Musical Kickers
Posted: October 25, 2005 @ 10:09 pm
The Eagles acted quickly to sign the freshly cut Jose Cortez. Philadelphia released K Todd France to accomodate Cortez on its roster.
The Eagles claim that Cortez was valued for his kickoffs and that he would likely be retained after the team’s injured Pro Bowler David Akers returns from a hamstring injury. Akers could focus on field goals alone, speeding his healing process, or so the theory goes.
Dallas plays the Eagles three weeks from yesterday. Imagine your own scenarios.
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Rafael,
Did I imagine a canter left on Romo’s hold for that missed field goal? Just curious…he missed awfully hard to the left.
Any thoughts on Page Two? Drop me an e-mail.
Ex Cowboy fan will soon be an ex eagle fan?
Whatever, good luck to the both them.
I know it’s hard to get excited about the Cardinals, but they have some impressive offensive stats, 2 great WR’s, and a kicker that hasn’t missed a kick.
Please, nobody take the kicker comment personally.
Damn. Interesting turn of events. Huh?
I STILL DON’T think Cortez is a bad kicker. Excowboyfan made some good points on the previous thread to support that. Still others cry any time Parcells’ judgement is questioned. Does anybody fault him for letting Hoffman or Jeff Robinson go? I think those two losses hurt our kicking game more than anything.
Others wanna complain that Jose had bad character because he wasn’t “meek” and “humble” like a kicker is suppossed to be. What a bunch of crap! I guess they’re not suppossed to stand up to Larry Allen either (an incident Allen would later apologize for). A kicker with balls! Heaven forbid!! But HEY, Cortez is with the dreaded Eagles now- so I’m obligated to root agianst him and his new team.
At least we’ll be able to dispense with all that ethnic crap (some of us) have had to put up with lately. That I won’t miss. It’s been pretty ugly on this here blog lately… Glad we’re move’n on.
i’m glad they cut cortez. he was not a good kicker, he had many oppurtunities to prove himself, but he just sucks. i’ll kick against him one on one and beat him to prove that he sucks.
rich,
SF got rid of him because he has a tendancy to hit a hard draw left. Same thing was happening in Dallas. He kicked 75%. It should be more like 85% in a stadium like the Cowboys have. Perhaps you liked how he looked in his uniform?
I’m worried about the Cardinals because they have two good DE’s which plays to our weakness on offense. Hopefully we can exploit their line up the middle.
First, look who we’ve got as an owner, Jerry Jones. He publicly admits that he does whatever he can to make money. If it was a very important position, like RB or WR or QB, he might have kept Jeff Robinson, but who really needs a perfect, top notch long snapper if you have to pay a fortune for it. Again, if Troy Aikman was taking in a lot of money, Jones might keep him becaues its a vital position, but it isnt necessary to field a perfect snapper.
Second, does anybody know when we can resign Billy Cundiff again? I heard something about the injury settlement saying we couldnt resign him for 6 weeks. Its week 8, he shouldnt be injured anymore, what are we waiting for?
mr. t,
I notice you have a poblem with excowboyfan’s point of view. I also noticed HIS two posts were sincere, factual, thoughful, and personable- Whether you agree with him or not, that kind of player perspective is valid and rare on this blog, and I for one was glad he posted.
So I’m left wondering- what was your last chickensh** post about them two meeting in San Fran suppossed to be about? I can only assume you posted that remark with a smart-ass grin on your face. What point were you trying to pontificate there? And what if they did?
Cash,
85% in a stadium like ours, huh? So every kicker who has ever kicked in our stadium, be him on our team or not, should be kicking 85% or they suck… Whatever you say, man.
Guys dont be so hard on Cortez. Yes, he messed up in some field goals, but we cant blame him for losing those three games. When your defense holds opponents to 13 points or less, especially if they’re ranked in the top of the nfl, you have to blame your offense for not showing up. You can’t win in this league with just 10 points. It’s hard, especially with our division rivals in the second half of the season.
Of the subject, what the hell is wrong with Julius Jones. I mean common its been almost three weeks. Get up your a@%, and started pilling up yards!! Look at randy moss.
rich,
85% is a number that Parcells himself said he wanted so question him.
For one, I’m happy that cortez fella is gone, I’ll take my chances with someone else. For two, I’ve always liked billy as our kicker and hopefully he’ll get another chance with us. I understand we could sign him a week before thankgiving due to the injury settlement, and I hope he haven’t lost too much but if he has I’m sure he’ll be back in good form by postseason.(Only if we get him back)
OK, it was not all Cortez’s fault, either. He alone did not cost the last game. However, Parcells needed to fire him.
Am I the only one who remembers Curvin Richards? He was Emmitt’s backup who rarely saw the field one year, until Emmitt got rested in the last meaningless regular season game, and Curvin fumbled a couple of times. As I recall, the Cowboys won anyway, but that isn’t even the point. What happened was, the team AS A WHOLE were sleep walking that game, Jimmy Johnson got mad, and Curvin was suddenly gone, leaving Emmitt without a backup just as the playoff run started. The Cowboys won the Super Bowl with the backup fullback as the only listed backup at both backfield positions. No more sleep walking.
(BTW, those mediots who claim that team had such great depth are completely full of it. They had great depth at D line, and almost no depth anywhere else. What they had were a lot of great special teams players who couldn’t play a lick on offense or defense.)
Anyway, Jimmy fired Curvin to get his team’s attention, and it worked. Nobody could slack off, even in a meaningless game. Perfection or else. Curvin “deserved” to get fired about as much as baseball managers do when their teams suck. You can’t fire a whole team, so you shake things up any way you can.
Cortez was the same thing. Condo bounced several long snaps one week, Bill said that wouldn’t do, and when he repeated it the next week, he was gone. During that repeat, Cortez missed a kick, had a tantrum, and got jacked up by Allen. I have to assume everybody was told privately that could not happen again, yet last week, it happened again–poor snap, missed kick, tantrum, Allen’s “intervention.” Cortez was fired.
Now, assume the new long snapper is on notice. It isn’t an either-or, it’s both. Produce or be gone. Understand that while we can’t replace a whole underperforming O line, unemployed kickers are a dime a dozen. Also, if I fire one kicker and it helps me get the O line’s attention, it serves two purposes, removing a substandard performer and “motivating” some underachievers, especially if they know it is partly their own fault. It’s not personal, it all business, and all about team performance.
Adrian,
While the media would like to portray Parcells as questioning JJ’s toughness, that’s not the impression I got listening to his press conference. I got the idea that BP himself is worried about rushing him back and possibly losing him for the rest of the season.
At dallascowboys.com, Mickey looked at the last 3 yrs of opponents FGs — they are 53/57 (93%) and 7/9 (78%) from 49+. In comparison, 75% seems really bad.
Rafael:
Cortez won’t make FG’s he will be making KO’s and will tackle TT in a 40 yard return.
Cortez kicked off out of bounds once on Sunday. I hope his only job 14 November is to kick off, because at least then he won’t be able to beat the Cowboys with a field goal.
Miles,
It’s certainly not very good. Last season, 30 kickers qualified for NFL.com’s stat sheet. 75% was good enough for 27th place. On the other hand, a kicker who could convert on 85% of his kicks (Parcells’ goal) would have been in 9th place.
Allow me to relay a rumor I have heard as to why Robinson was let go. According to that rumor, Robinson was not buying into Parcells’ system and saw no reason why he had to.
I read that rumor several weeks ago on one of the forums I frequent. It was put forward by a poster who had heard it as part of a conversation he had with one of Spagnola’s interns (from DC.com). I trust both the original poster and the intern, who also happens to be a regular poster at that forum. The intern neither denied nor confirmed the rumor; nor has the original poster mentioned it since that one time, although there have been a few times when he could have done so. A third poster (on the same forum) recently re-raised that rumor as a question, but no one has responded. I suspect that the intern was not too happy that this private conversation had been broadcast to the forum, and suggested that the original poster button up.
It would certainly explain a few things, such as Robinson being excluded from the mini-camp, and his ultimate release.
Mr. Bill,
Don’t really see how a long snapper buying into BP’s system really matters much. I think it really was cap money, remember he was to be a free agent next year as I recall someone here mentioning. They had to deal with him anyway.
Raf, thanks for pointing out the false posters. I just recently discovered your site and really enjoy it. I know everyone here appreciates what you do. Thanks.
I doubt Robinson was cut for “not buying into the system”. If BP had a long snapper that was perfect, I’m sure he wouldn’t care if the guy never came to practice and only showed up for games. It’s a fallacy that BP cuts people for not buying in; he only cuts marginal players that don’t buy in. How else can you explain Larry Allen surviving his first couple of years with Bill. I don’t fault that, it’s just the way it is.
Mr Bill
Thanks for pointing out the stats on NFL.com for kickers.
Cundiff kicked 76.9 % last year with a long of 49 yds with a good snap and place, so how much better is it going to get if he comes back?
Cundiff and Cortez were never good solutions. The team needs to solve their kicking problems or else we’re going to find ourselves in the SB behind by 2 with 10 seconds left and we will lose. Football players at other positions often hate on kickers because they don’t have to take the physical punishment but last game should give any player pause that the kicker is one of the most important people on the team. They can have as much responsibility for winning or losing a game as any person on the team.
rmac,
The statistic we don’t have is what % of missed kicks for Cortez and Cundiff where they blame someone else. I suspect it is 100% for Cortez. That is acceptable if your name is Vinatieri but not if you’re a waiver wire kicker. Maybe we should just look at the stats from oh, say 29 yards.
So we know Cortez (and Cundiff) is gone, good, bad indifferent. Anybody know anything about Suisham. I know he is Canadian (as is our long snapper). I know he was with Pittsburgh (released in preseason) and I know we thought so much of him as to release him from the Practice squad only to bring him back.
Anybody seen him kick? Kickers are such a pain in the _ss when you don’t have a good one.
Hey Cowboy Fans,
Cortez is an average kicker period.
Though he has miss some chip shots & kicked out of bound on kickoffs twice he is not the reason we lost on Sunday. When you get a turnover on the opposing teams 9 yard line you must get in the end zone. You cannot score 10 points & expect to win , even with this defense playing as well as they have. As far as JJ goes he has a HIGH ankle sprain. I have had a mild one & it took 3 months before I felt no ill effects. Sometimes the doctor said your better off breaking your ankle than a bad high ankle sprain. In any case when I first heard what he had I personally thought we would be lucky to get him back in 4 weeks.
As far as Dallas goes we must remain aggressive on offense. When we get a lead we must deliver the knock out blow. I think our Defense will even get better as the year goes on, but offensively we must not stop attacking until the final whistle blows.If we do this we will make the playoffs.Once in
who knows how far you can go.
Super Bowl ? Who knows, the NFC is crying for someone to stand out from the pack. Dallas has a good a chance as any.
Dallas27
Cards 7
Okay, I have not posted here this week because I am still pretty upset. We go from first to last in 5 seconds. Now, as we all know, that last place is deceiving. The division is tied up with four wins each, we have an extra loss do to the extra game played, and as someone mentioned before, the rest of the NFC east will be beating each other up over the next few weeks. During that time, there will be at least 2 more losses within our division foes, possibly more because philly goes to Denver. My money is on Denver at home during that game.
Here is the way I see it. At the end of week eleven, we will be on top of the division and stay that way the rest of the year. Am I crazy or insane? Yes I am, but that is beside point. We are going on a four win stretch against Arizona, Philly, Detroit and Denver, plus we have the bye in their. All at home except Monday night at Philly, and I think we got their number now. When we beat them earlier this year, the curse was broken.
Here is what the next 5 weeks look like for the rest of the division:
Philadelphia:
@ Denver (lose)
@ Washington (lose)
Dallas (lose)
@ New York (win)
Green Bay (win)
Washington:
@ New York (lose)
Philadelphia (win)
@ Tampa Bay (lose)
Oakland (win)
San Diego (lose)
New York:
Washington (win)
@ San Francisco (win)
Minnesota (win)
Philadelphia (lose)
@ Seattle (lose)
I know there are some question marks besides some of those games, but there also was when I said earlier in the season that we would beat San Diego and Philly and lose to Washington.
There is no reason why we shouldn’t win against Arizona. Then after the bye, we will get JJ and Dat back. Take this into consideration, JJ had not has not had a 100 yard game yet. But until the Philly game, the holes were not big enough to shove a mouse through. Suddenly, the our offensive line started playing the rush the right way against Philly, and JJ had 72 yards before he got hurt IN THE SECOND QUARTER. He was well on his way to 100+ game. Ever since then, the holes have gotten bigger and bigger. You may say, the opposition hasn’t been playing with 8 men in the box! I beg to differ, go look at the tapes in the last few weeks, especially against Seattle. When JJ come back, he is going to see holes he didn’t even see last year.
LEFT TACKLE: Flozel went down and the world came to an end and everyone thought Bledsoe was doomed. He, the kid did played solid…guess Parcells knew what he was talking about when he said the kid had talent.
RIGHT TACKLE: Problem side, YES. Fixable, YES. Rob P. is not all that effective by himself, but give him just a little help like we did against Philly and New York, and that side will be secure. I am telling you, TT doesn’t need much help over there with LA at his side.
I said it before the Philly game and I will reiterate. The Philly game was a staple in terms of what we have…we have a damb good team. We stayed strong three weeks in a row against 3 sold teams. We came out 2-1 of a rough stretch without 2 stars, one on offense and one on defense…both we should have back the second half of the season.
Cowboys 34 Cardinals 9
HANG ON COWBOY FANS-THIS TEAM IS ABOUT TO TAKE OFF!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
yea, I was doing the same thing about everybody elses schedule in the next 3 weeks, best case senario, we come out 6-3, everybody else, pretty much the same record…then we hit Detroit, and Denver (thanksgiving, we always win), meanwhile, everyone else is still going at eachother, only thing that sucks, is they gave philly the 49ers like the second to last week, that could be a big win, Im getting ahead of myself…
senario…philly, dallas, good game, Akers reaggrivates his hamstring, goes out 3rd quarter, 17-14 Cowboys, 2 minutes left in the 4th, big play for the eagles come down, our D stiffens, holds them to a field goal, Cortez comes in, on a 40 yarder, misses wide left, cowboys hold on…laugh at Philly all the way home…
Hey Cortez is automatic within the 15 yard line, well maybe not automatic, hey but those can be tricky…lol….The eagles just better hope he does not need to make more than a 30 yarder….Otherwise, Cortez might end up gettin punched in the face by one of their O-linemen….lol. Man, & I use to think Cundiff was a bad kicker, but Cortez made him look like a pro bowl kicker…..Whoever the kicker we have now, I just pray he can make a 30 yard field goal. Is that asking to much???
This is going to be a scary game, everything points to a win. Hopefully the offence can get on track.
chris
If Cortez kicks against us he will not miss…..
I agree with Airtyme and nflcowboy. The key is achieving a 6-3 record.
If we can win our next two, which is a big “if”, then I think we win the division.
By winning two, we benefit from 3 consecutive weeks of divisional matchups among the other NFC East teams. It will give us 4 victories out of 5 games and a lot of momentum - something we haven’t seen.
If we split or drop both of the next 2, then we’ll be lucky to make the playoffs.
I know it’s still early, but the next 2 games (3 weeks) will tell us what we need to know.
If we have anything to show, we’ll show it over the next 2 games.
If Cortez kicks against us, I think he’ll miss 25% of the time.
madcowboy, I wouldnt necessarilly say if we split these next two, well be lucky to makethe playoffs, itll be close, its early yet, if we split, especially if we lose to Philly, well have to run the rest of our division games, remember, we got detroit, st louis, carolina, denver, and the chiefs (I believe thats at home), I mean, we got a good jump on the east…now we just have to hold on…I have an announcement, I WILL BE AT THE REDSKINS GAME IN D.C, I used to live 10 min. from Fedex field, and I found a website, I can buy tickets (cuz skins only sell season tickets), hopefully, some of you other guys will be there…www.stubhub.com
AW,
I don’t think anyone can guarantee exactly where the ball is going to end up after Cortez kicks it. Or maybe that’s just on one out of every four kicks.
PEOPLE!! he is a waiver wire kicker!! The L is full of them. Why is he getting so much attention?
AlanTdot
I don’t care that we cut him, I’m saying we will make any kicker look good because nobody misses against us.
aw,
I couldn’t agree more. When’s the last time the Cowboys blocked a field goal attempt or a punt?
I know the kicking game is a priority and I know the Cowboys can go years before finding suitable replacements at key positions (let’s hope that’s not the case this time) but a part of the kicking game that has been sorely lacking and seemingly not even in the sites is the kick defense.
IMO, they need to address their inability to create this sort of turnover. TV analysts have recently been fond of citing Bill Parcells’ liking for VA Tech players (#20 Willie Pile) because of the Hokies’ focus on special teams play, at which they excel in the area of blocks. It’s insane how good they are at it really (and to sing their praises for me, as a UVA fan, is difficult). I had imagined Chris Canty being integral to our improvement in this department but it has yet to take shape.
Cowboy Bert — I think you hit the nail on the head with your assessment of the cutting of Cortez.
Let me also weigh in quickly on fg percentages. They can be deceiving because coaches often limit the attempts of their kickers based on their likelihood of making. Thus we didn’t and wouldn’t have attempted nearly the amount of 50+ yard kicks that teams with Vinatieri, Akers, Elam, Hanson — Josh Brown — would. Plus, Cortez, up to this point in the season, really has had ideal conditions. Remember Chicago’s old kicker — Butler, I think — his stats were never going to be as good as a dome team kickers because of the terrible conditions he kicked in, but if Cortez struggled in great conditions, imagine what he’ll do in Philly.
Cortez will be used for kickoffs only because of Akers bad leg. Akers will still kick the field goals.
rich,
Although, I’m not sure why you called my question “chickensh**”, I didn’t mean to be offensive to you. I thought it was odd that any of those stats brought up for Cortez were from SF. He had a better average inside the 40 with the Skins. Do you not think he could somehow be from SF? I know what you’re getting at, but please explain “chickensh**”.
I’m just throwing out a senerio here but listen to this…wouldn’t it suck if dallas went to Philly and got beat by a Cortez fieldgoal in the final seconds…that’s when i’d say i’d seen it all!!!
Rich, your posts are so much more intelligent than most of the others here. At least you invite a decent dialog. It is appreciated. So many fellows write some rotten and personal stuff on these type sites all in the name of being a fan. I had a son who played college football for 4 years and it is eye opening to know the players personally and listen to the way fans talk about them, all in the name of being a fan. Cortez is no longer the Cowboys problem and letting him go is always the franchise’s choice. But on the personal side of all the guys who hide behind website nicknames (as I am doing now), Jose came from El Salvador under a bus at 13 years old to get away from the revolution. He and his mother made it to America and started a new life. His achieving his college degree, his English fluency and making it to the NFL is near miraculous. He’s the only NFL player ever from El Salvador. He is an incredible human being with many many friends inside and outside the NFL. He’s a great young man that many of you would really like if you knew him. You ought to put away the Emmitt Smith jersey’s and set down the beer cans for a second and remember that these guys out on the field are good people trying to make a living and win games. They all got there because they are amazing athletes. Jose may not be an all-pro, but he is a special human being. I hope you can appreciate that.
I apologize for the nickname I chose to participate under. It’s too beligerent, but its who you know my posts by, so I’m enjoying the interesting blogs from some of you guys.
Kickers are usually a tempermental type. I just know I’m glad Cortez is gone. But I also rememeber last year the Cundiff had his problems too. So I’m not sold on him either. Lets hope that Suisham can do a good job for us. Kickers usually do have several chances to win & lose games for a team during a season. Lets support him and move on.
I think we have a very good team this year. Better than last year. They need to play hard every down and keep improving. We seem to sometimes only play as good as our competition. When we are a very good team? We will lead the pack. Go Cowboys.
excowboysfan,
I have no doubt Jose is great guy and I probably wouldn’t mind having a beer with him, but good people get cut all the time. Fans will have opinions based on what they see on the field. I played college football here in Texas and sometimes fans will cross the line. I’m not saying it’s right. I’m sure some of the Eagles and Skins are great guys, but I don’t want to know them personally.
Also, if “the guys who hide behind nicknames” was directed to me, I’ve got no problems letting anyone know where to find me. That is certainly not meant to be offensive in anyway, though.
Like I stated before, I wish Cortez luck.
I do think a lot of your anger towards Cowboy fans goes beyond Cortez leaving. You mention the Tom Landry firing. But I could be wrong.
Alright, somebody fire up some crazy stats or whatever you want.
emrdog,
it would suck alot more if it was from 50+ yards
New Zealand’s national rugby team(called the ‘All Blacks’) has a kicker named Luke McAllister who’s good, but he’s staying home from a November tour to Wales because of a knee injury(because he’s a rugby player, he doesn’t just kick…he also tackles, passes the ball laterally, runs with the ball, and is tackled.) I’m not sure of the extent of his knee injury, incurred 2 weeks ago, but I probably should have sent his name to the Cowboys. Maybe they already knew about him, or maybe he just wants to stay where he is playing rugby in New Zealand.
Pentalty kicks in rugby are similar to place kicks, except the kicker takes his time, with no defenders rushing him, with the ball on a Tee, and kicks often are made from extremely wide angles from out on the edge of the field, creating a very narrow target.
Anyway, I’d be in major trouble if I helped the Cowboys poach a good player from New Zealand, where rugby is more important to the population than any religion.
On Dallas Cowboys home site, they said that they might sign the ex Eagle kicker Todd France.
Lee,
you could find a whole host of better kickers than mcallister in rugby. He wouldn’t play nfl because he has just made the all blacks and is only young. While he may not be paid as much (compared to the NFL), he can play football against england, france, australia, south africa and fiji (to name but a few) in a world cup in 2007 (that is second only to soccer world cup in terms of world sporting events - sorry to you guys who think that “world champions” means beating another US or canadian team!!)
But on a serious note, with the increasing number of aussie punters (3 now?), teams should look at taking athletes from places like australia & new zealand and getting them into college programs. I am sure there are a few guys who could make a go of it
sydneycowboy, I can’t remember seeing young Luke miss a kick yet, and that includes some long ones. Maybe I just can’t remember. Anyway, you’re right that he probably wants to travel worldwide, and he couldn’t help the Cowboys this season.
sydneycowboy,
To Americans a world championship is only worth something if you beat an American team. All other countries are playing for second place in the game of life. So get in where you fit in.
Cortez was what he was an inconsistent kicker with
both FGs and KOs.I held my breath everytime he kicked
a FG whether it was from the 20 or 45(actually I felt
better from the 45 for some reason).I figured he was kept
around for the deep KOs but he wasn’t consisitent on those
either.To me you live with inconsistency on kos or fgs but
not both.Cortez was given more than a fair chance to show
improvement and he didn’t.
Mr T,
Don’t sweat rich’s comments he thinks he’s something
special…. he gets to call people names and use “foul”
language but you can’t.
Hey rich you sound like a
12year old punk by the way hows that drinking
“Poblem” going ??????
I thought Rich’s comments were right on regarding Cortez and Excowboyfan. Frankly I read homophobia in Mr. Ts comments about Cortez and San Fran as well.
Becker, you are way off base!
Sorry rha I didn’t take Mr.T’s comments as homo-phobic
but that is my right as is it is yours to take them anyway
you chose.
I have twice been attacked by rich personally both
times it had nothing to do with football and the topic
at hand.
Once was because i felt that his boy Roy was
responsible for the two TD’s late in the Wash. game; (a
point later borne out by Jaws on espn)
The second was over a word omission when i
characterized Holts style of play.In which he called
me a bunch of names not once dealing with the topic.
I thought Mr.T made it clear he joking but even if
he wasn’t its Raf Blog not mine yours or richs.
Raf has expressed his thoughts on whats acceptable or not.
I find it a little hypocritical for some to get upset about
name calling and then to respond in kind…..
Cortez isn’t bad. He isn’t good, either, and that’s a problem for a team coached by Bill Parcells that wants to play low-scoring games dominated by defense and running the ball.
I’ve never understood why the Cowboys put such a low priority on getting a top-rate kicker, not just this year, but for the past 10 years. Don’t they watch the highlights on ESPN, and see how many games come down to the final play?
A team can compensate for one mediocre offensive or defensive lineman or linebacker, but one mediocre kicker can and will cost you wins.
where is Chris Boniol when you need him, huh? he had a great success rate on FGs
Remember Parcells discoverd Vinetari off the street, so that’s what he’s trying to do now. You just keep moving kickers in and out till you get one with ice in his veins.
Wonder what Tim Seder is up to?
Cundiff was hurt, but it wasn’t something that would keep him out all year, I seem to remember. Did he get an injury settlement? If so I think he’s eligible to coem back after week 9.
Brad Sham’s recent column on DC.com is the most brilliant I’ve ever read on kickers. I know, I know, but its worth a read:
http://lb.dallascowboys.com/news.cfm?editorialAuthor=3&id=2F09DA8B-E918-504D-4C967D28FD6C28EA
He accuses Cortez of trying to show up a teammate with his gesture to Romo (who did a nice job on a bad snap) after the missed chip shot. I’m inclined to agree.
Cash - you missed the point regarding World Champs. It was said tongue-in-cheek, how can you regard a team as World Champs when you don’t play any other countries?! And as a matter of fact the US had a team in the soccer & rugby World Cups….
But that is an aside - there are plenty of kickers over here who have what it takes - I suggest the Cowboys look up Daryl Halligan. He was a winger in rugby league. He is the second all-time leading pointscorer for rugby league players in the Australian National Comp with 2034 (80 tries 855 goals) over 10 years. Check this page out for details.
http://bulldogs.rleague.com/tributes/halligan.php
He kicked at 85% over the latter part of his career, often from the sideline.
For someone like him PAT would be a gimme, as would FG’s up to 40 yards. Not sure about his leg strength now as he retired from rugby league 5 years ago. But that was mainly due to not being able to keep up with the game - something he wouldn’t have to worry about in the NFL
sydneycowboy, Daryl Halligan now is a broadcaster for the Auckland Warriors, and he should stay safely in front of the microphone in the broadcast booth. Luke McAllister is an athlete, he’s ~21 years old, and his range now is better than Haligan’s range ever was.
You’re right, he would be better. I just don’t see him going until he is finished with the all blacks. He just turned 22, and has already helped New Zealand win a junior world cup. He will be in their squad for the 2007 world cup in france. maybe after that? he will still only be 24, and can catch, run, pass and tackle…
But I still think you’re better off trying to get someone who is coming towards the end of their careers, then once guys over here see it as an option they may be able to encourage younger players.
sydney I know that there are a bunch of good kickers down under. I was just returning your jab. I was only joking with you bro, welcome aboard. What time do you guys get the NFL games down there?
Cash - appreciate the comments.
the early games (like cowboys this week) start at 4am although with daylight saving we put our clocks forward - so 5am. The second series of games start at 7am (8am through our summer). Unfortunately we only get the game that fox thinks is the best - this week we get minnesota v carolina. The good part is that they have game breaks and will show the cowboys hopefully making a few big plays. We get a double header (the second game is the eagles v broncos).
Often we only get 1 game - I am hopeful with digital TV that soon I will be able to select the game that I want to watch (might be wishful thinking at least for a year or 2).
Glad I found this site, have been a fan since my aunty (who lives in san diego!) sent me a cowboys hat as a birthday present in 1990 - i think they may have been on sale then!!
Sydney we need to find a way to get you a copy of the games. Anyone have any ideas out there?
You know you can always listen to them at NFL.com
Hey Cash if you figure out a way count me in too, I am in Brisbane. Been a Cowboy fan since 1991. The Fox coverage in Australia is not very good, but at least occasionally we get to see a game, my girlfriend and I got up at 3 am a couple of weeks ago to watch the DC vs NYG game but it was worth it we won.
becker,
This is the last time you suck me into these back and forth tirades. I wasn’t even addressing you, but ya had to jump on in. Here goes.
YOU and a bunch of others attacked Roy after the Washington game. I defended him, saying we lost cuz of the conservative play-calling and, yes, the missed field goals…. Both of which remained topics as the Cowboys have gone hot and cold. Haven’t heard Roy’s name mentioned much lately. You say Jaws on espn agreed with YOU? Well, rest my case!
You say I sound like a 12 yr old boy? Huh. If I were, I’d have been impressed by your juvenile language and mr. t’s jabs at Excowboyfan. I wasn’t, and I called ya’ll on it. So what? Personal attacks? Whatever. This is a BLOG, dude; Nothing’s personal. I don’t know you (and I don’t wanna).
And “how’s your drinking poblem”? LOL!! That was a joke, right? What are you talking about, dude? You’re the crude one who posts like he’s in a locker room, not me, bro.
So if I post something like “how are your panty hose?” suddenly that makes you a cross dresser?! You can’t just make up stuff to slander people, dude. If you have a problem with me, be man enough to take me on with real points. Maybe YOU should stick to football, and leave the lies and insults to the imposters….
And finally, no, I don’t think I’m something special- not any more special than the rest of ya’ll.
Gotta go. See ya’ll Sunday. I know Dallas needs it, but I’m already dreading the bye week.
Bye, becker!!
Fellas,
Anyone have Tivo or something to capture copies of the games? I have a server I’d be willing to store them on for a short time. Anyone?