dbair1967

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Watched via Preseason Live last night, was well worth the $20 investment to get the Cowboy games (as well as all other preseason games not on national TV) Picture quality was excellent and audio was excellent as well.

The game itself was a little shoddy, but I kinda expected that with only two weeks worth of work on a totally new defensive scheme, and having so many starters/key backups out. Saw some good and not so good stuff out there.

1) Cant imagine Garrett and Houck were overly thrilled with the backup OL. I know we technically had two second teamers starting, but the guys backing them up really struggled. Young was only so-so and I thought Parnell was terrible. Didnt see much from the backup guards to get excited about either. As I said last night, I think adding a veteran OL or two is a real possibility, especially if Holland doesnt get out there and look decent pretty quick.

2) With that said, it was a really solid debut for Tyron Smith. Thought he looked really good, really fluid and he is definitely strong. Anyone who thought of him as a finesse player is sadly mistaken. Arkin moved around well and showed alot of athletic ability and Costa showed pretty well at C. The starting OL looked very athletic.

3) Thought Felix Jones looked superb, this could really be a breakout yr for him. Lonyae Miller was so-so, but he had absolutely no holes to run through on his attempts. The Tanner kid had a really solid night though. Unless somebody gets hurt, I dont see how Choice stays on this team.

4) Loved what we saw from Dwayne Harris at WR, if he keeps this up he'll definitely challenge Ogletree for the 3rd WR job. Really strong, solid hands and had excellent RAC skill. Ogletree wasnt horrible, although I do think it might have been him that caused the int on McGee by basically picking off Holley on a slant route.

5) McGee is a keeper. Everything doesnt look pretty and there were still a few plays he was slow to get rid of the ball, but he has alot of toughness, a great attitude and a knack for making plays when it matters. His accuracy also seems improved. You can tell the team likes him too. He took alot of big hits and still delivered alot of good throws.

6) In addition to the backup OL issues, I think Garrett and Ryan have to be somewhat concerned about the DB situation. I know we didnt have Newman or Jenkins out there, but most of those backups seemed lost. Wont be surprised if a vet DB or two is looked at either.

7) Really terrible showing by AOA and Harris on punt returns. If AOA doesnt start showing something as a return guy, he almost assuredly isnt going to make the team.

8) Bailey showed well with the kickoffs, was hoping to se him get some FG chances too, but his kickoffs appeared pretty solid.

9) Thought Hatcher and Butler really stood out on defense. Hatcher looked like a different player than what we've seen previously. Olshansky is in real trouble to make the team IMO, and I bet they shop him around for a late rd pick.

Obviously alot to work on, but hopefully a few more starters return for the San Diego game, and I would think our 1st teamers and key guys will play most, if not all of the first half on both sides next week.
 
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Cr122

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Lonyae Miller was so-so

Ah, he was terrible. Don't know what his problem was besides the oline not blocking well.

Tanner came in with basically the same line and performed pretty well. If any one or two backs are cut or traded, it will be Choice and Miller. But..let's not fool ourselves, it's only the first preseason game and defense's were playing vanilla.
 
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Cr122

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Did you guys see that hit that AOA received last night? He was pummeled.

I can't find a video of it yet, but it was nasty.
 

Theebs

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good job dbair.

A couple of things that stood out to me last night.

I have no idea what AOA does well. It appears nothing at this point. he seems yet another wasted draft pick of a guy without an actual role, that they planned to make fit.....

Igor most certainly I would think will be out of here. Clifton geathers is enormous and looks strong along with sean lissemore I dont think we will need igor unless an injury happens.

kenwin cummings is a nut. He has a big mohawk and is one of those guys running around in pre game warmups pumping everyone up and really seems to not be able to calm down. I am not sure how his play will translate against better teams but he has the motor and apparently the smarts to sneak onto this roster.

Our secondary is a major concern. I think ball is a pretty good 4th corner and hope josh thomas could be that also buy I am scared to death right now our secondary is going to get us killed, again.

Rahim moore the safety everyone wanted blasted john phillips on a little out route right on his surgically repaired knee, he favored it constantly after that. I honestly wont be shocked to hear he is injured tomorrow and that he could miss some time. He stayed in the game but he was limping and constantly bending over and messing with it. When it first happened I was so pissed. There was no need to put a helmet on the guys knee....tackle him for christ sake.

This team has a real problem at kick and punt returner. Outside of dez and mcann I dont think we have one. That is going to be a huge part of this team if we are carrying an average defense again.

I really hope we bring in brian waters or another vet guard and bring in another vet corner and maybe even a safety. I have heard all these great things about barry church and last night he looked just as lost as he was last year. I am not sure outside of covering kicks any of the young safeties have any actual ability to do anything in this league.

and finally as I was leaving the stadium last night I realized that all this lack of depth talk might be a reality for the first time in awhile. Its hard to say because we were missing so many guys last night but it sure looked like the back end of this roster is not quite what it was a few years ago. IN 05 06 07 we were a deeper team and it showed in the preseason when we would have competent players in the second half of these games. It seems we have slipped alot in this aspect and I really hope in a couple of years we are not looking back on this group and saying that 07 was the real opportunity to win and they blew it.

I am scared the chargers might score a td everytime they have the ball with rivers out there sunday night. I got the impression last night denver could have just done whatever they wanted and were working on specific plays. Our corners looked absolutely awful to me.

forgot to add, bryan broaddus put it best when it comes to mcgee....he plays better when the situation is chaotic.....kind of like romo did back in 05. not saying he is romo, just that because of the guys on the field with him he seems to respond better to things breaking down and improvising.
 
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Plymkr

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I will worry about afterthoughts when it is for real.

From what I saw, A LOT of work needs to be done on both sides, Too many assignments missed.
 

dbair1967

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I have no idea what AOA does well. It appears nothing at this point. he seems yet another wasted draft pick of a guy without an actual role, that they planned to make fit.....

I dont either at this point. The guy obviously has some athletic ability and he definitely "looks" like a player should look, but he looks hopeless on the field. Maybe they will consider moving him back to CB, where he doesnt have to learn as much.

Igor most certainly I would think will be out of here. Clifton geathers is enormous and looks strong along with sean lissemore I dont think we will need igor unless an injury happens.

Geathers does look huge, and he looked pretty decent from what I could tell. I think Olshansky is traded and if nobody will take him, he'll be cut.

kenwin cummings is a nut. He has a big mohawk and is one of those guys running around in pre game warmups pumping everyone up and really seems to not be able to calm down. I am not sure how his play will translate against better teams but he has the motor and apparently the smarts to sneak onto this roster.

Yeah he's a wildman. Could be a special team ace.

Our secondary is a major concern. I think ball is a pretty good 4th corner and hope josh thomas could be that also buy I am scared to death right now our secondary is going to get us killed, again.

I think we're fine with Jenkins and Scandrick, and as you Ball is a decent 4th CB. Thomas looks like he has some upside and would be a nice 5th CB. Newman is the issue, if he stays healthy we would probably be fine, but we really cant afford to see him miss alot of games.

Rahim moore the safety everyone wanted blasted john phillips on a little out route right on his surgically repaired knee, he favored it constantly after that. I honestly wont be shocked to hear he is injured tomorrow and that he could miss some time. He stayed in the game but he was limping and constantly bending over and messing with it. When it first happened I was so pissed. There was no need to put a helmet on the guys knee....tackle him for christ sake.

He definitely toughed it out, I cant remember which site it was (might have been FWST) but they said Phillips claimed he was fine and that taking the hit was a positive in that it showed his knee was sound.

This team has a real problem at kick and punt returner. Outside of dez and mcann I dont think we have one. That is going to be a huge part of this team if we are carrying an average defense again.

Agree, although I think punt returner seems like more of an issue. AOA and Harris were both awful at it the other night.

I really hope we bring in brian waters or another vet guard and bring in another vet corner and maybe even a safety. I have heard all these great things about barry church and last night he looked just as lost as he was last year. I am not sure outside of covering kicks any of the young safeties have any actual ability to do anything in this league.

Agree, and I do think we'll see us make a couple moves before opening day.

and finally as I was leaving the stadium last night I realized that all this lack of depth talk might be a reality for the first time in awhile. Its hard to say because we were missing so many guys last night but it sure looked like the back end of this roster is not quite what it was a few years ago. IN 05 06 07 we were a deeper team and it showed in the preseason when we would have competent players in the second half of these games. It seems we have slipped alot in this aspect and I really hope in a couple of years we are not looking back on this group and saying that 07 was the real opportunity to win and they blew it.

With no offseason minicamps/OTA's, I kinda expected it to be pretty rough looking, especially for the young defensive players who were trying to learn a very complex Ryan scheme. Some of our "depth" ended up starting, guys like Costa, Arkin, Scandrick, Brent etc etc so I think its not as bad as it looked the other night. We were missing alot of guys for the game.

I am scared the chargers might score a td everytime they have the ball with rivers out there sunday night. I got the impression last night denver could have just done whatever they wanted and were working on specific plays. Our corners looked absolutely awful to me.

Hopefully we see some improvement this week, I think the starters will see alot more time. The CB's are a little less concern for me if Jenkins and Newman are playing, but Newman is a big question mark right now.

forgot to add, bryan broaddus put it best when it comes to mcgee....he plays better when the situation is chaotic.....kind of like romo did back in 05. not saying he is romo, just that because of the guys on the field with him he seems to respond better to things breaking down and improvising.

I like the kid alot and think he has a future. He got very little help from the OL and still produced, and threw alot of really good passes. I'd love to see him get some work with the 1st/2nd team at some point this preseason.
 

cmd34

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I really liked what I saw from McGee, Tyron Smith, Felix Jones, Clifton Geathers, and Victor Butler.

Dwayne Harris looks like an incredible steal in the 6th round.

The early hype on Lonyae Miller was unwarranted. I'm thinking we need to keep Tashard Choice.

The starting defensive line still lets too many RB's get past them. Olshansky is a waste.

Gerald Sensabaugh couldn't cover Rob Ryan. He will hurt us all year.
 

VAcowboy

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What impressed me about Smith was his pure strength. A couple of times he came out of his stance late, but reached out and just PUNCHED his guy past the QB.

I think Costa's performance is getting lost in the shuffle. He may never be a brute, but he moves well and gets a pretty good punch. He'll be a starter in the League.

Speaking of moving well: I think last night's entire #1 OL did. Bunch of athletic guys. It really worries me, though, that they never seem to knock anybody off the ball. This has been a common issue for a while now. Is it possible that Garrett's scheme is to blame? When was the last time you saw a Cowboys RB run through a gaping hole between the tackles?
 

Sheik

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I just hope we can run the frickin football this year without having to try and trick the defense in the process.

I'm sick to death of draws, delays, and the fakethepassthenhanditofffora1yardgain plays.
 
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AOA was my boy before last years draft but he is in over his head right now. Not playing up to his times speed, perhaps thinking too much. He might just be a man corner.

Hes not getting cut though.
 

Theebs

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i finally rewatched the game this morning and it wasnt moore that hit phillips, for some reason I thought it was 26 from my seat...apparently it was 34....I think might need to get my eyes checked!!!

oh and dbair yes I agree we were seeing the backups start the other night in alot of positions. If the starters are healthy we are much deeper. I am just very worried health could cause a major problem at corner, guard and maybe even safety at some point...
 
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