SPORTSDAY

Posted by Brian M., Atlanta @ 10:32 PM Sun, Sep 02, 2007

If this is what is needed to kick Jerry out of the personnel business, then by all means, come on Browns, lets go Panthers, the sooner the better. Jerry has single handedly destroyed this franchise, yes all by his lonesome. While I did not like Parcells from a coaching perspective, he was the best thing to happen on the personnel side for this franchise since good 'ol Jimmy was in town. It sure would be nice if Jerry would go beyond his pride, admit his failure, and turn the personnel reigns over to someone who really knows what they're doing, and oh by the way Jerry, how 'bout really taking note of how one Robert Kraft is handling his Patriots. I do believe his "team first" instead of "me first" attitude has served them well, far better than this decade has the 'Boys.

Posted by kameleon_o @ 10:59 PM Sun, Sep 02, 2007

Come in off the ledge Brian. You complement Jerry for bringing in someone like Parcells and then criticize him for making the decisions that bring coaches like Parcells in. IMO, it seems pretty obvious that Jerry is listening to his personnel people more than ever. I think saying he's single handedly destroyed this franchise is a little strong.

Posted by BlueBleed @ 12:59 AM Mon, Sep 03, 2007

Boo-Who.....Tmac I dig what you saying about Brady and Moore....Nobody want's a QB from ~~Order Lame~~ and a poor-man's Derek Anderson for insurance policies.....I think we are solid on both sides and I also like the additions of Justin Rogers and Evan oglesby because they are young and can play special teams..I watched both and i thing it should not be no suprise that they both come from good 3-4 defenses

Posted by dave j @ 3:23 AM Mon, Sep 03, 2007

Jerry is a great owner but a lousy GM. He doesn't know how to develop a team, he only knows high draft picks, high dollar signings, and dramatic moves.

When Ron Wolf ran the Packers and had Brett Favre, he brought in Mark Brunell with a 4th round pick and later on brought in Aaron Brooks. He traded those guys later and got good value.

Even if Matt Moore is no Pro Bowler, I thought he showed good signs early to develop into a valuable backup. Look at the troubles the team has gone through at QB the past several years all because Jerry had a "win now" attitude and refused to develop a QB. He only wanted an instant fix. Thank God Tony Romo snuck in under the radar.

Posted by Mike @ 7:36 AM Mon, Sep 03, 2007

Brian you don't know what you're talking about.

Too assume Robert Kraft, or anyone else for that matter, would have done things so different being the first GM with a still active dynasty full of Hall of Famers and Pro Bowlers is completely naive.

You're giving Kraft the title of genius simply because he had the benefit of going 2nd through the dynasty/salary cap door?

Don't forget, we were looking pretty good still in 1999 before more bad luck happened at the Vet. Some of you guys' memories are as short as Matt Moore's tenure in Dallas.

Posted by James Joyner @ 7:40 AM Mon, Sep 03, 2007

Jones has made some strange calls in his day, to be sure, but I don't think these were among them.

There's good reason to think Tony Romo, who the team has spent four years grooming, is going to be a quality starting QB. It would therefore have made no sense whatsoever to draft Brady Quinn. Especially not when he could get Cleveland's 2008 1st rounder while only trading down a few spots.

Whether Matt Moore is going to turn into a quality NFL QB is doubtful and there are only so many players a team can keep. My guess is that the coaches thought the risk of losing Moore -- who they'd presumably have signed to the practice squad had he cleared waivers -- was worth taking compared to that of cutting one of the other marginal roster players.

Posted by Tanner @ 9:57 AM Mon, Sep 03, 2007

First off, let me say that I am a Matt Moore fan. But this was the right move. With the injuries we have on the team right now we need depth at CB & LB and keeping a developmental QB on the active roster just didn't make sense.

Posted by Brian M., Atlanta @ 10:36 AM Mon, Sep 03, 2007

Believe me, I truly, sincerely, absolutely (any more "ly" words...) hope to be proven completely wrong about our season. But looking at this roster, the facts just prove otherwise. As for Jerry, if we continue to relish in our past success we will be completely blind to the factors causing our present day failures. Did the Cowboys make the playoffs last season, sure they did, were it not for a Glenn fumble, and a horrible call somehow erasing the Witten first down (note: the "hold mishap" did NOT cost this team a playoff victory) who knows what happens. Does Jerry deserve the credit, I'll say somewhat, due to his willingness to put his ego aside and bring in Parcells allowing him total control. But let's look to present day, he brings in Wade, and please tell me you have open eyes to see what has occurred. Jerry is once again the "GM", the 'personnel guru', hmmm...that tells me he never learned the "Jimmy lesson". That lesson; put my selfish desire aside for the betterment of the franchise. You see, Kraft has not all the sudden said, "...Hey, I'm not #1 here, forget this Belichick guy, forget the Super Bowl victories he's given this franchise, I'm in control and doggone it I'm going to regain that control". See, this is what Jerry did ushering Jimmy out the door, and this is what he's done yet again ushering Wade in the door. He's in control, again, and in the meantime choosing not to recall his past failures allowing himself and the franchise to move forward and achieve present day success.

Posted by Goober @ 12:14 PM Mon, Sep 03, 2007

So Brian, basically what you're saying is that not keeping Moore on the active roster is a sign that Jerry's pulling all strings? Seriously?

I'm completely befuddled why there's so much lust after Moore. The guy didn't show much beyond the ability to hit the check-down guy really well.

Oh and by the way, the Parcells experiment was an abject failure. Let's not pretend that he won three Super Bowls, like Belichick did. Far from it. Parcells barely cleared .500 and didn't win a single playoff game, even though he called all the shots. FAILURE. There's no way to gloss over that fact.

Also, how can you look at the roster and deduce that the season is a failure a week before it begins? What "facts" are you talking about?

Posted by Jerry @ 12:33 PM Mon, Sep 03, 2007

Well I'm guessing if Matt Moore, who I would have liked to see stick around, is a "Franchise" "Pro Bowl" QB he probably would have been drafted by one of the 32 teams somewhere during the 7 round draft. There are always excpetions though few and far between, but come on Quinn vs. Moore in Super Bowl XVL? Not happening. Quinn will end up being another Notre Dame QB bust in the NFL, maybe a career backup at best.

Posted by larry giusti @ 12:38 PM Mon, Sep 03, 2007

I know this, Tim. I'll trade you Romo for Quinn, or Jay Cutler, or Carson Palmer, or Alex Smith, or Matt Leinart, or Phillip Rivers, or Matt Schaub, or Vince Young any day of the week and twice on Sundays.

Posted by Goober @ 1:29 PM Mon, Sep 03, 2007

Larry, every village needs an idiot. It might as well be you.

Posted by snake @ 2:24 PM Mon, Sep 03, 2007

"The guy didn't show much beyond the ability to hit the check-down guy really well." - I second the notion.

Posted by James Joyner @ 3:14 PM Mon, Sep 03, 2007

I'll trade you Romo for Quinn, or Jay Cutler, or Carson Palmer, or Alex Smith, or Matt Leinart, or Phillip Rivers, or Matt Schaub, or Vince Young any day of the week and twice on Sundays.

Well, I think I'd take Palmer, Rivers, or Young over Romo at this point. The jury's still out on the others. Then again, it's out on Romo, too.

Posted by Brian M., Atlanta @ 3:46 PM Mon, Sep 03, 2007

Allow me to state this emphatically, I am NOT a Matt Moore fan, I do believe the Cowboys have their QB of the future in Romo, but this is one FACT I believe still must be proven in his first full season under center. So, allow me to now list a few more FACTS: in order to be a true Super Bowl contender you must have a "shut down" type CB on the field, ours, i.e. Newman, will quite likely be off the field more times than on it this season. For those of you who are choosing to downplay this foot injury, trust me I hope you're right, but likelihood is this will either nag him all season while he's on the field or keep him off the field all together. In either light rendering him ineffective. FACT #2, are we to believe the addition of Ken Hamlin with not only make him better in a new uni, but also make Roy "low fat biscuit" Williams all the sudden dependable in the defensive backfield? Wade will certainly attempt to get Williams closer to the line of scrimmage, but this is the NFL, the league where good coordinators know how to exploit weakneses, as such Williams will still have to cover TEs streaking down the seam, and what about RB responsibility when Westbrook takes off down the sideline on a swing/fly route. FACT #3, we are depending on a BIGG guard to anchor this o-line when he's never proven himself to be a top o-lineman to this point. I do believe this is my weakest "fact" point, but I still do believe Davis must prove himself reliable before we annoint him the Pro Bowl lineman he should've been all this time. FACT #4, while Ellis has been perceived by some to be selfish, and a "me first" player, I believe without him this defense is placed further in the desperation hole. Can we trust in a rookie, how 'bout Carpenter? I do feel Carpenter may be the answer, but again this is something no one can say is a given, but a healthy Ellis on the field, well just look to the season this D was having pre-achilles tear, enough said. Last but not least, FACT #5, IS Romo the answer? I believe he is, but has he proven he is, beyond any doubt? I read a column this past week, within it Romo was criticized for his late season letdown, one that I attribute to his feeling he must pickup a lagging defense, but something most attribute to the fact he couldn't adjust once coordinators started scheming against him. This is an area I must fault Parcells though, I believe the majority of Romo's and the offense as a whole their letdown was due to the "vanilla" game plan. While Parcells may have deemed the need to do this to protect Romo, it was a mistake. One I'm certain Garrett will not repeat. So, in the end, Romo still must prove he is what I and many believe he is. So there you go, some FACTS to base my opinion of a potential letdown season, here again I certainly hope I'm wrong and will readily admit I am, once the Cowboys prove me to be as such.

Posted by larry giusti @ 10:56 PM Mon, Sep 03, 2007

Hey, Goober, you and Romo enjoy the season.

Posted by Goober @ 12:45 AM Tue, Sep 04, 2007

Hey Larry, I always enjoy the season because I don't try to play armchair GM and get reflux over things like a nobody ham-n-egger getting cut from my favorite football team.