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Dallas Cowboys 2018 offseason thread


DougO

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7 hours ago, EvilCaseMcCoy said:

This may be the year that all our second round picks actually get involved.  If Gregory can get reinstated and Jaylon can stay healthy.  

And maybe Dorance Armstrong transforms back into the NFL top 5 draft pick he was being hyped as in 2016 instead of just a guy from Kansas.

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1 hour ago, Patrick Bateman said:

 

So the major bust they traded a 4th round guy for is essentially worth the same as a guy off the street. They panicked and made a poor decision. Sounds familiar.

 

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5 hours ago, DougO said:

So the major bust they traded a 4th round guy for is essentially worth the same as a guy off the street. They panicked and made a poor decision. Sounds familiar.

 

jihad ward isn’t a major bust you halfwit.  he played fine as a rookie and then he got hurt.  he’s healthy and he’ll be an asset.  

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Minor foot surgery in June. Back in August during preseason.

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000818509/article/jihad-ward-has-foot-surgery-set-to-return-in-august?campaign=fb-nf-sf95885884-sf95885884&sf95885884=1

 

Healthy scratch for 10 games, according to the people that actually cover his team.

https://www.sfgate.com/raiders/article/Raiders-trade-DE-Jihad-Ward-to-Dallas-acquire-WR-12872168.php

Ward, the No. 44 overall pick in 2016 out of Illinois, played in 16 games as a rookie but saw his role dwindle last season, when he was regularly a healthy scratch on game day. Ward appeared in five games with one start, recording his lone career sack in Week 16 at Philadelphia.

 

 

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11 hours ago, DougO said:

Minor foot surgery in June. Back in August during preseason.

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000818509/article/jihad-ward-has-foot-surgery-set-to-return-in-august?campaign=fb-nf-sf95885884-sf95885884&sf95885884=1

 

Healthy scratch for 10 games, according to the people that actually cover his team.

https://www.sfgate.com/raiders/article/Raiders-trade-DE-Jihad-Ward-to-Dallas-acquire-WR-12872168.php

Ward, the No. 44 overall pick in 2016 out of Illinois, played in 16 games as a rookie but saw his role dwindle last season, when he was regularly a healthy scratch on game day. Ward appeared in five games with one start, recording his lone career sack in Week 16 at Philadelphia.

 

 

he wasn’t fully healthy until late in the year.  his rookie year he had 30 tackles as a part-time starter at DT.  

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So it's come out that we offered the Seahawks a 3rd rounder for Earl but they never responded so we turned in the card for Gallup. Now it's also come out that Seattle actually called the Cowboys while Dallas was on the clock in the 2nd round and offered Earl for the 50th pick, and the Cowboys would have accepted if Connor Williams hadn't been available. So they really do value Williams very highly.

https://www.bloggingtheboys.com/2018/5/2/17310116/seahawks-offered-earl-thomas-but-cowboys-drafted-connor-williams-instead

Quote

Many Cowboys fans spent this past Sunday imagining what the 2018 rookie class will end up doing in the blue and silver. Leighton Vander Esch, Connor Williams, Michael Gallup, and co.? What a party.

Something else going on this past Sunday was discussion concerning Earl Thomas. The Cowboys didn’t end up trading for the talented safety, but they did try to. We even talked about how they offered a third-round pick here at BTB.

The 81st overall pick wasn’t enough to get Seattle to dance, and hey that’s understandable. They had their sights set on more, they wanted a second-rounder, namely pick #50.

In fact, Seattle wanted that pick so badly that they called the Cowboys. How do we know this? First of all, it’s common sense. Second of all, the mothership’s Bryan Broaddus and Ambar Garcia told us on Tuesday afternoon (discussion starts right before the three-minute mark).

LIVE from The Star- @AmbarGarciaTV & @BryanBroaddus review this year’s draft picks and look examine what the Cowboy… https://t.co/pzM0MfyiMA

— Somos Cowboys (@SomosCowboys) May 1, 2018

Broaddus goes into detail specifically in terms of second-round pick Connor Williams and how he ties into all of this:

“Let me give you a little insight here... If Connor Williams wasn’t on the board at 50, they would have traded that pick for your safety. For Earl Thomas. The Seahawks called they said, ‘Hey, are you interested in the player?’ and the Cowboys made the determination that Connor Williams meant so much to them that they said no.”

We knew that Seattle chose Earl Thomas over the pick that became Michael Gallup, but now we definitively know that Dallas chose Connor Williams over Earl. It’s hard to disagree with them.

It was shocking, as Bryan and Ambar note, that Connor fell all the way to the 50th overall pick. Dallas was able to fortify their already outstanding offensive line with an elite talent at a spot with many question marks - left guard. Even if that spot isn’t directly filled by Connor himself, for what it’s worth Dallas referred to him as an interior lineman, Connor’s presence allows either he or La’el Collins to fill it.

Connor Williams turns 21 years old this month. He will likely be very good at a position of extreme importance at a lower cost for four seasons. Earl Thomas, talented as he is, turns 29 this month and will need a new deal after the 2018 season. It’s a no-brainer.

It’s definitely interesting that a board sans Connor Williams at the 50th overall pick could have meant Earl Thomas was in Dallas. Thankfully for the Cowboys that wasn’t the case and they landed what could be one of the biggest steals of the draft.

 

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25 minutes ago, Rabidhorn said:

My guess is Dallas will give up a 3 in the 2019 draft for Earl or wait it out till he is released.

He's probably going to hold out now too.  They might get fewer than 8 games from him this year and no picks at all if they don't trade him soon.

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Not sure they would bite on a third, since they could get a 3 after he walks in free agency. They're going to want more. They've been on a fishing expedition for a bigger bite. I'm not sure they're really in that desperate to get rid of him, and the Cowboys probably aren't that anxious to pay the salary he wants. And until Witten officially retires, there's not much cap room to work with.

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1 hour ago, DougO said:

Not sure they would bite on a third, since they could get a 3 after he walks in free agency. They're going to want more. They've been on a fishing expedition for a bigger bite. I'm not sure they're really in that desperate to get rid of him, and the Cowboys probably aren't that anxious to pay the salary he wants. And until Witten officially retires, there's not much cap room to work with.

Thomas wants a new deal and he's threatened to hold out if he doesn't get one. 

As of today Dallas is sitting at around 9 million in cap space.  That doesn't include the $3 million they are going to get for Scandrick June 1.  Hell.. if they cut Crawford, they would save 6 million post June 1.

Dallas' cap situation should improve dramatically next year too btw.  24 million in dead cap space (dez and romo made up a huge chunk this year) will only be around 1.6 million.  2019 Dallas has 64 million in cap space available.  Martin will probably eat a chunk as will Lawrence and Irving but still.. They will be able to afford Thomas if they really want him.

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3 hours ago, Viper said:

So it's come out that we offered the Seahawks a 3rd rounder for Earl but they never responded so we turned in the card for Gallup. Now it's also come out that Seattle actually called the Cowboys while Dallas was on the clock in the 2nd round and offered Earl for the 50th pick, and the Cowboys would have accepted if Connor Williams hadn't been available. So they really do value Williams very highly.

https://www.bloggingtheboys.com/2018/5/2/17310116/seahawks-offered-earl-thomas-but-cowboys-drafted-connor-williams-instead

 

Now maybe Norm will shut the fuck up about the Eagles "jumping in front of" the Cowboys to land TE Dallas Goedert. We wanted Williams all along. I'm glad the front office didn't let the Witten news skew what they were trying to accomplish in the draft.

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12 minutes ago, C-Man said:

Now maybe Norm will shut the fuck up about the Eagles "jumping in front of" the Cowboys to land TE Dallas Goedert. We wanted Williams all along. I'm glad the front office didn't let the Witten news skew what they were trying to accomplish in the draft.

For real. He's fixating on that theory. The best part is, the Eagles jumped ahead of the Cowboys and then left them a higher graded player.

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so I’ve seen that we’re in the market for a free safety, not a strong safety.  xavier woods plays free and peckerwood heath plays strong.  are we honestly supposed to think that heath is the better player?  how are we not trying to replace him.  he belongs on special teams. 

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6 minutes ago, Patrick Bateman said:

I see us looking at Vaccaro after May 12th.  I'd like to also see what Eric Reid wants but Jerrah won't do it because he's such a big pussy on the kneeling issue...... smh.

 

... and just remember the lengths he went through to get Greg Hardy suited up. 

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11 minutes ago, futureman said:

so I’ve seen that we’re in the market for a free safety, not a strong safety.  xavier woods plays free and peckerwood heath plays strong.  are we honestly supposed to think that heath is the better player?  how are we not trying to replace him.  he belongs on special teams. 

Im hoping Kavon can be the SS.  Id love Reid.  Im sure the price is right and getting righter as the weeks go by.

Although hes filing collusion charges against the owners and rightfully so.

Id expect them to pick up someone like Robert Blanton last year and he probably wont make it through camp.

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4 hours ago, Ricky Butler said:

Keep fighting. Never give up. Don't let stupid and uninformed go unchallenged.

LOL

What happened to give it up?

I guess your obsession is some kind of flattery. Irony is ironic.

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39 minutes ago, Patrick Bateman said:

I see us looking at Vaccaro after May 12th.  I'd like to also see what Eric Reid wants but Jerrah won't do it because he's such a big pussy on the kneeling issue...... smh.

 

I'd love Reid but not a chance Jerry will bring him in. Still holding out hope on the Earl Thomas front, though. Probably a pipe dream but still a dream nonetheless.

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Looks like Witten is official. Doesn’t matter what Vic says, it sucks. Losing one of the clear team leaders, an example for everyone to follow, and the guy that was always in the building will leave a void

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4 mil a year seems like a lot for an analyst and a no brainer for witten.  I'm happy for him but will miss him terribly.  He's the Tim Duncan (big fundamental) of the cowboys and the guy I would've been most excited to see finally win a championship. 

Is this role to replace Gruden or just as an additional color analyst?

Also, I was unaware that Hanna retired.  I wonder if we'll sign a veteran for that group.  Swaim is the top dog with 9 career catches.

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It's not a huge loss, but yet it is. Tough guy to replace as a rock-steady influence.

But on the bright side it's almost a clean slate now to start over and rebuild the offensive scheme. Build the passing game around Dak and his strengths. It's not Tony's guys anymore. I just don't know if this coaching staff is up to the task. It would have been a great time to get a bright new OC in there to start fresh with.

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1 hour ago, Gene Parmesan said:

Why did he need to go?  He was still useful and certainly wasn't a distraction like Dez.  Was his salary that much of a cap burden, or do you actually believe that he was a detriment to the offense?

He was a progress stopper for the unexperienced guys behind him. He never came off the field. They need reps. 

The TE position should see a big improvement in run and pass blocking, YAC, and do 30--40% worse in receiving stats. It's probably going to be a TE by committee for most of the year. 

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41 minutes ago, totallynotabuttpirate said:

He was a progress stopper for the unexperienced guys behind him. He never came off the field. They need reps. 

The TE position should see a big improvement in run and pass blocking, YAC, and do 30--40% worse in receiving stats. It's probably going to be a TE by committee for most of the year. 

Who behind him?  The TE position is not going to see a big improvement.  I can buy that the coaches weren't creative enough hiding Witten's weaknesses, but that's not on him that's on the coaches.  They aren't going to get creative just because he's gone.  He isn't replaceable by any of the players behind him. 

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21 minutes ago, Gene Parmesan said:

Who behind him?  The TE position is not going to see a big improvement.  I can buy that the coaches weren't creative enough hiding Witten's weaknesses, but that's not on him that's on the coaches.  They aren't going to get creative just because he's gone.  He isn't replaceable by any of the players behind him. 

Schultz   Blocking TE rookie

Swaim     Blocking TE 3rd year

Jarwin    Receiving TE with good blocking skills 2nd year

Uncle Rico    Receiving TE may learn to block one day  3rd year

Any of those 4 guys that can do things like get to the spot and hold a block or keep the backside end from destroying a play, would be a good improvement. You apparently didn't watch Witten around the line last year (or the last couple). He was routinely a step too slow and couldn't block his assignment. 

There's no TE replacing his receiving numbers this year, as I said. I suppose Uncle Rico could ball out.....but that's unlikely. 

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4 hours ago, Amobie said:

Sucks Witten never got a ring but he needed to go. 

I think we probably end up spreading out teams more and rely on blocking from the TE less now.

Yeah, this is bullshit. His production had seriously declined but he was a great locker room guy and decent enough in the run game. He was still good for 50 catches this year, which is pretty good production from a TE.

Can't blame him for the move, though. I still don't see it -- him as a compelling color guy, I mean. His weekly BaD Radio show is an immediate punchout every time.

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