-
-
-
2008-2009 Offseason: Catching Up On
The Latest
-
- August 1, 2009 At 12:25 AM CST
- By
Eric M. Scharf
GE2 (Greg Ellis Granted Exit)
No more “Trade Me or Ellis.”
Cowboys’ veteran outside linebacker Greg Ellis received the sharpest
cut several weeks ago, but it was necessary for the Cowboys to give
their younger players the chance to step up. Ellis also deserved the
chance to catch on with another team in need of his polished veteran
services before teams got too far into training camp.
The Patriots and Bengals were interested in talking trade, but
everyone knew the Cowboys would eventually be forced to release
Ellis near the start of training camp, as he is an aging
pass-rushing specialist on the downside of his career with a higher
cap figure.
Ellis ended up signing with the Raiders whose players will all
benefit from Ellis’s valuable leadership and generosity as a skilled
veteran willing to share and teach to up-and-comers.
I will miss Ellis, as will his former teammates from time to time
this season. This decision by the Cowboys, or any team in a similar
position, was inevitable, because you need to get the most out of
the other players on your roster.
Ellis is an excellent team player, team leader, and a quality human
being to everyone with whom he has worked. He has done more than
enough to make every fan happy that the Cowboys selected him instead
of Randy Moss so many years ago. Ellis was as mature in the
beginning as he is now, and he is the type of person you want in any
player on your roster.
I wish Ellis the best of success . . . except for when he plays
against the Cowboys.
Beware Contractors Who Cut
Corners On Cowboys
If I did not know any better, I could swear the “big top” has
already come down hard on the Cowboys 2009-2010 season with the
collapse of the practice “bubble” facility during a torrential
storm.
My heartfelt well-wishes go out to scouting assistant Rich Behm (and
his family), who was paralyzed below the waste, and special teams
coach Joe DeCamillis, who were the most seriously injured. Most of
the rookies were in the facility as well.
Litigation has been going on ever since the failure of the practice
facility. The contractor has been exposed as a fraud, evidently
employing an ex-con to perform roof construction on the bubble
surface without the appropriate licenses or the appropriate
techniques.
The Cowboys’ 2009 NFL Draft
Class
I am relatively certain that when some of the Cowboys’ defensive
draft picks were announced, most fans went berserk at the
smaller-sized players who were selected. Nine out of ten fans
probably screamed at the television, “But Parcells always wanted
larger defensive players, particularly at linebacker!”
I am also relatively certain that only three out of every ten fans
remember that Wade Wilson’s version of the 3-4 defensive favors a
mix of oversized, ideally sized, and undersized talent. Call Wade
whatever you want regarding the other football disciplines, but it
would not be entirely accurate to hammer him on which college
players he believed were the best fit for his choice of defensive
scheme.
There is also the small issue that exists for every professional
sports draft: being able to select the player you want from your
draft position at the time you are drafting. Yes, Jerry, Wade, and
company have the opportunity to wheel and deal with a potential mix
of current and future picks and players in order to procure the
coveted player at the draft position of the moment. If they do not
believe it is in their best interests to bet the farm, it is what it
is.
Nonetheless, the humble fan is of the perspective that, within
reason, the Cowboys succeeded in getting a little bit of everything
they needed from the 2009 draft (SS, FS, O-Line, QB, CB, LB, and K
among other positions). Of course, not nearly enough of their picks
were well-known enough for the majority of fans, but time will tell
if the Cowboys’ no-name picks are good enough on their own . . . and
with coaching . . . to become household names.
I, for one, was not bothered at all that the Cowboys traded out of
their second round spot, as this “cost versus capability” issue that
has been haunting the first round as of late is steadily creeping
into the second round. The “sliding value scale” and the salary cap
will always receive their fair share of attention whether we like it
or not.
I am particularly interested in how many legitimate two-way players
the Cowboys collected. Special teams players who can double as
players who can either start or being immediately inserted into
offensive or defensive sub-packages are like gold in a league where
injured starters have been piling up like trading cards at an
alarming rate in recent years.
I am also intrigued by the pair of University of Cincinnati
cornerbacks, the muscle-bound kicker who can achieve touchbacks with
little effort, and the QB from Texas A&M who is out to prove
potential unrealized.
What about the safeties?! I think all Cowboys fans have learned over
the past several years that getting excited about a potential answer
at safety is the kiss of death. We have a nice combination of
existing starters, a couple free agents, and a handful of draft
choices who will participate in a healthy competition.
-
- The situation
could be a lot worse. We will know soon enough if we have finally
found a collection of above-average safeties who, with some serious
coaching and refinement, may someday remind us of good or even great
safeties from Cowboys history.
What about a grade for the Cowboys 2009 draft?! We need to wait
until after the 2009-2010 season has concluded to judge these
players: those who make the 53-man roster, those who catch on with
the practice squad, and those who catch on with other clubs and
curbs throughout the league.
|
