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NFC East
1. Front office / coaching. Much was made about Wade Phillips’ style and alleged “softness” in the locker room. Personally, I think that’s a lot of bull. Phillips has had to walk a thin line in the minefield of Jerry Jones’ meddling and questionable personnel decisions. True, Jerry has had some big hits, but he has also made some very questionable decisions, including bringing T.O. on board, bringing Pacman on board, and signing SS Roy Williams to a large deal a couple years back. Phillips is a good coach and a cool hand. If he’s allowed to run the ship without interference, the Cowboys will be better off. We’ll see what happens.
2. Offensive Backfield and Receivers. Romo is entrenched and is getting better. Yeah, he had some issues battling through injuries last year. He had no backup to speak of. This year, the Boyz brought in Jon Kitna, a solid player, and will let Brad Johnson ride off into the sunset. Brooks Bollinger may be back as the #3, or the Boyz may bring in a kid to learn under the vets. The RB situation is solid, with 3 contributors plus a solid FB. At WR, the departure of T.O. makes WR Roy Williams the #1, and forces some of the youngsters to step up. Crayton has peaked... he’s best as a #3. Can Miles Austin do the job, and will he stay? Stay tuned... the Jets are making a run for him. Can Hurd or Stanback step up? Will the Boyz draft a stud WR? At TE, DAL is solid with all-world Jason Witten backed up by newcomer Martellus Bennett and solid Tony Curtis.
3. OL. Flozell Adams is getting older and deafer. He’s still good for 2 false starts a game because of his hearing. That said, he’s still fairly solid at LT. Columbo has the RT position nailed. Leonard Davis and Andre Gurode have the RG and OC positions covered. The problems are at LG with Kyle Kosier (injury), Montrae Holland (suckage+injury), and Cory Proctor (great suckage) battling it out, and in overall depth. Proctor is best suited as a fillin middle lineman, not a starter, but he just got a contract extension. Go figure. The backup OT’s are questionable. Dallas needs depth here and a possible short-term starter at LG and a longer-term one at LT.
4. DL. Chris Canty’s departure left a hole, which the Boyz promptly filled by adding former Charger Igor Olshansky. Spears is solid, but unspectacular, at the other DE slot. And Jay Ratliff has been a monster at NT. Tank Johnson is gone (to Cincy, natch), so the Boyz need a backup at NT. Jason Hatcher and Steven Bowen are capable backups at DE.
5. LB. Demarcus Ware and Bradie James are solid at one outside and inside slot each. The loss of Kevin Burnett and the almost sure release of Zach Thomas left an opening at the other IB slot. DAL signed Keith Brooking from ATL and will give Bobby Carpenter a chance to shine. At the other OB slot, Greg Ellis is being pushed aside in favor of former #1 pick Anthony Spencer. Ellis will still play, but Spencer will get the starting nod. Behind this batch of players, there’s nothing outstanding.
6. Defensive Backfield. Gone is My-Momma-Can-Toast Roy Williams at SS. Gone is CB Anthony Henry. Youngsters Orlando Scandrick and Mike Jenkins will join Terrence Newman at CB, along with returning vet Alan Ball. The Boyz should be solid here. Ken Hamlin is back at FS, although he is more of a SS. At SS, DAL signed Gerald Sensabaugh from JAX and return Pat Watkins. This should be an improvement over 2008, although DAL would be well served to find a real FS in the draft. Courtney Brown is the backup. It looks like special teams ace and part time SS starter Keith Davis will not return.
7. Kicking Game. XP Mat Briar returns from his broken foot, and XK Nick Folk will also be back. On returns, DAL has an abundance of choices including Felix Jones, Patrick Crayton, Miles Austin, and Isaiah Stanback. Several of these will have to step up their games.
LOOK FOR DAL TO DRAFT:
a. OL - probably an insider to eventually take over the LG job
b. QB - a youngster to groom as Romo’s eventual replacement
c. NT - some meat in the middle to learn under Ratliff
d. FS - gotta get a real one sometime
e. WR - they have the need for speed
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