tr1 Posted July 27, 2009 Share Posted July 27, 2009 By JENNIFER FLOYD ENGEL http://www.star-telegram.com/sports/story/1507517.html Training camp begins in just about 24 hours, and the good news is it will be very hard for your Dallas Cowboys not to live up to expectations this season. There are no expectations. Not for a Super Bowl. Not really beyond 9-7 and just OK. Certainly not nationally. Just look at NFL power rankings going into 2009, and almost every newspaper/.com/blog/fanboy page has a 1-32 list of NFL teams. Most have the Cowboys wedged somewhere between 13 and 19, with No. 19 being a fairly popular landing spot. The rankings seem to say what nobody in these parts is willing to, namely: Until they prove otherwise, this is a middling NFL team. This seems to chap some people, most notably the head coach of the Cowboys, who likes to argue 13-3 and bye-week wins and the promise of big talent and pretty stats. But the reality is the Cowboys have not won a playoff game since 1996 and thus rightfully have earned the rep as an underachieving circus. They are good drama. They are not so good in December and beyond. This is why they are no longer the chic pick to win the Super Bowl. They have yet to prove they are deserving of the expectations. They have yet to prove they can live up to what they say is their goal. And the way I figure it, these five things need to happen for the Cowboys to jump from middling team to actual real contender this season. 1. Coach Cupcake has to be a better defensive coordinator than he has been a head coach. Everybody banking on Wade Phillips’ actually becoming "more whatever" like he promised needs to get real. Coaches rarely change demeanor, certainly not at Coach Wade’s age. He is not a leader, and so expecting him to be so is silly. What he has been at every NFL stop is one heck of a defensive coordinator. And this needs to be his biggest contribution to this Cowboys team this season. He needs to turn them into not just stat hounds they have been but the catalytic defense they need. The best gauge of this is not how they rank against the run or how many sacks they have versus a year ago, although both help. The best gauge is whether or not the Cowboys win. 2. Forget his private life, Romo sits to pee has to clean up his game. A lot of time and column inches have been devoted to Cowboys QB Tony Romo sits to pee and what he likes to do in his off time. I guess it is fair to argue this has created a perception problem, and perception matters. What it is not is why the Cowboys are not winning. The problem with Romo sits to pee is not that he dated Jessica Simpson or that he dumped her or that he likes to play golf in the off-season. It is not that he likes to fly to LA for the weekend or enjoys hanging with celebs. The areas that matter are what he does with the ball when he is under duress, how much of a leadership role he is willing to take and how he plays in December. If he does those things with aplomb, the playoff wins will come and nobody will care whether he is tweeting about dating Paris Hilton while playing No. 10 at Augusta before jetting to LA for a bromance with Nick Lachey. 3. The Cowboys have to be right about The Good Roy Williams. :rotflmao: Their history is littered with wide receivers Owner Jones thought were going to be the next Michael Irvin. There was Joey Galloway and Keyshawn Johnson and Terry Glenn and T.O. They came with high price tags and headaches and downright chaos in the case of the initials. What none of them brought was a ring. The Cowboys misjudged how close they were or how close the player would get them, or in some cases both. The Cowboys cannot afford to have done this with The Good RW. They have neither the depth nor the talent behind Roy for him not to be a clear-cut No. 1. There are doubts about this, mostly in Detroit and a few from watching his work from a year ago. It is not fair to judge on what we saw a year ago. There was too much other stuff going on. What we see from here on out is how The Good RW will be judged and, if Owner Jones was wrong about him, watch out. This season has a chance to get ugly. 4. Be better in December. Cowboys players are sick of talking about December. They bristle any time anybody mentions their struggles down the stretch. Of course, it is really easy to end this as a topic of conversation. Win in December. They were a playoff team a year ago, or at least very close, until they choked against Baltimore and threw up their skirts in Philly. They have a chance for payback this December. They end with Philly at home, in addition to playing the Giants and the Redskins early in the month. It is worth noting even the one power ranking that had the Cowboys in the Top 10, SI’s Peter King, also had them behind NYG (No. 3) and Philly (No. 6). And they are the third-best team in their division until they prove otherwise. 5. Quit with the excuses. I have a feeling we are going to figure out pretty early on whether this Cowboys team is truly "more whatever" or if we are going to get another dose of the same old. The litmus test: What do they say? Do they follow the lead of their coach, getting defensive when anybody questions them and touting all sorts of meaningless stats? Or do they dump the excuses and admit the burden is on them to prove they are more than a middling team? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tr1 Posted July 27, 2009 Author Share Posted July 27, 2009 Even the press in the pukes' home town is fed up with those underachieving, choking dogs. If only puke fans who visit the ATN could read and comprehend this enlightened scribe. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sideshow24 Posted July 27, 2009 Share Posted July 27, 2009 So how exactly is Roy now the "good" Roy Williams? He is still a question mark. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Jones Posted July 27, 2009 Share Posted July 27, 2009 So how exactly is Roy now the "good" Roy Williams? He is still a question mark. because the past few seasons the other Roy prooved he was deffinately the "bad" Roy Williams. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dfos81 Posted July 27, 2009 Share Posted July 27, 2009 because the past few seasons the other Roy prooved he was deffinately the "bad" Roy Williams. I belive injuries is what hurt the "bad" Roy Williams. The "Bad" Roy Williams has been to more probowls :whoknows: just saying Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Monte51Coleman Posted July 27, 2009 Share Posted July 27, 2009 I belive injuries is what hurt the "bad" Roy Williams. The "Bad" Roy Williams has been to more probowls :whoknows: just saying That's no big accomplishment. A poorly trained chipmunk could be voted to the Pro-Bowl if a member of the Dallas Cowboys. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dfos81 Posted July 27, 2009 Share Posted July 27, 2009 That's no big accomplishment.A poorly trained chipmunk could be voted to the Pro-Bowl if a member of the Dallas Cowboys. Just saying, he's done more than the "new" or "good" Roy Williams. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Jones Posted July 27, 2009 Share Posted July 27, 2009 I belive injuries is what hurt the "bad" Roy Williams. The "Bad" Roy Williams has been to more probowls :whoknows: just saying Injuries weren't all that hurt SS Roy. The first few years of his career he was a dynamic, game changing and intimidating player Ronnie Lott called him the best safety since himself. Then the horsecollar tackle became illegal and rather then just play instinctivly he had to always watch himself so he didn't do what had been one of his signature moves since middle school. He also became deeply religious about his 4th season and lost the fiery anger he'd played wiht previously. Gone were the vicious hits he put on Emmitt Smith and Shawn Alexander. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dfos81 Posted July 27, 2009 Share Posted July 27, 2009 because the past few seasons the other Roy prooved he was deffinately the "bad" Roy Williams. yeah 90+ tackles per year 4 picks per year, is really badd. :doh: Its funny how a new defensive coaching staff comes in and Roy Williams is no longer good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dfos81 Posted July 27, 2009 Share Posted July 27, 2009 Injuries weren't all that hurt SS Roy. The first few years of his career he was a dynamic, game changing and intimidating player Ronnie Lott called him the best safety since himself.Then the horsecollar tackle became illegal and rather then just play instinctivly he had to always watch himself so he didn't do what had been one of his signature moves since middle school. He also became deeply religious about his 4th season and lost the fiery anger he'd played wiht previously. Gone were the vicious hits he put on Emmitt Smith and Shawn Alexander. I think it had more to do w/ the new coaching staff. I can't wait to see Roy Williams get 90+ tackles and 4picks for the Bengals this season. He's back w/ his old D-coordinator and I belive scheme and injuries had more to do w/ his play, than his religion :whoknows: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dfos81 Posted July 27, 2009 Share Posted July 27, 2009 That's no big accomplishment.A poorly trained chipmunk could be voted to the Pro-Bowl if a member of the Dallas Cowboys. Really, I don't recall Alvin or any of the chipmunks making the pro bowl :hysterical: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Jones Posted July 27, 2009 Share Posted July 27, 2009 yeah 90+ tackles per year4 picks per year, is really badd. :doh: Its funny how a new defensive coaching staff comes in and Roy Williams is no longer good. I think it had more to do w/ the new coaching staff. I can't wait to see Roy Williams get 90+ tackles and 4picks for the Bengals this season. He's back w/ his old D-coordinator and I belive scheme and injuries had more to do w/ his play, than his religion :whoknows: You're talking about the same Roy Williams that's been a whipping boy here in the ATN? The same Roy Williams that offensive coordinaters built game plans around trying to isolate him in coverage? He's still very solid in run support but the past few years he's been exploited in coverage (including while Zimmer was still coaching for the cowboys) and he's not been the game changing intimidator he was his first few years in the NFL. The biggest problem is the slower hard hitting safety is losing it's place in the NFL, with the league shifting more and more towards a passing league teams need a player with great range in coverage. It's the same sort of thing that's leading to the death of the fullback as an NFL position. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dfos81 Posted July 27, 2009 Share Posted July 27, 2009 The biggest problem is the slower hard hitting safety is losing it's place in the NFL, with the league shifting more and more towards a passing league teams need a player with great range in coverage. It's the same sort of thing that's leading to the death of the fullback as an NFL position. So Roy Williams won't start in the league anymore? :whoknows: We'll see Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Jones Posted July 27, 2009 Share Posted July 27, 2009 So Roy Williams won't start in the league anymore? :whoknows: We'll see He'll still start, but he won't be a dynamic game changing player like he once was. He may also be pulled in obvious passing situations like he was for the Cowboys. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dfos81 Posted July 27, 2009 Share Posted July 27, 2009 He'll still start, but he won't be a dynamic game changing player like he once was. He may also be pulled in obvious passing situations like he was for the Cowboys. All I know is Dallas hasn't replaced him w/ anyone better yet. I know Hamlin is decent but who's the other safety, that is supposedly better than Roy Williams? :whoknows: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Jones Posted July 27, 2009 Share Posted July 27, 2009 All I know is Dallas hasn't replaced him w/ anyone better yet. I know Hamlin is decent but who's the other safety, that is supposedly better than Roy Williams? :whoknows: Gerald Sensabaugh is the guy they brought in to replace him http://www.nfl.com/players/geraldsensabaugh/profile?id=SEN461866 He's supposed to be faster and better in coverage, while being a solid tackler. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dfos81 Posted July 27, 2009 Share Posted July 27, 2009 Gerald Sensabaugh is the guy they brought in to replace himhttp://www.nfl.com/players/geraldsensabaugh/profile?id=SEN461866 He's supposed to be faster and better in coverage, while being a solid tackler. He may be the replacement, but he's not a 5time pro bowler w/ 20 picks and 90+ tackles per year. Its seems Dallas has been searching for SS ever since Roy was benched or hurt or whatever happend. It just seems stupid to let him go, if the guy replacing him isn't as good or better. But this Sensabaugh guy has alot more to live up to, since Roy wasn't good enough anymore. I've heard Pat Kirwan on Sirius radio talk about Sensabaugh like he has the same type issues Roy had, not sure Dallas got better by letting Roy go, thats all im saying. I just have that feeling that the grass isn't any greener w/ the safties on the roster now. Sensabaugh is 2 yrs younger w/ alot less production, seems like they downgraded, but I've been wrong before. We'll see. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Jones Posted July 27, 2009 Share Posted July 27, 2009 He may be the replacement, but he's not a 5time pro bowler w/ 20 picks and 90+ tackles per year. Its seems Dallas has been searching for SS ever since Roy was benched or hurt or whatever happend. It just seems stupid to let him go, if the guy replacing him isn't as good or better. But this Sensabaugh guy has alot more to live up to, since Roy wasn't good enough anymore. I've heard Pat Kirwan on Sirius radio talk about Sensabaugh like he has the same type issues Roy had, not sure Dallas got better by letting Roy go, thats all im saying. I just have that feeling that the grass isn't any greener w/ the safties on the roster now. Mostly what happened is Roy wasn't living up to his contract, and his teammates, coaches, and fanbase had lost faith in him. I've always liked the guy and hope he goes on to have a good resurgence somewhere else, there was a point in time where he was one of the very very few bright spots about the Cowboys. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dfos81 Posted July 27, 2009 Share Posted July 27, 2009 Mostly what happened is Roy wasn't living up to his contract, and his teammates, coaches, and fanbase had lost faith in him. I've always liked the guy and hope he goes on to have a good resurgence somewhere else, there was a point in time where he was one of the very very few bright spots about the Cowboys. agreed, but i just have that feeling Dallas fans will be wishing he was back, once he gets his chance in Cinci. Dallas took a step back w/ that move imho. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dfos81 Posted July 27, 2009 Share Posted July 27, 2009 Its also premature to call the "good" Roy Williams Good, imho. When he hasn't even accomplished half of what Roy Williams the SS has. But I guess Dallas fans are basing that off of his great play last season Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Monte51Coleman Posted July 28, 2009 Share Posted July 28, 2009 Really, I don't recall Alvin or any of the chipmunks making the pro bowl :hysterical: Neither Alvin nor any of his relatives have played for the Cowboys though, have they? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dfos81 Posted July 28, 2009 Share Posted July 28, 2009 Neither Alvin nor any of his relatives have played for the Cowboys though, have they? At the end of the day Roy Williams the SS hasn't been replaced w/ anyone better. He has more production on the field than any other safety on Dallas's roster and the Bengals got a steal of a deal. Great job again by Jerrah Jones! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kapolani Posted July 28, 2009 Share Posted July 28, 2009 At the end of the day Roy Williams the SS hasn't been replaced w/ anyone better. He has more production on the field than any other safety on Dallas's roster and the Bengals got a steal of a deal. Great job again by Jerrah Jones! Roy W was no big loss. He has been a liability the last few years. If you haven't noticed this then you haven't watched much cowboys football. At one time I thought he was going to be a special player but was too one dimensional. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dfos81 Posted July 28, 2009 Share Posted July 28, 2009 Roy W was no big loss. He has been a liability the last few years. If you haven't noticed this then you haven't watched much cowboys football.At one time I thought he was going to be a special player but was too one dimensional. So who on the roster is better? Specifically SS? Dont worry, I'll wait :munchout: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Riggo#44 Posted July 28, 2009 Share Posted July 28, 2009 Gerald Sensabaugh is the guy they brought in to replace himhttp://www.nfl.com/players/geraldsensabaugh/profile?id=SEN461866 He's supposed to be faster and better in coverage, while being a solid tackler. Yeah -- but I'M faster and better in coverage then Roy Williams... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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