The Boys Are Back

     One could make the statement that the Dallas Cowboys should have made the playoffs last year, and that they should have beaten the Redskins, Broncos, Raiders and Seahawks. They didn’t do any of that but this season will tell a much different story.     Now I am not one to speculate as to what could have happened or what should have happened. The fact is that the Dallas Cowboys dropped the ball and turned a potentially good season into one that included a season sweep by the Redskins and five losses (out of seven) by seven points or less.

  This year will however be a different season that will include a NFC East championship, home-field advantage in the playoffs and possibly a Super Bowl appearance.

    Entering free agency, the Cowboys had several gaping holes to fill in its lineup including Offensive Tackle, Safety, Linebacker, and Kicker. The off season was crunch-time for Dallas and they rose to the occasion.

    Drew Bledsoe is only a good QB when his protection is good and every team in the league knows this. Naturally, good offensive linemen have to be present to stop the onslaught of blitzes and stunts that opposing teams utilize to pressure Bledsoe. The Cowboys made his protection along the perimeter much better by signing Jason Fabini, Kyle Kosier and drafting E.J. Whitley out of Texas Tech. Fabini is a veteran who Bill Parcells claims “won’t give up fifteen sacks if he lined up backwards”. Kosier is a four year veteran who shows good potential and can play either Guard or Tackle. Whitley played all five positions in college so he is also a very versatile lineman. Combine them with Flozell Adams, Al Johnson, Marc Colombo, Marco Rivera and Rob Petiti, and the Cowboys should have one of the deepest and most talented offensive lines in the league.

    Safety has been a point of concern since the season ended because the Cowboys safeties were constantly getting beaten by fast Wide Receivers. Dallas was looking for a ball-hawking safety that could play alongside Roy Williams in the Backfield. They addressed this need by resigning Keith Davis, signing Marcus Coleman and drafting Pat Watkins from Florida State. Keith Davis showed vulnerability in pass coverage last season but was excellent in defending the run and holds the record for Special-Teams tackles in a single season in the Cowboys’ organization. Marcus Coleman is a former Parcells player who has played both Safety and Cornerback in his ten year career. This means that he could add depth to the Cornerback position and cover slot receivers from the Safety position. At 6-5 212, Pat Watkins is abnormally tall for a safety and will need to bulk up in order to take on bigger NFL running backs and receivers. Watkins did show that he can cover as well as a Cornerback at the collegiate level, and is a tough player who can play close to the line of scrimmage (over 200 career tackles at FSU) as well. This gives him the potential to be a future Pro Bowler–I think that he can one day be a hall of fame player if he hits the weights hard.

    With Dat Nguyen retiring and Kevin Burnett coming off major knee surgery, both Inside and Outside Linebacker was a major concern for the Cowboys this off-season. To fix this hole in an otherwise solid defensive unit, Dallas signed four-year veteran and Irving, TX native Akin Ayodele. They also signed Rocky Boiman and drafted Bobby Carpenter out of Ohio State. Ayodele and Boiman are both four-year veterans and are exactly what Bill Parcells wants in his Linebackers (see Lawrence Taylor). These bone-crushing behemoths will compete for the starting ILB position along-side Bradie James and will thrive in the 3-4 defensive scheme utilized by the Cowboys. Carpenter is yet another perfect fit for Dallas because his father played for Parcells and knows what is expected of him on and off the field. He will compete with the veteran Al Singleton to start opposite Demarcus Ware, and will complete, in my opinion, the best front seven in football.

    It could be argued that of all of the Cowboys’ needs, finding a new Kicker was the most important. The Cowboys lost five games by seven points or less last season. In many of those games, field goals were missed that could have won the game or sent it to overtime. To fix this problem, the Cowboys signed a kicker named Mike Vanderjagt who just so happens to be the most accurate kicker in NFL history. Vanderjagt is probably still thinking about his missed kick in the playoffs last year but he knows how to put those bad moments behind him and should have a great year with the Cowboys.

    That is a pretty impressive list of new players on the Cowboys’ roster but those are only the positions that Dallas had to address. Add arguably the best WR in the NFL in Terrell Owens, a future Hall of Fame QB in Drew Bledsoe, a shifty running back and a potentially dominating defense and it’s no wonder Jerry Jones has that twinkle in his eye–he is thinking Super Bowl and the Cowboys have the talent to bring that Lombardi trophy back home to Texas.