matt79511 Posted August 14, 2018 Share Posted August 14, 2018 3 minutes ago, Nextyearfordaboyz said: Pretty great feeling to say that we 1) have been one of the better drafting teams this decade, 2) are the youngest roster in the NFL, and 3) are very comfortable with the salary cap. Dak's development will dictate a lot. I'm a Dak backer, but I don't think he needs to be much more than a game manager for the team to have success this year. I truly believe this defense is incredibly close to legit. Just need solutions at NT and FS, with the answer to the latter staring us in the face. As for the NT spot... call me crazy, but I barely care. I could see us running even more 3-man lines this year, with essentially a non-stop rotation of all our 6'6 280-ish 5-tech type players (Irving, Taco, Ealy, Jones, Ward) moving around the formation, backing up our more traditional 4-man fronts. Jaylon's ability as a blitzer and our improved LB depth make this possible, even likely IYAM. And if it doesn't work and our DTs kill us again, guess what? Next year's draft is loaded with them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Calvert28 Posted August 14, 2018 Share Posted August 14, 2018 1 hour ago, matt79511 said: I'm a Dak backer, but I don't think he needs to be much more than a game manager for the team to have success this year. I truly believe this defense is incredibly close to legit. Just need solutions at NT and FS, with the answer to the latter staring us in the face. As for the NT spot... call me crazy, but I barely care. I could see us running even more 3-man lines this year, with essentially a non-stop rotation of all our 6'6 280-ish 5-tech type players (Irving, Taco, Ealy, Jones, Ward) moving around the formation, backing up our more traditional 4-man fronts. Jaylon's ability as a blitzer and our improved LB depth make this possible, even likely IYAM. And if it doesn't work and our DTs kill us again, guess what? Next year's draft is loaded with them. Everyone says it's on Dak this year. And I agree. But really I will put most of the blame on JG and Linehan if he doesn't develop fully. Dak has shown poise and the ability to make great decisions. That alone gives him an incredible chance to succeed, and he should succeed. The only thing that Dak should show self improvement on is his accuracy. Everything else the coaches should have a serious guiding hand in his development. I will say this. Anyone who was a one hit wonder had the ability the ability to succeed in this league. The issue for them failing was either with themselves or coaching. In this situation, I would put most of the blame on coaching. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nextyearfordaboyz Posted August 14, 2018 Share Posted August 14, 2018 1 hour ago, matt79511 said: I'm a Dak backer, but I don't think he needs to be much more than a game manager for the team to have success this year. I truly believe this defense is incredibly close to legit. Yeah, I don't disagree with this. The Cowboys are set up for "success", certainly, even with average QB play. But it's tough to win a Super Bowl with a game manager. Where Dak falls on the scale from game manager to legit franchise QB, in my opinion, will dictate a lot about the next 5+ years and whether or not we are able to add to the trophy case. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matt79511 Posted August 14, 2018 Share Posted August 14, 2018 24 minutes ago, Calvert28 said: Everyone says it's on Dak this year. And I agree. But really I will put most of the blame on JG and Linehan if he doesn't develop fully. Dak has shown poise and the ability to make great decisions. That alone gives him an incredible chance to succeed, and he should succeed. The only thing that Dak should show self improvement on is his accuracy. Everything else the coaches should have a serious guiding hand in his development. I will say this. Anyone who was a one hit wonder had the ability the ability to succeed in this league. The issue for them failing was either with themselves or coaching. In this situation, I would put most of the blame on coaching. 100% agreed. Dak's playing for an extension next year, but it's not like we'd cut or trade him. I think he gets the deal unless he takes another step back, which is unlikely IMO. Worst case, he has to play out his contract year. JG and Linehan are outright coaching for their jobs. That's undeniable. IMO, there's not *that* much difference between the 8th and 25th or so best QB in the league anymore. It's all surrounding talent and scheme fit. 4 minutes ago, Nextyearfordaboyz said: Yeah, I don't disagree with this. The Cowboys are set up for "success", certainly, even with average QB play. But it's tough to win a Super Bowl with a game manager. Where Dak falls on the scale from game manager to legit franchise QB, in my opinion, will dictate a lot about the next 5+ years and whether or not we are able to add to the trophy case. Also a fair assessment. But again, I'm not sure there's more than 5 or 6 QBs in the league that are truly transcendent superstars. Lest we forget that Nick Foles just won a Super Bowl, or that Alex Smith and Derek Carr were considered MVP candidates at various points of the last two seasons. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nextyearfordaboyz Posted August 14, 2018 Share Posted August 14, 2018 12 minutes ago, matt79511 said: Also a fair assessment. But again, I'm not sure there's more than 5 or 6 QBs in the league that are truly transcendent superstars. Lest we forget that Nick Foles just won a Super Bowl, or that Alex Smith and Derek Carr were considered MVP candidates at various points of the last two seasons. I guess my point is that there is a huge spectrum between transcendent superstars and bus drivers. I do agree that the bottom end of that is not a 0% chance of winning a Super Bowl. But where Dak winds up I think is the biggest variable to how good our chances ultimately are... because the team around him appears to be good enough. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matt79511 Posted August 14, 2018 Share Posted August 14, 2018 38 minutes ago, Nextyearfordaboyz said: I guess my point is that there is a huge spectrum between transcendent superstars and bus drivers. I do agree that the bottom end of that is not a 0% chance of winning a Super Bowl. But where Dak winds up I think is the biggest variable to how good our chances ultimately are... because the team around him appears to be good enough. Fair enough. I think he establishes himself back into the mix as a borderline Top 10 QB this year- with some giving him credit for working with a no name group of WRs and TEs, others dismissing him as a product of his OL and running back. Ranking and tiering of QBs is kind of subjective anyhow. There'll always be bias against Cowboys' QBs. I think, in time, Dak will prove that durability, work ethic, and the ability to relate to those around you- the things that make up that indiscernible "it" factor- are as valuable of traits in a QB as his on-field skill set. As much as we all love(d) Romo here, as fantastic a player as he could be... I think his aloofness as a person and lack of discipline in training his body in the offseason may have cost him. Those aren't things we have to worry about with Dak. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaBoys Posted August 14, 2018 Share Posted August 14, 2018 I think Dak has proven he is capable of bus driving in the 2016 and showed he has a place in this league. I think 2017 proved he can't, as of last year, carry a team. I get both sides of the argument. Yes Foles just won with a team... barely. Against a transcendent QB. Dak got a 1st round bye in 2016 with a team, and lost in the playoffs ....barely. Against a transcendent QB. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaBoys Posted August 14, 2018 Share Posted August 14, 2018 Imo Dak Prescott will never be a consistent 4,000+ yard 30+ TD QB that needs no one around him. Send Brady or Rodgers to the Browns and they are legit SB contenders. Dak is more like a Tyrod. Which is fine. But waiting for him to blossom into an Aaron Rodgers/Tom Brady/Peyton Manning/Drew Brees type QB? I think he has already shown the necessary traits to rule that out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matt79511 Posted August 14, 2018 Share Posted August 14, 2018 5 minutes ago, DaBoys said: I think Dak has proven he is capable of bus driving in the 2016 and showed he has a place in this league. I think 2017 proved he can't, as of last year, carry a team. I get both sides of the argument. Yes Foles just won with a team... barely. Against a transcendent QB. Dak got a 1st round bye in 2016 with a team, and lost in the playoffs ....barely. Against a transcendent QB. This is key, because it would be unwise to assume a QB who just turned 25 has plateaued in his development, IMO. I think people look too much to what happened without Zeke and Tyron and overlook what the offense was before they went down. Not in terms of how effective it was... in terms of how disjointed it was. We put up Top 5 offensive stats in the first half of last year... but to me, something just felt off. More frequent three and outs, more reliance on the defense to get stops... it just wasn't the same unit as 2016 when we pummeled everyone. I would say this is because no one could really get open and the playcalling was predictable and teams overloaded the box- things that all bared out in the second half, I would say were also true in the first half. That we still put up close to 28 PPG in those 8 games is a testament to both Dak and Zeke, because it's not like Dez and Witten were by any means dominant, and the OL took time to gel as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaBoys Posted August 14, 2018 Share Posted August 14, 2018 On 8/11/2018 at 10:50 PM, Matts4313 said: This is a great sign for the rook. He has all the physical tools, so his job is to get the technique and mental part down. I think it's the opposite. I think he has technique and this is another example of him having an above average mental game. It's the physical part he needs to get better at. He needs to add strength in a bad way. https://www.dallascowboys.com/news/scout-s-notebook-defensive-difference-makers When Connor Williams is in the pass rush drill, he generally has to face back-to-back rushers. What defenders have figured out when they rush Williams is simple, yet smart. For one of two reps, they have chosen to “bull rush” him – or attempt to overpower him, to put it bluntly. Datone Jones has done it with some success, as has Tyrone Crawford. But rushers haven’t had as much success when it comes to the team periods, where the entire offensive and defensive lines are together. Williams has been able to hold his own in those situations, where there are bodies banging off each other. There is no question that Connor Williams needs to get stronger, but that will likely come after his rookie season. Until then we all need to be patient with him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WizardHawk Posted August 14, 2018 Author Share Posted August 14, 2018 Very impressive... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D82 Posted August 15, 2018 Share Posted August 15, 2018 2 hours ago, WizardHawk said: Very impressive... Was just about to post this. I know some scouting sites had Armstrong as a 1st round potential guy prior to last season...think in a year or two, he’s going to be a good player for us. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaBoys Posted August 15, 2018 Share Posted August 15, 2018 More coverage on Jaylon coverage: https://www.dallascowboys.com/news/scout-s-notebook-defensive-difference-makers We continue to see Jaylon Smith being put in coverage situations and coming up big. Smith has been asked to carry receivers down the field as well as tight ends and running backs to the sideline, with no physical limitations or issues. His lateral agility and quickness have been impressive. One of his better snaps was when he had to carry Dalton Schultz across the field with a ton of space to deal with. Smith played the route perfectly, waiting until the just the right moment to put his hand in front of Schultz to bat Dak Prescott’s pass to the ground. https://www.dallascowboys.com/news/star-of-the-day-big-moments-from-zeke-jaylon David Helman: I continue to be impressed by Jaylon Smith. if the guy carries this run of play into the season, he’s going to have a hell of a year. His improvement in coverage was on full display on Monday, as I counted at least three occasions where he broke up balls down the field. He started things off with a nice PBU on Dalton Schultz, and he carried that into red zone drills where he didn’t bite on a double-move from Geoff Swaim and kept the tight end from scoring a touchdown. He also played fantastic coverage on Ezekiel Elliott in the flat, as he denied him a short pass from Dak Prescott. His instincts are on point, and he is showing the athleticism to go with them. It’s a lot of fun to watch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D82 Posted August 15, 2018 Share Posted August 15, 2018 I'm ready for the regular season to watch this defense. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flyingmonkey30 Posted August 15, 2018 Share Posted August 15, 2018 I want to see Jaylon succeed for lots of reasons. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.