Westbrook gives Slime a nudge in the @$$

[Mickalino]

Actually, Monkey and Chosen One ; Whenever I hear "TCO", I think of Tawainese Coast Offense. Those coastal Taiwanese have been known for their aerial offense for decades.

[ by Mick on July 27, 2001.]

[bulldog]

Geez, Art. Thanks for telling us to lock up our daughters when your son is ready to follow in your footsteps to college

[NavyDave]

Mick then what is needed is TDO because they will get routed by the Red Dragon.

With J George's arm Westy will do very well if both are healthy.

I seriously doubt if Westy is healthy and J George has time to throw that westy won't put up #1 Receiver numbers.

The problem is that since Westy is great going down field will Raye let George throw down the field every now and then to keep the gunslinger happy.

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Dave

[JimboDaMan]

Artie, Artie, Artie.

I gotta ask...those two girls...at the same time???

[KevinthePRF]

LMAO, glad to know I'm not the only one that saw how subtly that was embedded in Art's post and yet JUMPED out at you like a Dallas fan in an Aikman jersey walking down F Street.

[Art]

Jimbo, no, not that time it wasn't .

Kevin, I'm nothing if not subtle. I just don't board roam.

And Bulldog, if I'm ever single again, I'll ask for the key to the locked room myself .

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Doom is in the box.

[TennesseeCarl]

Ya know, you can really tell this is a guy's board. Art drops in that bit about the 2 women only in a tangental way and to illustrate a point. Do we focus on his line of reasoning...noooooo. We immediately answer the call of our lower drives and want info on this long-gone incident. Jeez..this is a football board. I mean, I'm guessing that one of you is going to ask Art if he took pictures...

...uhhh, you didn't, did you? Sorry, I couldn't resist.

[Art]

TC, not that time I didn't .

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Doom is in the box.

[Dirk Diggler]

Art

Here's a concept: Rubbers

[Mickalino]

Dirk, if you knew how old Art was, you'd realize that rubbers weren't invented way back in those younger days of his, when he serenaded the girlies....

Just kiddin Art, I'm actually older than you

[markrc99]

while it's true that norv would spread the ball around,we still had other rec'rs out-performing michael westbrook. and it certainly isn't a reflection of norv turner that westbrook couldn't stay on the field. it doesn't make sense that DBs afford westbrook operating room in the short zones and he can't manage a simple slant route. my god,why not? the man is huge!

he's proven able to elevate and go get the damn thing & the deeper the rte,the more momentum he gains. he was run up the field,but those aren't high pct rtes. when we got this guy i savored the westbrook/sanders showdowns..they never materialized..if westbrook wasn't injured,sanders was. my opinion would be that nothing was proved either way. nor was it a matchup i remember being touted in the national press.

if the difference is a gunslinger who'll force the thing into coverages,we certainly have a guy with that reputation now. regardless of what happens, there won't be any reason to allocate #1 money to two different players. for me,westbrook always "earns" big money from now on. or he isn't, on some other team! hail walsingham

[redman]

Feels wierd defending him, but it's to Norv's credit to take that approach to offense by finding the opposing team's weakness. It means that your entire team is involved and you maximize your production. It also forces more complex game planning onto the opposing defensive coordiator. Does anyone here really think that Albert Connell can produce like he did in 1999 on a consistent basis? On most other teams he wouldn't have, and he did because Norv used him to pick on many teams' weak #2 CB.

However, this like everything else has its limits. Game planning solely around the other team's problems also means that you are reacting to them, and you may be ignoring your own team's strengths. This is where I think Norv fell short and where Westbrook has languished (although other reasons, like poor QB'ing have of course played a role). Norv's teams often played down to the opposing team's level of competition. The Cardinals have never had a better team than us at any point during the Norval years, but they still managed to give us fits. The three other divisional teams won many more games than they should have against us.

This is the cost of being more focused on what the other team is doing than on what your team's strengths are. Is it any wonder Norv would forget about Stephen Davis in the second half of ballgames, or that he would no longer call plays to Alexander or Westbrook? The truth is, in physical terms, and of late in skills terms, Westbrook is a 1-1 mismatch against any but the best CB's in the NFL. With a good QB, the chances are still good that he'll get a well-thrown ball in double coverage. It's mind boggling that he hasn't been used more.

Since the beginning of the 1998 season, we've seen a different player wearing #82 in terms of his discipline and commitment to the game. Unfortunately, his body seems to break down more than most players. However, I'm hopeful that he'll be a huge factor for us on offense.

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"Loosen up, Sandy baby. You're just too damn tight!" - John Riggins to Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor

[Joe a Cowboys fan]

I've got no gripes about Westbrooks production, when healthy. I would raise an eyebrow over Arts's comment, "He gets more open than Michael Irvin ever did. But, Dallas kept putting the ball up where Irvin could make a play, whether he was covered or not, and it worked out". I don't know about that, geting open and not being thrown to isn't a catagory I am familiar with.

Irvin did demand passes from Troy, with whom he came up and from the coaching staff. Irvin was also a generally regarded more vocal leader than Westbrook and had the results to justify his demand.

I think the main difference was Mike had some other receivers (Harper & Novachek) plus Emmett to help take some heat off him. He did get doubled as much as Westbrook but you guys haven't had the WRs to make the D drop back and zone. I think Gardiner may make the difference in Westbrooks production this year. Marty isn't exactly a bombs away head coach but he does know how to use what he has got. Davis will do the runing and between Gardiner and the Canadian kid I think Westbrook will do OK.

It wouldn't hurt if he was a little more vocal though, he isn't a rook now, he has to act like a leader of the O.

[Art]

Joe,

Let me first say, after reading over some of your posts here, you do have a solid voice and open acceptance to having a good football talk. Not all opposition fans can say that. Now, that said, please don't take what I wrote above to be any slight of Michael Irvin.

I've always felt Irvin was a fine player and I am NOT attempting to make Westbrook into his image or equal. But, like Joey Galloway, Westbrook enjoys superior athletic traits, and generally, is the type of receiver who gets better separation than Irvin did. The difference, and reason why Irvin is the better player is probably JUST what you said. Irvin did demand the ball, and Irvin had the benfit of a more accurate QB able to fit the ball into where he was, and the benefit of a great running back.

I don't agree that he had a lot of help at receiver, especially when you cite Harper. With Dallas, Harper never missed a game, and yet never had more than 36 catches for a season. Harper got Irvin's left overs, but did not take anything off his plate. I do think Westbrook has never taken it upon himself to DEMAND anything out of the offense or coach or quarterback. While I agree with you such a trait would benefit him, I think, unfortunately, with the general feeling about Westbrook on this board, if he dared open his mouth demanding more balls thrown his way, the fans here would offer to by a rope for the immature lynching that would follow.

In many ways Westbrook has been quieted by negative publicity. He can't say anything. Even when he says something good, or seems to understand he is aging and must take on the role of team leader, fans aren't inclined to find him genuine, though I still can't point to reasons why they don't.

Anyway, that's all .

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Doom is in the box.

[Brave]

I can accept that Westbrook could have matured. He simply hasn't played enough to put me competely in his corner.

For the first few years he was injured AND a head case. We waited. He seemed to have the break-out year in '99. We salivated. Missing almost all of last season was just another of many frustrations I've gone through waiting for him to become a top-flight WR. Whether it's his fault now, or not, it's been one frustration after another with him.

I think most of us liked Tre Johnson ... but few were really sorry to see him go. Because of injuries, weight, etc. he never contributed like we all know he COULD have. Same with Westbrook. He needs another season like 1999 AT LEAST to remain with the team past this year IMHO.

[Mickalino]

I'm cheering for Westbrook, because he's on the verge of doing something that few, if any, players have ever done - Make a 180 degree turn. He started out as a bit of a problem player with an attitude and immaturty, as well as injury problems. Most problem players either get worse, stay the same, make limited progress in their problem area, or relapse back and forth. I can't recall a player that has gone from being a complete disappointment for so many years, to becoming a pleasant and productive surprise, and a model player. He's not quite there yet, but he's headed that direction and if/when he gets there, it will be one of the great success stories I have ever seen, where a player takes it upon himself to change his ways, and then accomplish it.

[ by Mick on July 29, 2001.]