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Cowboys' vision has changed since July but hope remains
Todd Archer, ESPN Staff Writer
IRVING, Texas -- About a week before training camp began, Dallas Cowboys executive vice president Stephen Jones stood in a team-themed restaurant inside Terminal A at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, feeling good about his team’s chances.
“I do believe we’ve put together a team here that’s one of the better ones we’ve had in quite some time,” Jones said at the time. “I do believe it’s all coming together for us.”
Hope was high in July.
The Cowboys thought they had the right answers at running back after losing DeMarco Murray in free agency. They added the best pass-rusher in free agency in Greg Hardy but knew he would miss the first four games. They added three first-round talents in the draft process with Byron Jones, Randy Gregory and La’el Collins. A week before Jones’ comments, the Cowboys signed Dez Bryant to a five-year, $70 million deal.
But Jones knows an offseason means nothing in the regular season. While optimistic, Jones had a sense of realism, too.
“It’s all about the production on the field,” Jones said last July. “We obviously feel like we got a lot accomplished. Whether we did or not remains to be seen, and it’ll all be in whether we have a successful season. We theoretically got done what we felt like we needed to do to make our team better and take the next step. Now we’ll see if it happens.”
Through five games, the Cowboys are 2-3, and some of the answers they thought they had in July remain questions in October and some answers remain incomplete.
Replacing Murray
Five games doesn’t make a season, but the Cowboys’ decision to not select a runner early in the draft -- or at all -- or make a bigger play in free agency is hurting them. Joseph Randle has not been effective. Neither has Darren McFadden. Lance Dunbar is out for the year with a knee injury.
It’s not all on the runners. The line, considered by many the best in football with Pro Bowlers Tyron Smith, Travis Frederick and Zack Martin, has not delivered. Collins will move into the starting lineup at left guard for Ronald Leary, and that might not be the only change to help the run game.
Christine Michael, picked up in a trade at the start of the season from the Seattle Seahawks, will get a chance to show if he can do what Randle and Murray haven’t.
The pass rush
Hardy has played in just one game, but he showed what kind of impact he can have with two sacks and five quarterback pressures of Tom Brady. The Cowboys will welcome Gregory back to the lineup after missing the past four games with a high ankle sprain.
The Cowboys had just three sacks in the first three games but have eight in the past two. The more Hardy plays, the more Gregory plays, the more their top pass-rushers play together, the more the Cowboys will affect the quarterback. In turn, they hope that leads to more (some?) takeaways.
The big plays
The Cowboys haven’t had Bryant since the opener because of a broken right foot. They might not have him Sunday either, but he will be back soon. Tony Romo will miss his fourth straight game and will not return from a broken left collarbone until Nov. 22 at the earliest.
The offense has been stagnant without its two best players and took another hit when Dunbar got hurt. Matt Cassel will start at quarterback after the Cowboys were unable to win in any of Brandon Weeden’s three starts.
The Cowboys were able to ground and pound teams last year, but they were able to hit big plays on the ground, through the air and on special teams. They have been suffocated in the past three games.
Perhaps Cassel can provide the spark needed until Romo returns.
The good news for the Cowboys? They play in the NFC East. They are a half-game out of first place with the Philadelphia Eagles beating the New York Giants on Monday Night Football. Did either team look impressive or unbeatable? Absolutely not.
The visions the Cowboys had of their roster in July look different now, but they still have a chance.
Todd Archer, ESPN Staff Writer
IRVING, Texas -- About a week before training camp began, Dallas Cowboys executive vice president Stephen Jones stood in a team-themed restaurant inside Terminal A at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, feeling good about his team’s chances.
“I do believe we’ve put together a team here that’s one of the better ones we’ve had in quite some time,” Jones said at the time. “I do believe it’s all coming together for us.”
Hope was high in July.
The Cowboys thought they had the right answers at running back after losing DeMarco Murray in free agency. They added the best pass-rusher in free agency in Greg Hardy but knew he would miss the first four games. They added three first-round talents in the draft process with Byron Jones, Randy Gregory and La’el Collins. A week before Jones’ comments, the Cowboys signed Dez Bryant to a five-year, $70 million deal.
But Jones knows an offseason means nothing in the regular season. While optimistic, Jones had a sense of realism, too.
“It’s all about the production on the field,” Jones said last July. “We obviously feel like we got a lot accomplished. Whether we did or not remains to be seen, and it’ll all be in whether we have a successful season. We theoretically got done what we felt like we needed to do to make our team better and take the next step. Now we’ll see if it happens.”
Through five games, the Cowboys are 2-3, and some of the answers they thought they had in July remain questions in October and some answers remain incomplete.
Replacing Murray
Five games doesn’t make a season, but the Cowboys’ decision to not select a runner early in the draft -- or at all -- or make a bigger play in free agency is hurting them. Joseph Randle has not been effective. Neither has Darren McFadden. Lance Dunbar is out for the year with a knee injury.
It’s not all on the runners. The line, considered by many the best in football with Pro Bowlers Tyron Smith, Travis Frederick and Zack Martin, has not delivered. Collins will move into the starting lineup at left guard for Ronald Leary, and that might not be the only change to help the run game.
Christine Michael, picked up in a trade at the start of the season from the Seattle Seahawks, will get a chance to show if he can do what Randle and Murray haven’t.
The pass rush
Hardy has played in just one game, but he showed what kind of impact he can have with two sacks and five quarterback pressures of Tom Brady. The Cowboys will welcome Gregory back to the lineup after missing the past four games with a high ankle sprain.
The Cowboys had just three sacks in the first three games but have eight in the past two. The more Hardy plays, the more Gregory plays, the more their top pass-rushers play together, the more the Cowboys will affect the quarterback. In turn, they hope that leads to more (some?) takeaways.
The big plays
The Cowboys haven’t had Bryant since the opener because of a broken right foot. They might not have him Sunday either, but he will be back soon. Tony Romo will miss his fourth straight game and will not return from a broken left collarbone until Nov. 22 at the earliest.
The offense has been stagnant without its two best players and took another hit when Dunbar got hurt. Matt Cassel will start at quarterback after the Cowboys were unable to win in any of Brandon Weeden’s three starts.
The Cowboys were able to ground and pound teams last year, but they were able to hit big plays on the ground, through the air and on special teams. They have been suffocated in the past three games.
Perhaps Cassel can provide the spark needed until Romo returns.
The good news for the Cowboys? They play in the NFC East. They are a half-game out of first place with the Philadelphia Eagles beating the New York Giants on Monday Night Football. Did either team look impressive or unbeatable? Absolutely not.
The visions the Cowboys had of their roster in July look different now, but they still have a chance.
