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Dallas Cowboys News and Notes: Wednesday, December 14th 2010

A serving of Cowboys tidbits, please.

One Stop Shopping. It's Christmas season and every man craves One Stop Shopping.  So here you go, digest the latest in Cowboys News and tidbits:

On the injury front, Kevin Ogletree was the only Cowboys player to suffer one worth noting in Sunday night's game against Philly. According to Todd Archer:

Second-year receiver Kevin Ogletree left the game in the third quarter and didn't return due to a bruised right big toe and a right ankle injury. Ogletree said he was fine but was walking gingerly in the locker room.

I'm not sure how much to expect from Ogletree. Obviously his chances were limited with Dez Bryant in the lineup, but he didn't grab a hold of the reigns in training camp when he had every opportunity. He is a better talent than Sam Hurd though, and with it looking like Miles isn't the answer in the slot, we may need him next year. Hope we can get him more reps, so here is to a healthy toe rehab.

Star-divide

Tough weekend for our man Tashard Choice. First, he was unceremoniously stopped from getting goal line touchdowns by our offensive line, both this week and last. Now he is engulfed in a signature fiasco- with many Cowboys fans up in arms that he was caught asking for Michael Vick's autograph. Rabblerousr speaks to  Tashard Gate here.  Tashard speaks to this on his twitter feed, and it can also be found on his website.

"If its anybody that cares about winning and the d cowboys its me. I apologize to the people it was just an innocent gesture(sp) for my nephew."

Let's cut the guy a break, it's not exactly as if the Cowboys have been that great of an employer for Choice- I think we can give him the benefit of the doubt. As a side note, I think all fans need to remember, the players hearts are loyal to the competition of the game, but being an NFL player is being a part of an elite society. They are all members of a club. We fans care about the rivalries, the players might have a team they really dislike, but players that can be rivals one year are teammates the next. It's pretty unrealistic to think they don't get along with players on opposing teams. I can understand the sentiment that you don't want to see the fraternizing, but if I was Choice, would I really care who was offended over something like that?

In other news, Keith Brooking has said he isn't ready to retire. I will not hide my dislike for Brooking starting for us. Nothing against him, but he is old and I've seen many tackles where he looks like he is auditioning for a Geritol commercial.

"I feel like I've got something left in the tank," said Brooking, who has been bothered by injuries this season. "I can contribute to a team in some capacity, but you don't look too far ahead in this league."

Maybe I'm only speaking for myself, but even though he was a major upgrade over Zach Thomas (ugh), I think that Brooking was a failed experiment on the field. I'm not in the locker room, and I'm sure his competitive fire and leadership helped- but is he leading a good defense? Methinks not. I am heartily looking forward to the Sean Lee era.

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Tempest in a pee-pot

I’m OK with his asking for an autograph, although I question his true motivation. Maybe he collects Dog-Murderer memorabilia. Now THAT would explain it. “Man, Mike I’m putting this right next to the bones of Swig, the world-famous pitbull. You don’t know how happy this makes me…”

Don't believe everything you think.

by dunkman on Dec 14, 2010 2:19 PM CST reply actions  

Haha...

that is probably like the Babe Ruth of dog fighting collectibles.

AFB Condensed- New name, same flavor.

Quoting yourself doesn't require your own name attached to it. I'm going to assume if there isn't anyone else's name attached it's yours.

by Iron Fist on Dec 14, 2010 2:29 PM CST up reply actions  

My personal dislike for Vick aside...

I don’t have too many issues with what Choice did. If somebody supports Vick, that is their choice (no pun intended). As an organization Choice has been better to us than we have been to him, and I don’t think this is similar to when James Washington was bowing to Merton Hanks after the Niners beat us in the playoffs back in the day. If anything, I’m looking forward to his increased role next year, but I was looking forward to the same thing this year.

I wouldn’t mind Brooking back next year as Sean Lee’s back-up. We only have x many draft picks and I’d like to see us look other places than linebacker…again.

by Beuerleincouldhavebeenbetterthentroy on Dec 14, 2010 2:27 PM CST reply actions  

If he is willing to accept the role

Brooking would be a solid back-up, I’d like to see Kosier in that role as well. But I don’t think the team can ignore ILB. Assuming Lee is ready to be the QB of the defense, the middle is still an issue. James had a good game against the Eagles, but he is not consistently making plays and is not as good as in coverage as either Ware or Spencer.

It seems to me Spencer has the right skills and body type to play inside next to Lee as the draft is rich in OLBs, but I don’t honestly know if that is getting too cute.

Catapultam habeo. Nisi pecuniam omnem mihi dabis, ad caput tuum saxum immane mittam

by LRogue on Dec 14, 2010 2:53 PM CST up reply actions  

Let's get

rid of Bigg and Columbo before we start talking about Kosier only being a backup please. I think James will be fine for a few more years, esp with Lee beside him.

"Wade is no longer the coach." Jason Garrett

by k2spitfire88 on Dec 14, 2010 8:39 PM CST up reply actions  

Perhaps

If SS is upgraded James will be OK next to Lee, but if an upgrade is available via free agency I wouldn’t hesitate to pull the trigger.

We really have to look at replacing 4 of 5 lineman, but I agree Kosier is the last of the four. I was just expressing the benefit of maintaining veteran back-ups when putting young guys in as starters. Vets are often a distraction in such situations, I think Brooking and Kosier would be exceptions.

Catapultam habeo. Nisi pecuniam omnem mihi dabis, ad caput tuum saxum immane mittam

by LRogue on Dec 15, 2010 5:48 AM CST up reply actions  

Brooking has been a warrior

with the emphasis on “has been.” Time for him to ride into the sunset and clear a place for Sean Lee.

Keep doing what you been doing, keep getting what you been getting.

by OskieOskie on Dec 14, 2010 2:58 PM CST reply actions  

I think we see Marty B more involved in the passing game. We saw some him get more targets from Kitna Sunday.

by starmesh23 on Dec 14, 2010 4:20 PM CST up reply actions  

Seems to me

Kitna likes to throw to the tight ends more than the WR’s

by Antonio S on Dec 15, 2010 9:01 AM CST up reply actions  

I guess it does seem that way, but actually....

Kitna has TARGETED the TEs 28.7% of his throws.

He has TARGETED the WRs 53.5% of his throws
He has TARGETED the RBs 17.7 % of his throws

*Plus he has thrown twice as many TDs to the WRs (8) as he has to the TEs (4).

vir prudens non contra ventum mingit

by BishopWest on Dec 15, 2010 11:58 AM CST up reply actions  

No way

Who would have thunk it

by Antonio S on Dec 15, 2010 1:41 PM CST up reply actions  

Ogletree is a free agent after this year

I really think this kid is the slot guy…not an outside receiver. I know Wes Welker was misused prior to hooking up with the Pats.

Ogletree has great speed in his routes and gets open often. I was hoping to see what he can do in the slot…no way he doesn’t get picked up. The kid is a perfect fit for a team

Will not get major money and will be very productive. He can return both KO and punts (he’s the scout guy in practice) and will be a very solid #3 in this league

by Simon Potter on Dec 15, 2010 9:46 AM CST up reply actions  

Hoping for Ogletree's speedy recovery

We definitely need to find that slot guy, & need to know if we should be looking elsewhere. I’m pulling for the kid.
Brooking…. have to agree he might be good for the back-up role to Lee next year. His experience & fire, at this point, look to be of more use from the sideline area.
Tashard…. it should not be as big a deal as it seems to have become. I think it was a poor decision, after a loss, in our house, to a division rival who was clearly gunning for us, on national TV. Use better judgement, do it elsewhere.

"You have to play this game like somebody just hit your mother with a 2x4." -- Dan Birdwell, Oakland Raiders

by jstaubach on Dec 14, 2010 3:10 PM CST reply actions  

Dallas needs to get younger not older.

Brooking has been good, but it’s time to move on.

Lock n Load

by DIRE WOLF on Dec 14, 2010 3:24 PM CST reply actions  

i like brooking

but i’m not shedding any tears if he leaves. Just as long as we replace him with an upgrade. I’m still unsure about Lee. But I wouldn’t mind giving him a shot. His ability to stay healthy is a concern tho.

"They need security in the world, Craig!"

by Tuna Helper on Dec 14, 2010 3:48 PM CST reply actions  

i wouldn't mind have him next season to give sean lee some rest on 1& 2 downs

however chances are we won’t get a decent backup in offseason, so i better go with him as backup instead of some 5round rookie

by ratware on Dec 14, 2010 6:07 PM CST up reply actions  

This

"Wade is no longer the coach." Jason Garrett

by k2spitfire88 on Dec 14, 2010 8:39 PM CST up reply actions  

To give Sean Lee some rest?

It’s not like Lee is some aging vet, he’s a first year player! Run him ragged, he needs the experience that playing provides.

You can come up with a younger less expensive version of Brooking, they’re scattered all over the league.

by Nickthegrip on Dec 15, 2010 12:28 PM CST up reply actions  

yeah to give lee some rest

i guess he will be the starter, why would you want to overpaid an average FA? who probably will be released before his contract expires maybe after just one or two years here, if you want experience, brooking will be a nice backup

by ratware on Dec 15, 2010 8:28 PM CST up reply actions  

ILB

We better be looking at someone in the draft or FA.Right now,we only have Lee behind James and Brooking and neither of those are going to last too much longer.Brooking is done as a starter and BJ maybe another 1 or 2 years as a quality starter

by Oshawa Cowboy on Dec 14, 2010 4:11 PM CST reply actions  

Yes to a couple ILBs

Don’t know how many times I wondered where our LB help was on Iggle runs. I saw a lot of B James being blocked out of the play. I too remain skeptical of Lee, but definitely think he has the smarts for the position. Hopefully his ability to shed blocks and possibly bulk up a little developes in the off-season.

by Silverblue on Dec 14, 2010 7:53 PM CST up reply actions  

NO to a "couple" of LB

We need OL, Safety, and CB draft picks before we spend another and another high pick on LBs. We have drafted how many in the past few years?

Pick up a couple of projects in the 5th – 7th ok.

The first 5 rounds need to be BPA with leaning toward trenches/DB

by Travlr on Dec 14, 2010 10:21 PM CST up reply actions  

Free Agency

As much as I agree on that OL,Safety and CB are bigger needs,the draft is not the only place to get ILB.Hopefully Jerry is very active in FA to fix some of these problems as well,including ILB.Some experience there would be better anyways.Seems thats where we have dipped for LB help in the last few years,eg.Thomas,Brooking.

by Oshawa Cowboy on Dec 15, 2010 4:45 AM CST up reply actions  

David Harris

Still pretty young.The Jets have a lot of other players they have to spend money on and Harris could be available but looking at the FA list,there are a ton of ILB coming up in FA.

by Oshawa Cowboy on Dec 15, 2010 4:58 AM CST up reply actions  

A litttle off topic...

but for those of you that would like for us to draft another inside lb with the expectation that they would become an eventual starter, where other position would you like us to pass on? Let’s assume for a minute, that we strike free agent gold and sign Mankins. That would still leave OT, DE/DT (assuming Ratliff moves to DE), CB, and S on most realistic wish lists. James I feel is still an above average to average linebacker, which is more than I can say for Davis, Columbo, Igor, Newman, Sensi, or Ball relative to their respective positions. Although it’s too early (at least for me) to have a specific prospect in the draft to target, I would be very disappointed if we drafted an inside backer in the first two rounds.

by Beuerleincouldhavebeenbetterthentroy on Dec 14, 2010 4:29 PM CST reply actions  

Agreed

…but it can’t be ignored either. The defense is not very solid up the middle with the current ILBs.

Catapultam habeo. Nisi pecuniam omnem mihi dabis, ad caput tuum saxum immane mittam

by LRogue on Dec 14, 2010 5:32 PM CST up reply actions  

There are plenty of holes to fill

and I do agree with your point about the ILBs. Hard to say which positions are the key to build around. At various times I’ve insisted we need CBs, Safeties, OLs and ILs. The scouting dept has their work cut out for them and we better bat 1.000 on draft picks.

by Silverblue on Dec 14, 2010 7:59 PM CST up reply actions  

This is so assinine...

it deserves the double post. And the asinine misspelt above is intentional.

Apparently, it was for his 3-year-old nephew. Sure, it being caught on-camera is going to give Eagles fans a remark to make to us. Sure, it looked "bad" to fans who get all bent out of shape over non-game, lame-stream-media hype, BS and everything it brings us outside the game. Sure, it might not have been clearly thought through on Choice’s part, but it’s not like these guys see each other every day or are all big buddies from team to team.
It was a moment, caught on-camera or not, and I’ll take Choice’s word it was what it was until proven otherwise. And if it was for his nephew or any kid, anybody who comes down on him for doing it, even on-camera, places little or no value in the joy in a chiild’s eyes.
Even if it was for someone else or himself, I’d defend the action saying "It’s none of your business" and I think I can deal with the Eagle fans and other comments that come from something that’s such a big big "issue". Pretty minor compared to the BS that gets spewn calling down people over a triviality.
It’s got nothing to do with football directly. Which shows where some people’s focus is.
Me, elsewhere, about this “issue”.

Pride, Avarice, Lust, Envy, Gluttony, Wrath, Sloth.
5 outta 7 ain't bad. Working on the other 2.

by tanstaafl on Dec 17, 2010 7:57 AM CST reply actions  

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