Gosselin: Cowboys thinking Super Bowl, but September should be first concern

[boozeman]

Gosselin: Cowboys thinking Super Bowl, but September should be first concern

Rick Gosselin Follow @RickGosselinDMN rgosselin@dallasnews.com



Published: 04 July 2015 08:53 PM

Updated: 04 July 2015 08:54 PM



The focus around here ever since the Dez non-catch in Green Bay has been the 2015 season.

Specifically, the end of the 2015 season.

The expectation in these parts is that the Cowboys are ready to take the next step. There’s an anticipation that the Cowboys will again capture the division, reach the playoffs, win the NFC and advance to an NFL-record ninth Super Bowl. League passing champion Tony Romo fueled those expectations in April with a public proclamation that the Cowboys would win the next Super Bowl.

So there is a natural urge to want to fast forward the season to January. Let’s cut to the chase.

But my concern isn’t January. My concern is now September.

The team’s best pass rusher (Greg Hardy) won’t be there for the opening month of the season. Neither will the team’s best run defender (Rolando McClain). The Cowboys also will be asking two rookies to assume prominent roles on defense — first-round cornerback Byron Jones and second-round pass rusher Randy Gregory.

Why do I focus on the defense? Because of the four opponents on tap at the start of the season.

All four finished in the NFL’s top 10 in offense last season — the Saints first, the Eagles fifth, the Falcons eighth and the Giants 10th. Two of the teams have quarterbacks who have won Super Bowls, another has the NFL rushing champion and two have Pro Bowl receivers.

The Cowboys could certainly use Hardy’s pass rush against Eli Manning in the opener against the Giants. New York has won two Super Bowls and Manning has been the MVP of both of them. The Cowboys also could use Hardy’s rush against Drew Brees in the fourth week against the Saints. Brees picked up a Super Bowl ring in 2009. There have been eight 5,000-yard passing seasons in NFL history and Brees has four of them.

The Cowboys could use McClain’s run-stuffing abilities against old friend DeMarco Murray in the second week against the Eagles. Murray set the Cowboys’ franchise record with 1,845 yards on the ground last season, winning the NFL rushing title by almost 500 yards. But Murray bolted for Philadelphia in free agency this offseason, becoming the first rushing champion to switch teams in 49 years. Do you think Murray has this game circled on his calendar?

Hardy signed as a free agent with the Cowboys in March. He’s a former Pro Bowl pass rusher who sacked 15 quarterbacks in his last full season in 2013. At 26, he’s certainly young enough to do it again. But the NFL suspended him in April for 10 games for domestic abuse. Hardy has appealed, but even the optimists at Valley Ranch do not expect more than a four-game roll back, if any.

McClain returned to the field after a year’s absence in 2014, signing with the Cowboys as a free agent, and put together his best season as a pro. A former top-10 draft pick, McClain collected a career-best 108 tackles to serve as the linchpin of a top 10 rushing defense. But last week, the NFL suspended him for four games for violation of the league’s substance abuse policy.

Free agent Jasper Brinkley figures to replace McClain at middle linebacker in September. Brinkley started in the middle for a Minnesota defense a year ago that ranked 25th in the NFL against the run.

Gregory figures to see better left tackles in September than he saw in the Big Ten these last few seasons. The Eagles have a seven-time Pro Bowl left tackle in Jason Peters, and the Falcons used a top-10 pick on a left tackle in 2014. The Giants used a top-10 pick and the Saints a top-15 pick on left tackles in April.

Jones certainly figures to see better receivers in September than he saw in the American Athletic Conference these last few years. He’ll make his NFL debut against a New York team with a Pro Bowl receiver on each flank, Odell Beckham Jr. and Victor Cruz. Two weeks later, the Falcons will trot out Julio Jones to challenge the Dallas secondary.

During their Super Bowl era (1992-95), the Cowboys were 12-4 in the opening month of seasons. Fast starts paved the way for championship finishes. But since winning their last title in 1995, the Cowboys are 40-36 in the opening month of the season. They are 9-7 in the opening month under Garrett.

The focus of the fan base may be February and the Super Bowl. But the focus of the Cowboys needs to be September and survival on defense.

 

[Cotton]

This Brinkley talk is really disturbing me. Hopefully we aren't counting on him to actually do anything big.

 

[L.T. Fan]

This article points out my concerns about the defense and in addition the offensive has a huge question mark regarding the running game. The organization needs help from the league's rulings to avoid a possible slow start.

 

[p1_]

This Brinkley talk is really disturbing me. Hopefully we aren't counting on him to actually do anything big.

What constitutes 'big'? Filling McClain's shoes?

 

[Cotton]

What constitutes 'big'? Filling McClain's shoes?

Yes.

 

[Cotton]

Even if they are counting on him to fill McClain's shoes on just 1st and 2nd downs, I think they are making a mistake.

 

[boozeman]

Even if they are counting on him to fill McClain's shoes on just 1st and 2nd downs, I think they are making a mistake.

That's why I would probably be more apt to have Lee fill in at MLB.

You can't have some guy like Brinkley in that role in this defensive scheme. It requires covering the deep middle in zone coverage, which is hardly Brinkley's strength.

Zimmer ran a similar system and there is a reason why they let him go in FA. He's a stop gap alright, and one I bet teams exploit for the first month of the season.

 

[Cotton]

That's why I would probably be more apt to have Lee fill in at MLB.

You can't have some guy like Brinkley in that role in this defensive scheme. It requires covering the deep middle in zone coverage, which is hardly Brinkley's strength.

Zimmer ran a similar system and there is a reason why they let him go in FA. He's a stop gap alright, and one I bet teams exploit for the first month of the season.

I agree, so now we just have to pray to holy things that Lee can stay healthy.

 

[Cowboysrock55]

That's why I would probably be more apt to have Lee fill in at MLB.

You can't have some guy like Brinkley in that role in this defensive scheme. It requires covering the deep middle in zone coverage, which is hardly Brinkley's strength.

Zimmer ran a similar system and there is a reason why they let him go in FA. He's a stop gap alright, and one I bet teams exploit for the first month of the season.

I'd love to see Damien Wilson fill that role but they may be expecting a little too much of a rookie to start the season. Still I think I'd rather play Wilson in the middle and let Lee calls the plays as the outside LBer.

 

[Jiggyfly]

Marinelli showed that he is highly flexible I think we can mix and match enough to get by.

I am glad to have a Brinkley and Gockhar in the mix instead of Smith and that other jag that were pressed into duty.

And it's hilarious after all the bitching about how overloaded we were at LB now it's a problem area.

 

[Genghis Khan]

Call me crazy but I would rather see Hitchens at mlb while McClain is out.

They think Lee can have a bigger impact at wolb so just keep him there. Hitchens was solid when called upon last year.

 

[p1_]

And it's hilarious after all the bitching about how overloaded we were at LB now it's a problem area.

You're right, it is funny. I get the feeling the team was anticipating the flake factor with McClain.

 

[boozeman]

Call me crazy but I would rather see Hitchens at mlb while McClain is out.

They think Lee can have a bigger impact at wolb so just keep him there. Hitchens was solid when called upon last year.

Maybe, but then you have Hitchens in the middle, while better than Brinkley, he is not that good in coverage either. Lee is a far superior coverage guy and invariably that is what is needed when it comes down to it.

All I know is if I see either guy in the middle, I probably spread out and go down the seam on the pair of them.

If the deep middle isn't covered, this defense can be exploited badly.

 

[Cowboysrock55]

Maybe, but then you have Hitchens in the middle, while better than Brinkley, he is not that good in coverage either. Lee is a far superior coverage guy and invariably that is what is needed when it comes down to it.

All I know is if I see either guy in the middle, I probably spread out and go down the seam on the pair of them.

If the deep middle isn't covered, this defense can be exploited badly.

Hitchens is plenty athletic to handle the zone coverages required of the middle spot. He did a great job with it last year. The real center peice to this defense is the will LBer. That's the most important LBer spot and requires the most difficult coverage in my opinion. It's where your most talented guy should go and to me that's Sean Lee.

Now conversely the least important LBer in this defense is the strong side guy. That's where I think we can get by with the multitude of guys we have on the roster.

 

[boozeman]

Hitchens is plenty athletic to handle the zone coverages required of the middle spot. He did a great job with it last year.

I know you are a Hitchens mark, so I will take that into consideration with this comment. All I can say is that if the refs stick to their guns, he's a big time goat for the coverage he had on Pettigrew which should have cost us the Detroit game. I don't see him as having the range of Lee in deep zones, not even to McClain's level. IMO, he played a little over his head last year. I would much rather him at LOLB which is an afterthought in this scheme. He'd just need to be the Sheldon Quarles/Al Singleton type, which is about his speed.

 

[Cowboysrock55]

I know you are a Hitchens mark, so I will take that into consideration with this comment. All I can say is that if the refs stick to their guns, he's a big time goat for the coverage he had on Pettigrew which should have cost us the Detroit game. I don't see him as having the range of Lee in deep zones, not even to McClain's level. IMO, he played a little over his head last year. I would much rather him at LOLB which is an afterthought in this scheme. He'd just need to be the Sheldon Quarles/Al Singleton type, which is about his speed.

You keep bringing up the Detroit play as though that is why people think he is good. It's one play in a much larger body of work from last year. It's silly to focus in on one play that is basically determined as good or bad by a ref when he played great most of the regular season.

 

[boozeman]

You keep brining up the Detroit play as though that is why people think he is good.

No, I bring that play up as an example of why it is important to tap the breaks on him. People are running around acting like he's a finished product and better than what we let go in Durant and even Carter. Sorry don't see that yet.

He had a decent rookie season when he was forced to play. But that play illustrated that he has limitations and he was a referee with a set of balls from being the biggest Dallas playoff goat since Patrick Crayton.

 

[Cowboysrock55]

But that play illustrated that he has limitations and he was a referee with a set of balls from being the biggest Dallas playoff goat since Patrick Crayton.

How does it illustrate his limitations? He wasn't beaten on the play. He was in great position. He didn't however get his head around on the ball and that's why the PI was called initially. Did he do everything perfect on that play? No. But this wasn't like a reoccurring problem that we saw throughout the season either.

It's amazing what a person's perception of a player when they are drafted can do to impact the judgments on a player later. The fact is that as a part time player he had over 70 tackles, 3 tackles for loss, 4 passes defensed and an INT. I don't think he projects as anything amazing as a starter but I think he will be a very solid player. Probably somewhere in the 100 + tackles ranged and 2 - 3 INTs a year. I don't know that I'd say he is better then Carter or Durant but I think he is already on a similar level. Carter made a good amount of plays in pass coverage last year but that wasn't really the norm with him. Over his career he has been beaten like a drum in coverage. It's funny, the dude never had an INT in his career and then somehow comes up with 5 last year. He wasn't a very good LBer most of his career though. Durant has been a journey man who can't stay healthy his whole career. Definitely a better player then Carter when healthy but never healthy.

I see no reason why Hitchens isn't on a similar level to those two.

 

[ravidubey]

How does it illustrate his limitations? He wasn't beaten on the play. He was in great position. He didn't however get his head around on the ball and that's why the PI was called initially. Did he do everything perfect on that play? No. But this wasn't like a reoccurring problem that we saw throughout the season either.

Ball wasn't in the air when he initiated contact.

Receiver tugged Hitchens' shoulder forward.

Good non-call on the PI.

 

[Cowboysrock55]

Ball wasn't in the air when he initiated contact.

Receiver tugged Hitchens' shoulder forward.

Good non-call on the PI.

If the ref never throws the flag in the first place that call is probably barely talked about.