 16, 2009 8:03 PM CST up reply actions

I checked over at the field gulls and here is what they have to say about Unger:

whats the deal with Unger Or are these bad showings just par for the course for a rookie?

He’s been okay for a rookie.

http://www.fieldgulls.com/2009/11/8/1121652/final-notes-for-the-third-and

by quincyyyyy on Nov 16, 2009 8:06 PM CST up reply actions

Hate to hate on a Duck, but I thought Unger was overrated.

The announcers just always seemed to talked about him. Sure, he was versatile, but Tupuo looked like the better player to me.

I can see for miles and miles and miles and miles and miles...

by Aaron Novinger on Nov 17, 2009 10:14 PM CST up reply actions

Something Is Wrong

We have too many plays where break through blitzers get to Romo; even when Romo seems to make the call as to the defense that is being deployed, we seem to have problems. Then there are the times Romo has to ignite a bomb under Gurode’s butt to get him to snap the ball; this happened yesterday.

by Iowacowboy on Nov 16, 2009 7:04 PM CST reply actions

Nut Kick

He should Nut Kick Gurode when he needs a quick snap.

"Emotion is highly overrated in football. My wife Corky is emotional as hell but can't play football worth a damn."

- John McKay, the first coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers

by 5Blings on Nov 20, 2009 10:11 AM CST up reply actions

Honestly

I don’t think we have a real good chance at being a legit SB contender with this OL. They are so mistake prone, and their mistakes kill drives whether it be by blown assignments or penalties.

However…I would hate to risk the prime years of many of our players (not to mention Romo’s health) trying to give younger OL some playing time. And they’re generally a solid group when it comes to pass blocking so its not like they stink or anything. I was a proponent earlier in the season of giving Free a shot at LT, but our line now is pretty set with zero depth so I guess this doesn’t matter.

by foyesboys on Nov 16, 2009 11:15 PM CST reply actions

I disagree

The Steelers OL last season was much worse than ours even with Colombo out.

In Romo we Trust

by Terry on Nov 17, 2009 9:23 AM CST up reply actions

I don’t know enough to say one way or the other, but I have heard several times this season those who do know what they are talking about say that Gurode is one of the best Cs in the league. This may be more his physical play than his mental, and I know that Kosier does help make line calls and his absence was one reason why they struggled last year. But I have a hard time believing Gurode is a major liability in this area with knowledgeable people saying he’s one of the best in the business right now.

by scottmaui on Nov 17, 2009 12:20 AM CST reply actions

Gurode Is Not the Best Or Even Close

He can’t even snap the frigging ball half the time; he is prone to having the yips – Romo has to pound him with a two by four to get the ball snapped; I dunno, when you can’t perfrom the most basic task of a job, how can you be great? Gurode is an example of what is wrong with Dallas; he is a compromise, not an All Pro. Remember the Giants playoff loss? Gurode was as big or bigger goat than Crayton. God I wish we could have drafted Unger this year.

by Iowacowboy on Nov 17, 2009 5:19 PM CST up reply actions

Unger hasn't been playing that great this year either

by quincyyyyy on Nov 17, 2009 6:01 PM CST up reply actions

Alex Mack has...

"Emotion is highly overrated in football. My wife Corky is emotional as hell but can't play football worth a damn."

- John McKay, the first coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers

by 5Blings on Nov 20, 2009 10:09 AM CST up reply actions

he went in the first round...

by quincyyyyy on Nov 20, 2009 9:50 PM CST up reply actions

So the point is what? That getting picked 20 picks sooner is the determining factor in how they will perform as rookies?

"Emotion is highly overrated in football. My wife Corky is emotional as hell but can't play football worth a damn."

- John McKay, the first coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers

by 5Blings on Nov 22, 2009 10:52 AM CST up reply actions

I'm in agreement with Scott

Gurode may or may not be the smartest player, but he’s got physical ability that is hard to match. He can stand up the bull rushers or get out and pull on runs. You aren’t going to replace him with a better center, because there are none in the draft, and there are none in FA, so let’s focus on the real problem, depth at the position. Proctor is not the answer, and apparently Preston is even worse.

You can't stop Patrick Crayton, you can only hope to contain him.

by APerfectStar on Nov 17, 2009 11:37 PM CST up reply actions

If preston was worse than proctor he wouldn't be on the roster

by quincyyyyy on Nov 18, 2009 7:59 AM CST up reply actions

To be fair

I don’t see how it becomes Gurodes’s fault if we go 3 wrs and an empty backfield and the defenses blitzes two people into the A gap. Gurode is only going to be able to block one defender and I don’t care what his wonderlic score was. Dallas employs the exact same technique when we blitz Carpenter. Overloading a gap or an edge is a technique used by every DC in the NFl including Wade. Also, I don’t recall Gurode having one bad shotgun snap this year. I think his improvement in this area is significant. He also handles the 100 million dollar man (Haynesworth) one on one. That alone sets him above the vast majority of centers in the NFL.

by jevans1729 on Nov 18, 2009 2:06 PM CST reply actions

huh I stated this possiblity a fews ago and was ripped for it

During my evaluation of the entire roster in “The Elephant in the Room” from several weeks ago I stated that Gurode seems to have difficulty with running blitz protection schemes and many thought I was crazy (“What, He’s a Pro Bowler”) Pro Bowler or not, too many times I have seen sacks occur because of miscommunication rather than a lineman simply getting beat. He makes the line calls right?

by Toughquestions on Nov 18, 2009 6:12 PM CST reply actions