Week 4: Cowboys @ Broncos

[M.O.T.H.]

I'm going to begin the start Hurd initiative. :D

We need to change something on offense. Tony is staring guys down, and he has a good feel with Hurd. Why the hell not, right? The pass offense isnt working at all and we can finally figure out what we have here.

Oh Sensy broke his thumb and is targeting an October 25th return. It just gets better.

[HEISMANHERSCHEL]

I am pissed off!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Here are my thoughts...

First off, why throw at Champ at the end of the game so much? Not only is he one of the, if not the very, best corners in the league, he has already made you pay once.

Second, and I may be taking crazy pills, but go back and watch the last Romo throw. Seems to me that Austin had more seperation than Hurd. Not to mention he was covered by an inferior corner (at least to Champ). Maybe I am using hindsight, but I would have thrown to Austin.

Third, I could beat Bobby Carpenter out of a job. I would play for a lot less money. I can also go out, week after week, and miss tackles and look totally incompetent. That guy sucks. Lets cut bait with him already.

Fourth, and I will take a lot of heat for this. But where is Ware? I love that guy, but come on! He doesn't seem to be on the field. I thought he was the best pass rusher in the league? I know it isn't all his fault, but isn't it a contract year for him?? I just expected more from him...thats all.

Fifth, the offense looks below average without Felix Jones. I was the biggest supporter of drafting Felix (Save maybe Moth.) Is he just a wuss, or are we cursed? The guy is ALWAYS injured.

Sixth, Tonya Romo. When he is on, he is a bad MF'er. But if he is not on, we seem to have no chance. The, "One game on, one game off" is starting to get old.

Seventh, we are a better team than the Broncos. Go down the roster and tell me which positions they are better than us at. Maybe a few, I will concede that. I don't care what their schedule is, we are better than they are. We should not have lost this game.

And eighth, I also hate Brian Dawkins (AKA Darth Vader). When he went to Denver, I was happy cause we would not have to play him anymore. Now, the shithead ends up on our schedule?!?!? Somebody kill him already!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I hate the Eagles, and he will always be an Eagle to me.

In conclusion-we must have been outcoached. There is no other excuse.


P.S.-
I apologize to Roy Williams (the safety). I thought addition by subtraction would happen when he left. Well...we just got beat by a lesser team.

[Modano]

Ill agree with that...

But I would emphasize that our team is built to be an offensive team -- no one would mistake this defense to be one of the few that can actually win you games like the steelers or ravens.

Pathetic showing by Romo, Roy, Austin, and Crayton.

Austin and RW should be most ashamed along with Romo. Those 3 are all reasons for the loss.

I wouln't blame Roy... He had some occasions but Romo couldn't get him the ball (like when he got hit but DJ Williams)...

[HEISMANHERSCHEL]

Good point. When RW got hit by Williams, even my wife flinched. And she doesn't know much about football. He got smashed, no doubt about it.

What is the problem? Is it unanimous? We are better than Denver, player for player. Right???

We were in position to win this game, within seconds of the final whistle being blown. I wish I knew the answer.


If our team is better but gets beat by a lesser team, the obvious anser is coaching.

Or I have no idea what I am talking bout.

[M.O.T.H.]

I'm not mad at Roy for being out, he got crushed. If there is any gripe, it's that he dropped two more passes. One of which was questionable but, still. He has a good 5 drops already.

[herniateddisc]

1. Romo is the problem. He is not accurate. His footwork is poor. His decisions at least are more conservative last two games.

2. The Bobby Carpenter obsession is really silly. And may I mentioned he made the 4th and 1 play not Brooking. He took on two guys and left the Gap for Brooking to fill. Credit Brooking for actually making a play. Not to say he is playing well but I have been of the opinion his play improves as he plays .... as what happened his rookie season.

3. Jenkins is getting better every week. Good thing.

4. Austin is open on most plays and Hurd's only play was a broken play. Romo simply either throws the ball behind him or he ignores him. On the Miami Dolphins -- the kid has 60 catches this season.

5. Hurd is Crayton and you only need ONE on a team -- Crayton should be cut or traded. We already have a Possession TE who is an All Pro and Three WR who are simply slow possession guys (Hurd, Crayton, Williams)

6. When your QB can't throw the ball accurately with velocity -- forget three step drops. Recipe for INT hell.

7. Hurd ran a poor route on the 4th down play and allowed Bailey to get inside. That cut needed to be like an L, not a Y. So, not to bag on him but facts are facts.

8. Spears is playing pretty good. People should give him credit. I think his contract year finally got to him. Sadly Jerrah is going to give him a big deal and we are back to fat and lazy next year. Just watch.

9 Ware is not the same player. Hate to keep saying it. He is slow.

10. Brooking is playing well and he is a leader. I guess being smart helps.

Think we miss Parcells and Sparano and Haley????????????????? The corpse is rotting slowly and everyone swears it is still alive.

I think this group of players is done. I thought without TO the team would develop better chemistry but fact is they are not. They are soft. They don't make plays when it matters.

They have been mediocre-to-bad when it counts since 2005 and only play well downhill. Lots of talent but none when it counts.

[LizardState]

Fire Phillips? Those rumors are no longer speculation but perceived by the Dallas fans an inevitable foregone conclusion. Face facts, some changes need to be made to stop the bleeding. Call it Panic Button time or whatever, but the worst thing would be sticking with the status quo & doing nada.

Do you think Jones will let his team be outcoached wk. after wk. without him grabbing the spotlight as always & doing something radical? It's just a matter of when....

What are the alternatives?

• Jeff Fisher & his Titans are 0-4, 1 more loss than they had all last season, but he's locked up b/c Bud Adams will lose face to Jerry Jones if his HC is snatched from under him. Not that it will keep him from trying, but the standard Jerrah technique of throwing mega-zillions of $ at it to get what he wants just simply won't work in the age of tampering charges. Call this one Pending.
  
• Cowher? He doesn't want it for thousands of reasons, it would be a round peg in the square hole, the team doesn't want him, how many ways can this be wrong? Don't write it off though, by Thanksgiving this team could be grasping at straws all over the place.
  
• Promote Garrett? Uhhh, I call your attn. to the worst red zone playcalling in the NFL. Or just very bad gameplans that are so inflexible they can't adjust for injuries, playing catchup with Romo's arm & other limitations, etc. Can he handle working in the shadow of Jones & argue his influence over him in drafting (isn't that what ultimately drove Parcells out? remember his speech about shopping for the groceries if he had to cook), handle the press conferences, etc? There is an upside to him though -- he's the ultimate team insider b/c he grew up within the team as son of their Head Scout & was their backup QB, & he knows the strengths & weaknesses as well as the politics & smart enough to know how to manipulate an egomaniac emperor like Jerrah, & (puts on devil's advocate hat here) it isn't his fault that his 2 best go-to guys, Felix & Roy Williams, were out & plays designed for them didn't work with Hurd & Austin. Also not his fault that Romo folds under pressure like a lawnchair. Besides, after this awful early season I don't think many other NFL teams will be offering Garrett a contract

It may well come down to Garrett b/c he has the inside track & all the good assts. with NFL experience will be taken. Timing is key here, all those big names & experienced assts. are scarfed up after the initial round of HC firings in January, & we're looking at openings early in Cleveland & maybe St. Louis & J-ville -- Mangini has run out of chances, the Sheep suckage is common knowledge, & Del Rio is going to need a miraculous turnaround for job security.

It's embarrassing, almost as embarrassing as the worse & worser days of the late 80s when senile Tom Landry kept hanging on for One More Yr. a decade or so too long, or when Jerry Jones & Jimmy Johnson had too much to drink & the 2 old friends had a public screaming match resulting in the best HC in modern NFL history departing after 2 SBs, or when he was replaced by (shudder) Barry Switzer & half the team got popped for drugs, etc.....

Hell sportsfans, it's well worth discussing.

[Paul]

For me Brookings was an after thought when it came to acquisitions this past offseason. I thought he was just another body to plug in there next to Bradie ala Zach, Akin, etc. But he has become, in my opinion, the defenses MVP. He had a great game against the Panthers, and even better game this week. Smart, passionate, energetic, a leader, he's been everything you could ask for. We could definitely use more guys like him on both sides of the ball.

side not: Sucks that Buehler has been our best rookie so far.

[herniateddisc]

For me Brookings was an after thought when it came to acquisitions this past offseason. I thought he was just another body to plug in there next to Bradie ala Zach, Akin, etc. But he has become, in my opinion, the defenses MVP. He had a great game against the Panthers, and even better game this week. Smart, passionate, energetic, a leader, he's been everything you could ask for. We could definitely use more guys like him on both sides of the ball.

side not: Sucks that Buehler has been our best rookie so far.

2007 and 2009 best players are both kickers. Now that is sad.

Not even two different positions and the fact you redrafted in 2009 means you screwed up in 2007.

[LizardState]

For me Brookings was an after thought when it came to acquisitions this past offseason. I thought he was just another body to plug in there next to Bradie ala Zach, Akin, etc. But he has become, in my opinion, the defenses MVP. He had a great game against the Panthers, and even better game this week. Smart, passionate, energetic, a leader, he's been everything you could ask for. We could definitely use more guys like him on both sides of the ball.

Agreed, Brookings has been a pleasant surprise. I thought he was just a Phillips legacy who had played for him before, but his experience shines through, especially when compared to the Bobby Carpenter turdblossom at ILB.

About the defense: Miss (fill in name of Ellis, Canty, or Ware, oh wait, he still plays there doesnt he here) Much?

[Macarthur]

Such a disappointing game. Denver tried to give us that game and we didn't have the stones to take it.

Here's my thoughts:

1. As a big Romo defender, I am very disappointed. His lack of accuracy is what has been most surprising for me. I think he's just messed up in the head. He's got the gunslinger, bus driver, no INTs, etc. crap all bouncing around in his head. Couple that with the pressure of being the Dallas Cowboys QB, and I think he's just messed up right now.

2. Garrett - I've been a defender here, too, and I can't any more. I just don't understand the use of resources. Austin needs to be on the field more especially with Felix out. He's the only WR that can consistently get seperation. As someone else said, go back and look at the tape; he got seperation on both throws to Hurd at the end. No sign of Bennett or Witten in the clutch time. The two TEs should be a staple in the red zone.

3. Flo - has had a pretty good year so far, but didn't have a good game yesterday. He gets off balance too often. This position has to be addressed.

4. WR - No explosion. Austin is the only WR that give some and he's not getting enough snaps. As steady as Crayton has been, Austin needs to get more snaps at #2.

5. Defense - This defense can't close. They played pretty well overall. Great 4th down stand. Newman has got to knock that ball away. Wow. How does Spencer not at least knock that pass down? That's the difference in our defense and a top 5. We are in position most of the time, but our guys just don't 'make plays'. Those are two examples of Wade putting guys in position to make plays and they just don't do it.

6. Sensi has been good, but overall, our safety play is still poor. Hamlin needs to be released this offseason. I would resign Sensi, release Hamlin and hope that the other Hamlin is ready to go next season.


That's all I can think of right now.

[M.O.T.H.]

1. Romo is the problem. He is not accurate. His footwork is poor. His decisions at least are more conservative last two games.

2. The Bobby Carpenter obsession is really silly. And may I mentioned he made the 4th and 1 play not Brooking. He took on two guys and left the Gap for Brooking to fill. Credit Brooking for actually making a play. Not to say he is playing well but I have been of the opinion his play improves as he plays .... as what happened his rookie season.

3. Jenkins is getting better every week. Good thing.

4. Austin is open on most plays and Hurd's only play was a broken play. Romo simply either throws the ball behind him or he ignores him. On the Miami Dolphins -- the kid has 60 catches this season.

5. Hurd is Crayton and you only need ONE on a team -- Crayton should be cut or traded. We already have a Possession TE who is an All Pro and Three WR who are simply slow possession guys (Hurd, Crayton, Williams)

6. When your QB can't throw the ball accurately with velocity -- forget three step drops. Recipe for INT hell.

7. Hurd ran a poor route on the 4th down play and allowed Bailey to get inside. That cut needed to be like an L, not a Y. So, not to bag on him but facts are facts.

8. Spears is playing pretty good. People should give him credit. I think his contract year finally got to him. Sadly Jerrah is going to give him a big deal and we are back to fat and lazy next year. Just watch.

9 Ware is not the same player. Hate to keep saying it. He is slow.

10. Brooking is playing well and he is a leader. I guess being smart helps.

Think we miss Parcells and Sparano and Haley????????????????? The corpse is rotting slowly and everyone swears it is still alive.

I think this group of players is done. I thought without TO the team would develop better chemistry but fact is they are not. They are soft. They don't make plays when it matters.

They have been mediocre-to-bad when it counts since 2005 and only play well downhill. Lots of talent but none when it counts.

Bobby Carpenter is horrible. I dont know why you cant seem to grasp that. He's terribly slow, he can't tackle, he's incredibly soft, he cant cover all that well anymore. He is an awful football player. I dont care what defensive scheme he is playing in.

Austin and Romo are never on the same page and the INT was more than likely Austin's fault in the first place. Crayton has been lolly gagging on a lot of his routes and hasnt helped a whole lot when Romo tries to improvise. Choose your preference Austin or Hurd. One should be given a shot and imo, that should be Hurd. Austin still runs pretty terrible routes at times, he can be jammed easily, has suspect hands, and again he and Romo barely ever connect. It's not like Austin has been standing out with the PT he is already getting. No, Austin isnt always open. Of course Romo has missed him here and there, as he has other guys but, Austin isnt always open. And Romo still seems to have more confidence in Hurd. You want Romo as comfortable as possible? You start Hurd. Honestly though, I'm ready for either one to be given a shot. Nothing against Crayton but, we need a change. And I dont want my Hurd love to shine through all the time, I'm just stating a fact in saying that he has a better feel for Hurd than he does Austin.

And Ugh. "Possession receiver" gets thrown out a lot. Donald Driver is a "possession receiver", T.J. Houshmandzadeh is a "possession receiver", Hines Ward is a "possession receiver". Look around the league, there are plenty of receivers, who arent burners who are fantastic receivers. And I think Hurd is a better player than Crayton is right now. There is a saying, that you can never have enough possession receivers. And you may give Hurd the possession receiver tag but, he's a more complete receiver than Austin is.

As for Jenkins...I couldnt agree more, he's getting better and better. His confidence is growing, he's playing real well now. And Brooking has been a fantastic pick up for us.

[M.O.T.H.]

I pray that Garrett never becomes our Head Coach. Nice to see the public becoming aware of his deficiencies. He's been getting chewed out by the ESPN "experts" all day today and for the Giants game. I dont care how close the Jones and Garrett families are, if this doesnt get figured out this year, Jerry needs to man up and fire Garrett.

[herniateddisc]

Bobby Carpenter is horrible. I dont know why you cant seem to grasp that. He's terribly slow, he can't tackle, he's incredibly soft, he cant cover all that well anymore. He is an awful football player. I dont care what defensive scheme he is playing in.

Austin and Romo are never on the same page and the INT was more than likely Austin's fault in the first place. Crayton has been lolly gagging on a lot of his routes and hasnt helped a whole lot when Romo tries to improvise. Choose your preference Austin or Hurd. One should be given a shot and imo, that should be Hurd. Austin still runs pretty terrible routes at times, he can be jammed easily, has suspect hands, and again he and Romo barely ever connect. It's not like Austin has been standing out with the PT he is already getting. No, Austin isnt always open. Of course Romo has missed him here and there, as he has other guys but, Austin isnt always open. And Romo still seems to have more confidence in Hurd. You want Romo as comfortable as possible? You start Hurd. Honestly though, I'm ready for either one to be given a shot. Nothing against Crayton but, we need a change. And I dont want my Hurd love to shine through all the time, I'm just stating a fact in saying that he has a better feel for Hurd than he does Austin.

And Ugh. "Possession receiver" gets thrown out a lot. Donald Driver is a "possession receiver", T.J. Houshmandzadeh is a "possession receiver", Hines Ward is a "possession receiver". Look around the league, there are plenty of receivers, who arent burners who are fantastic receivers. And I think Hurd is a better player than Crayton is right now. There is a saying, that you can never have enough possession receivers. And you may give Hurd the possession receiver tag but, he's a more complete receiver than Austin is.

As for Jenkins...I couldnt agree more, he's getting better and better. His confidence is growing, he's playing real well now. And Brooking has been a fantastic pick up for us.

So in summary,

Romo is fine it is all the WR fault. Austin runs bad routes, Witten, Williams, Crayton, etc.... because he is off there too.

Hurd is great. Fact he has trouble getting open is OK because he has good hands. BTW, TO or Austin score on that broken play.

Bobby Carpenter is the reason our D can't close. Even when he makes a good play he gets bashed.

MEMO COWBOYS FANS:

The design of the Offense sucks right now because Willams, Hurd, Witten, Crayton are all SLOWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW. Austin should start. At least the safeties need to be aware of were he is lining up. Be nice if he can hit Austin in stride just once. Roy, Hurd Crayton, Witten scare no one. I had a similar comment about this Offense end of 2007 when TO went down. We keep putting in "dependable" guys who compress the field b/c they are 4.6-4.7 guys.

Defensively, TNew is vastly over-rated but a good corner. Jenkins has more upside than Newman ever did b/c he plays the ball well. Scandrick is also a good player but not a #1 corner. Sensabaugh is ok and Hamlin sucks like he did in Seattle. Got his money and same will happen with Sensabaugh if they pay him. Watkins is a SS and OK I guess.

Bradie as always is A-OK but is really only effective as a blitzer. Makes no plays elsewhere. Ware is slow. Spencer is a bust and simply is JAG. Brooking is playing well but wait till he gets demotivated by the "not-my-fault" mentality that is a cancer on the team.

Spears is playing well but please don't pay him b/c he will Hamlin us. Olshansky and Hatcher and Bowen are fine. Ratliff is a player. Siavii is adequate also for his role.

Coaching on this team is bad but at least ST has been fixed. GM is a moron.

[dpl85]

I thought Roy ran a 4.3 at the combine. Why does everyone say he's a slow possession WR? I guess it's the difference between timed speed and playing speed.