Simpleton
DCC 4Life
- Joined
- Apr 8, 2013
- Messages
- 17,508
After posting on boards like this one for over a decade there is always a common theme heading into an off-season where the team under performed or disappointed, and that is the laundry list of "needs" that the team must address before we can apparently have any hope of competing at a high level. Usually following a season like this one the list consists of about half the starting spots on the roster and people insist that we have no hope unless every single one of them are addressed to one extent or another.
Most of the lists I've seen generally consist of RB, about 3-4 DB's, an LB or two, WR2/3, a couple of DL, maybe RT, and then of course QB for long-term reasons. My point is not that we don't need upgrades at several spots, some more so than others, but it's that I think people over exaggerate how dire the need is and/or what level of player we need to fill that spot (i.e. people thinking we need an elite CB when an average to above average player will do) based on the disappointment/anger of a losing season. My other point is that Garrett doesn't do the talent we do have any favors because we seemingly can't work around being talent deficient in areas like other teams can.
Look at a team like Carolina. 7-8-1 last year, not an overly talented team, what did they come into the year with?
Journeyman Kurt Coleman and 50 year old Roman Harper at safety? Jonathan Stewart at RB, 28 years old, a guy who has never had 1,000 yards and is always injured? Turnstile Michael Oher at LT with some guy named Mike Remmers at RT? A WR corps consisting of Kelvin Benjamin, a rookie in Funchess, Ted Ginn who has never done anything, Jericho Cotchery and some guy named Corey Brown? 50 year old, injury prone Charles Tillman as their 2nd/3rd CB? No real DE's opposite Charles Johnson aside from Kony Ealy?
If we were coming off a year like that and went into the next season with perceived holes like that all over the roster nobody would think we had a chance at anything, yet somehow Carolina is 14-0. Why?
Because they play to the strengths of their team, their coaching staff knows what they are, the style of play they need to execute to win, and they execute it. Coming into the year their plan was generally to rely on their stout front 7, run the ball and have Cam make enough plays through the air or on the ground to win, they won a bunch of close games early on, gained confidence in what they were doing and then they started to dominate.
Arizona is similar in that they came into the season relying on guys like Chris Johnson and rookie David Johnson at RB, nobody TE's like Daniel Fells and Jermaine Gresham, a WR corps with no dominant lead WR's, an injury prone 36 year old QB coming off an ACL, a bunch of journeymen DL (outside of Calais Campbell of course) like Red Bryant, Frostee Rucker, and Corey Peters, and no real edge rushers with rookie Markus Golden, 50 year old Dwight Freeney and Alex Okafor who had one good season.
My point here is that these teams are not just overflowing with talent yet they are 14-0 and 12-2 because they have a coaching staff that has a philosophy and puts together cohesive game plans that play to the strengths of their personnel. Stylistically we are a healthy Romo, Dez and a half decent RB away from having what should be one of the most dominant offenses in the league by leaning on our OL (an OL that pushed around the number 1 ranked Jets run defense with Kellen Moore at QB and Darren McFadden at RB). Defensively we have some good young talent in Lawrence, Jones and Crawford (overpaid as he may be), Scandrick's return will help and you have to hope that Lee can stay healthy and Gregory can meet his potential. Maybe we re-sign Hardy, maybe we don't, but with the assumption being that the offense is dominant, the front office should be able to put a defense together that is good enough to win by leaning on the offense (which they did this year in my opinion). All of this is reliant to an extent on a coaching staff that can be creative, innovative and pragmatic when necessary, something we obviously don't have.
I guess my overall point is that our talent is not far off, which is what we saw last year (Romo health assumed here, but wasn't assuming Palmer would be healthy this season at his age a leap of faith too?), and that in this league you have to roll with question marks throughout your roster. You just need to have a coaching staff who can work around those question marks and accentuate the strengths. Does anybody here doubt that if we had a coach/staff the caliber of Bruce Arians and his staff going into next season that we would be a strong SB contender (if not favorite) with a healthy Romo and a few strategic personnel decisions at RB and on defense?
Most of the lists I've seen generally consist of RB, about 3-4 DB's, an LB or two, WR2/3, a couple of DL, maybe RT, and then of course QB for long-term reasons. My point is not that we don't need upgrades at several spots, some more so than others, but it's that I think people over exaggerate how dire the need is and/or what level of player we need to fill that spot (i.e. people thinking we need an elite CB when an average to above average player will do) based on the disappointment/anger of a losing season. My other point is that Garrett doesn't do the talent we do have any favors because we seemingly can't work around being talent deficient in areas like other teams can.
Look at a team like Carolina. 7-8-1 last year, not an overly talented team, what did they come into the year with?
Journeyman Kurt Coleman and 50 year old Roman Harper at safety? Jonathan Stewart at RB, 28 years old, a guy who has never had 1,000 yards and is always injured? Turnstile Michael Oher at LT with some guy named Mike Remmers at RT? A WR corps consisting of Kelvin Benjamin, a rookie in Funchess, Ted Ginn who has never done anything, Jericho Cotchery and some guy named Corey Brown? 50 year old, injury prone Charles Tillman as their 2nd/3rd CB? No real DE's opposite Charles Johnson aside from Kony Ealy?
If we were coming off a year like that and went into the next season with perceived holes like that all over the roster nobody would think we had a chance at anything, yet somehow Carolina is 14-0. Why?
Because they play to the strengths of their team, their coaching staff knows what they are, the style of play they need to execute to win, and they execute it. Coming into the year their plan was generally to rely on their stout front 7, run the ball and have Cam make enough plays through the air or on the ground to win, they won a bunch of close games early on, gained confidence in what they were doing and then they started to dominate.
Arizona is similar in that they came into the season relying on guys like Chris Johnson and rookie David Johnson at RB, nobody TE's like Daniel Fells and Jermaine Gresham, a WR corps with no dominant lead WR's, an injury prone 36 year old QB coming off an ACL, a bunch of journeymen DL (outside of Calais Campbell of course) like Red Bryant, Frostee Rucker, and Corey Peters, and no real edge rushers with rookie Markus Golden, 50 year old Dwight Freeney and Alex Okafor who had one good season.
My point here is that these teams are not just overflowing with talent yet they are 14-0 and 12-2 because they have a coaching staff that has a philosophy and puts together cohesive game plans that play to the strengths of their personnel. Stylistically we are a healthy Romo, Dez and a half decent RB away from having what should be one of the most dominant offenses in the league by leaning on our OL (an OL that pushed around the number 1 ranked Jets run defense with Kellen Moore at QB and Darren McFadden at RB). Defensively we have some good young talent in Lawrence, Jones and Crawford (overpaid as he may be), Scandrick's return will help and you have to hope that Lee can stay healthy and Gregory can meet his potential. Maybe we re-sign Hardy, maybe we don't, but with the assumption being that the offense is dominant, the front office should be able to put a defense together that is good enough to win by leaning on the offense (which they did this year in my opinion). All of this is reliant to an extent on a coaching staff that can be creative, innovative and pragmatic when necessary, something we obviously don't have.
I guess my overall point is that our talent is not far off, which is what we saw last year (Romo health assumed here, but wasn't assuming Palmer would be healthy this season at his age a leap of faith too?), and that in this league you have to roll with question marks throughout your roster. You just need to have a coaching staff who can work around those question marks and accentuate the strengths. Does anybody here doubt that if we had a coach/staff the caliber of Bruce Arians and his staff going into next season that we would be a strong SB contender (if not favorite) with a healthy Romo and a few strategic personnel decisions at RB and on defense?