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Gosselin: When Cowboys figure out character matters, maybe they'll start competing for championships again
By Rick Gosselin
The road to the Super Bowl just got a little longer for the Cowboys.
Word is Randy Gregory has failed his fifth draft test, his fourth with the Cowboys, and has checked himself into a rehabilitation clinic. He's already been suspended by the NFL for the first four games of the 2016 season, as has defensive line bookend DeMarcus Lawrence.
With Gregory and Lawrence out, the Cowboys figure to enter September with a pass rush that, on paper, counts fewer than 15 sacks. That's not enough to contend for Lombardi Trophies. The Broncos won an NFL title last season with 52 sacks, and the average number of sacks by a Super Bowl champion has been 44.
But the feeling was if the Cowboys could just stay afloat during the opening month, reinforcements would be on the way in the form of their two best pass rushers. Gregory and Lawrence, a couple of second-round draft picks, figured to dial up the heat on quarterbacks for the 2016 Cowboys with young, fresh legs off the edge. Now it appears Gregory could be facing a longer suspension.
Lawrence led the Cowboys with eight sacks a year ago but flourished with much of the blocking attention focused on Greg Hardy. With Hardy gone and Gregory now facing a potential 10-game suspension, which would keep him on ice until Thanksgiving, Lawrence will be the one guy the opposition needs to target. That would make it difficult for him to match his eight sacks of a year ago -- and now he'll have only 12 games in which to collect them.
Gregory was a first-round talent who slid deep into the second round because of character concerns. The Cowboys gleefully claimed him there. But when you draft a headache, you get a headache. And, once again, you lose a pass rusher.
We've seen too many Hardys, McClains, Gregorys and Lawrences of late... Character matters. When the Cowboys figure that out, maybe they can start competing for championships again.
By Rick Gosselin
The road to the Super Bowl just got a little longer for the Cowboys.
Word is Randy Gregory has failed his fifth draft test, his fourth with the Cowboys, and has checked himself into a rehabilitation clinic. He's already been suspended by the NFL for the first four games of the 2016 season, as has defensive line bookend DeMarcus Lawrence.
With Gregory and Lawrence out, the Cowboys figure to enter September with a pass rush that, on paper, counts fewer than 15 sacks. That's not enough to contend for Lombardi Trophies. The Broncos won an NFL title last season with 52 sacks, and the average number of sacks by a Super Bowl champion has been 44.
But the feeling was if the Cowboys could just stay afloat during the opening month, reinforcements would be on the way in the form of their two best pass rushers. Gregory and Lawrence, a couple of second-round draft picks, figured to dial up the heat on quarterbacks for the 2016 Cowboys with young, fresh legs off the edge. Now it appears Gregory could be facing a longer suspension.
Lawrence led the Cowboys with eight sacks a year ago but flourished with much of the blocking attention focused on Greg Hardy. With Hardy gone and Gregory now facing a potential 10-game suspension, which would keep him on ice until Thanksgiving, Lawrence will be the one guy the opposition needs to target. That would make it difficult for him to match his eight sacks of a year ago -- and now he'll have only 12 games in which to collect them.
Gregory was a first-round talent who slid deep into the second round because of character concerns. The Cowboys gleefully claimed him there. But when you draft a headache, you get a headache. And, once again, you lose a pass rusher.
We've seen too many Hardys, McClains, Gregorys and Lawrences of late... Character matters. When the Cowboys figure that out, maybe they can start competing for championships again.
