Another solid signing by the Texans. They needed a starting caliber free safety. Danieal Manning is a starting caliber free safety. They paid him, 4 years 20 million with 9 million in guarantees, like a starting caliber free safety. On top of that, Manning can contribute as a kick returner if they choose to use him in that capacity.
Grade: A
Connor didn’t have a sure starting job in Carolina, but not for lack of talent. He’s been very good for them with all of the injuries they’ve had at linebackers over the past few years. He’s deserving of a starting job someone. The Cowboys already have 2011 2nd round pick Bruce Carter to go with Sean Lee, but they don’t have a lot of depth at the position and Connor is a more proven player than Carter, who will likely stay in his reserve/special teams role. It wasn’t their biggest need, but for 6.5 million over 2 years, it almost had to be done.
Grade: A
Wide Receiver
USC
6-1 197
40 time: 4.53
Draft board overall prospect rank: #13
Draft board wide receiver rank: #1
Overall rating: 87*
1/17/10: Doesn’t get the big hype of guys like Dez Bryant and Golden Tate, but I think he’s the best overall wide receiver in this draft class because he possesses two traits, in addition to his natural athleticism, that very few wide receivers his age do, good route running, and a humble personality. He really knows how to get open and catch the ball at the best possible point and he’s not one to complain if a quarterback doesn’t throw to him. He’d be a perfect fit for a west coast offense and he can also return punts. He hasn’t been off the charts in terms of production, but he’s led the Trojans in catches and receiving yards in each of the last two years and had 70 catches for 1010 yards and 6 touchdowns this year in a pro style offense, despite having a true freshman at quarterback.
Update (11/2/09): Elite route running, good size, and excellent understanding of the game coupled with his humble nature makes this guy everything you want out of a #1 receiver.
10/12/09: Damian Williams is in a position to break the recent lack of success USC has had at producing NFL caliber wide receivers. He has the uncanny knack to run good routes, get open, catch the ball at its highest point, and do something with the ball after the catch. His route running and quickness and make him a huge big play threat. He already has 24 catches for 359 yards and a score in 5 games with a freshman quarterback at the helm this season. Yards per reception in college is often indicative of a prospect’s future success in the NFL because its often indication of their intelligence, route running, and quickness. Williams is averaging 15 yards per reception throughout his college career. He doesn’t have great straight line speed and should post a 40 time of a modest 4.45-4.49. However, he is extremely quick and has shown those skills on kick returns. He has great hands and rarely drops passes and is extremely intelligent. His intelligence and experience in a pro style offense at USC means that he could contribute in the NFL right away. He has good height, but needs to bulk up a little. He’s not a good run blocker because of his lack of good blocking form and good size. He’s not very physical and could get out muscled by NFL corners in man coverage. He really excels against zone coverage, running good routes, and finding holes in the coverage. Williams has great potential as a #1 receiver in a west coast style offense and could fit very well into other schemes because of his broad skill set.
NFL Comparison: Greg Jennings
*=For a breakdown of what this means, click here
() FA Rank
WR Sam Hurd
OT Doug Free (#31)
Played surprisingly well in 2010, his first year as a starter. He’ll get a lot of money no matter where he goes.
OT Alex Barron
G Kyle Kosier
3-4 DE Stephen Bowen
3-4 DE Marcus Spears
3-4 DE Jason Hatcher
S Gerald Sensabaugh
S Alan Ball
Offseason moves:
Debate the Dallas Cowboys offseason needs in The Football Fan Forum
2010 Preview:
In terms of pure offensive weapons, I don’t think anyone has more to work with than Tony Romo. He has two legitimate starting running backs in Felix Jones and Marion Barber, and Tashard Choice isn’t too bad either. He has one of the best receivers in the league, Miles Austin, a talented rookie in Dez Bryant, a motivated Roy Williams, though it remains to be seen whether or not that motivation will be enough for him, and Patrick Crayton, assuming he doesn’t get traded, isn’t a bad #4 reciever. He also has one of the best receiving tight ends in the game in Jason Witten and young Martellus Bennett isn’t too bad either.
However, that doesn’t necessary translate directly to a Super Bowl. It certainly makes them contenders, but there are still questions on this offense. Doug Free will be their left tackle. Any time you have a guy who is pretty much a complete unknown at the 2nd most important position on the field, you have to be worried a bit. The rest of their offensive front is older than 30 and really broke down late last year. They also don’t have a ton of depth on the line, which showed when a couple starters went down against the Vikings. They drafted rookie Sam Young, but I think they needed to do a little more in terms of adding depth this offseason. Then there’s the question of Tony Romo. He stepped up last December and led this team to the playoffs and eventually to their first playoff win in 14 years, but there are still a few maturity concerns with him. Another playoff run should alleviate those, but for now, there’s a fairly noticeable difference on that level between him and guys like Peyton Manning, Drew Brees, Tom Brady, and Brett Favre.
Defensively, they should be fine as a unit again. DeMarcus Ware is still the best 3-4 outside linebacker in the game, hands down, and should rack up a ton of sacks, pressures, and quarterback hits. He and Jay Ratliff will take a lot of pressure off of a secondary that has a few question marks. Like Doug Free, new starting free safety Alan Ball is a relative unknown, but unlike Free, Ball is not playing a position at which inexperience would be worrisome. Talented corners like Terrence Newman and Mike Jenkins would be able to decently mask any deficiencies in coverage that Ball would have. They also have a talented rookie safety in Akwasi Owusu-Ansah to step in at safety if they need it. He can also play some corner.
All in all I think this should be one of the better teams in the league this year, but I’m not ready to make them my Super Bowl pick or anything like that just yet. Their regular season win total actually might not completely reflect how talent a team this is, considering how talented their division and their schedule is. Still, expect double digit wins and a playoff appearance and possibly a few playoff wins for this team. At the same time, I wouldn’t be too surprised if they ended up with the Super Bowl trophy when it’s all said and done.
Projection: 11-5 1st in AFC East
Power Ranking: 6
Last season: 11-5
Draft:
#24 WR Dez Bryant (Oklahoma State)
This is a great pick by the Cowboys and a great move up. Bryant gives their offense another potent weapon across from Miles Austin and sends a huge wake up call to Roy Williams. If the Cowboys can get Roy Williams going, with Bryant, Austin, and Jason Witten in the receiving corps, plus Marion Barber, Felix Jones, and Tashard Choice at running back and Tony Romo playing quarterback, in terms of pure offensive weapons, this team may lead the league. That doesn’t necessarily translate to a Super Bowl, but it certainly helps.
Grade: A
#55 MLB Sean Lee (Penn State)
Lee has first round talent, but a questionable bill of health. If his knee holds up, he’s well worth this selection as a young middle linebacker successor for Keith Brooking and a solid character and leadership guy. However, it was also a bit of a risk.
Grade: B
#126 S Akwasi Owusu-Ansah (IUPUI)
AOA is certainly a great playmaker, who can pick off a bunch of passes and do good things with the ball in his hands and he’s a dynamic kick returner, but I have a some doubts about his ability in coverage, even as a safety. Plus, he’s never, from what I know, played a lot of safety before at the collegiate level. However, this is a great value pick and makes a lot of sense even if he just ends up as a nickel corner and a return man.
Grade: A-
#179 OT Sam Young (Notre Dame)
Sam Young fits their scheme well. He’s not a player who you want starting for you every week, but he’s a versatile guy who is good against the run, though he has his struggles in pass protection, who can play left guard, right guard, and right tackle for you in a pinch if you need it, and they may very well need it, and that’s all you really want out of this draft range.
Grade: A-
#196 CB Jamar Wall (Texas Tech)
I guess this is a good indication of where they plan to use AOA. Wall is a moderate reach and fills a bit of a need, you never know how much longer Terrence Newman has in the tank, but the Cowboys already had 3 solid cornerbacks, 4 if they have to move AOA to cornerback, so this was not a great pick.
Grade: C+
#234 3-4 DE Sean Lissemore (William & Mary)
Another player who was not one of the 400-450 players I had heard of from this draft class, so the decision to take him was a bit questionable, plus he is only 6-2 and doesn’t appear to have the height to play end in a 3-4. Plus, 3-4 end wasn’t much of a need.
Grade: D
Overall:
The Cowboys didn’t have a lot of picks to begin with, and they had even less after that Dez Bryant trade, but that being said, that Dez Bryant trade was brilliant and makes the Cowboys an extremely dangerous offensive team and when you combine that with their strong pass rush on defense, you can make some good things happen. Assuming they don’t revert to their December choking ways, this team has to be the favorite to win the tough NFC East and a Super Bowl contender. They made every one of their picks count, for the most part and acquired a ton of talent and upside in this draft. They could have gotten 3 future starters in this draft, and AOA is a solid future nickelback and kick returner, and has some upside at safety. Their picks dropped off a bit at the end, in terms of my grades, but those were late round picks anyway and, who knows, maybe I’ll be wrong about one or both of them. The only complaint I have about their draft, is that I don’t think they did enough to get depth on the offensive line, especially with Flozell Adams being cut. That was their biggest need coming into this draft, in my opinion, and they only used one pick there. They could have used one or two of their late round picks on a guard and/or center. However, with the talent they got out of this draft, it’s hard to give them a bad grade.
Grade: A-
Key undrafted free agents
CB Bryan McCann (SMU)
3-4 DE Lorenzo Washington (Alabama)
RB Lonyae Miller (Fresno State)
QB Matt Nichols (Eastern Washington)
OT Mike Tepper (California)
TE Scott Sicko (New Hampshire)
WR Terrell Hudgins (Elon)
S Barry Church (Toledo)
WR Verran Tucker (California)
Positions of need:
Offensive Tackle:
The Cowboys need depth all along their offensive line. Their lack of depth was shown in the playoffs when Tony Romo was sacked 6 times by the Vikings after the Cowboys suffered a few injuries up front. Also, everyone on their offensive line is over 30 so young depth is clearly necessary. Offensive tackle just happens to be the most important offensive line position. The Cowboys like bigger offensive linemen so guys like Anthony Davis in the first and Vlad Ducasse and Kyle Calloway in the 2nd could be targeted.
Drafted Sam Young (#179), Traded for Alex Barron
Middle Linebacker:
Keith Brooking had a good year, but he will turn 35 next season. Next to him in the middle of their 3-4 defense, Bradie James could also be upgraded immediately. Sean Weatherspoon and Brandon Spikes could be options in the first round.
Drafted Sean Lee (#55)
Offensive Guard:
Again, depth is needed all over their offensive line. The Cowboys reportedly love Mike Iupati and likely will take him at 27 if he’s available. He would be an immediate upgrade over Kyle Kosier at left guard.
Nose Tackle:
Jay Ratliff is a great player, but his skill set would be better utilized at 3-4 defensive end rather than nose tackle. If they get a true nose tackle, either Terrence Cody in the first or Cam Thomas in the 2nd, they can move Ratliff to end and it will make their entire defense that much better. Add a big nose tackle like Cody to the middle of their defense and it opens up more space for what was already one of the best pass rushes in the league.
Safety:
Ken Hamlin could be upgraded and depth overall is needed at the position.
Drafted Akwasi Owusu-Ansah (#126)
Wide Receiver:
Patrick Crayton could be upgraded in the slot and I am not sure how much longer they want to give Roy Williams before they admit he was a bad trade and start someone else over him. Getting a young receiver this year could solve both of those issues.
Drafted Dez Bryant (#24)
Free agents:
WR Miles Austin (restricted)- resigned 1 year 3.1 million
WR Sam Hurd (restricted)- resigned 1 year 1.7 million
OT Flozell Adams- signed with Steelers 2 years
OT Pat McQuistan (restricted)- resigned 1 year 1.1 million
G Montrae Holland- 2 years
G Cory Procter (restricted)- signed with Dolphins
C Duke Preston (restricted)
3-4 DE Marcus Spears (restricted)- resigned 1 year 1.2 million
3-4 DE Stephen Bowen (restricted)- resigned 1 year 1.7 million
3-4 DE Jason Hatcher (restricted)- resigned 1 year 1.7 million
NT Junior Siavii (restricted)- resigned 1 year 1.2 million
RLB Steve Octavien (restricted)- resigned
S Ken Hamlin- signed with Baltimore 1 year
S Gerald Sensabaugh (restricted)- resigned 1 year 1.8 million
S Pat Watkins (restricted)- resigned 1 year 1.1 million
S Alan Ball (exclusive rights)- resigned
K Shaun Suisham (restricted)
Offseason moves:
Cowboys re-sign S Gerald Sensabaugh
Cowboys acquire OT Alex Barron from Rams for OLB Bobby Carpenter
Cowboys announce retirement of C Duke Preston
Cowboys re-sign G Montrae Holland
Cowboys re-sign S Alan Ball
Cowboys re-sign WR Sam Hurd
Cowboys re-sign S Pat Watkins
Cowboys re-sign 3-4 DE Stephen Bowen
Cowboys re-sign 3-4 DE Jason Hatcher
Cowboys re-sign NT Junior Siavii
Cowboys re-sign OT Pat McQuistan
Cowboys re-sign 3-4 DE Marcus Spears
Cowboys re-sign RLB Steve Octavien
Cowboys cut S Ken Hamlin
Cowboys cut OT Flozell Adams
Cowboys re-sign G Cory Procter
Cowboys tender S Alan Ball
Cowboys tender RLB Steve Octavien
Cowboys tender WR Miles Austin
Cowboys tender S Gerald Sensabaugh
Cowboys tender 3-4 DE Marcus Spears
Cowboys tender 3-4 DE Jason Hatcher
Cowboys tender OT Pat McQuistan
Cowboys tender NT Junior Siavii
Cowboys tender S Pat Watkins
Cowboys tender G Cory Procter
Cowboys tender WR Sam Hurd
Cowboys tender 3-4 DE Stephen Bowen
A month ago the Saints looked possibly screwed. Marques Colston and Carl Nicks were free agents and the team was far apart in negotiations with Drew Brees. They also had the looming penalty coming down for BountyGate. However, a month later, they might actually be getting an upgrade at coach. I know Sean Payton has a ring, but he’s an offensive coach and Brees has pretty much got that side of the ball taken care of himself. Parcells would greatly help their defense, even at 71 years old.
They resigned Colston to a steal of a deal in an offseason where Pierre Garcon, Laurent Robinson, and Robert Meachem were highly overpaid. They lost Carl Nicks, but they signed the only slightly inferior Ben Grubbs to replace him. They signed Brodrick Bunkley to fill their biggest need at defensive tackle and now they have filled their 2nd biggest need at linebacker by stealing one of their divisional rivals’ best defensive players for a reasonable deal, 5 years, 33.5 million.
Aside from Nicks, who they replaced, only Tracy Porter was their biggest loss this offseason and Drew Brees and the team look like they’ll get a deal done before the season. They did all this without having to cut Jonathan Vilma or any other key players from 2011. How the hell are they doing this? Weren’t they supposed to be backed up against the cap?
Grade: A
By Sean Geddes
More bad news for Steelers fans on the quarterback front. Dennis Dixon has been diagnosed with torn lateral meniscus cartilage, according to several news outlets. Dixon’s play up until his injury had not been stellar, but he had shown signs of the ability that could have won him the Heisman a few years ago, and was felt by some to be the Steelers best option at signal caller until Ben’s return.
It appears to be Charlie Batch’s job now, for the time being of course. The Steelers also resigned the roster space casualty of last week, Byron Leftwich, who was let go to make room for depth at other positions, while Leftwich was unable to play due to injury. Unless Byron’s knee has healed to the point of confidence from the coaches, I would expect him to be the back up this week to Batch.
Hey, only two more weeks until Ben gets back.
http://www.behindthesteelcurtain.com/
It seems like the Eagles are signing everyone except DeSean Jackson, a training camp holdout set to make less than a million in the final year of his rookie contract next year. Jackson has earned a new deal and deserves one and all of the Eagles outside signings must just be like a slap in the face to him. I don’t know if this deal makes it impossible for them to extend Jackson, but Jackson should have been their priority over bringing in another outsider. Also, Jenkins is talented, but he’s 30 and he’s missed 17 games in the last 3 years, so giving him a 5 year deal worth 25 million was risky.
Grade: D
By Jim Keller
The Dallas Cowboys finally put together a solid effort by their offense, defense and special teams, and it couldn’t have come at a better time.
All head coach Wade Phillips told his troops afterward was, “Just play with this kind of urgency every week.”
Tony Romo played flawlessly and hooked up twice on TD passes to forgotten Roy Williams, the defense kept the Texans out of the end zone for nearly 59 minutes and embattled kicker David Buehler converted both of his field goal attempts as the Cowboys posted a 27-13 Sunday at Reliant Stadium to avoid putting themselves in a gargantuan hole heading into the bye week.
The win helped Dallas avoid starting 0-3 for the first time since 2001. Only five teams have rebounded from that early hole to reach the playoffs. So Dallas needed a big performance.
With 98 passes against 42 runs and just two offensive TDs despite the fourth most yards in the NFL through two weeks, the Cowboys’ owner, coaches and players were under siege all week.
The result? Dallas showed more balance against Houston, running 27 times for 101 yards, but it was still Romo and the passing game that provided the bulk of the offense. Romo was 23 of 30 for 284 yards, didn’t force anything and wasn’t sacked.
Dallas just did a better job of converting its opportunities into points. Romo had just one pass dropped, did not thrown any picks and was afforded his best pass protection thus far in three games. Left tackle Doug Free totally neutralized NFL sack leader Mario Williams. The Boys were 2-of-2 with TDs in two red-zone after tallying just 17 points in five red-zone tries in the first two weeks.
Evidence of the Dallas efficient attack:
1. Like a third-quarter drive that went 90 yards in seven plays with Romo a perfect 5 of 5, hooking up with Roy Williams on a short slant for 15 yards to provide Dallas a 17-3 edge with 1:34 left in the third. Romo converted a third-and-2 with an 11-yard pass to Sam Hurd, his first catch of the season, then laid out a perfect pass to Dez Bryant down the left sideline for 30 yards. Williams beat rookie DB Kareem Jackson again on a quick slant for a 63-yard score in Dallas’ next possession. A no show most of his time in Big D, Williams had 5 catches and 117 yards
2. How about the 13-play, 80-yard drive in the second quarter that was capped by Marion Barber’s 1-yard plunge. What made this drive so special? Romo overcame a 1st-and-20 after a 32-yard swing pass to Felix Jones was called back on a block in the back call against Miles Austin. Romo converted three third downs of nine, nine and 10 yards to different receivers: Bryant, Austin and Williams.
Defensively, Arian Foster ripped through the defense for at least a half-dozen runs of 10-or-more yards, but the front seven stuffed just as many runs at the line of scrimmage. The secondary had a solid afternoon, keeping the receivers in front of them (only two 20-yards pass plays and contributing to three of Dallas’ four sacks because of excellent coverage downfield. The Cowboys limited All-Pro Andre Johnson to four catches for 64 yards on seven targets.
Dallas, which entered with two sacks and no turnovers, doubled their sack total (3 by DeMarcus Ware) without over-committing to the blitz, intercepted two passes and recovered a fumble – all in the second half. The NFL’s top-scoring and yardage team was limited to 13 points and 340 yards, although 100 of those yards and the one TD came after the game had been decided.
The Boys even had a goal-line stand, stuffing two runs and then sacking Schaub on an all-out blitz after Houston had reached the 1-yard line for 1st-and-goal..
Even David Buehler came through. After Phillips decided against a 47-yard FG on the first possession despite playing in a dome, Buehler nailed a 49-yarder on the last play of the half and added a 40-yarder in the fourth quarter.
Dallas wasn’t perfect. It failed on a 4th-and-2 from the Texans 30 on its first possession when an attempted screen pass was blown up.
In the first half’s final drive, a 37-yard TD pass to Bryant was called back because Bryant ran out of bounds and came back in, Romo was called for intentional grounding and missed a wide-open Williams 25 yards downfield at the Texans 25. But to his credit, he got Dallas in position for Buehler’s field goal with a nice sideline pass to Witten with one tick left.
The defense allowed a 30-yard draw by Foster on 3rd-and19 which led to a field goal, and Keith Brooking was called twice for pass interference on crucial plays and Jenkins was whistled for illegal contact on 2nd-and-18 in the third quarter.
In a game the Cowboys desperately needed, they came up with a solid three-way performance, playing error-free football, slowing down a versatile offense and winning the battle of special teams.
Fortunately for Dallas, after three weeks they are looking up only at the Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC North. The Eagles rattled Jacksonville while Washington was beaten by St. Louis and the New York Giants fell to Tennessee.
Dallas will sit and watch Washington and Philadelphia next week and Chicago at New York.
http://www.respectthestar.com/
By Jim Keller
The temporary era for Jon Kitna starts this weekend. The bigger question in Dallas is when the Wade Phillips era will come to an excruciating end.
The demoralized Cowboys will test their pride Sunday at Cowboys when they host the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Dallas (1-5) was supposed to contend for the Super Bowl this season and perhaps be the first host city to appear in the game, but got off to a 1-4 start because an offense that averaged 400 yards per game but couldn’t make a big play to offset costly penalties and turnovers and a solid defense that couldn’t force turnovers.
All of that seemed to change last week when the Cowboys got three takeaways in the first 20 minutes and a 92-yard punt return by outstanding rookie Dez Bryant to take a 20-7 lead against the rival New York Giants.
However it was about that time when it was revealed that starting quarterback Tony Romo had suffered a broken collarbone after a sack by linebacker Michael Boley, and both the offense and defense went into a tailspin in which it never recovered.
After Bryant’s score, New York scored four touchdowns and a field goal in its next five possessions while holding the Cowboys to 26 yards and one first down in Kitna’s first seven drives.
Kitna finished up 16 of 33 for 187 yards and two late touchdowns to Bryant as Dallas made the 41-35 final respectable.
The 14-year veteran has started 115 games during his career with Seattle, Cincinnati, and Detroit, completing 60 percent of his passes with 154 TDs and 151 interceptions. His clubs have won just 49 of his starts.
He led the NFL with 372 completions in 2006 and led with 20 picks the following season – both with Detroit. His best season was 2003 with Cincinnati. He completed 62 percent of his tosses for 3,591 yards and a career-high 26 TDs against 15 interceptions.
A Dallas defense that entered third in total defense, was shredded for 497 yards. Eli Manning passed for 306 yards and four touchdowns and Ahmad Bradshaw, Hakeem Nicks and Steve Smith each went over 100 yards from scrimmage.
Since only the 1970 Cincinnati Bengals have rallied from a 1-5 start to make the playoffs, speculation has already begun about the future of Phillips. Owner Jerry Jones has stated many times that he doesn’t like making changes in midseason, but the Cowboys are out of it and there’s pressure for Jones to start making contact with the power coaches around the league.
With Romo out at least six to eight weeks, Kitna will be making his first start since 2008 against Jacksonville (3-4), which played Kansas City tight for three quarters last week before suffering a 42-20 defeat.
The Jaguars gave up 236 yards on the ground to the Chiefs tandem of Thomas Jones and Jamaal Charles, but they shouldn’t have to woory that much this week. Dallas ran the ball just 13 times against the Giants and rank 30th in the league at 86 yards per game.
Todd Bouman, a 38-year-old signed off the street when injuries sidelined David Garrard (concussion) and Trent Edwards (thumb), made his first start since 2001 and completed 18 of 34 for 222 yards and two TDs. However, he threw two interceptions, one that gave the Chiefs a 28-20 lead another in the fourth quarter that led to another touchdown.
Garrard has past the NFL’s mandated concussion tests and is expected to start Sunday. He was injured in Jacksonville’s 30-3 loss to the Tennessee Titans two Mondays ago. Taking Garrard’s place on the bench will be right tackle Eben Britton, who was placed on injured reserve with a season-ending shoulder injury.
Maurice Jones-Drew, who was limited to 47 yards on 16 carries and has been held to 3.8 yards per carry, may find the sledding a little easier against the disheartened Cowboys, who have allowed three 100-yard rushers in their last four games.
The clubs have split two games this decade, with Jacksonville winning the last match-up 24-17 in 2006.
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