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Five Wonders: How far can Cowboys go?
December, 30, 2014
By Todd Archer | ESPNDallas.com
IRVING, Texas -- Five Wonders has the first playoff appearance of its career thanks to the Dallas Cowboys' 12-4 finish. And you thought all good things must come to an end.
Away we go:
** An easy wonder right off the bat. I wonder how far the Cowboys can go. I’m not sure I would take my prediction as gospel since I called an 8-8 finish at the start of the year and wondered if I was too positive. But here goes: The Cowboys can get to the Super Bowl. There I said it. It doesn’t mean I’m picking them to get there. The road will be difficult. They would have to knock off the Detroit Lions and their stingy defense. Then they would have to beat the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field and most likely have to beat the Seattle Seahawks at Century Link Field for the second time this season. It’s possible, but not probable. My guess is they win a playoff game but lose in the divisional round. If I’m wrong, I’m sure you’ll remind me.
** I wonder if we need to recognize how much Brandon Carr's play has improved down the stretch of the season. Yes, he was beaten for a touchdown by Chicago’s Alshon Jeffery (should’ve been an offensive pass interference call) and, yes, he gambled poorly against Philadelphia’sJeremy Maclin leading to a 72-yard gain. But Carr might have had his best game Sunday against Washington. It might have been the best game overall by the corners as a group. The Redskins’ receivers caught nine passes for 178 yards but 116 of those yards came on bubble screens in which the Cowboys got caught in bad situations. The other seven passes went for 62 yards. We are quick to point fingers when a defensive back screws up, but we need to do a better job recognizing the turnaround by Carr. It's not perfect, but it's a lot better.
** I wonder how interesting of a week this will be for defensive coordinator Rod Marinelli. He was the Lions head coach from 2006-08 and produced the only 0-16 record in NFL history. Clearly his time in Detroit did not go as well as anybody hoped, but his players played hard for him all the time. With the Cowboys, Marinelli is viewed as a genius for what he was able to do with this defense. Many assumed this would be one of the worst defenses in NFL history (hand raised) but it clearly wasn’t that. The final numbers don’t suggest a juggernaut. The Cowboys gave up 5.8 yards per play, quarterbacks completed 67 percent of their passes and they had a 47.3% third-down rate. Those numbers are OK. But where they excelled was in situational football, which is another way of saying when they absolutely, positively needed a play more often than not they made it.
** I wonder how much the success gnaws at players out for the year because of injury. I’m not suggesting there is any ill-will toward the success, but players live for these moments. Sean Leehas been dying to get to the playoffs since he came to the Cowboys in 2010 and has yet to experience the postseason. A knee injury last spring ended his season but his recovery is going well and he is starting to do some on-field rehab lately. It’s not just Lee. It’s Justin Durant andMorris Claiborne. The playoffs are not a birthright. Durant has played in three playoff games with the last one coming in 2011. He is in his eighth season. This could be his last best chance to get to a Super Bowl and he has to watch because of a torn triceps. As happy as they are for their teammates, it has to pain them not to be involved more.
** I wonder just how big of a candidate assistant director of player personnel director Will McClay will be for general manager gigs around the NFL this offseason. NFL.com mentioned him as a candidate for the New York Jets vacancy. His work should get him notice, the way Jeff Ireland’s work earned him notice and got him the Miami Dolphins’ gig under Bill Parcells. Jerry Jones doesn’t want him to leave but there is nothing that Jones can do to prevent McClay from leaving. Rules prevent Jones from blocking McClay’s potential advancement. As long as Jones is the owner and GM, he will have final say. If McClay wanted to run his own shop, so to speak, it would have to be elsewhere. Maybe Jones could offer him more money than another team, but everybody has aspirations of running their own show. In the scouting world, McClay is a grinder and that is perhaps the highest compliment to get. He does not stop working.
December, 30, 2014
By Todd Archer | ESPNDallas.com
IRVING, Texas -- Five Wonders has the first playoff appearance of its career thanks to the Dallas Cowboys' 12-4 finish. And you thought all good things must come to an end.
Away we go:
** An easy wonder right off the bat. I wonder how far the Cowboys can go. I’m not sure I would take my prediction as gospel since I called an 8-8 finish at the start of the year and wondered if I was too positive. But here goes: The Cowboys can get to the Super Bowl. There I said it. It doesn’t mean I’m picking them to get there. The road will be difficult. They would have to knock off the Detroit Lions and their stingy defense. Then they would have to beat the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field and most likely have to beat the Seattle Seahawks at Century Link Field for the second time this season. It’s possible, but not probable. My guess is they win a playoff game but lose in the divisional round. If I’m wrong, I’m sure you’ll remind me.
** I wonder if we need to recognize how much Brandon Carr's play has improved down the stretch of the season. Yes, he was beaten for a touchdown by Chicago’s Alshon Jeffery (should’ve been an offensive pass interference call) and, yes, he gambled poorly against Philadelphia’sJeremy Maclin leading to a 72-yard gain. But Carr might have had his best game Sunday against Washington. It might have been the best game overall by the corners as a group. The Redskins’ receivers caught nine passes for 178 yards but 116 of those yards came on bubble screens in which the Cowboys got caught in bad situations. The other seven passes went for 62 yards. We are quick to point fingers when a defensive back screws up, but we need to do a better job recognizing the turnaround by Carr. It's not perfect, but it's a lot better.
** I wonder how interesting of a week this will be for defensive coordinator Rod Marinelli. He was the Lions head coach from 2006-08 and produced the only 0-16 record in NFL history. Clearly his time in Detroit did not go as well as anybody hoped, but his players played hard for him all the time. With the Cowboys, Marinelli is viewed as a genius for what he was able to do with this defense. Many assumed this would be one of the worst defenses in NFL history (hand raised) but it clearly wasn’t that. The final numbers don’t suggest a juggernaut. The Cowboys gave up 5.8 yards per play, quarterbacks completed 67 percent of their passes and they had a 47.3% third-down rate. Those numbers are OK. But where they excelled was in situational football, which is another way of saying when they absolutely, positively needed a play more often than not they made it.
** I wonder how much the success gnaws at players out for the year because of injury. I’m not suggesting there is any ill-will toward the success, but players live for these moments. Sean Leehas been dying to get to the playoffs since he came to the Cowboys in 2010 and has yet to experience the postseason. A knee injury last spring ended his season but his recovery is going well and he is starting to do some on-field rehab lately. It’s not just Lee. It’s Justin Durant andMorris Claiborne. The playoffs are not a birthright. Durant has played in three playoff games with the last one coming in 2011. He is in his eighth season. This could be his last best chance to get to a Super Bowl and he has to watch because of a torn triceps. As happy as they are for their teammates, it has to pain them not to be involved more.
** I wonder just how big of a candidate assistant director of player personnel director Will McClay will be for general manager gigs around the NFL this offseason. NFL.com mentioned him as a candidate for the New York Jets vacancy. His work should get him notice, the way Jeff Ireland’s work earned him notice and got him the Miami Dolphins’ gig under Bill Parcells. Jerry Jones doesn’t want him to leave but there is nothing that Jones can do to prevent McClay from leaving. Rules prevent Jones from blocking McClay’s potential advancement. As long as Jones is the owner and GM, he will have final say. If McClay wanted to run his own shop, so to speak, it would have to be elsewhere. Maybe Jones could offer him more money than another team, but everybody has aspirations of running their own show. In the scouting world, McClay is a grinder and that is perhaps the highest compliment to get. He does not stop working.
