JJT is back with a new column in the DMN today. After dispatching the question of Hard Knocks being a distraction with a resounding "no", he does some Q&A. One question was about Bobby Carpenter. Can you actually grade Carpenter as a player even though he’s been shuttled between various positions and has seen very little playing time on defense? It’s a tricky question because you can look at it two ways. One is that Carpenter hasn’t been allowed to show his true talents because he’s never been left at a position long enough to get comfortable and learn the nuances. The constant shuffling and lack of playing time might also have gotten into his head and manifested in a lack of confidence. The other side of the debate says that if Carpenter had the skills needed he would have grabbed hold of a position and forced his way into playing time. The Cowboys coaches would be playing him if they thought he had done enough to earn it. You have to remember that they see him everyday in practice where we don’t, so they have a lot more information to go on. My gripe with Carpenter going all the way back to his rookie season is his inability to shed blockers and make the play. That was based on a couple of training camps witnessed in person and watching him in games, including some preseason games. When he is in the open field he can get something done but when tied up in traffic he doesn’t do a good job of freeing himself. Something I also think is a problem with Marcus Spears. Moving him to the "Mo" linebacker is a nod to that line of thinking because in theory he will be able to run to the ball with less traffic or having the guards release to the second-level to pick him up. We’ll see what happens but I’m of the belief that if he had shown the skills to be effective in TC, preseason and in practices, the Cowboys coaches would have no problem getting him on the field.

A couple of other Q&A’s of note involving the WR position:

Q: Are the Cowboys interested in Chris Henry?

TAYLOR: I haven't heard anything from the Cowboys that suggests they have any interest in Henry. He's a good player, but he's not special. The Cowboys have enough volatile personalities in their locker room. They don't need to add another.

I can’t imagine anybody truly being interested in the kid until Roger Goodell settles his playing status. Pacman is one thing because he could easily be reinstated soon, but Henry has just added more trouble to his long list and that doesn’t bode well for his future. Also, I agree with JJT that Henry is a good player but hasn’t shown enough for anyone to go out on a limb to acquire him. In contrast, I fully believe that Pacman is one of the better CB’s in this league and his special teams prowess makes him even more valuable. I’m not sure if he’ll be on the top of his game early in the season, assuming reinstatement, but by the end of the year he could very well be battling Terence Newman for preeminent CB on the team.

Q: I've been reading how much Danny Amendola looks like Wes Walker. If he makes the team, which wide receivers could get cut?

TAYLOR: First, I think Amendola's chances to make the team are slim, in part, because he doesn't play special teams. He seems like a much better bet to make the practice squad. If Amendola did make it, I think Isaiah Stanback may be the one who doesn't make it because he has yet to prove he can do anything in the NFL, while Sam Hurd and Miles Austin have proven they can contribute.

Uh, I have to go the other way on this question. Unless Stanback is a total bust in training camp, which I don't expect to happen, there isn’t a chance the Cowboys would cut him. They drafted him knowing he was a project, they knew that the foot injury would slow him down enough to make last year a wash. The idea was to use last year to teach him the WR position at the pro-level and that this year would be his first chance to show what kind of future he has at the position. It would take him being a monumental disappointment to be let go this year. Everybody knows that it usually takes even the most talented and polished receivers coming out of college a few years to get everything going in the NFL. On the other hand, Hurd and Austin have been here for a couple of years and this year will be a big marker for them. Hurd has already shown he has the consistency to be a good backup WR in this league but Austin is still on the bubble for me. He has the physical tools without a doubt, but he needs to show he can be productive on the field. I think if anyone is in danger from Amendola’s presence it would be Austin. But, I have no idea if Amendola is good enough to take a spot away from a vet; we need to see him in pads at training camp before we can even begin to assess his future prospects.

Mike Florio of PFT.com also writes for the Sporting News. He has a list of the 10-worst offseason moves and we make it. 

The Cowboys sent linebacker Akin Ayodele and tight end Anthony Fasano to the Dolphins for a fourth-round draft pick. Total. Seriously.

Ayodele signed with the Cowboys as a free agent in 2006, and Fasano was a second-round pick that same year. Although Ayodele would have been bumped to the bench by free-agent pickup Zach Thomas, it's highly risky, at best, for Dallas to count on the veteran linebacker with the history of head trauma to stay on the field. Meanwhile, after dealing away Fasano, the Cowboys had to burn a second-round pick on a new tight end (Texas A&M's Martellus Bennett) to work behind Jason Witten.

I don’t think it was one of the 10-worst moves of the offseason although I freely admit I’ve never really thought about making a list like that. But I do admit to thinking that we didn’t get enough out of that trade. Sure we were going to have to do something with Ayodele and at least we got some value instead of just cutting him. As for Fasano, I thought his play here was a little disappointing so I wasn’t exactly mad that we let him go. But only getting a fourth for both of them just seemed a little low. And as you guys know, I haven’t bought into the Martellus Bennett hype yet. I view Dallas’ offense as a vertical passing game offense and he doesn’t excite me in terms of that. While we do use a 2-TE set on occasion, we don’t do it often enough to be a staple of the offense and I don’t think Bennett will change that. I also know that Witten is going to get the bulk of the passes thrown to the TE so I can’t see him making a large impact in that area. I do concede with his height and athletic ability that Bennett could be a factor in the redzone, but just having the physical gifts isn’t enough. He has to prove that he can get open in those situations and show the steady hands needed to be trusted in those critical situations. I’m not saying he can’t, but he still has to prove it to me.

This story might be of interest because of DeMarcus Ware’s contract situation. The Baltimore Ravens, Terrell Suggs and the league have come up with a new "franchise tag" position for hybrid OLB/DE’s in 3-4 defenses.

The settlement, which is being finalized by lawyers for the NFLPA and the Management Council, creates a new position in franchise designations -- a defensive end-linebacker. Once the paperwork is completed later this week, Suggs, designated as a franchise linebacker, will be re-designated as a defensive end-linebacker, and his one-year franchise tender will increase from $8.065 million to around $8.5 million.

If the Cowboys ever end up franchise tagging Ware, he would fit into this new category.

It’s not often that you have an offense that roars through a regular season setting club records and yet is still questioned in terms of personnel. That is the Dallas Cowboys fate this offseason. One part of the equation was obvious and the Cowboys obviously fixed it. Dallas dispatched their third string running back, Tyson Thompson, early in the offseason while simultaneously displaying no intent at all to bring back one part of its dual running back combo, Julius Jones. This left them with only Marion Barber who was tendered at the highest level as a restricted free agent all but assuring his place on the 2008 roster. Once the RFA deadline passed the Cowboys had the Barbarian for this year and then added Felix Jones and Tashard Choice in the draft giving them a full stable of backs for the 2008 season. Problem solved.

The other part of the equation, the wide receivers, is a little more nebulous than running back and hasn’t been addressed in any meaningful way so far. The question is: Does it need to be addressed? Here is where the paradox comes into place. The Cowboys offense was a high-powered machine for most of the season and the wide receiver position was part of that explosion. So why did almost all the experts list WR as a need in the draft and why did the Cowboys seemingly acknowledge this need by pursuing a veteran through a trade that never came to fruition?

Even today, guys like Pat Kirwan are still referring to this problem.

Lots of people predicted the Cowboys would select a receiver early in the draft, but they never took one even though they had many opportunities to do so. The pressure point(s) in this decision fall in three places: 1. Can Terry Glenn stay healthy? 2. Can Patrick Crayton continue to grow? 3. Will Jerry Jones continue to look for a trade for a marquee player? Wideouts Early Doucet, Earl Bennett and Mario Manningham were still on the board when the Cowboys took tight end Martellus Bennett at the No. 61 spot. One of those players might have been able to help but maybe not enough to skip a player like Bennett, who will play in the Cowboys' two tight end sets. The best thing Dallas can do to relieve the pressure on the receivers is to find a way to make a trade before the season.

 

Yesterday, I linked to a Peter King article that pushed the same theme. I also linked to Wade Phillips’ press conference response saying that Dallas is just fine for the moment with its wide receiver corps. What gives?

There are a few things in play. One is the idea that the Cowboys main WR’s are aged and hobbled. Terrell Owens and Terry Glenn are both in their mid-30’s. Glenn is coming off a knee injury that effectively wiped-out his 2007 season and no one, including the Cowboys organization, is quite sure what his status for this year will be. Glenn is a good route-runner with good hands, but his bread-and-butter has always been his speed and his ability to separate from defenders. A severe knee injury to an older receiver brings up the very real issue that he may never be the same receiver again even if he does make it back on the field. Meanwhile, Terrell Owens, who it should be noted may be in his mid-30’s on a pure chronological basis, has the body of a much younger receiver and shows no signs of slowing down. But, and this is a big issue, when he went down with an ankle injury late in the season, the Cowboys offense began to sputter and his return in the playoff game against the Giants didn’t exactly fix the problem. It can be debated whether he was 100% but most observers would say he wasn’t and the rest of the receiving corps couldn’t make up for it.

When talking about the Cowboys passing game, the experts rarely point out one thing that plays a major role. The Cowboys #2 receiver is really TE Jason Witten. Even when Glenn was healthy they were probably 2a and 2b after T.O. Witten doesn't have to carry the load like some TE’s who were/are the #1 option on their teams like Tony Gonzalez or Antonio Gates, but he should be thought of in that class when evaluating the Cowboys passing offense.

Still, the Cowboys receiving corps is perceived as aging at the top with little backup potential and one injury away from real trouble. The truth is probably not that dire but there is some legitimate reason for concern.

The Breakdown:

Terrell Owens – His time in Dallas has been an unmitigated success and he’s proven that he’s among the elite receivers in this league. But he is creeping up their in age even though his mid-30’s appears to be like other receiver’s late-20’s. The Cowboys have a lot of contracts to settle with a lot of top players and T.O. is one of them, he finishes his original 3-year contract this year. Dallas will have to determine how long they want to re-sign him for and also work within the demands of money that T.O. and his agent drew Rosenhaus will surely ask for. Strictly in terms of football, Dallas most assuredly wants him back after this year, but the salary cap and the player’s age will shape the negotiations. He’s no lock for the future.

Terry Glenn – Just one huge question mark. Can he play again? Can he remain healthy if he gets back on the field? Will he be close to the same player he was if he does get back into the lineup? Dallas will be monitoring this situation very closely in the OTA’s and training camp. Glenn’s future in Dallas ranges from a return to the #2 WR spot to not even making on the 53-man roster because of lingering injury issues. Another WR where the future is uncertain, and unlike T.O., it’s uncertain for this season.

Patrick Crayton – An OK #2 option but a better #3 option. With Glenn’s injury he was pressed into service as the #2 (in pure WR terms, Witten actually fills that role) and during the biggest game of his life he failed not once, but twice, in a major way. Can he be counted on to handle the responsibility again this year?

Sam Hurd – A steady backup guy but doesn’t appear to have the potential to go much further.

Miles Austin – Has all the speed you’d want to break into the upper echelon of the receiving corps, yet seems better at drawing pass interference penalties instead of actually catching the ball.

Isaiah Stanback – We really don’t know what he can do since he was hampered by a foot injury last year and is trying to make the transition from QB to WR. A project with all the physical attributes but no one is really sure if he’ll be able to produce at the position in real games.

After that, you have some young veterans and some fresh-faced UDFA’s who will take their shot at muscling in on some playing time in training camp. So far, it looks like Danny Amendola has the early lead in making that happen.

So there’s the paradox. Essentially the same group of receivers returns that led the Cowboys offense to one of the best seasons in the history of the club. But they also proved the fragility of the situation through injury and inexperience rearing its head in the big playoff game last year. Unless Dallas makes a move for a veteran that can contribute in a meaningful way they will be rolling the dice and hoping to hit the big payoff. But with a little bad luck they could just as easily crap-out.

A news roundup of the first day of rookie mini-camp.

The Breerman gives you five more quick impressions. Short version: Mark Bradford made the play of the day on a long bomb, Orlando Scandrick looked like the best CB on the field, Mike Jenkins recovered nicely in his second practice of the day, Danny Amendola actually dropped some passes in the second session and Richard Bartel looked like a real QB.

Mike Jenkins has a little Prime Time in his past as his uncle, Tracy Sanders, was a CB with Prime at FSU. Deion has been mentoring the kid who is now our second CB from the University of South Florida, the alma mater of Anthony Henry.

Danny Amendola is attracting a lot of attention in camp, especially from Jerry.

"He's certainly showed he's refined," Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said after the first rookie practice Friday. "He will be able to separate. He's going to be able to get away from people. I'm glad we got him."

He may be refined on the field but certainly needs some work on his interviews. Not exactly smooth in the post-practice gab-fest.

But speaking of who is smooth, that seems to be the operative word for Felix "El Gato" Jones. 

"He's smooth," Jerry Jones said. "You can see that he can run when he gets that ball. The most important thing that I saw out here today was just how smooth he looks when he's running and cutting."

Don’t forget about Isaiah Stanback either.

"He's doing a great job, and I'm really pleased with the way he's running routes and catching the ball," [Ray] Sherman said. "He's in shape, and I'm very impressed with the way he runs his routes. He's a contender at that position.... I like our group."

Meanwhile, in veteran news, it apperas that the Tuna did want his former first round pick Bobby Carpenter but the Cowboys said no dice.

According to an NFL source, the Dolphins wanted Bobby Carpenter, but the Cowboys weren't willing to part with the 2006 first-round draft pick. So Dallas included Ayodele in the deal.

As noted by many, including Brandon in his post, Captain Caveman is on the move again.

He's currently backing up veteran Zach Thomas. Carpenter said he's been studying game film with Thomas and already has picked up quite a bit in the short time the veteran free-agent acquisition has been with the Cowboys.

Hat tip to Deke for posting the Bobby Carpenter non-trade article.