Day After Thoughts- Week Six

[bbgun]

Fuck Tapper. You don't think Smith plays one game this year.

no, I don't. why should I? he needed serious surgery for an injury that happened in January. playing this year would have been a long shot even without the nerve problem.

 

[yimyammer]

Fuck Tapper. You don't think Smith plays one game this year.

sure seems long a longshot, why do you think he will?

 

[Bluenoser]

Surgery in Jan, games in Dec. He is gonna play.

 

[dbair1967]

sure seems long a longshot, why do you think he will?

There have been some subtle hints at it for a week or so now. The latest coming from Gil Brandt, who says he truly believes we'll see Smith week 13 or 14.

Guess we'll see. I never thought he'd play this year but if he does and he's even 80% of what he was at Notre Dame, he'd be a pretty good late season add.

 

[bbgun]

if Gregory or Smith plays this year, I'll stop having sex with lingerie models

 

[yimyammer]

if Gregory or Smith plays this year, I'll stop having sex with lingerie models

as long as you're bullshitting you might as well go ahead and say you'll start having sex with them

 

[theoneandonly]

if Gregory or Smith plays this year, I'll stop having sex with lingerie models

If either of those two were going to play this year Jerry would have been his gums flapping non stop about it. BTW somebody at the zone dug up a USA Today story right after Jaylon surgery. In it Dan Cooper states 9-15 month time frame for nerve to regenerate. Right now we are a little over nine months from the surgery, I dont see it happening this year but feel a little better about next year. Gregory OTOH is a lost cause to me.

 

[Bob Sacamano]

Yeah, Gregory is probably way out of shape right now.

 

[yimyammer]

Surgery in Jan, games in Dec. He is gonna play.

welp, guess that settles it

 

[yimyammer]

There have been some subtle hints at it for a week or so now. The latest coming from Gil Brandt, who says he truly believes we'll see Smith week 13 or 14.

Guess we'll see. I never thought he'd play this year but if he does and he's even 80% of what he was at Notre Dame, he'd be a pretty good late season add.

I saw that, sure hope he's right. Would be a nice boost to the defense if he can play well. I wouldn't bet on it though

 

[yimyammer]

If either of those two were going to play this year Jerry would have been his gums flapping non stop about it. BTW somebody at the zone dug up a USA Today story right after Jaylon surgery. In it Dan Cooper states 9-15 month time frame for nerve to regenerate. Right now we are a little over nine months from the surgery, I dont see it happening this year but feel a little better about next year. Gregory OTOH is a lost cause to me.

This one?--->

Jaylon Smith's nerve issue still clouded, but surgeon says recovery odds 'very good'

10:45 p.m. EDT April 23, 2016

FORT WAYNE, Ind. – Jaylon Smith acknowledges it’s likely he’ll sit out his rookie season in the NFL. But neither the former Notre Dame star linebacker nor the doctor who performed his knee surgery are ruling out anything days before the draft – and Smith is already doing some football drills.

“When you’re in bed for six weeks, not able to move, not able to walk, you’re this dominant force, but yet you have to rely on people to do little things for you,” Smith told USA TODAY Sports during a break between workouts Friday at AWP Sports.

“It even makes you appreciate the little things, and being back out on the field – it’s so awesome. Not a lot of people know exactly what I’m doing right now. But I’m killing it.”

Roughly 3½ months removed from surgery to reconstruct his left anterior cruciate ligament, as well as all the structures on the lateral side of his knee, Smith is past deficit work and now working on functional compensation and progressions – some of which Friday involved dropping in coverage and swatting his way past a tackling dummy while wearing an ankle foot orthosis (AFO) device that helps him pick up his left foot.

A checkup by NFL teams last weekend in Indianapolis showed Smith remains unable to raise his left foot or swing it out to the side because of an issue with his peroneal nerve. But the "foot-drop" isn't a surprise at this stage, said his surgeon, Dr. Dan Cooper, who is “optimistic that his knee itself will be stable and a good knee and he’ll get all his strength back. And I also think he has a very good chance of getting his nerve recovery back.”

That’s because the lateral damage stretched Smith’s nerve “enough to make it go to sleep, but it wasn’t stretched enough to be structurally elongated or visually very damaged” like more severe injuries, Cooper told USA TODAY Sports. There’s normally a one-month lag time before the nerve regrows at all, and once it begins, the rate is only about 1 inch per month.

“He’s had time for his nerve to regrow 2 inches, and the area of where his nerve was injured is 6 inches above the muscle that it innervates,” said Cooper, who’s also the Dallas Cowboys’ head team physician. “I wouldn’t really expect him to get much innervation back into that muscle for two or three more months. Then once it does – I’ve seen kids who are completely paralyzed like him on the lateral side and not able to pick their foot up at all (that) wind up being totally normal.”

There’s no guarantee Smith’s nerve fully recovers, though. It’s luck of the draw. And there’s no way to speed up the regeneration. So, each NFL team will have to weigh the odds and decide whether to gamble – and how much to gamble – on one of the draft’s most talented players, months before it’s medically possible to have a better idea on how he’ll recover.

A good sign for Smith: He said the tingling down his leg and into his foot continues to advance, which can indicate the nerve axons are growing.

“I feel different sensations every day,” Smith said. “But it’s a thing where it’s patience, so you don’t try to hype yourself up too much.”

He’s back up to 240 pounds after weighing in at 223 at the combine, about six weeks after his Jan. 7 surgery. He said he has squatted over 500 pounds and leg pressed over 700.

Asked if he expects to play in 2016, Smith said: “I want to play. Absolutely, I want to play. I’m a competitor. (But) if I’m not 100%, I won’t be playing. That does my career no justice.”

Cooper agreed Smith probably will take a “redshirt” year in 2016, noting that once a nerve injury is discovered, it usually takes around nine to 15 months to fully recover. He also said he knows of high school and college football players who have played with a foot-drop, “and it’s even possible that Jaylon’s good enough to play in the NFL if he doesn’t get his nerve function back.

“Worst-case scenario, there are surgeries, there are tendon transfers you can do to hold the foot up,” Cooper said. “Best-case scenario is he gets all his strength back. And then in between would be that he gets a lot of it back or some of it back.”

 

[yimyammer]

Yeah, Gregory is probably way out of shape right now.

He doesn't get to practice but at least he's not isolated and can stay in some semblance of shape:

SEPTEMBER 19, 2016 4:41 PM

Gregory returned to the Cowboys last week after missing all of training camp and the first week of the season while at a treatment center.

The Cowboys have since removed him from the reserve/did not report list. He is allowed to attend meetings and work out at the Cowboys’ facility while under suspension but can’t practice with the team.

Read more here: Cowboys DE Randy Gregory's appeal of an additional 10-game suspension has has been denied by the NFL | The Star-Telegram

 

[Bob Sacamano]

He doesn't get to practice but at least he's not isolated and can stay in some semblance of shape:

He needs reps. He might check out alright in physical shape. But game shape will be another story.

 

[MrB]

Thanks. Anyone think we lose Linehan after the season?

As good as he's been I don't see any team out there that would be looking at him as a HC. If Jerry wants to keep him I don't see any way he leaves.

 

[MrB]

2) Zeke is just a stud, period. Sure some jags could "do the job" or be "adequate", but JAGS don't dominate games or change how defenses have to play against you. Zeke is a true do it all back that has no weakness in his game, he was reportedly the highest rated player on their draft board and through 6 weeks there is no question he was the best player in this draft. The only slight concern has to be the workload. I totally get the "he's too good to take off the field" (like Emmitt in his heyday, or even Murray to a certain extent in 2014) thinking, but I'd rather not see him getting a few junk carries at the end of a clearly decided game (like yesterday). He doesn't need the extra wear and tear and a bad injury would be crippling for the team. Use Morris there. I also hope with games coming up against teams like the Browns and Ravens that the staff will do more to get Morris more carries in those games, saving Zeke more for December/January. Zeke just had his 4th straight 130+ yd game (another record) and is on pace to eclipse Eric Dickerson's 1983 rookie rushing record now.

I remember catching so much hell on this board for saying the Cowboys should draft Zeke. My argument was that I wanted a dominant RB behind this dominant OL. Ramsey (who most wanted) is good but wouldn't have had the impact that Zeke has had. That was my belief. Devonte Booker or Alex Collins or the Bama kid playing behind Demarco would have been ok but I wanted greatness and everything we're seeing was the best case scenario of what I thought would happen.

As for Morris, when the team has leads like this going into the 4th and basically just need to milk the clock Morris really should be the guy. Ideally Morris should end up with about 10-15 carries every game. I have a feeling they are going to ride him into the ground though. They are going to get everything they can out of him for about 8 years and then will have to find them a new one.

 

[MrB]

3) Lets officially rename #11 Cole Beastly. Razor sharp cuts and great routes, he is virtually unguardable in the slot and he's doing this right now with no Dez Bryant. They mentioned the story again yesterday of Beastly giving up the game for a brief time in camp a few years ago. Whoever convinced him otherwise deserves some props.

Wasn't Garrett the one who kept in contact and talked him into coming back?

 

[dbair1967]

Wasn't Garrett the one who kept in contact and talked him into coming back?

I don't remember, TE might know

 

[LAZARUS_LOGAN]

Wasn't Garrett the one who kept in contact and talked him into coming back?

Both Garrett and Jones talked him into coming back.

 

[Iamtdg]

As good as he's been I don't see any team out there that would be looking at him as a HC. If Jerry wants to keep him I don't see any way he leaves.

He has had a stint as a HC before and failed miserably. I doubt he goes anywhere in that position, but I can see some teams trying to snag him as a OC. But, since it's a lateral move, we have the advantage.

 

[icup]

jim carrey is right. linehan stays to continue the process and finish the fight for 17 inches.

we will need to keep an eye on garrett. with the brilliant playcalling of linehan, and resurgence of the offense this year, garrett is doing an awful lot of clapping. worried about the impact on the hands over the coarse of the season. especially if we have a playoff run. spitballing a simple solution here but, an in-house hand transplant? i don't think twill is really using his. plenty of tread left. i'd wish garrett would work on perfecting his high fives. at least that way he's only doing half the damage. i'm probably asking for too much.

so pumped that we are winning, though.