Reply
Honored Contributor
Posts: 33,629
Registered: ‎03-20-2010

Re: Week Nine of the 2020 NFL Regular Season!!!

[ Edited ]

@teganslaw 

 

The Ravens/Colts game should be the game of the week and given the late game time. This should be an excellent game.... Instead they decided to show the Cowboy massacre in many TV Markets----I guess the Cowboy haters as well as fans bring in good TV ratings...SMH!!!

Animals are reliable, full of love, true in their affections, grateful. Difficult standards for people to live up to.”
Highlighted
Honored Contributor
Posts: 33,629
Registered: ‎03-20-2010

Re: Week Nine of the 2020 NFL Regular Season!!!

[ Edited ]

WFT news---

 

Rivera cautions that the WFT is a young team still trying to find its identity.....the next 4 games will determine a lot...

 

WR Stephen Sims is back from IR....they missed him in the slot....and yet another weapon is added, WR Isaiah Wright will also be back which should help diversify the offense ....

 

RB J.D. McKissic is a player that Rivera is very high on. He could be a first, second, and/or third down back. His versatility makes him an asset to any offense. They don’t need McKissic to be an every down back because they have Antonio Gibson, but Rivera wants to get the ball in his hands as much as possible.

 

There were rumors that Ryan Kerrigan asked to be traded, but Kerrigan has denied it, Rivera stands that he always wanted Kerrigan to stay and likes how he's contributed......No trades and Ryan is with the team....

Animals are reliable, full of love, true in their affections, grateful. Difficult standards for people to live up to.”
Honored Contributor
Posts: 33,629
Registered: ‎03-20-2010

Re: Week Nine of the 2020 NFL Regular Season!!!

[ Edited ]

@gardenman 

 

Zeke's hamstring is acting up..... it looks like the Cowboys have some kind of a curse on them.....

 

Consider the source but Michael Irvin doesnt think the Cowboys need to rebuild...."just get Dak back and get people healthy.".....🤣🤣🤣🤣.... to quote Aerosmith, "DREAM ON"! And the rest of the NFC East applauds Michael's plan....😄👏

Animals are reliable, full of love, true in their affections, grateful. Difficult standards for people to live up to.”
Esteemed Contributor
Posts: 6,497
Registered: ‎03-11-2010

Re: Week Nine of the 2020 NFL Regular Season!!!

I think that the Ravens will try to get Dez heavily involved. He hasn't played in three years, so I wonder how he'll do. 

 

Besides gaining in their own divisions, this game has playoff implications. It should be Game of the Week. 

 

The Steelers-Cowboys are broadcast in my area. I plan on watching as  I have the Steelers defense in a couple fantasy lineups. 

"The more I learn about people, the more I like my dog."

Mark Twain
Honored Contributor
Posts: 24,102
Registered: ‎03-09-2010

Re: Week Nine of the 2020 NFL Regular Season!!!

@Spurt 

 

The Cowboys don't "need" to rebuild on offense, but that defense is a mess. (A few good young o-linemen and a top tier tight end wouldn't hurt though.) The defense is an overpaid, under-performing mess. They pretty much need seven new starters, and maybe more as they're apt to lose a guy or two in free agency in 2021. Tyrone Crawford, Aldon Smith, Sean Lee, Joe Thomas, Chidobe Awuzie, CJ Goodwin, Justin March, Jourdan Lewis, Steven Parker, and Xavier Woods are all due to be defensive free agents in 2021. How many of those guys do they resign? They'll need new bodies to replace the guys they don't resign and then they'll need new bodies to upgrade at multiple spots. They've got some serious issues on defense. Some of those guys may not want to resign even if the Cowboys want them to. They can't tag them all.

 

Coaching is a big part of it. Talent is another. Defense is best played on emotion. You want defenders having fun out there. You want them flying around the field. When you watch a good defense, they're having fun. They're making plays. The Cowboy defenders are not having fun. A read and react style of defense takes away the fun.

 

If I was ever a defensive coordinator, I'd tell everyone on that defense that they'd get at least one shot at the QB in a game. I'd blitz corners, safeties, linebackers, whoever, knowing that it would keep their heads in the game and make it more fun for them. Tell them, "If you get to the QB, you'll get another shot later, but everyone gets at least one shot at the QB each game." A QB coming up to the line against an aggressive defense has more to worry about. Is that cornerback who's cheating up a step coming after you or is he going to drop back at the snap? That safety looks suspicious, is he coming? And that linebacker! Ugh! The more they focus on who's coming to take off their head, the less they're focused on what they should be doing.

 

That's what you want. You want the QB worried about more things than he should be worried about. Buddy Ryan invented his 46 defense because former Jets head coach Weeb Ewbank told him the most important thing for an offense was to protect the QB (Joe Namath at the time). Buddy decided that if the offense was so focused on protecting the QB then the best option for a defense was to attack the QB. It works. 

 

The Cowboys are a read and react defense and that takes them out of attack mode. The simple process of reading slows everything down. If you have to see if the guard is pulling or the tight end is in motion at the snap, you're not attacking at the snap.

 

I'm not a huge Jim Schwartz fan (Eagles defensive coordinator), but he does use an attacking philosophy in turning loose his d-linemen to attack up the field. He's a bit more conservative than I'd like with the rest of his defenders, largely having the linebackers and safeties playing passively and seldom uses corner blitzes, but at least he attacks with the d-line. Aggression pays off on defense. It makes playing defense fun. Throwing the punch is a lot more fun than being punched.

Fly!!! Eagles!!! Fly!!!
Honored Contributor
Posts: 33,629
Registered: ‎03-20-2010

Re: Week Nine of the 2020 NFL Regular Season!!!

[ Edited ]

@gardenman 

 

I think the Cowboys need help on offense especially that O-line (Zack Martin is the only real "keeper")....and as you said TE.....and wonder if they could find a trade partner for Zeke, for draft picks---make a deal with a team looking for that last missing piece, and a veteran player...there are always plenty of young cheaper RBs in the draft the Cowboys can grab .. and why keep all those WRS someone needs to go through a trade add some picks and build through the draft ---too many needs,  especially defense, and too many players long in the tooth---they need to get younger too.---they did put feelers out for Cooper...

 

Then there's the big decision where do they go at QB---will they stick with a now "damaged" Dak and pay him big big money or move on....

 

And as you outlined that defense is an absolute mess and they defintiely need a new DC too.....

 

Too me with all the question marks they have they are in a need to rebuild mode....JMHO

Animals are reliable, full of love, true in their affections, grateful. Difficult standards for people to live up to.”
Honored Contributor
Posts: 24,102
Registered: ‎03-09-2010

Re: Week Nine of the 2020 NFL Regular Season!!!

@Spurt 

 

The Cowboys would love to move Elliott, but no one will take him at $90 million over six years. That contract was just stupid. As you said there are always good, cheap, young backs out there who can play well enough. Why should a team trade for an underperforming, overpaid running back?

 

I guess the Cowboys are planning to move on from Michael Gallup in 2022, when he's a free agent. I dot' see there being any takers for Cooper at his salary and performance level. If you only play home games, Cooper would be a star. His home and road stats are staggering though. At home games (both with the Raiders and Cowboys) he's been great. Among the best in the game. But for road games, he's among the worst receivers in the league. That's kind of a well-known feature of his that no other team wants to take on.

 

I think they'll pony up for Dak. They see how the team looks without him. They may tag him again this year just to be sure he's healthy, but they have to get a deal done or move on. If I'm Dak or his agent, I'm not taking the field in either practice or preseason without a new deal. I'd tell JJ and company that early on and I'd stick with it. Let them face the prospect of another full season of QB play like they're getting now. Can they invest a high draft pick in a young kid QB and hope for the best with so many other holes? Now, Dak racks up many of his stats in garbage time in games, but he does rack up the stats.

 

Are they in rebuild mode? Should they be? They probably should be in rebuild mode. I don't see good young depth anywhere on their roster. The Eagles aren't playing great this year, but the kids are doing well and there are a lot of them. The Eagles have been stacking up good young players behind the vets for the last couple of years now.

 

The Eagles don't have to rebuild. They can flush half the vets after this season and move on with the kids. The Cowboys don't have the kids. The Eagles have five young offensive tackles in Jordan Mailata, Prince Tega-Wanogha, Jack Driscoll, Brett Toth, and Andre Dillard. Lane Johnson should be back healthy next year also and he's under contract for quite a while. Nate Herbig has done well at offensive guard. Matt Pryor can play tackle or guard. Sua Opeta has been okay. The whole wide receiver platoon right now are all kids. That's a lot of good young offensive line talent. Dallas Goedert and Zach Ertz are good tight ends.  Wentz can be a top-tier QB when his head is right. Jalen Hurts is a pretty impressive backup QB.

 

On defense, the Eagles have good young linebackers who are being thrust into the fire. TJ Edwards and Alex Singleton are playing above expectations. We've got a couple of recent draft picks who are starting to sneak onto the field a bit also. The d-line, especially the defensive end spot is pretty deep with young guys who are playing well. We could develop a corner or safety or two, but the Eagles aren't really in rebuild mode. An average draft should have us competitive again.

 

The Cowboys don't have that young talent behind their guys. And their guys aren't all that great to start with. They really should be in rebuild mode. The problem is, how do they do it with the contracts they've given out? There's so much dead money they can't cut the guys. They're overpaid and underperforming so no one wants to trade for them. They've negotiated themselves into a really bad spot. And then there's Dak holding a loaded gun to their head. They do have good wide receivers though. Cooper is overpaid which makes him hard to unload. Gallup will likely be leaving after next season in free agency, so teams are unlikely to offer much value for a one-year rental. CeeDee Lamb is their most valuable asset on a five-year rookie deal and he's looked special, but do you trade him or build around him? They've got issues. Lots of issues.

Fly!!! Eagles!!! Fly!!!
Honored Contributor
Posts: 24,102
Registered: ‎03-09-2010

Re: Week Nine of the 2020 NFL Regular Season!!!

Well, another one bites the dust. It looks like Kyle Allen has broken his tibia/fibula adding him to Alex Smith and Joe Theisman WFT QBs who have had that injury. That leg was moving in ways a leg shouldn't move.

Fly!!! Eagles!!! Fly!!!
Honored Contributor
Posts: 33,629
Registered: ‎03-20-2010

Re: Week Nine of the 2020 NFL Regular Season!!!

[ Edited ]

@gardenman 

 

It's the "Theismann Curse"......  I wondered why Alex Smith was in there...no mention of it on Red Zone what happened....didnt know if it it was a trick play or not....no mention on Game cast either....

 

My WFT is playing WORSE than the Dallas Cowboys where's defense...whoever the announcers for the game are said it was the WFT's D line that sets the tone and need to apply pressure but they've been missing in action, and the Giants have a poor O-line--COME ON!!!....  I understand the Giants are picking on 7th round rookie Kamren Curl who took Collins place on IR in the secondary, but even ole Alfred Morris ran through the defense for 19 yds on one play...Giants have been able to either pass or run at will!!!.WHAT THE HECK IS GOING ON....

 

The offense was down by the goal line, but a stupid penalty forced them to go for the FG......And Alex threw an interception too (of course hes a bit rusty)....and there have been 2 other turnovers too...

 

What the QWAP is going on....😡🤬 

 

The only bright spot....excellent punting by Tress Way!!

Animals are reliable, full of love, true in their affections, grateful. Difficult standards for people to live up to.”
Esteemed Contributor
Posts: 6,497
Registered: ‎03-11-2010

Re: Week Nine of the 2020 NFL Regular Season!!!

Defensive battle in Indianapolis. The Colts lead 10-7 at halftime.  Neither team is running the ball well, but the Colts are passing better. They have stifled Lamar Jackson; he has less than 100 yards in passing and rushing combined.  The only score by the Ravens was in defense;  a fumble by Taylor taken in for a touchdown. Dez Bryant, surprisingly, has been absent from the game. Have to see if any adjustments are made. 

 

Washington has the worst luck. Are they cursed or what? 

"The more I learn about people, the more I like my dog."

Mark Twain