FINALLY! A little beef from DMN
Been looking for one of my favorite topics... line play. Not that this ranks up there with great sports journalism efforts, but it'll do.

DMN's Todd Archer does his run down of last season's weakest link and this season's greatest hope.
First, the health of Flo:
This is a big season for Adams, who is scheduled to be a free agent in 2008, but the off-season did not go as planned. He missed most of the minicamp and on-field training activity practices with a cartilage injury that was cleaned up by a surgery. Not having the chance to work on the field in the off-season or improve his conditioning will hurt. The coaches will have to monitor his work in training camp.
The BIGG question. Davis getting to the outside. THAT'S a scary thought.
The signing of Davis raised some eyebrows across the league because he is viewed as a disappointment in Arizona where he was the No. 2 pick. However, he was selected as an alternate to the Pro Bowl at guard and tackle during his six-year stay with the Cardinals. The Cowboys are banking on Davis benefiting from a change of scenery, like Cardinals castoffs Simeon Rice and Thomas Jones. Davis certainly looks the part, and playing inside should help. His size is imposing, but he carries it well and showed the ability to get outside during minicamp practices.
Nothing startling on Kosier or Colombo, except that are tough scrappers.
And the depth:
Gurode's backup is unknown and could be Procter, who last played the spot in high school. Procter and Berger took snaps last year in practice. Procter is a technical player but can maul if necessary. Berger was high on the Cowboys' draft list a few years ago and they like his versatility.
McQuistan, a seventh-rounder in 2006, was a Parcells favorite. He benefited from Adams' absence this spring and saw a ton of work with the first team. He takes coaching well and does not get down on himself. He's also blessed with good feet. The plan was to move him to guard, but he saw most of his time at tackle in the off-season.
In an effort to avoid paying megabucks in free agency in the future, the Cowboys took Marten and Free in the third and fourth rounds. Marten is a pure right tackle and, like Colombo, will play to the whistle. Free might have more position options, but is working mostly at left tackle. He is a better athlete than Marten but needs to add some strength.
Darilek could be someone to keep en eye on once camp starts because he has experience and can play both interior spots if needed. Molinaro can be a swing tackle, but the drafting of Marten and Free didn't help his chances. Rissler's time could be in jeopardy with the Cowboys claiming Tarullo recently off waivers from Indianapolis. Not a great athlete, Tarullo gets by on his smarts and is the only other pure center on the roster besides Gurode.
Another user-created commentary provided by a BTB reader.
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Davis reborn?
I keep hearing about how the boys made a huge mistake signing Davis but name one player who has left Arizona saying "what a quality club, they really motivated me to get after it." We are americas team they are the disaster in the desert. Davis will have a pro bowl year and I think his lightbulb will go on much like Gurode's last year.
by Billito on
Jun 29, 2007 5:20 PM CDT
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Thanks for the pity-post!
I agree. My gut feeling is that Davis will go to the Pro Bowl this year as the best player on that line. The word on Davis has been that he can dominate when he wants to. Once you surround a guy with successful, driven performers, his will rise to their level.
by dunkman on
Jun 29, 2007 8:36 PM CDT
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