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In the NFC East, Nobody’s Perfect
BY ROB PHILLIPS on AUGUST 28, 2013 • ( 1 )
The 2013 Dallas Cowboys have question marks.
Their best offensive lineman (22-year-old Tyron Smith) is also their youngest. Two other projected starters (first-round center Travis Frederick and 2012 undrafted guard Ronald Leary) have never taken a regular-season snap, and the line’s veteran (Doug Free) must prove only his salary dropped – not his confidence – after a terrible 2012 season.
In 2010, the offense gained a lot of yards but didn’t score a lot of points. In 2011, the offense gained a lot of yards but didn’t score a lot of points. In 2012, the offense…
Will the running game improve? Can DeMarco Murray stay healthy?Run_Cowboys
Call it hindsight if you like, but the defensive line was thin before Tyrone Crawford blew out his Achilles during the first camp practice and before Jay Ratliff hit the PUP list Tuesday with injuries more chronic than anyone imagined. Josh Brent’s legal hiatus had already hurt the unit’s size and depth. Gavin Escobar better boost the offense’s “12 personnel” or the Cowboys will have to answer tough questions about drafting a backup tight end in the second round for the third time since 2006 instead of trying to fortify things up front.
Can Will Allen and Barry Church make the plays that the Tampa 2 scheme requires safeties to make?
The good news for the special teams is it’s only preseason. I can hear Joe DeCamillis dropping four-letter words all the way from Soldier Field.
Believe it or not, after writing that, I’ve got the 2013 Dallas Cowboys winning more than three games. In fact, I’m starting to like their chances in the NFC East. The entire NFC? That’s for the next blog post.
A big reason for blue-and-silver optimism is peripheral – every team in this division has question marks.
When you follow one team more closely than any other, the players, positions, strengths and weaknesses get distorted. Sometimes things are better than perception, sometimes they’re worse, and sometimes they’re on par with the competition. Nobody in today’s NFL is truly dominant.
So, for a little perspective, here’s some beat-writer chatter from the local Debbie Downers in Washington, New York and Philadelphia.
Redskins:
RG3 says his surgically-repaired knee is ready for Week 1, but it hasn’t been tested in a game yet. Gotta see it.
The secondary’s experience is a concern. The Redskins initially considered rolling with two rookie safeties, Baccari “Rum” Rambo and Phillip Thomas, until a LisFranc injury shelved Thomas for the season. They’re hoping Brandon Meriweather can return from last year’s knee injury and be a veteran playmaker again.
Linebacker depth behind 38-year-old London Fletcher is undistinguished, to say the least.
Giants:
Injuries, everywhere. Starting safety Stevie Brown is done for the year. Victor Cruz and Justin Tuck have been banged up. Jason Pierre-Paul (back) is off the PUP list but won’t necessarily play against the Cowboys on opening weekend.
If not for the train wreck that is Rex Ryan’s quarterback controversy across town, Eli Manning’s ugly 8-for-20 performance against the Jets would’ve made front page news in The Post. Oh, and the scribes are worried about red zone scoring and the running game. Sound familiar?
A hot start won’t convince anyone that this team will contend. Even the players admit to some sort of midseason malaise that forces them to scramble for a playoff spot nearly every December. That’s got to change.
Eagles:
Even with a healthy DeSean Jackson, the wide receiver position was a disaster in camp. Season-ending knee injuries to Jeremy Maclin and Arrelious Benn may have forced Philly to keep Riley Cooper despite his shameful racial-slur-laden rant at a Kenny Chesney concert. You cannot make this stuff up.
The secondary could have four new starters, but questions about its competency remain after the old unit gave up 26 touchdown passes in the final 10 games last year. Allowing a 63-yard touchdown run to the Jaguars last weekend didn’t help the overall defense’s preseason rep.
Then there’s new head coach Chip Kelly. His high-octane offense is must-see television and it might save Michael Vick’s career. But will it have sustainability after teams get a few games on film? And can Kelly take command of an NFL locker room? Jim Harbaugh has in San Francisco. Most other highly successful college coaches have not.
Feel better?
BY ROB PHILLIPS on AUGUST 28, 2013 • ( 1 )
The 2013 Dallas Cowboys have question marks.
Their best offensive lineman (22-year-old Tyron Smith) is also their youngest. Two other projected starters (first-round center Travis Frederick and 2012 undrafted guard Ronald Leary) have never taken a regular-season snap, and the line’s veteran (Doug Free) must prove only his salary dropped – not his confidence – after a terrible 2012 season.
In 2010, the offense gained a lot of yards but didn’t score a lot of points. In 2011, the offense gained a lot of yards but didn’t score a lot of points. In 2012, the offense…
Will the running game improve? Can DeMarco Murray stay healthy?Run_Cowboys
Call it hindsight if you like, but the defensive line was thin before Tyrone Crawford blew out his Achilles during the first camp practice and before Jay Ratliff hit the PUP list Tuesday with injuries more chronic than anyone imagined. Josh Brent’s legal hiatus had already hurt the unit’s size and depth. Gavin Escobar better boost the offense’s “12 personnel” or the Cowboys will have to answer tough questions about drafting a backup tight end in the second round for the third time since 2006 instead of trying to fortify things up front.
Can Will Allen and Barry Church make the plays that the Tampa 2 scheme requires safeties to make?
The good news for the special teams is it’s only preseason. I can hear Joe DeCamillis dropping four-letter words all the way from Soldier Field.
Believe it or not, after writing that, I’ve got the 2013 Dallas Cowboys winning more than three games. In fact, I’m starting to like their chances in the NFC East. The entire NFC? That’s for the next blog post.
A big reason for blue-and-silver optimism is peripheral – every team in this division has question marks.
When you follow one team more closely than any other, the players, positions, strengths and weaknesses get distorted. Sometimes things are better than perception, sometimes they’re worse, and sometimes they’re on par with the competition. Nobody in today’s NFL is truly dominant.
So, for a little perspective, here’s some beat-writer chatter from the local Debbie Downers in Washington, New York and Philadelphia.
Redskins:
RG3 says his surgically-repaired knee is ready for Week 1, but it hasn’t been tested in a game yet. Gotta see it.
The secondary’s experience is a concern. The Redskins initially considered rolling with two rookie safeties, Baccari “Rum” Rambo and Phillip Thomas, until a LisFranc injury shelved Thomas for the season. They’re hoping Brandon Meriweather can return from last year’s knee injury and be a veteran playmaker again.
Linebacker depth behind 38-year-old London Fletcher is undistinguished, to say the least.
Giants:
Injuries, everywhere. Starting safety Stevie Brown is done for the year. Victor Cruz and Justin Tuck have been banged up. Jason Pierre-Paul (back) is off the PUP list but won’t necessarily play against the Cowboys on opening weekend.
If not for the train wreck that is Rex Ryan’s quarterback controversy across town, Eli Manning’s ugly 8-for-20 performance against the Jets would’ve made front page news in The Post. Oh, and the scribes are worried about red zone scoring and the running game. Sound familiar?
A hot start won’t convince anyone that this team will contend. Even the players admit to some sort of midseason malaise that forces them to scramble for a playoff spot nearly every December. That’s got to change.
Eagles:
Even with a healthy DeSean Jackson, the wide receiver position was a disaster in camp. Season-ending knee injuries to Jeremy Maclin and Arrelious Benn may have forced Philly to keep Riley Cooper despite his shameful racial-slur-laden rant at a Kenny Chesney concert. You cannot make this stuff up.
The secondary could have four new starters, but questions about its competency remain after the old unit gave up 26 touchdown passes in the final 10 games last year. Allowing a 63-yard touchdown run to the Jaguars last weekend didn’t help the overall defense’s preseason rep.
Then there’s new head coach Chip Kelly. His high-octane offense is must-see television and it might save Michael Vick’s career. But will it have sustainability after teams get a few games on film? And can Kelly take command of an NFL locker room? Jim Harbaugh has in San Francisco. Most other highly successful college coaches have not.
Feel better?
