MacMahon: Scandrick - This year is going to be different

Cotton

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Scandrick: This year is going to be different

July, 28, 2014

By Tim MacMahon | ESPNDallas.com


OXNARD, Calif. -- The No. 32 would be on cornerback Orlando Scandrick's mind every day even if it wasn’t on his jersey.

There is no hiding the fact that the Dallas Cowboys ranked 32nd -- dead last -- in the league in total defense last season.

“The facts are the facts,” Scandrick said during an appearance on ESPN Dallas 103.3 FM’s “Two-Point Conversion.” “We were the last-ranked total defense, so we can’t go anywhere but up from here, but that’s not going to change just by showing up. We’ve to have an attitude about us as a defense, and we’re going to have to play together. Playing together stops a lot of the things that happened that caused us to be the 32nd-ranked defense.”

The Cowboys lost three of their most productive defensive players from last season, releasing defensive end DeMarcus Ware, letting defensive tackle Jason Hatcherleave in free agency and seeing Sean Lee injure his knee in May.

However, Scandrick expressed confidence that the Dallas defense would be vastly improved in its second season playing a 4-3 scheme.

“I just think this year is going to be different,” Scandrick said. “I don’t know if I’m just an optimist, but I really feel that this year is going to be different. We have a different group of guys. We have some younger guys. We have a lot of guys who have a lot to prove. We have some younger guys who want to prove they can play in this league. We have some other younger guys who want to prove they can be starters in this league. I really think from the bottom of my heart that we have a chance to be a solid defense this year.”

As safety Barry Church put it, the Dallas defense “has a boulder on our shoulder,” thanks to their ranking last season.

Scandrick has had a chip on his shoulder since he slipped into the fifth round in the 2008 draft. He was once of those young guys who had to prove he could play in the NFL. In his seventh NFL season, he finally got the chance to prove he could be a full-time starter and is fighting to keep that role now.

At 27, Scandrick suddenly has the longest Dallas tenure among players in the defensive meeting room other than defensive end Anthony Spencer, who could start the season on the physically unable to perform list.

The departures of Ware and Hatcher, as well as the season-ending knee injury suffered by Lee, left a leadership void on the Dallas defense. Scandrick feels a responsibility to help fill it.

“It was tough to see those guys go,” Scandrick said. “I just think about when I came in and how those guys took me under their wing and how they looked out for me. I just think I owe it to the younger guys now to do the same thing. Like I tell them, I’m open to helping whenever I can.

“I think it’s also that I help my coaches when my coaches are trying to get a point across. Sometimes it’s easier to hear it when you hear it from a player. I’m just here to find ways to win. All I want to do is win, and all I care about is winning.”
 

L.T. Fan

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I don't get the lamenting about Ware, Lee and Hatcher. Their playing time was almost exceeded by their injury time over the past couple of years. The backups got almost as much time a them. How can you miss non playing time?
 

ravidubey

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I don't get the lamenting about Ware, Lee and Hatcher. Their playing time was almost exceeded by their injury time over the past couple of years. The backups got almost as much time a them. How can you miss non playing time?
Ware would have been looked up to by a guy like Scandrick who was drafted in 2008. Hatcher became a core guy in 2012, though he may as well have been fishing from 2006-2011.

But Lee... yeah I agree it's gotta be mainly lip service. He was not a critical cog given his low playing time, but the team prepared, drafted, and signed FA's based on his starting and excelling. People also looked up to the way he played.

I've got to believe it's much better to go with two well-prepared average players competing with and pushing each other 50% of the time in favor of one star 30-40% of the time and an underworked, underprepared, non-competing average player at 60-70%.
 

1bigfan13

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What's going to hurt us is the league has stated that they're going to enforce illegal contact and PI penalties more this year.

Hopefully they only place emphasis on it during the early portion of the season.
 

Genghis Khan

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I don't get the lamenting about Ware, Lee and Hatcher. Their playing time was almost exceeded by their injury time over the past couple of years. The backups got almost as much time a them. How can you miss non playing time?
You don't understand lamenting the loss of our 3 best players?
 

L.T. Fan

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You don't understand lamenting the loss of our 3 best players?
They haven't played that much the past two years. Dallas didn't have them in the lineup a great deal of the time so what's to miss about part time players.
 

Genghis Khan

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They haven't played that much the past two years. Dallas didn't have them in the lineup a great deal of the time so what's to miss about part time players.
Maybe Lee, but Ware and Hatcher played most of last season.

As for Lee, you miss him because he is really good and you planned on him being here.
 

L.T. Fan

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Maybe Lee, but Ware and Hatcher played most of last season.

As for Lee, you miss him because he is really good and you planned on him being here.
H
Ware was slightly better than average last season. The year before he missed a lot of games.
 

hstour

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True. But he was only playing with one arm and one leg.
And Hatcher will not play in pre-season after hurting his knee. And with his age of 32, even being ready for the season isn't assured.

But everyone wants to say that Hatcher not being with the Cowboys is a loss. How is it a loss if he wouldn't be on the field. His 11 sacks from last year are dead and gone. This is a new year.
 

L.T. Fan

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The year before he missed zero games.
That's probably right but he hasn't been on the best player status for a while. He presence won't be missed based on his immediate past performances.
 

hstour

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And I'll say that he may be awesome in Denver if he stays healthy. He has Terrance Knighton on the line with him and Von Miller in the LB corps. But that doesn't mean he would have been the old Ware here.

Apples and oranges.....
 

ravidubey

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And I'll say that he may be awesome in Denver if he stays healthy. He has Terrance Knighton on the line with him and Von Miller in the LB corps. But that doesn't mean he would have been the old Ware here.

Apples and oranges.....
Except they will rotate Ware while we wouldn't have done that until he was injured and limping. The guy's a monster and I am seriously rooting for him.
 

L.T. Fan

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Except they will rotate Ware while we wouldn't have done that until he was injured and limping. The guy's a monster and I am seriously rooting for him.
I think Ware may still have a little left in his tank but the real issue with him was the monstrosity of a contract. It would have eventually choked the organization's ability to rebuild the defense because the resources just wouldn't be available. It was the best move to let him go. It was a situation similar to Aikmen in his last year's. His contract ate up too much of the club's resources even without a salary cap.
 

Cowboysrock55

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I think Ware may still have a little left in his tank but the real issue with him was the monstrosity of a contract. It would have eventually choked the organization's ability to rebuild the defense because the resources just wouldn't be available. It was the best move to let him go. It was a situation similar to Aikmen in his last year's. His contract ate up too much of the club's resources even without a salary cap.
Plus the injuries are starting to add up with Ware. Even previous years when he wasn't missing games he was playing hurt an awful lot. Ware didn't look very good while he was on the field last year but I think that was a direct result of playing hurt. Nice player but at his age the injury issues aren't going to get better. He may have a fluke healthy year and put up good numbers but I wouldn't bet on it.
 

Cotton

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I think Ware may still have a little left in his tank but the real issue with him was the monstrosity of a contract. It would have eventually choked the organization's ability to rebuild the defense because the resources just wouldn't be available. It was the best move to let him go. It was a situation similar to Aikmen in his last year's. His contract ate up too much of the club's resources even without a salary cap.
That was a stupid contract when they signed it.
 
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