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***Official 2017-18 DALLAS COWBOYS Thread*** Playing the Skins is just what the Dr ordered. Eagles fans talking SB. :GIGGLE:. (1 Viewer)

STEADYMOBBIN 22

Footballguy
Let's try this again…

super impressed with the effort on Sunday night. That was a tough Giants defense.

 
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A few impressions

-While I was beyond thrilled with the defense, I am still wanting to see more, before I say they are cured.  Giants had no run game and turnstiles at Tackle. My whipping boy Lawrence looked good (contract year), Jaylon looks every bit the part and will only get better. Lee is a coach on the field, he is unreal. Hell even have to say Jeff freaking Heath played well. Other mentions go to M. Collins who flashed on a couple of plays, but has to be more consistent and stay in his lanes.

L. Collins played his #### off.  VERY impressed with how he handled JPP.  He plays with an edge and is a bit nasty.  Dude reminds me of Erik Williams.  Chaz Green pulled well and did not look out of place.  Calling it now - this line is BETTER not worse than last year. Look out NFL defenses.

I am hearing from a lot of other fans about how bad Dak played.  Really??? Yes, he missed a couple of red zone targets and maybe audibled a bit too much.  However, I have to credit Dak with lowering my blood pressure. I just never worry about this guy.  I don't have the blankets pulled up to eyes waiting for the horror show to happen.  Dude is a straight up winner, he does not make critical mistakes, or turn the ball over. We are beyond lucky to have him and he is going to continue to improve.  Gotta say loved the hurry up as an wrinkle this year.  I hope we do not over do it, but if we can gas a few teams by doing this - I am all for it.

Red Zone...pass...pass...pass....Come ON!!! Stop it.

Special teams aside from the every game hold from Byron Jones was fantastic.  Punting kept the Giants pinned down all game.  Bailey = money.

I thought Twill played a heck of a game.  Few clutch grabs and moved the chains on 3rd down.  Screen on 3rd and 12 was beauty.  Beasley - what a grab.. My heavens.  Dez will be fine, I wish he would shut up on the field, but that is Dez.  He beat Jack Rabbit a few times, but couldn't hook up with Dak.  Witten, what can you say.  I have never been a huge Witten "fan" but huge respect to one of the all time greats at TE.  Class, pure class.

Rookie DB's looked OK, but not challenged a lot.  I think this story line will play out over the next few weeks.  Fingers crossed.

Great to have Football back from what was a painful off-season with all the league BS.  Hey Roger, bite me.  Can't believe you have a job.  SMH.

 
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Great write up and I feel similarly.

Dak struggled a bit but as you said, I never worry with him. I NEVER want to to back to the cardiac Cowboys of Romos rein. 

Health will be the dermoning factor on the strength of the Oline but Instull have concerns on Chaz Greens ability to play hurt, not injuried. 

Defense was impressive. I don't care if ODB wasn't there, he wouldn't have helped them score 2 more touchdowns. 

I'm happy to see that it looks like Brandon Marshall stayed in New York to be on TV and not play football.

 
Great first half. 2nd half they put the cruise control on a bit. Defense looked good, but without ODB, Eli and that offense won't scare anyone. Hard to complain too much about the offense, other than a few errant throws from Dak (it is the first game and all), I think the Giants defense will again carry them to 2nd place in the division.  

I just would love to see them put salt the game in the 3rd qtr, instead of letting Giants linger too long.

Dak has really stepped up command of the offense, some of those bad throws will click as they get in a rhythm the next few games. That will be fun to watch. 

 
Dak has really stepped up command of the offense, some of those bad throws will click as they get in a rhythm the next few games. That will be fun to watch. 
:yes:  

It will be interesting to see how Dak handles the added responsibility. This seemed to be Tony Romo's downfall on more than one occasion. As long as he can handle it, and all signs point to yes, it should serve him well. 

 
What is everyones opinion on Jaylon Smith? I worry about him getting exposed by a team running right at him with a shifty back but I'm impressed at his playmaking ability. You can see he has good instincts and can lay the wood. 

 
Overall, the defense gave up 3 points. Really hard to find fault with the production on that side of the ball. And was that a legitimate pass rush we saw?!? :)

 
Overall, the defense gave up 3 points. Really hard to find fault with the production on that side of the ball. And was that a legitimate pass rush we saw?!? :)


The Giants Oline is awful but I am optimistic about the line after week 4 and the combination of:

D.Lawrence

Collins 

Paea

Irving

Sprinkle in some ?  and Mayowa and we should muster something, right? 

Btw, provided Jaylon doesn't have a setback, we have a VERY good group of LBs. As in VERY GOOD. 

 
D looked awesome.  So pleasantly surprised with what I saw.  A pass rush!!!!

having said that, the Gmen looked awful.  So cautiously optimistic.  

As much as I love him, I thought Dak looked shaky.  It seems like he is overthinking things and his mechanics suffered a bit.  I just hope he doesn't try to do too much.  You don't need to be Brady/Manning in your sophomore season.  Play within yourself.  

Anyway, other than the continued misuse of Dez by making him a one dimensional threat, the Boys looked good!

 
We knew the offense would be great this year.  I was more concerned with how the defense stood up in a game.  Even though it was a lot of the Giants not being too good on offense, I liked what I saw in our defense.  Great to see Jaylon out there doing his thing!

 
Jimmy Johnson should without question be in the HOF. He is the Gayle Sayers of coaches- short in tenure, but electric in the role. He completely transformed a moribund roster, winning two championships, and laying the foundation for a third. His personnel move take a backseat to no one. We always talk about how quality should supersede quantity. Jimmy Johnson epitomizes this axiom. 

 
Jimmy Johnson should without question be in the HOF. He is the Gayle Sayers of coaches- short in tenure, but electric in the role. He completely transformed a moribund roster, winning two championships, and laying the foundation for a third. His personnel move take a backseat to no one. We always talk about how quality should supersede quantity. Jimmy Johnson epitomizes this axiom. 
If Jerry Jones got into the Hall of Fame then Jimmy Johnson has to be in, because without Jimmy Johnson's tenure, Jerry Jones would not be in the hall of fame.

 
While Dallas' defense looked very good the other night, I am taking a wait and see approach for several reasons:

1) The Giants didn't have Beckham

2) The Giants offensive line is kaka

3) Eli is such a hot/cold QB, and Monday night he looked like he was in one of his "no clue" Phases. You know, when he has that perpetually confused look on his face.

Dallas could have a much improved defense. I just need to see more evidence.

 
While Dallas' defense looked very good the other night, I am taking a wait and see approach for several reasons:

1) The Giants didn't have Beckham

2) The Giants offensive line is kaka

3) Eli is such a hot/cold QB, and Monday night he looked like he was in one of his "no clue" Phases. You know, when he has that perpetually confused look on his face.

Dallas could have a much improved defense. I just need to see more evidence.
Agree but the Cowboys didn't have to be "much improved" on defense from last year to stop the Giants, even with Odell.

2016 Cowboys D was:

16th total yards given up

#1 against the rush

5th in PPG with 19.1

More sacks than the Giants. 

Granted, much of that had to do with the Cowboys ball control offense they employed last year. Im just hoping to stay the same on the back end and hope to just get slightly more pressure on the QB this season. 

 
While Dallas' defense looked very good the other night, I am taking a wait and see approach for several reasons:

1) The Giants didn't have Beckham

2) The Giants offensive line is kaka

3) Eli is such a hot/cold QB, and Monday night he looked like he was in one of his "no clue" Phases. You know, when he has that perpetually confused look on his face.

Dallas could have a much improved defense. I just need to see more evidence.
Most of us agree.  What I like is the youth and players that can turn into something.  Also, proper scheme fits for the first time in years, especially on the back end.

 
While Dallas' defense looked very good the other night, I am taking a wait and see approach for several reasons:

1) The Giants didn't have Beckham

2) The Giants offensive line is kaka

3) Eli is such a hot/cold QB, and Monday night he looked like he was in one of his "no clue" Phases. You know, when he has that perpetually confused look on his face.

Dallas could have a much improved defense. I just need to see more evidence.
1 and 2 are fair points, but 3 was a result of a very good zone by the reconstructed secondary.  There weren't a lot of openings and droopy was forced to hold the ball too long (helped the pass rush look better) or fit the ball into tight spaces. 

This is a great piece about the work the coaches have done, especially now that they have the players to run Marinelli's zone scheme. 

https://www.bloggingtheboys.com/2017/9/13/16295822/three-reasons-you-should-expect-more-greatness-from-the-dallas-cowboys-defense-jaylon-smith-sean-lee

 
Why is everyone so down on Dez?   Not getting much love in anybody's rankings.
I love Dez.

The truth though, is that his cap hit is among the highest in the league and he is not producing numbers. That's what other people see and why they comment as well as his dip in numbers.

We no longer have Tony who was very comfortable force feeding and trusting Dez to make plays.  We have a QB now who throws the ball to the OPEN guy. Dak is not putting the ball in harm's way.  Aside from questionable route running, this is the major difference from a few years ago.  Injuries may have had an impact too.

 
If Elliott rushes for at least 80 yards in Week 2, it will mark his 16th consecutive game doing so -- breaking the current NFL all-time record held by Hall of Fame running back Marcus Allen.

 
I love Dez.

The truth though, is that his cap hit is among the highest in the league and he is not producing numbers. That's what other people see and why they comment as well as his dip in numbers.

We no longer have Tony who was very comfortable force feeding and trusting Dez to make plays.  We have a QB now who throws the ball to the OPEN guy. Dak is not putting the ball in harm's way.  Aside from questionable route running, this is the major difference from a few years ago.  Injuries may have had an impact too.


Dez's numbers will be fine once they get away from the Giants and Broncos defenses. Dak and Dez have been working all camp on their chemistry and it will show. 

 
Well, forgive me if I don't freak out after what was a terrible game, played by 90% of our players.  We looked great in Week 1 and awful in Week 2. Make no joke though, Denver is a tough place to play. Noise, attitude, slow field and weather. 

The NFL is a week to week league. It was not our week.  Not much great to talk about, here are my concerns at this time:

-The Byron Jones at Safety experiment needs to be over.  Not a fit.  Won't tackle, poor angles.  Since we are playing more zone, try him at corner or move him down the depth chart. 

-Not concerned with Dak per se, not thrilled with him forcing it to Dez though. He could have had 3 or 4 picked this game.

-Is there a worse route runner than Dez?  I love this dude, but calling a spade a spade here.

-What exactly was our offensive game plan?  They took away runs up the middle. Why did we not run some tosses wide, some sweeps or keep hitting Zeke in the flat?

-I am giving Zeke another week, but he seems off in many ways. Concern is he looks slow, over weight and like he doesn't give a "ship".

I fully expect a bounce back performance on MNF.

 
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I kinda agree on it just being beaten, soundly, by a very good team. 

I fully expect the O-Line to be really pissed off and take it out on the Cardinals on MNF next week. 

The injuries to the secondary are really, really concerning. 

 
What compounded the injuries to the secondary was a poor decision to dress a 6th WR instead of a 5th corner. 

Week to week league. Sometimes teams get their asses handed to them and it was our turn. It was in Denver, after an emotional win against NY. That was a big step for Carolina mollywopped us the year before last. 

 
4:00 EST on Fox

-Jordy was injuried the last time they met. 

-Buncha rookies in the secondary could be a disaster

-Sean Lee's hammy is question. He's better but if he reaggrivates it then kiss the next several games goodbye. 

-Hitchins might play. 

-These are the types of games we win only to get demolished later in the playoffs when it matters. #sad. 

 
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I know us Cowboys fans are a shell shocked group but cmon guys, let's get some convo going...

Jordan Lewis looks good.

 Xavier Woods might take Jeff Heath's spot after today. 

I honestly believe this defense won't hit its stride until about week 9 or 10. They're all wet behind the ears but they should get the hang of Marinellis system by then. 

Same goes for the Oline. I'm not sure it will be as devastating as last year but certainly better.  

 
Well, forgive me if I don't freak out after what was a terrible game, played by 90% of our players.  We looked great in Week 1 and awful in Week 2. Make no joke though, Denver is a tough place to play. Noise, attitude, slow field and weather. 

The NFL is a week to week league. It was not our week.  Not much great to talk about, here are my concerns at this time:

-The Byron Jones at Safety experiment needs to be over.  Not a fit.  Won't tackle, poor angles.  Since we are playing more zone, try him at corner or move him down the depth chart. 

-Not concerned with Dak per se, not thrilled with him forcing it to Dez though. He could have had 3 or 4 picked this game.

-Is there a worse route runner than Dez?  I love this dude, but calling a spade a spade here.

-What exactly was our offensive game plan?  They took away runs up the middle. Why did we not run some tosses wide, some sweeps or keep hitting Zeke in the flat?

-I am giving Zeke another week, but he seems off in many ways. Concern is he looks slow, over weight and like he doesn't give a "ship".

I fully expect a bounce back performance on MNF.
 A few weeks later and I still agree with all of this. Zeke is winded this season. Too much weed? 

Personaly I can no longer stand Dez. He sucks. He might be strong as an ox but he's ZERO finesse.  At the risk of repeating myself about this because I think I say this in the game threads every week but every time he attempts to make a catch it's like he's going for the worlds loudest clap. He's simply awful. 

 Now if we could just find somebody to catch the ball and then hand it to him then maybe we have something. He's absolutely devastating with the ball in his hands. 

 
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My love of the NFL is dying.  Terrible suspension. Roger is a joke. Sick of the politics....all of it.

Also, this coaching staff HAS to go.

Dez is an idiot.

Witten is hurting the team.

Jaylon is still not 100% and not ready. Our LB's are JV.

This is a lost year that I refuse to spend much effort or calories on.

Go Leafs Go!!!

 
My love of the NFL is dying.  Terrible suspension. Roger is a joke. Sick of the politics....all of it.

Also, this coaching staff HAS to go.

Dez is an idiot.

Witten is hurting the team.

Jaylon is still not 100% and not ready. Our LB's are JV.

This is a lost year that I refuse to spend much effort or calories on.

Go Leafs Go!!!
But other than that, how was the play, Mrs. Lincoln?

Sorry that you are so down on your team. I always have enjoyed your objective comments on them.

 
But other than that, how was the play, Mrs. Lincoln?

Sorry that you are so down on your team. I always have enjoyed your objective comments on them.
I appreciate you saying that. It's the coaching staff that is sucking the life out of me.

Garrett thinks we can win by him clapping and thinking we are the 93' Cowboys. Just line up, and try to dominate with better talent. Well Jason, we aren't the 93' team, that much is certain.  Tired of all vertical routes, tired of D's knowing the play before we snap, tired on no rub or pick routes, tired of throwing all the time in the red zone.  Tired of not being able to have any depth at LB.  We are toast when Lee goes out. Jaylon is still healing and a step slow, but this defense is the reason we are 2-3.

 
I appreciate you saying that. It's the coaching staff that is sucking the life out of me.

Garrett thinks we can win by him clapping and thinking we are the 93' Cowboys. Just line up, and try to dominate with better talent. Well Jason, we aren't the 93' team, that much is certain.  Tired of all vertical routes, tired of D's knowing the play before we snap, tired on no rub or pick routes, tired of throwing all the time in the red zone.  Tired of not being able to have any depth at LB.  We are toast when Lee goes out. Jaylon is still healing and a step slow, but this defense is the reason we are 2-3.
I can appreciate your frustration. In terms of coaching, does Garrett actually do anything, other than cheerleading, and arguing with the refs? I know that model can work (Cowher, Tomlin) but I think if you are putting most of the x's and o'x in the hands of your coordinators, I think you have to be a really good player motivator. I don't see Garrett as being really strong in that role.

 
Big game this week. Always liked Redskins games.
Dallas is catching the Redskins at the right time with all their offensive line injuries. The Redskins are not catching the Cowboys at the right time as Dallas' offense looks to be getting things in sync. I think the Cowboys should win this game fairly easily, but it being a divisional game and on the road for the Cowboys, I see the Cowboys winnning a close one.

 
I appreciate you saying that. It's the coaching staff that is sucking the life out of me.

Garrett thinks we can win by him clapping and thinking we are the 93' Cowboys. Just line up, and try to dominate with better talent. Well Jason, we aren't the 93' team, that much is certain.  Tired of all vertical routes, tired of D's knowing the play before we snap, tired on no rub or pick routes, tired of throwing all the time in the red zone.  Tired of not being able to have any depth at LB.  We are toast when Lee goes out. Jaylon is still healing and a step slow, but this defense is the reason we are 2-3.
I agree with most of this, especially how the D is either above average or the worst in the league depending on if Lee is in the lineup. I do think the secondary will improve by week 9ish.  

That improvement on D. doesn't include Byron Jones unwillingness to tackle. 

PLEASE stop running the ball of every single first down. 

 
Critical game this week. 

Need our nasty pass rushers to put the heat on Smith & creative some negative plays.

Obviously need to contain Hunt & also keep Hill from beating us deep.

Offensively, just do our thang.

 
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Just an awful performance last night. I can only hope they were looking ahead to the Eagles this week. 

I cant figure out why they left Green alone with no help. WAAAAY too much passing. 

Lol at the criticism of Dak. Tom Brady is just a bum when he gets sacked 7 times. 

We need to find someone else to play when Lee is out. The defense isn't even competitive whenever he's not out there. I'm not sure we can even beat the Eagles without him.

 
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Thanks for posting, Steady. I was dreading how far back I was going to have to search for the Cowboy thread. 

Obviously a big game this week. Any updates on Smith/Lee availability for Sunday? Obviously if they were both out, it will be a really tough game for the Cowboys to win. If they are both in, it should be a really good game. I obviously love the Eagles chances, but until that cloud of zero super bowl wins is lifted off the Eagles heads, I will always be expecting something to go wrong. Roseman and Pederson have done as a good a job the last two years as probably any GM/coach could have done. They have put together a group of really good guys who happen to be very good at playing football.

 
Our team and coaching staff are pathetic.  We need to clean house at the end of the year. Dak and Zeke are young as is the Oline. Our DL is improved greatly, we are even getting decent CB play. The area's we suck at: LB is so thin. I love Lee, but he is glass and we have nothing behind him. Jaylon is NOT the player I thought we was and most safeties are total trash or a work in progress. We could also use WR's and a TE. Witten is NOT worth his salary. 

I want a young coaching staff who have created an offense scheme that was in this decade. We are NOT the 93 Cowboys.  Be creative, innovative and use the players to their potential.  I am sure there are some brilliant Football mind who would love to get their hands on a team with the fire power we have on offense.

Being totally honest. I would be happiest if we lose out, get a better draft pick and favorable schedule for next year.

 
The loss of Smith, even more than Zeke, was crippling yesterday. If you cannot protect the quarterback you have no chance to win. As an example, the Patriots, winners of 5 rings over the last several years, have only lost games when Brady is under constant duress. It doesn't matter who your QB is, if pressure is a constant, you won't win. Smith is worth every penny of his contract as was shown yesterday.

Let's be honest about the defense. Lawrence is great and so is Lee. Other than that, we really don't have any real difference makers. By and large, this is a group of grinders that gets the most out of what they have. Unless there is a marked upgrade in personnel, we are looking at a middling defense for years to come. I love the Jaylon Smith comeback, but let's face it, he's strictly average. Perhaps another year after the surgery will be of benefit, but I'm doubtful. Hitchens is a grinder but the LB group and DB group are mediocre.

Offensively, I feel like Smith's return will be a big boost. Morris is a respectable RB and can churn between the tackles. He clearly doesn't posses Zeke's second level skills. Rod Smith is, until given a chance, truly unknown. 

Basically, we are playing for our season against the Eagles next week. I actually think we have a decent shot at winning that game, but Smith has to return. If we can control the clock with our running game, we have a better shot than many expect. 

 
Our team and coaching staff are pathetic.  We need to clean house at the end of the year. Dak and Zeke are young as is the Oline. Our DL is improved greatly, we are even getting decent CB play. The area's we suck at: LB is so thin. I love Lee, but he is glass and we have nothing behind him. Jaylon is NOT the player I thought we was and most safeties are total trash or a work in progress. We could also use WR's and a TE. Witten is NOT worth his salary. 

I want a young coaching staff who have created an offense scheme that was in this decade. We are NOT the 93 Cowboys.  Be creative, innovative and use the players to their potential.  I am sure there are some brilliant Football mind who would love to get their hands on a team with the fire power we have on offense.

Being totally honest. I would be happiest if we lose out, get a better draft pick and favorable schedule for next year.
I was mostly responding to you in my last post but forgot to quote you...

I agree again with most of what you're saying. We never make any adjustments. If our gameplan work than great, but if it doesn't, we're screwed. 

We were the 93 Cowboys last year but no longer without Free and Leary. 

Im done with Jones at safety. He is NOT a willing tackler. He prefers to run up to and grab a guy rather than lay the wood. On the flip side, Heath is a more than willing hitter but lacks the athleticism of Byron and often takes bad angles. Byron is a slot corner to cover TEs and Heath is a backup safety and special teams ace. 

 
You forgot about Irving and Maleik Collins. Both are outstanding. 

Jaylon needs another year. 


Smith may never get back to where he was.

Sean Spence who Pittsburgh drafted in the third round in 2012 suffered a similar knee injury in which he tore his ACL and LCL, dislocated his kneecap and  damaged the peroneal nerve.  

It took two plus years before he was on the field again but he was never the player he was before.   He is not currently on any NFL team.

 

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