Ask Roy Williams
Posted: November 12, 2007 @ 4:43 pm
No, we’re not opening up a subsidiary paint store. Cowboys safety Roy Williams is participating in the Home Depot NFL Neighborhood MVP program on Tuesday. The project is to refurbish the football field at the A+ Academy Charter School in Dallas.
Williams is one of 17 NFL players selected league-wide for his ongoing commitment to the community and charitable giving of his time, talent and resources. Between the United Way, the Salvation Army and his own Roy Williams Safety Net Foundation, which helps single mothers get back on their feet.
If you have any questions that you’d like to ask, please post them here. Due to the limited time we have with him, I will only be able to select four or five. I plan on finalizing the list tomorrow morning.
Comments
97 Responses to “Ask Roy Williams”





1st
man,
talk about opening up a can of worms.
Has Roy looked at much film of Cliff Harris and, if so, how would he compare himself with Harris, since both are well known for their tough hitting?
What happened to the team in the New England game, and what would need to change for a rematch in two months to see a different victor?
jarhead:
The irony, eh?
I dont know if I have a question but I’d like to thank him for his and all the Cowboys for thier hard work on and off the field.
It was’nt long ago we were the Bengals of the NFL.
How has the new nickel package allowed him to improve his game?
Wouldn’t he look more like a badarse if he didn’t wear a white puffy shirt under his pads?
I don’t have any questions for the man, Roy Williams. But I would like to say, keep up the good work on and off the field. It’s great to see such a superstar play his heart out on the field, and still have time and energy left over to help out those in times of hardship. Congrats on the season thus far and good luck in the second half and playoffs!!! LETS GO BOYSSSS!!!
I didn’t phrase that as a question. Should be “wouldn’t you look like more …”
raul,
tell him we want the old roy back, the “hammer”
the “terrorizor”
the “headhunter”
insert intimidating nickname here…..
Personal feelings aside how much did Bill Parcells contribute to the developement of the young guys as professionals and as learning the game? Do you think the defense would be as good with out the young guys having a chance to learn the game under BP?
ahhh,
now there is a question.
You’re right Squid. We don’t really need Garrett or Wade. If BP was here we’d probably be 16-0 in the regular season. Hell, ye ole genius Parcells would have probably figured out a way to be the first coach to win 17 regular season games. That collapse we had last year, you know the one where sh**ty teams like the Lions humiliated us in our own stadium, that was all just our imagination. He didn’t have anything to do with that. All those crappy Lion players that were laughing at us after the game were actually laughing WITH us.
BTW, someone, I think Larry, asked whether or not you actually thought someone like Garrett would even be on this coaching staff if Parcells was still here. What do you think?? Personally, I think if Jerry managed to get Parcells to hire Garrett, he’d have hired him as the assistant coach in charge of the passing game and quality control and then refuse to say who even called the plays. But that’s just me.
Roy,
Thanks for laying on the line every week. I have your back.
That was a sweet hit on that coward Jacobs. Way to light that over confident stupid idiot up. Did you hear the crowd on that hit?
Thanks for the pick six in 2005 on McNabb.
Tell Crayton to be quiet. Let the Giants and other teams keep talking.
Dear Roy,
How do you see yourself improving in the offseason?
Thanks.
I never said anything like that. I like SOB and Garrett. They were the right men for the job but that doesnt mean that BP couldnt produce.
Too many dillweeds on here blame BP for that Lions loss but the truth of the matter is we gave them the ball at mid field or on our side of the field 8 times. You cant win that way. Go back and look at their starting field position and then look at the fumbles and inteceptions that put them there. Thats players that caused that loss. Its not my fault that many on here shortsighted and fueled by their out of control emotions. Its also not my fault that too many fans have expectations that are not reasonable. Bledsoe was a stiff and Romo wasnt quite ready. The defense was young and inexperienced. Knowing what you know about that team now do you think they underachieved.
Why do you think they underachieved last year. Ball control and tough defense isnt excited but you can win with it. I believe BP would have trusted Romo to do more and I believe the defense would be everybit as good. It would just be different.
I love Garret and SOB but they havent produced in the playoffs yet. Why dont we wait before we blow off a 2 time winning SB coach for a couple of guys with no playoff wins.
Hey Roy, Congrats on a thusfar great season.
Q: What is so different this year than last year about the team? Personnel? Coach? Something else?
[Raf, this is too cool!!]
Roy,
To begin, let me say that I believe that you have gotten a raw deal through the local and national media.
Question:
How was your game affected by the presence/absence of Darren Woodson, and how has Ken Hamlin had a positive impact this season??
Wow Squid. How many of those SB’s did Parcells win with the Cowboys again?? Parcells didn’t have any success in the playoffs with the Cowboys either. I don’t give a da** what he did with other teams. Look who has lost control of his emotions. Yeah, the players made all those bad plays. They’re also the ones who called the same coverages over and over even when they were getting their a**es beat. Parcells didn’t have anything to do with that. In fact, I believe it was the players fault for not attacking the Border Patrol agents the Seahogs were playing in their secondary too.
You can keep your expectations down in the weeds (or is that dillweeds??) all you want, but there was no reason for us fans to expect the Cowboys to win only 1 more game after going 8-3. That’s bull**** and you know it. I thought they underachieved last year. I didn’t need to see what they’re doing now. How can you NOT say that an 8-3 team underachieved by winning only 1 more game Squid?? The defense was young and inexperienced?? Playing their 2nd year in BP’s D?? And yet they just magically turned it around after a total collapse at the end of last year?? Little bit of a stretch Squid.
Ball control and a tough D can win ball games. Unfortunately, Bill’s D at the end of the year was anything but tough. Softer than toilet paper. Playing not to lose games instead of doing everything to win them just didn’t work. You think it doesn’t mean that Parcells couldn’t produce but the fact is that he didn’t produce. Show me that production Squid.
Also, I’ll agree with you and give the players all the blame for EVERYTHING bad that happened last year. For every single loss. For every defensive breakdown. For every time our players played a soft vanilla scheme that let the QB make a pot of tea in the pocket while deciding who he was going to throw to. But from now on I’m going to give those same player every dang bit of credit for everything they did right too. I’ve given Parcells plenty of cred for bringing in talent but not anymore. Obviously it doesn’t matter what a HC does on the sideline. He’s just a spectator watching a football game. Every thing that’s bad is the players fault, so everything that’s good must be those same players fault too, right?? Coaches don’t make adjustments they apparently just sit back and let the players go out and play ball. I mean, Parcells game plans were so perfect he should have just put them in stone like the 10 commandments and as long as the players executed things perfectly, they’d always win!! Brilliant!!
Here’s my question for Roy:
Roy, a few guys posting on The Boys Blog think Bill Parcells was to coaching what Jesus was to the miracle business. Is it true that Parcells was the greatest thing since sliced bread?? And how in the world did you idiot players manage to screw up his perfect game plans?? Don’t you guys feel ashamed of yourselves for that??
Roy,
I fogot two things.
You should be commended for getting players on the team involved in your church. Good job? Get them in their and keep them out of trouble.
I wish I could have seen Phillips yell “I saw the light” at camp when your crowd was singing.
Tell Terence Newman to keep doing what he is doing. Tell him the Super Bowl is better than the Pro Bowl.
On a serious note. I’ve got a question for Raul or Raf. I’m using Firefox and have the AdBlock Plus extension running. I didn’t really notice right off the bat but it seems like ever since then that the Boys Blog banner at the top of the page has disappeared. I don’t know if it’s because of AdBlock or not but how would I find out?? Or is that banner not supposed to be there any more?? It’s just a big white square at the top.
Raul, here’s the NFL.com probowl balloting site. Could you post a link on the mainpage for us to access the voting?
Thanks
http://www.nfl.com/probowl/ballot
They were an imcomplete team and when the other teams found our weakness they exploited it. It didnt help us any that many of those teams happen to run offenses with the best chance of exploiting us. When you buy a stock you dont watch the stock and live and die by every days movement. I expected 10-6 last year and the playoffs. We met my expectations. How we got there doesnt matter. We won some I didnt think we would win and we lost some I didnt think we would lose. The end result was still what I expected. I felt that BP was playing to win but also developing his team. He was doing things that would accellerate their growth as players. Looking at the professionalism of these guys and the way they prepare Id say those things were learned.
Two points,1) SOB when he first got here talked about the disiplene and work habits of these guys. 2) A stewardess on the plane to Chicago couldnt believe that the players had their playbooks and game plans out and studying them. These are the effects of BPs teachings. Maybe you think this is the norm, its not.
Umm,
who is claiming BP is perfect?
his mistakes have been well documented on this site.
WP has inherited one hell of a team though, and has made the most out of it.
SCOUT-
Agree with your post conserning the fouls in the last thread.
That crap goes on the whole game.
KAMELEON-
Carry on with SQUID, but really, we’re never gonna change anyone’s minds.
Squid, I’ll challenge you on one thing-you said
“Who said that it didnt match their skills. YOU. Larry, ” in response to a comment I made about the new defensive scheme.
Umm, I think there’s a general consesus among the living universe, excluding you, that this scheme fits the players drafted better.
Sheesh.
Also, you never answered specific questions, as pointed out above.
Do you like the job Gibbs is doing in DC?
Jarhead,
I think Squid is implying that Parcells was perfect. Or at least at the right hand of God.
Larry,
No kidding.
Squid,
Bottom line is that this team isn’t much different than last year. Especially offensively. How can you explain the difference between the TO of last year, and the TO of this year?? And I’m not talking just about stats, but go look at how this coaching staff makes it a PRIORITY to get it’s playmakers in a position to make plays. Look at how our D is attacking the QB and try to tell me that there’s no way Parcells could have implemented some of that into his D. Just look at what a Parcells guy like Jason Ferguson said about how vanilla they played on D. I’m sure you’ve already heard it so I won’t repeat it, but why can’t you see that so much of what’s going on with this team RIGHT NOW, isn’t just players not making mistakes (because they are), or not executing every thing perfectly (because we certainly haven’t been perfect), but the fact that the coaching staff we have today isn’t dreaming about being in Jersey at the racetrack, but is instead coming up with ways to exploit the other team’s weaknesses. You can’t tell me that you don’t love the fact that Wade and Garrett are doing to other teams what teams like the Lions last year did to Parcells. Larry’s right though. We’ll never convince each other.
i wouldnt put BP at that level (though he is a first ballot HOF lock i would guess), but I am sure glad that JJ hired him 5 years ago.
Guys,
why the softball questions for Roy?
everybody kills him on this blog. Ask him the question you really want to ask:
How are you going to improve your pass coverage skills?
Scout-
RE post # 21
Careful, that might be considered right wing brainwashing by our leftist pinko brethren here. lol
I can’t agree with those tossing Parcells under the bus. This year’s team is a better team than last years. Having Romo open training camp as the starter and getting the reps was huge. Having TO all pre-seasonwas huse. Getting LDavis at RG was huge. KHamlin’s addition, GEllis’ addition. All huge.
Parcell’s can get some of the credit for this years team’s talent - much better than when he came on board.
Having said that, I do think this year’s team is performing better than it would have under BP. The team didn’t respond to his dictatorial coaching - in fact I think it wore them down each year. Bringing Wade’s attacking D has been huge. Getting Garrett has been huge.
It’s human nature to complain & blame. The BP years were an integral part of the path to the 2007 8-1 Cowboys.
Roy Question: Tackling Technique
Many players go for the big hit and lead with a shoulder instead of a solid, wrapping up technique. Why? Is it just to get greater impact? Is it because wrapping up can get the tackler hurt? You’re known for monster hits, but I’ve seen some (not many) of those hits fail to get the runner down. Where do the coaches stand?
Parcells as talent evaluator/GM: A-
Parcells as DC coach: C
Dear Roy:
Have your religious beliefs affected your desire to inflict pain on your opponents? And isn’t it time to knock some punk wide receiver out for the rest of the season?
jarhead,
I made a point of saying in the other thread that I thought Parcells was the right hire at the right time. I quoted Madden who said the same thing. Just like Wade was the right hire at the right time. I’m just unable to understand how some fans can think that Parcells had everything to do with what went right last year, or with the talent we now have on our team, but nothing to do with the collapse at the end of the season or the product he put out on the field. Or the collapses of his teams at the end of every year he was our HC.
Sierrareef,
I agree with what you’re saying. I for one don’t have a problem with giving Parcells credit for what he did right, but to say that we’re no better off with the coaching staff we’ve got now than if we still had Parcells as the HC. That’s kind of a slap in the face IMO to Wade and Jason. They’re just doing things that Parcells wouldn’t/couldn’t bring himself to do and it’s paying big time dividends. Everyone can see what we’re doing on offense, but although we’ve still got some holes on our D, does anyone realize that we’re only 4 INT’s and 8 sacks away from matching last years total at both of those categories?? It’s totally JMO but I don’t have any questions that we’re better off at the coaching position now than we were last year.
oneforthethumb,
The problem with asking that question would be that we already know the answer.
Question: “Roy, how are you going to improve your pass coverage skills??”
Roy: “What’s to improve?? You media guys just don’t understand coverages.”
RE: #21
Roy,
That should have been “Good job!”, not with a ?.
and “Get them in there and keep them out of trouble”.
I am stupid.
kamaleon o
We agree - cool.
Now a question to contemplate. Do you think the Cowboys would have had a better record last year had Wade replaced Parcells prior to last year’s preseason - keeping everything else the same.
He’d get Carpenter in Round 1. He’d see Ellis go down for the year. He’s have to choose between Watkins or Davis at Safety. Rivera would be the RG. And no Jason Garrett as OC.
Let the debate begin.
Oh - and Vandermiss as his high-priced kicker.
Re: Parcell’s assembling of players:
One thing Parcells said that stuck with me is that he was not in the drafting business, but rather the talent acquisition business. It didn’t matter how a player got here, as long as the right players got here.
By my reckoning, talent can be obtained by (a) drafting players, (b) signing unrestricted free agents after the draft, (c) trading with other teams, (d) acquiring free agents from other teams whose contracts have run out, (e) signing street free agents, and (f) signing players off other teams’ practice squads.
Parcells added players through all of these means, many of whom are still on the team. What he did that differed from most teams is that he kept and played the best players, regardless of how he got them or what they cost to obtain. He ended up starting a UFA QB and letting go of QBs obtained through the draft (Carter), trade (Henson), free agency (Testaverde, Bledsoe), and street signings (Hutchinson), all of whom cost the Cowboys considerably more to obtain and sign.
This gets to Cash’s point that Parcells did not get good linemen. We all remember Rogers, who was a mistake form the word go, because of preexisting injuries and possibly an attitude problem. Johnson and Peterman were also first day draft picks who did not pan out sue to injuries they sustained in Dallas, and Rivera was an expensive FA who never quite reached expectations for the same reason.
As an aside, I’m not sure how much to put on Parcells for any of those three. I remember when the boys drafted Mike Sherrard, who played his rookie year like multiple Pro Bowls were inevitable. He then broke his leg a couple of times in freak off-field accidents and Dallas had to draft Irvin because they still didn’t have a WR. My point here is that even if you get a great player, you can still look bad if he happens to get injured, and that is not always foreseeable.
But, back to Parcells’ OL acquisitions, even counting those four against him (and also Young and Fabini, neither of whom cost much in FA, and Petitti, a low draft pick), he also brought in Kosier as an inexpensive FA nobody saw much value in, brought in Columbo off the street for next to nothing, got McQ in the late rounds, and signed Proctor and Berger off other teams’ practice squads. That’s five of the ten on the roster. He also resigned Gurode and Adams when people were not sure either would ever live up to their potential, and both have been clutch.
This is not to dispute the assertions that the team is playing better this year than they probably would have if he were still here, that this scheme is probably more fun to play and definitely more fun to watch, or that Davis has furnished the missing piece on the line (I have made that argument myself). If he were here, Zimmer would have been gone, regardless, so who knows who the DC would have been? Garrett would still be here, I think, but might have less authority or be ridden/“supervised†harder.
I’m not against giving credit where it’s due, but I’m glad the team is finally playing the way I expected them to start playing a while back.
Roy - Are the ‘07 Patriots the best team you ever played against?
kameleon_o:
re: the ads. Probably is your AdBlock. When they are served through an agency it is via javascript and not a true HTML. That’s why they used to show up, as they should still show up on the right side of the page.
Sierrareef,
Yeah, I do think they’d have had a better record. I think Sparano was a pretty good O-coordinator last year although he didn’t have the title and no one to this day knows if he was really calling the plays. He might not be Jason Garrett good, but I think Wade would have let him coach. I think Wade would have either let Zimmer coach or bring in someone he trusted and let them coach. I think his tweaking of the D would have made a big difference. I think his ability to make in game adjustments would have been a key difference between down the stretch after we lost Ellis.
The thing is that all those conditions that you named, Watkins or Davis at FS. Carpenter in the 1st round. Rivera at RG. Parcells was responsible for those decisions. So it’s hard for me to say that Wade should have to take all that onto himself when IMO he’d have made some changes that would have helped the team. But all that being said, yeah I really do believe the Cowboys would have won at least 2 more games in the regular season, and would have won a playoff game. Just having a HC that would call his star WR by his first name and actually want to put the guy in positions to succeed would be huge IMO.
But really it all boils down to one thing. If Wade had took over for Parcells and nothing changed. If we had collapsed the same way and played the same type of game that we did under Parcells, I’d damn sure give Wade a lot of the blame. He’d be the head coach and deserving of such.
Thanks Raul. I see the ads on the side, I just don’t see the big Boys Blog banner at the top. No big deal. Just was curious how to fix it. Thanks.
Cowboy Bert,
Got your point. Parcells was a pretty good evaluator of talent. He’d make a good GM. But he was hired as the head coach and just me personally, I didn’t see anything special in that regard. At least not in how it translated to the product he put on the field every Sunday.
First thing first, and I already said this, I don’t think that our team would be 8-1 with Parcells as the HC and in control of the Offense/Defense.
And second, I think that the personel fits better the Phillips 3-4.
But to say that last season’s collapse falls right into Parcells shoulders just doesn’t makes sense.
Why? Because of the high and lows of the season, those were reached with the same players and with the same guy at the helm, I ask for the Indianapolis and Detroit games, the personel was exactly the same, you think that the players fought their personal battles at the same level in both games?
Even the Defense most consistently good player on that team, Terence Newman, had an off day. That coupled with an off day for all of the pass rushers not named Ware helped pave the way for Kitna’s day (I know that Kitna was sacked 5 times, but he finished with 42 attempts).
The game against Indianapolis showed me that they could play, and well, Parcells 3-4, but they just couldn’t.
The conservatism on Offense as the season wore on goes hand by hand with the level of play of Romo, it started to drop, and it isn’t because of what most mediots and other teams fans started to mention out loud, it wasn’t because he wasn’t that good to begin with, it’s more likely because Romo was a limited player in an Offense designed for Bledsoe.
This year’s Offense was designed for Romo.
BTW, the use of Owens was indeed something where Parcells had a brain fart, I think that he tried to use him as a faster Keyshawn and didn’t figure a way to use him as more than that.
Tom Coughlin is crying about the holding call on the Giants’ TD called back. He says it was “extremely unfortunate”, but he wasn’t making excuses. He contradicts himself here, and he is giving his team another excuse to why they didn’t beat Dallas.
The first time, the Giants’ leaders used the “we were in a new scheme” excuse. “Dallas didn’t do anything, we lost the game”. In other words, to the Giants, it was “a fluke”.
Coughlin is sending his complaint to the NFL officiating chief. However, it will not do any good. Dallas has the psychological advantage in this series now, no matter how much Coughlin tries to play Dr. Phil for his players now.
Hum. The guy had Roy Williams grabbed up around the throat and was holding him. The hold didn’t allow Roy to slash into the play and try to stop the ball. It was an obvious call. Everyone knows this fact. Coughlin needs a psychological crutch for his team, so he was crying today. He is an enabler. No wonder the Giants have some poor sports and jerks on their team. It starts at the top.
I guess the personality of this team starts at the top. Coughlin allows his players to run their traps far too much, and many of them are never accountable for their actions on the field. “We were learning a new scheme”. “We gave it to them”. This team has never been out played according to their leaders. The other team never gets any credit, especially Dallas. The Giants are a bunch of over hyped sore losers.
The Cowboys have the talent and psychological edge on the Giants. Patrick Crayton needs to shut-up.
The Cowboys should continue to let their victories over the Giants do the talking. #9 baby!
Romo 3
Giants 1/2
Any chance of Jerry putting BP on the payroll as a “draft day advisor” ? would be nice
Chandus,
I don’t think the entire collapse of the Cowboys down the stretch last year, or hell, the collapse down the stretch the last 4 years, were all on Parcells. But I don’t see how he’s all of the sudden some sort of teflon coach. When they win and play well, like against the Colts, then Parcells is a great coach. When they lose and are humiliated, like against the Lions, then it’s just all on the players not executing Parcells brilliant game plan. Bull.
It’s a coaches job to put players in position to make plays and it’s a players job to make those plays. BOTH the players and the head coach were culpable last year. I just think Parcells skates out from his fair share of that blame, IMO.
Navycwby,
I said earlier that I think the Dolphins would be nuts if they didn’t try to add Parcells as their GM. That team’s so old at so many positions, an untalented at most of the rest, that it’d probably take him 3 years to whip them in shape but I think it could be done. No more Ted Ginns taken in the top 10 picks, that’s for sure. LOL
LOL Kam,
I sure do miss BP’s press conferences, man he was good
Scout,
Don’t ever expect them to admit that they got beat. Instead of focusing on their weaknesses and how they need to cover those weaknesses up, they’re going to find reasons to delude themselves that they weren’t really beat by us, rather that they beat themselves. The problem is that in almost every single loss you can point to things you did wrong that kept you from winning the game. If we had lost then we probably could have done the same. They’d rather point to plays like TO’s 50 yard TD catch and say it was just a defensive breakdown rather than that they just got beat by TO. As if when Plaxico got loose on a 60 yard TD pass that wasn’t a defensive breakdown.
Now the mediots are already figuring out a way to explain how Green Bay is actually better than us and are playing better right now. This must be that “journey” Romo was talking about. It’s going to be a 19 game journey just to get some of these guys to realize that we really are that good.
Yeah, his PC’s were pretty good. A lot more informative than what we get now. Wade’s just really bland. Not that there’s anything wrong with that.
Hey, I just saw two of our flops, and had to look into them
Jacob Rogers-
http://www.nfl.com/players/jacobrogers/profile?id=ROG387482
Stephen Peterman-
http://www.nfl.com/players/stephenpeterman/profile?id=PET072370
Peterman is starting in detroit. Rogers is bench warming in Denver. Neither is living up to their draft status.
http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/columns/story?columnist=kiper_jr_mel&id=3106284
Read this. Look what Mel Kiper says about Indiana cornerback Tracy Porter. You have to scroll down some.
He is the guy we need to pick with the Browns pick. The Browns really need to start loosing.
Porter is the dark horse stud in this draft.
kameleon o,
Good post. I hope the “GEEEE Men” keep disrespecting Romo and the Cowboys.
Also, I hope everyone in the media jumps all over the Packers. I love the disrespect. The players seem to be feeding off it.
I spoke to an Eagles’ fan today, and he knows football. He says Dallas is better than Green Bay.
Gunner,
Thanks for your service to your country. I can lay my head on my pillow at night because of people like you.
Kam, come on man Jesus,16-0, and BP is god. It seems to come down to this. You think last seasons slide was coaching and scheme. We lost because BP didnt have them ready and we got outcoached.
I think we lost last year because of the growing pains of young players(Romo, ect..) and holes yet to be filled and injuries to key personal. You feel that our turn around this year is Garrett and SOB and the new scheme. I fill that we would be just as good because our players are better(more experienced) and they have learned to how to be pros.(preparation). I also feel our players have matured to pro size and strength levels. I feel that Romos maturity and developement has alot to do with our wins. It sure is nice to come to a team loaded with talent and a franchise QB. I definitely think BP could take us deep into the playoffs. In fact I have way more confidence in BP once the playoffs would arrive. I cannot defend BP for not having a playoff win other than we were terrible when he got here and he should have made the switch to his 3-4 earlier.
Larry, there is no doubt the players like this scheme better but this scheme doesnt have a proven track record come playoff time. BPs scheme is being used in NE and last time I checked they have won 3 SBs. SOBs defense can produce some big numbers but it can give up some big plays. Believe me when I say this but I hope SOBs Defense proves me completely wrong in the playoffs.
Gunner,
It’s hard to decide which player I was more disappointed in, Peterman or Rogers. Rogers was drafted higher but I thought Peterman was just a perfect type of road grader OG. A Parcells guy so to speak and he was just coming off a national championship team. We didn’t see much from him here so I just assumed he couldn’t play.
Rogers had talent but I never realized that it was that hard to move from LT to RT. The guy’s just not made for a contact sport with all his injuries.
Thanks to all for the support. I’m packing my bags now. I’ll be in Bagdad, but only for 6 months.
Man this Monday night game is boring, the 49ers look horrible, shoot they ARE horrible! Their offense might be worse than the ESPN MNF crew.
Squid,
It’s like bashing my head against the wall. No one’s saying Bill was totally responsible for that collapse, but he shared equally in the blame. There’s just no way that you can say we’d be doing the same things and would be just as successful this year as we have been with Parcells as the head coach. Did you not watch the guy over the last 4 years?? Do you really think that Romo and Owens would be playing like they are right now with BP on the sideline?? You really think that Ware would have 8 sacks already and the team overall would have 26?? You think that we’d be getting the kind of pressure on the QB that would result in 14 INT’s??
I get it man, you love Parcells!! He molded all these little hatchlings right out of the egg into “real men” and good football players. I get it!! Newman, Ellis, James, TO, Glenn (both of them), Roy, Ware, Ferguson, Ayodele, and Henry needed Parcells to help them mature to their pro size and strength levels and now Wade is just bumbling along on the sideline taking advantage of it. Wow. Yeah, it’s real nice to go to a team loaded with talent and a franchise QB. It’s another thing to go 8-1 with that team. Ask Norv about that. As for big plays, how many did Parcells version of the 3-4 that you love so much give up?? I seem to remember Drew Brees making a few “big plays” against Parcells D.
Also, the defense that Parcells ran last year IS NOT the defense that Belichick is running in New England. It’s not even the D that Parcells ran before with the Jets. Even Ferguson said so. He played under Parcells with the Jets. The only similarities to what Belichick runs in New England and what Parcells ran with the Jets is that they were both called 3-4’s. Belichick runs a much more innovative and flexible D. Do you think Belichick would let an injury to a guy like Ellis ruin his season?? The guy who put a WR in at DB because of injuries and had success?? I remember when the Patriots opened the Super Bowl against the Beagles, the Pats opened up in a 4-3 D because they thought that was the best way to contain McNabb. Parcells didn’t change. Not once. Even Kitna and Furrey could see that but not you. Whatever…
Scout
“I spoke to an Eagles’ fan today, and he knows football”
What? I dont understand?
See ya Gunner. Be safe bro and God bless.
LOL hmtyrant. The only good thing about this game was that I picked Seattle in my margin pool. The Niners look horrible. Had a team loaded with talent, from the draft and FA, and have collapsed offensively. Guess a good play calling coach leaving has really made a difference.
Norm,
Kind of sounds like an oxymoron. Beagles fan?? Knows football?? Oil and water baby. Oil and water.
Why couldnt BP coach a team stacked with talent and a franchise QB in place and not win. You give me numbers and sacks and TO. SOB had that talent last year and even more sacks and pressures and still lost in the playoffs.
Let mer turn this around do you think SOB could have gone deeper in the playoffs with last year team. No Hamlin and a struggling young gunslinger with 8 starts going into the playoffs.
Scout,
Porter looks like he’s going to be a good one based on what the scouts have wrote. I’ve only seen a little of him myself. Coming into the year he already had 20 PBU’s for his career and 10 INT’s. I think he’s got 6 INT’s this year. Could really use a quality blue chipper at the CB spot. Like you said, lose Browns da** you!! Remember what Raf said, CB’s always rise. Hopefully, we’ll have a chance at a guy like him. I think that as long as we get at least a pick from the Browns in the 15 spot or lower, then we’re going to have some real quality guys to choose from. It’ll be a good draft.
Norm and kameleon o,
I know, but this isn’t your average Eagles fan. This guy knows stuff about everything. He’s stout.
He said Dallas would beat the Eagles before we drilled them at Philadelphia.
I think SF did Alex Smith a big disservice by not getting him a top notch WR. His go to guy last year was A. Bryant and even though he was an idiot he had chemistry with Alex. Same thing in Tenn. They get VY and then let all of his decent WRs sign else where and pick up no one.
I forgot. I talked to him today. He said, Dallas. Then he said, Tony Romo.
I told him that I would take Romo over Aikman, and he agreed. Then I told him I would take Romo over Manning and Brady, and he said I was crazy. Manning was the best in the league.
I said Romo is just starting out and Manning and Brady will be winding down in the coming years. He said they (Manning and Brady) could have 6 more good years left. Then he paused and said, “dang, he’s good”. (talking about Romo)
Squidlo,
Vince Young needed big Dwayne Bowe. They will rue the day. They one guy Brandon Jones who has made some plays, but he needs help.
Young is paying the price for not having weapons. The tightend is absent, and Bowe is the big target
that Young needed.
Griffin is good, but Bowe could have made more of an impact. I don’t get it.
Also, if Griffin was drafted at #19, just imagine how much Tracy Porter’s stock will rise come draft time. Porter is an elite prospect at corner. He is the hidden gem that no one is talking about right now.
Squid,
I already answered that question to sierrareef. As for struggling gunslinger, I think he was struggling because Parcells kept jerking on the choke chain. You’re going to blame Romo (the QB) and not having a FS for us losing the Seattle game?? Romo the QB didn’t lose us that game and our secondary still managed to pick off Hasselback twice but we couldn’t do anything with any of that. You think if Wade was the HC in that game Owens would have only had 2 catches for 26 yards??
Remind me of something, was Phillips a head coach last year?? I must have missed that, huh?? Come on Squid, that was lame. He was a D-coordinator and his D gave up 10 points in the first half against the Pats and intercepted one of the best QB’s in the league for what should have sealed the deal. Fumble and the Pats got it back. The D played pretty good against one of the best teams in the league and kept their team in it. Too bad Diego’s kicker missed the kick at the end.
What do you mean when you say “…coach a team stacked with talent and a franchise QB in place and not win.”?? I didn’t say he couldn’t win at all. I said there’s no way he’s as successful as Wade and Garrett and you said you thought he would be. I never said we’d be 0-9 under Parcells, just that we wouldn’t be this good. I keep pointing this out to you Squid. Parcells HAD a team stacked with talent and the same QB and he didn’t get the job done. The team gave up how many TD passes over the last 5 games?? How many games did we win in that span?? What are you basing your faith in Parcells ability to be just as successful with this team on?? It certainly can’t be on what you saw from Parcells over the last 4 years. All you’ve got is some sort of blind faith in what you believe to be Parcells near mythic coaching ability. If you want to believe that fine, but you and I know that there’s absolutely nothing that you can point to over the last 4 years to prove that.
Roy, We are all lovin this team! Thanks, and keep hitten em hard. Can you pass on a suggestion to Jerry Jones for me? Tell him to invite Bill Parcells to sit with him at the Super Bowl in Feburary. And maybe have an extra ring made up for Bill. He helped get us there.
Yeah scout. Every expert was talking about how the Titans needed a WR or a CB and instead they took a safety that they were going to turn into a CB. I think the Titans trusted that Young could make average WR’s look good but teams are forcing him to sit in the pocket and make plays with his arm and nobody’s helping him. Bowe would have been huge for him. Same with Smith. Although Smith looked really bad tonight, you got the feeling that when he threw the ball there just wasn’t going to be anyone out there waiting to catch it. These teams that get these young QB’s planning on starting them from the get go better come up with a new plan for surrounding them with talent or it’s going to get ugly.
Night guys. Arguing with Squid will tire anyone out!! See ya.
Re: post #67
Good thoughts and so true.
Yes. Porter has 16 career picks now.
Porter was a high school basketball point guard, and he didn’t play football at all before his junior year. Also, he ran track at Indiana. He ran the 100 meters in 10.4 seconds.
In two years of high school football, Porter played QB, RB, WR, and cornerback. Porter had 11 interceptions ( 2 returned for TDs) and 14 pass as a senior in Port Allen Louisiana. He wanted to play at LSU, but they didn’t offer him. How he got out of SEC country amazes me.
Porter stays after practice and guards big James Hardy every day. He is a team captain. He returns punts.
I’ve seen Porter’s 40 at 4.40, 4.38, and 4.32. He looks very fast in pads.
According to Porter, these were his strengths and weaknesses before the year started:
Weaknesses:
1. playing off coverage
2. being physical in cover 2
(jamming and tackling)
Strengths:
1. jumps routes
2. smart and instinctive
Porter has definately improved his game during his senior year. He has a ton of upside, and if I was Dallas, I would draft him.
Let’s hope he stays healthy.
Another thing about Porter, he looks bigger than he is listed. An anouncer said Porter weighed around 190-195. He looks taller too.
mistakes in #76 : “announcer” 14 pass break-ups”
kameleon o,
RE: #74
I couldn’t have said it any better.
Romo needs big Flo next year and a WR drafted in round one.
Adarius Bowman or Early Doucet are two good ones.
People shouldn’t underestimate Early Doucet. Doucet has an “X” factor going for him. Doucet uses his strength and quickness to get off the line and get open. Once he beats press man coverage, he continues to use his quickness in the open field and he is elusive which means YAC. He gets open, especially when the game is on the line. He runs great routes and has good enough speed to get deep on people.
I have raved about Doucet before, so some of you are probably sick of it.
Rafael said Flozell Adams would get Leonard Davis money.
You have to keep him. LT is a position you just don’t mess with when he is dominating and protecting Romo’s blindside.
I would franchise him before I let him walk away.
Surely, big Flozell would sign a three year deal to stay and win big in Dallas.
Some points on the discussion that has a whole lot of life:
1) The Patriots right now run both schemes, 2-gaps and 1-gap because they can do it, they have the players and the years to make it work. In their first few seasons in this decade, when they had the likes of Eaton and Washington they played 2 gaps for the most part.
2) We can all agree that in this season Romo’s a better QB, right? Then what can you guys tell me about his performance in the Buffalo game, how worst would it have been in his previous season? We won’t know, what we do know is how he fared this season, when he’s much better prepared.
And 3) The team that Dallas has right now is much more talented than the one Parcells has last season, just look at both depth charts and the continued development of the young players:
Spears / Coleman
Ferguson / Ratliff
Canty / Hatcher
Singleton / Carpenter
Ayodele / Carpenter
James
Ware / Burnett
Newman / Glenn
Henry / Reeves
Watkins / Davis
Williams
Spears / Hatcher
Ratliff / Tank
Canty / Bowden
Ellis / Spencer
Ayodele / Carpenter
James / Burnett
Ware / Spencer
Newman / Reeves
Henry / Jones
Hamlin / Davis
Williams / Watkins
I’m willing to say that 2 positions received huge upgrades (SSLB and FS), while the continued development of the young guys (as in they were rookies last year or they were players that have improved in a year to year basis) helped NT (Ratliff), RDE (Canty), WSLB (Ware), LCB (Reeves) and FS (Watkins).
Yes, this isn’t the same team that Parcells had late last season. But, IMO, most of the front 7 players had a strenght that wasn’t used as it should have been under Bill, from NT to ILB, they’re quick and they’re making the most out of this 1-gap scheme.
1) Jerry may have to finally pull the franchise on someone, Flo would be the perfect case for it. Hopefully the threat of it, and being on a championship quality team will make him want to sign. But that didn’t stop a bunch of guys bailing on a 3-time champion in the 90’s, did it? (Did you enjoy those ears on the Skins, Alvin Harper?)
2) Which leads me to my next point, Jerry Jones is the GM, and Bill Parcells was NOT the GM when he was here, so posts like # 39 giving Parcells credit for guys like Columbo and Romo and Kosier is a litlle overboard.
I give him credit for his drafts being pretty good overall, but don’t forget he wasn’t nec. in on everything.
3) Squid, Kameleon, that was very entertaining. I declare Kameleon the winner, since he agrees with my opinion. Sorry I had to be gone tonight.
Now, just don’t get into a JJ vs. Barber debate.
My question for Roy would be,
“You are playing at a high level, as you have since entering the league. However, some would say your development has stalled, and that you have not really continued to improve as a strong safety the last few years.
Do you agree with that assessment, and if so, to what do you attribute it?”
I’d agree with that, Chandus, but my point (which started this whole thing last thread, I think) was that Parcells DRAFTED those guys, yet didn’t put them in a sheme that used their strengths, which is esp. frustrating to me.
Also, I could argue that the development we’re seeing, esp. in Canty, wouldn’t be happenng, if he was forced into that same scheme and having to lock up with big OLinemen.
No doubt that Hamlin is a huge addition, though, as well as having Ellis back.
I never said we’d be failing with BP this year, but that we’d prob. be 6-3, and that our O would be playing well, but not scoring nearly as much
(esp. when you consider Glenn has been out the whole year!) Parcells would be forcing the run, trying to play ball-control, and pull out close wins in the 4th qtr.
MOVE ON BOYS!!! BP is gone!! Why can’t we just enjoy the great team we have now.
ROY,
Do you find it comfortable playing OLB in the dime package? If so, would you consider taking more snaps in that kind of a role?
Has the ‘Roy Williams’ hoarse collar rule changed your approach to tackling at all? Further, it seems the refs mainly look at you when enforcing the rule…do you find that frustrating?
Brian
Las Vegas, NV
LArry, now trying to say JJ was behind getting Columbo, etc is a joke. THose were BP moves. The Draft was a shared thing, but FA and other personel moves were just about all BP. The only real acquisition that probably was not was TO.
Karm:
You stubbornly are trying to blame BP for all the problems last year. We had young players and they make mistakes. Fumbles, INTS, penalties, blown coverages and plays. That was a lot of what happened. PART of it was certainly coaching in that coverages and schemes were wrong in places.
Did someone on this thread actually postulate that keeping Zimmer in any way shape or form would have been a good thing? With or without BP? I happen to thinkk keeping Zimmer was the BIGGEST mistake BP made. BUT at the same time I understand it since Zimmer had a very good reputation as a DC. THE WORST thing that happened to us was 2003, which I happen to think was BP’s finest coaching of his entire career. You look at the losers, drop cases, weirdos we had on that team and HOW did we WIN 10 games? Even with a soft schedule and not running into very many good offenses. That year kept BP from trashing Zimmer and the 4-3 right then and there and cost us a year. Though one could make the point that then we might never have gotten Ware.
That was painful reading. I thought we finished this inane argument months ago. While you’re at it, do a JJ v MBIII redux.
Question for Roy:
Last few games, we’ve seen you in the new 4-2-5 “Cowboy” formation as the LB. What about this formation is helping you and the D play better?
Secondly, how has the arrival of Henry & Newman changed how you are used?
Last, when are you going to be a little more aggressive on jumping routes and laying wood?
As far as Romo goes and whose idea it was to give him a roster spot in the first place, I was always under the impression that it was for the most part Sean Payton’s idea or at the very least without Payton snooping around his alma matter he never discovers Romo. A sort of sheer luck thing……. That’s not to say that you shouldn’t give due credit to Parcells and Jerry for having enough faith in Payton’s intuition to give Romo a shot at making the roster in the first place and then the foresight to see enough in Romo to give him a roster spot for 3 years while he was still a work in progress and considered a project at best.
One bone of contention I do have to pick is whether or not Romo was ready to be the Opening Day starter in 2006. Sure, there would have been a lot more “who is this friggin guy” type ridicule and doubt by the media than there there was when Romo replaced a struggling Drew Bledsoe after 6 games. But does anybody really think that would’ve phased Romo one bit? However, I do see the logic in why Parcells didn’t want to hand the job to Romo because Romo was an unknown and Parcells made it clear that he had told by the man himself if Bledsoe was anything other than the opening day starter, he would’ve retired before the season. 2 options is better than 1 especially when the wild card was as raw as Romo was heading into 2006.
A whole other can of worms is what Jerry Jones’ reaction would have been if Parcells had made Romo the guy at the start of last season; especially considering how doubting Jerry was when Parcells made the mid-season switch when Bledsoe was struggling.
We’ll just have to wait and see how the rest of this years plays out before fully condemning super genius Parcells for not using his extraordinary football savvy to recognize Romo should’ve been the ‘06 Opening Day starter. I do know he was a far better option than Bledsoe, though.
hey guys…i was checking and it appears that airport i am at this weekend, marriott south at the airport is away from things, anyone know how far it is from some good bars? I picked it because it didnt look too far from stadium. Sorry, this virginia boy trying to figure out his weekend in Big D. Any help would be great.
burmafrd,
If you think that I’ve been stubbornly blaming Parcells for all the problems we had last year, then you weren’t paying attention. Here’s my take again:
1) Parcells shares equally in the blame for what went wrong last year. It was his scheme and his players and it didn’t work. Why the hell does Parcells skate out from any blame for the collapse last year?? It’s all just blamed on the players. He didn’t put guys in the best position to make plays and that was his fault. OBVIOUSLY the players share in the blame for any mistakes they made.
2) The idea that Parcells left this franchise in better shape is true. I’ve said it over and over. But IMO that’s making a case for the guy as a GM, not a coach. After seeing so many Parcells coached teams unready to play, so many of his teams come out in games flat and unprepared, I’m just not seeing what he did as a coach that has everyones panties in a bunch over him. Was I wrong about that record of his??
3) The thing that really got me going wasn’t that some guys think Parcells was just some sort of coaching genius while he was here, it was the idea that the Cowboys would be just as good and have the same record as they do right now with Wade and Jason. That’s bunk IMO. It’s kind of a bi*** slap to our coaches now. It’s even been suggested that the Cowboys would be better off once the playoffs started with Parcells at the helm!!! WTF?? This team is in good hands right now and is doing things that IMO, Parcells wouldn’t have LET it do. I’m glad that we should get the chance to see Wade and Jason in the playoffs this year. I’ve already seen what Parcells can do.
Madmick,
Personally, I blame Quincy for Romo being here. If he had managed to quit his “habit”, then Romo might not have made it.
Again Surrounded,
There is nothing, zero, zip around the airport. Irving is barren.
Go to Baby Dolls or some other clubs on Lower Greenville Ave (probably a $30 cab ride) or Dallas Alley (5 clubs, 1 price) downtown.
Arlington is OK near the UTA campus if you’re under 30. Addison has some clubs if you’re over 30.
Me? I’d be playing golf at the Cowboys’ Club or several other courses in the area…then going to Baby Dolls to check out the…um…talent. Then go for a pub crawl down Greenville ave.
fighter thanks…would it be better to be at the hotel in irving or forth worth, right now i am in fort worth?
One last Surrounded,
I highly recommend you rent a car. It’s much cheaper than a cab and then you can go where ever you want.
There’s a lot of options, just none near the airport or stadium.
No-one can contest that Parcells left this team vastly better off than he found it. You would struggle to find a single position that didn’t improve over his tenure. Now he shouldn’t get credit for every one, but he should for most.
When the various coaching candidates were being considered, one thing about WP stood out for me: he has improved the record of every single team he has gone to - as both HC and DC. The big issue is that, he has the best winning record of any HC….. that has never won a playoff game….
Playoff performance will be the big test (although you gotta say the Music City Miracle was a tough way to lose…)
Finally, we need to all thank Quincy Carter for his huge contribution to the team. Romo was the #4 QB on the depth chart - long odds to make the team behind:
- the starter
- Vinny just signed as back-up
- and Chad who they had just traded for.
If QC doesn’t blow himself up, Romo would have ended up on the practice squad and almost certainly have been pinched by another team.
kameleon_o: - snap on post #90 - I obviously type too slow…
Fort Worth!?
Well, the zoo is nice. Is Billy Bob’s still open? (I don’t think it is).
If you’re going to switch, I’d go to North Dallas (near the Galleria). The Four Seasons in Las Colinas (near the stadium) is first class and has the TPC where the Byron Nelson is played.
If you’re looking for nightlife, go to North Dallas or downtown.
Kam, We have no chance of changing the mind of the other. Like most things the truth probably lies in the middle. I would agree with your assesment that this is the same team as last year if this was the 5th or 6th year together. Growth between 3rd and 4th year is more pronounced. Despite the length of time BP had been in Dallas I felt this team was in year 2 based on the year of the switch to the 3-4 and the year we drafted Ware, Spears, and Burnett. To me Romo was handled with kid gloves last year. I feel based on his experience and play this was what would have been done by most HCs.
The biggest difference between this year and last year is QB play. Romo is light years away from where he was last year. Last year he had no starts and was in an offense set up for Bledsoe. He started off hot but DCs figured out his favorite throws and they took them away making him beat them elsewhere.(standard procedure for DCs) Romo held on to ball too long and forced throws and experienced the growing pains of all young QBs. The season ended but you could see during the Seattle game that he was turning the corner.
This year he comes into the season with 9 starts including a playoff start. He has spent an offseason knowing he is the man, knowing what he needs to improve and having an offense fine tuned for his strengths. Mentally he is light years away. The team believes in him and more importantly he believes in himself.
As for BP, have you seen him on TV when he talks about Romo. You can see his pride in Romo in his eyes and the way he talks about him. He definitely thinks he is a leader and winning QB. I saw BP when he drafted Bledsoe and thought so much of him that he turned Bledsoe loose and allowed Bledsoe to lead the league in throwing despite the fact he had Curtis Martin in his prime.(a Franchise back who at the time was compared to Emmitt) BP thinks every bit as much if not more about Romo as he did of Bledsoe. He turned Bledsoe loose when he felt he was ready and I feel had he stayed he would have turned Romo loose. I said once but I will say it again. BP would probably not be 8-1 at this point but he would get us to the playoffs.
I believe in a BP defense in the playoffs more than SOBs at this point. My fear in SOB is his high risk, high reward defense. Playoffs are much better teams playing their best and often playoff games come down to who makes the least amount of mistakes. Playoffs have better QB play and because a high risk defense has holes, a good QB is better and quicker at finding them holes. You blow an assignment on Brady or Peyton and you better get your KO return team ready.
To back up my arguement look at Raf post where he compares last years team to this years team. Defenses were ranked close. Scoring was close. It was all close except for wins. That has to do with great QB play. Romo is a great QB. Last year he was on his way this year he has arrived. How do I know he has arrived. I can give you 67 million reason why and I can gaurantee 30 million.