Dallas Cowboys 2007 Season Preview

I am writing my own 2007 Season Preview magazine (ala Streets and Smiths, Sporting News...) to further increase my knowledge of the NFL

I have now finished the Dallas Cowboys

But it is not at all set in stone and since I'm not a Cowboys fan, I may have may some mistakes so please tell me if I did

I just wanted people to tell me what they think




Dallas Cowboys

Statistical Rankings:

Total Offense: 5th
Rushing: 13th
Passing: 5th
Scoring: 4th

Total Defense:

Total Defense: 13th
Rushing: 10th
Passing: 24th
Scoring: 20th

Third Down Offense: 2nd
Third Down Defense: 28th
Turnovers: 13th
Sacks: 19th

Key Additions:
QB Brad Johnson (MIN)
OT Jim Molinaro (WAS)
OG Leonard Davis (ARI)
S Ken Hamlin (SEA)

Key Losses:
QB Drew Bledsoe (retired)
OT Jason Fabini (WAS)
C Al Johnson (ARI)
DE Kenyon Coleman (NYJ)
MLB Ryan Fowler (TEN)

Draft:

1. DE Anthony Spencer
3. OT James Marten
4. QB Isaiah Stanback
4. OT Doug Free
6. K Nick Folk
6. FB Deon Anderson
7. CB Courtney Brown
7. CB Alan Ball


Quarterbacks:____ooo
Running Backs:___oooo
Receivers:_______ooooo
Offensive Line:___ooo
Defensive Line:___ooo
Linebackers:_____oooo
Defensive Backs:_ooo
Special Teams:___oooo
Coaching:_______ooo

One word to describe the Dallas Cowboys 2006 season: Heartbreak. Heartbreaking losses to Jacksonville and Philadelphia early in the season prompted Bill Parcells to break the heart of his long time starting QB Drew Bledsoe and find a new star in Tony Romo. Romo had been with the Cowboys for three years and coaches had been high on him, but it had always seemed improbable to bench a potential Hall of Fame QB in favor of a former undrafted Quarterback out of Eastern Illinois. What emerged from the controversial change was one of the greatest feel good stories of the year, as Romo won over the hearts of all of Cowboys nation, Pro Bowl voters and even country music beauty Carrie Underwood. Yet in "Any Given Sunday�? like fashion, Romo�s Cowboys faded strongly down the stretch, capped off by losing the Division to Philly on a Week 17 heartbreaking loss to Detroit. When finally down late to Seattle in the Wild Card round in position for a chip shot win, Romo was victim of the NFL blunder of the year, unable to hold onto the snap.

Bill Parcells retired subsequently and ushered in the Wade Phillips era in Dallas. Phillips has had prior marginal success as a Head Coach but San Diego�s stifling run defense in 2006 was largely the reason for his hiring. Phillips is considered one of the NFL�s best defensive minds and inherits a team which wasn�t a bad defensive team on first or second down, but was unable to stop anybody on third down. Furthermore, Dallas saw Bledsoe follow Parcells to be reunited in retirement and have several starters on defense (Greg Ellis most notably) not far away from retirement. Backup Offensive Linemen Al Johnson and Jason Fabini also left for greener pastures leaving the Line thin and old.

In response to this, the Cowboys broke the bank big time, inking former #2 overall pick Leonard Davis to a lucrative 7 year, 49.6 million dollar deal. Leonard has yet to live up to expectations, but is still widely considered a solid Tackle. Jim Molinaro was also acquired from the Redskins to fill departed Al Johnson�s shoes. To replace Bledsoe, Dallas signed Super Bowl winner Brad Johnson who provides strong insurance in case the last season Tony Romo is the real Tony Romo. Finally, after years of neglecting the Free Safety position, Dallas signed solid Seattle FS Ken Hamlin.

Which Tony Romo will show up in 2007? Will it be the Tony Romo who torched the Cardinals, Buccaneers and Falcons for a combined 892 yards and 9 TDs or the Tony Romo who struggled heavily against the Giants, Saints and Eagles? Critics claim he was figured out by the end of the year, while others blame lack of experience. Whatever the case, Dallas made sure to be in a position to still contend if Romo doesn�t pan out. Brad Johnson had done a fine job taking over for the injured Dante Culpepper in 2005, but struggled a bit in 2006. Still, Johnson has been a winner throughout his career and is able to lead a good team to success. In case Romo should prove not to be the QB of the future that the Cowboys had hoped he would be, Washington QB project Isaiah Stanback was drafted in the fourth round and will be groomed to possibly be the answer down the road. Stanback is a very raw passer but has strong intangibles.

At Running Back Dallas will continue the strong one-two punch of scatback Julius Jones and TD machine Marion Barber III. Barber is a very strong goal line threat, illustrated by his 14 TDs last season, while Jones has had a run for over 50 yards every season of his career so far. Tyson Thompson is a speedy runner who can return kicks if needed to. At Fullback, the Cowboys are going with Lousaka Polite, Oliver Hoyte and rookie Deon Anderson. Anthony Fasano was drafted last year to play a lot of two-TE sets, so none of the FBs on the roster will make much contribution offensively.

Terrell Owens and Terry Glenn form a duo of loud receivers who are both still very valuable both as deep threats and intermediate targets. Owens had his share of drops throughout the season but was a top notch red zone target and might have been a Pro Bowl Snuff. Glenn had one of his best seasons as a pro in 2006. The only problem with Owens and Glenn is their age: Glenn will be 33 and Owens will be 34 when the season starts. Patrick Crayton came out of nowhere to put up a strong numbers and was a big reason why Dallas more 3-WR sets than almost every team in the league. Sam Hurd, Jamaica Rector and Jerheme Urban are all young options at wide out will most likely be fighting for one job, while Miles Austin is a solid return man. Jason Whitten is a perennial Pro Bowler and is the most talented player on offense for Dallas. Anthony Fasano was slightly disappointing last year and figures to be a bigger factor this season.

The Cowboys’ Offensive Line featured two Pro Bowlers in OT Flozell Adams and C Andre Gurode, who survived a kick in his helmet-less head from Titans DT Albert Haynesworth to actually put up a strong season. The Offensive Line however, was also a big reason for the Cowboys demise late in the season. During Romo’s first 7 games, he was sacked just 9 times. However, during the final 4 games, Romo was thrown down a total of 12 times. This was a main reason why the Cowboys broke the bank for Leonard Davis. James Marten was drafted out of Boston College to hopefully develop into 32-year old Flozell Adams’ future replacement. Doug Free was also drafted in the fourth round and is versatile enough to play either inside or outside. Marco Rivera may very well retire from football before the 2007 season but would be a solid option at G should he change his mind.

The defensive line is still anchored by massive NT Jason Ferguson. He is backed up by Jay Ratliff who emerged last year to provide a nice boost with four sacks and three recovered fumbles. The former 7th round pick Ratliff projects both inside and inside. The Defensive Ends are former first rounder Marcus Spears and former 4th rounder Chris Canty. Both have been unspectacular but decent. Jason Hatcher is a decent role player off the bench and rookie Anthony Spencer could see some time at DE as well on passing downs.

The Cowboys� Linebackers are the deepest part of the team, thanks in part to four day one picks, including three first rounders that were invested in the group. DeMarcus Ware was the first of these. Originally drafted to be a cornerstone in Parcells� new 3-4 defense, Ware has emerged as one of the NFL�s premiere pass rushers and is a true playmaker despite minor weaknesses in coverage. Opposite Ware is veteran Greg Ellis. Ellis was unsure about his role in the 3-4 defense, but made the transition nicely to OLB where he registered 4.5 sacks in just 9 games before going down for the year. The Cowboys traded up with the Eagles to nab Anthony Spencer, a player they were extremely high on. Spencer figures to be 32-year old Ellis� future replacement and will see time this year on passing downs as a pass rusher. Inside, the Cowboys will rely on the dependable Akin Ayodele who had a strong season, especially versus the run. Last year�s #1 pick Bobby Carpenter will challenge Bradie James for the starting spot. Alternatively Carpenter could also challenge Ellis outside. Kevin Burnett is a versatile backup.

The Cowboys� Defensive Backfield had its share of struggles last year, thanks largely in part to poor play in coverage. Speedster Terrance Newman is a good player who played very average last season. Anthony Henry played fairly well, but along with Nickel Corner Aaron Glenn is not getting any younger. For this reason Dallas drafted Cornerback projects Courtney Brown, who had insane individual workouts, and Alan Ball. Nate Jones and Jacques Reeves are decent depth guys.

Roy Williams is an elite run stopper at the SS position; probably the best in the NFL. However, his coverage skills are very, very average. This isn�t usually s terrible flaw for a SS, but it is a concern when there is no FS to help. Pat Watkins and Keith Davis were rotated in at FS throughout the year and struggled heavily. Dallas even signed Tony Parrish late in the season hoping for a miracle to solve the FS problem. Ken Hamlin was signed from Seattle in one of the more underrated moves of the off-season and should aid a unit which finished 24th against the pass.

Miles Austin is back as the Kick Returner and is solid. Bullets Crayton and Newman will assume Punt Return duty. Matt McBriar enjoyed a breakout season in his third year after coming over from the Australian Football League. Martin Grammatica was surprisingly solid last year as the Kicker, but Nick Folk was drafted to compete with him. Folk has an amazing leg but has problems controlling it.

Last year�s Dallas Cowboys had one of the NFL�s premiere offenses and should this year as well if the good Tony Romo shows up. All his targets are returning this year and he has a new bodyguard in Leonard Davis. The defense should remain stout against the run and receives a big boost in Ken Hamlin. Unfortunately, despite Dallas� attempts to get younger at multiple positions, there are still many positions, such as WR and NT, which are aging dangerously to the point that Dallas may need Romo to emerge as the QB of the future to keep the window open. Dallas is clearly the second best team in the NFC East and should contend this year, but the new coaching staff will have to be better than Parcells was these last few years to be a serious contender.

Depth Chart: (<> = elite, X = solid, o = adequate, - = below average)

WR
T. OwensP <>
S. Hurd
M. Austin
J. Rector
TE
J. Witten <>
A. Fasano o
A. Thorn
LOT
F. Adams X
P. McQuistan
J. Marten
LOG
K. Kosier o
C. Procter
C
A. Gurode X
T. Darilek
ROG
L. Davis X
M. Rivera X
J. Berger
J. Molinaro
ROT
M. Colombo o
D. Free
WR
T. Glenn X
P. Crayton X
J. Urban
QB
T. Romo X
B. Johnson
M. Baker
I. Stanback
FB
O. Hoyte �
L. Polite �
D. Anderson -
RB
J. Jones X
M. Barber III X
T. Thompson


LDE
M. Spears o
S. Bowen
NT
J. Ferguson X
J. Ratliff o
M. Stanley
RDE
C. Canty o
J. Hatcher
LOLB
G. Ellis X
J. Glymph
A. Spencer o
LILB
B. James o
RILB
A. Ayodele X
B. Carpenter o
ROLB
D. Ware <>
K. Burnett o
LCB
T. Newman X
A. Glenn o
N. Jones
J. Thomas
SS
R. Williams X
A. Elam
D. Bilbo
FS
K. Hamlin X
P. Watkins �
K. Davis
A. Ball
RCB
A. Henry X
J. Reeves
Q. Butler
C. Brown


K
M. Gramatica o
D. Anderson
P
M. McBriar <>
KR
M. Austin X
T. Newman X
T. Thompson o
P. Crayton o

Notable Individual Stats:

Offense:
Tony Romo � 65.3% - 19 TDs � 13 INTs � 95.1
Julius Jones � 1084 � 4 TDs
Marion Barber III � 654 � 14 TDs
Terrell Owens � 85 � 1180 � 13 TDs
Terry Glenn � 70 � 1047 � 6TDs
Patrick Crayton � 36 � 516 � 4 TDs
Jason Whitten � 64 � 754 � 1 TD

Defense:
Bradie James � 103 Tackles
DeMarcus Ware � 11.5 Sacks � 5 FFs
Akin Ayodele � 6 TFLs
Roy Williams � 5 INTs
Anthony Henry � 21 PDs