Football starved, I was just perusing through CBS Sports selection of online articles when I found the following useful tool:  http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/teams.  If you are unable to visit the link, in short it is a display of the United States with all the various teams logo’s placed over their corresponding city.  Not that this is the first time I’ve wondered this, but why are the Cowboy’s a part of the NFCE?  Wouldn’t it make more sense if they were a part of the NFCW.  Furthermore, wouldn’t it make more sense that the Rams be a part of the NFCE, considering that they are further East and closer to the other NFCE team’s?

Imagine that for just a moment.  Our interdivisional foes would be the Cardinals, 49ers, and Seahawks.  If only…

Considering that the 49ers and Cardinals are already considered rivals by many, it’s not like TV ratings on games would hurt too much as a result of the change.  Can anybody lend perspective on this obvious misalignment?  Where would one begin in petitioning such a change?  Would you be in favor of the change or are you happy with the way things are now?  Just curious…

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Jesse Holley is now the latest member of the Dallas Cowboys. Who you say? That’s right Jesse Holley! Thanks to the Michael Irvin show 4^th and Long The Cowboys now have another man on the roster, the question is though will he stick? or is he just the product of another marketing gimmick?

I will tell you straight up that I watched only the first episode of 4^th and Long! Not because it was a bad show (although it was not a show that made me want to put the DVR to use) but more because it was just too damn gimmicky for me.

So who is Jesse Holley? Well I do not know just a ton about him, but what I do know is not all that glamorous.

Jesse was a two sport player at the University of North Carolina from 2003 – 2006, was a member of the 04’-05’ National Championship basketball team. He was a very solid Wide Receiver for the Tar heels, played all fours years that he was there.

In 2007 Holley was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Cincinnati Bengals. He was then released by the team at the end of Training camp only to be signed to the practice squad. Jesse lasted one month on the practice squad before being released.

In 2008 Jesse signed on to play for the BC Lions of the CFL. After the teams first Pre Season game (one month later) He was released.

Basically Jesse Holley is the same as a million other solid collegiate athletes with dreams of being a Pro, but now his dream is a reality thanks to Spike T.V.?????

I have a question for all of you that I need help answering. Can anybody tell me who was the last player (that went undrafted, unable to stick on a practice squad, and unable to make it in the CFL) that has been talked about this much?

My partner and I had a… well let’s call it a discussion yesterday about this situation, and well… Let’s just say our thoughts were not anywhere near the same!

Bryson watched the series from beginning to end, and had nothing but good to say about Jesse and his abilities. While I respect his opinion on the matter I strongly disagreed with his synopsis. He told me about how he was a big and physical receiver with good hands and the ability to go up and get a jump ball. He also told me how he thought “he may be a good addition for us” and “he may be able to take Stanback’s spot”.

It was about this time that the “discussion” got a little more heated. Not because I think Stanback is such a great receiver, but because I simply cannot comprehend how a guy who cannot make a CFL roster can come in and be a better player than a guy who has stuck on an NFL roster for 3 years!

The argument will always be “NFL scouts do make mistakes and miss on players, just look at Tom Brady” and while that is accurate to an extent, name me a player who has been a contributing player in the NFL that was unable to stay on a practice squad and unable to make a CFL roster.

Every year NFL teams bring in players this time of year that will never play a down in a regular season game, simply to fill roster spots at training camp.

It takes a very special athlete to be able to make and then stay on a NFL roster, Any NFL roster! If you have ever played a sport then you know that there are two kinds of players. (1) Overly Gifted (2) Under Gifted.

For the overly gifted athlete things come easy to them and they are generally stand out players, the great ones have the same work ethic as the guy who has less talent and has to rely on his determination, and hard work.

The under gifted player while he has talent he MUST work harder than everyone else, and he MUST be involved with his sport of choice on a continuous basis (playing on a year in year out basis) as this player simply would fall way behind his competitors if he took a year off.

Jesse Holley falls into the Under Gifted category, while I am sure he has some very nice talents, the fact remains he has not played in almost 2 years and was not very good then! I would like nothing better than to see this kid come into camp and set the world on fire and prove me wrong!

The problem that I have with this show is simple, a guy has become a member of the Dallas Cowboys and thrust into the spotlight for no other reason than because he was on a T.V. show! And better still because he competed against other players who cannot make an NFL roster and shined against them, this show has given Cowboy fans a severely skewed opinion of their talents.

Without this show no one would care about anyone of these guys! Much less believe any of them could “add” anything to this team! Or believe they could take a job away from a veteran NFL player.

Just to put it in perspective, I played Football and Baseball all my life and was never anymore than an average player. When I got into my twenties I started playing in a local Softball Beer league. I was and am a decent player but by no means a “Pro” but every time I have played against people that were not very good I looked like a “Bad Ass” player. The contestants on this show are no different!

These contestants performed against the likes of Semi-Pro players (your Beer League of the Football world) and cast away Arena League players. Frankly these guys should look like superb football players, but many of them did not! The two that did make it to the finals did look the part, but one of those was only 5’7”! And by all accounts if he had not been a midget(pardon me vertically challenged) he would have won the competition.

In the end, I have done nothing but waste your time and mine writing about a guy that more than likely will end up like all the other late invitees to a NFL camp, released and never heard from again!

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In part one of this series we discussed how we see things shaking down amongst the over populated line backing corps.

This next group some might say is the most critical to the Cowboys success, and I would be one of those people. As far as the defense goes this unit holds all the keys to success!

This very potent and powerful defense cannot do the things it wants without solid secondary play. The Cowboys have spent a lot of time and draft picks on shoring up the secondary, from first on the depth chart down to the last man on the chart.

So let’s take a look at what they have going to camp!

Corners:

Terrence Newman – Will be the starting Left Corner (barring Injury)

Mike Jenkins – Heading into camp as the leading candidate to start at Right Corner, but will have to battle to keep the spot.

Orlando Scandrick – The leading candidate to replace Jenkins if he stumbles, and most assuredly the best Nickel corner on the team.

Alan Ball – Alan has a leg up on the rest of the competition heading into camp based off of the solid year he had in 2008 with the boys.

Mike Mickens – By most accounts the steal of the draft, thought by many to be a top of the 2^nd round guy the Cowboys were able to wait and pick him up in the middle of the 7^th. Should be able to contribute in special teams right away.

Safeties:

Ken Hamlin – Will be the starting Free Safety again this year for the Cowboys, and thanks to an upgrade at Strong safety Hamlin should be able to get back to his 2007 Pro Bowl form.

Gerald Sensebaugh – One of the Cowboys top free agents acquisitions this year should add a much needed dimension to the Cowboys secondary.

Courtney Brown – Originally a Corner but made the switch to Safety at the start of 2007. Brown has the ability to be a ball hawking safety, this being his third year with the team and at safety means that this is a make or break year for him. Could also see some time at corner.

Pat Watkins – Is a big athletic, rangy player the Cowboys had high hopes for this young man, unfortunately that has not come to fruition just yet. Pat is a solid special teams player (has gotten lost a few times however) Special teams play will not keep him on the team this year, he must prove his worth as a safety.

Jerome Carter – Former 4^th round selection of the St.Louis Rams in 2005 and spent all of last year out of work, was signed to a futures contract by the Cowboys in January.

DeAngelo Smith – The Cowboys used the first of two 5th round picks on Mike Mickens collegiate teammate. DeAngelo was a top cornerback in college but the Cowboys have moved him over to safety, giving themselves more options at the position. In the early stages of his career could see some opportunities at corner as well.

Michael Hamlin – The second of two 5^th round selections Hamlin is a pure Free Safety, while lacking a little in the pure speed department he makes up for in instincts and awareness, hard hitting safety that has a nose for the ball and an exceptional leader.

Last year the Cowboys kept seven Cornerbacks and 4 Safeties, and I think those are probably pretty decent figures to go with this year. So with that in mind the coaching staff will have some major decisions to make.

With eleven spots available and 12 players vying for those spots the competition could get very heated in San Antonio.

My belief is that the Cowboys will end up releasing Jerome Carter, and then use DeAngelo Smith, and Courtney Brown as “Tweeners” leaving the secondary looking something like this.

Left Corner:

Terrence Newman , Orlando Scandrick

Right Corner:

Mike Jenkins , Alan Ball

Sub Packages:

Courtney Brown , DeAngelo Smith

Free Safety:

Ken Hamlin , Courtney Brown , DeAngelo Smith

Strong Safety:

Gerald Sensebaugh , Michael Hamlin , Pat Watkins

I would however like to say that I would not be a bit surprised if Pat Watkins was released as well. Pat has gotten several opportunities to claim a spot on this team and has simply not capitalized on those opportunities.

Who stays and who goes in your view?

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Summer is in full bloom, and that means we are getting ever so close to the beginning of training camp. It is this time of year that has every football fan tied in knots, and I am no different.

While the Cowboys have yet to don anything but shorts and helmets the style of this team is beginning to take focus.

Every team in the NFL is good enough to win the Super Bowl! Or at least that is what they want us to believe. This years Dallas Cowboys are no different, at this moment many of us have very legitimate concerns about the receiver, quarterback, and O-line positions and basically the overall play of the offense.

Jerry Jones and Wade Phillips can tell us all day long that they have faith in the young receivers and that the offense is working hard and coming together, and blah, blah blah! We all know that the majority of that is just a bunch of crap to make us feel warm and fuzzy about the upcoming year!

Let me be clear about something, the offense in my opinion should be as good as and possibly better than last year’s team. I honestly feel and believe that Romo will be a better QB this year, and that Roy Williams can and will do a more than adequate job as the teams #1 receiver, and with the running game that the Boys have this should be enough to carry that side of the ball.

The offensive unit will always be the most glorified, it has all the stars, and scores all the TD’s, but I am here to tell you that if you are an offensive person, and like to see scores in the 40’s each week you are in for a rude awakening.

This is now a control and time of possession unit, we should no longer see play after play of three receivers all running 40 yard triple move routes (not saying we are not going to see these still, just not as many), instead we will see a lot of two tight end sets, short hooks, out routes, slants, and fades, but primarily large amounts of MBIII, Felix, and T-Choice.

There is something taking place on this team that everyone should start paying attention to, THE DEFENSE!!

Granted there has been very minimal contact so far so we cannot quite see the full picture yet, but all the early reports talk about how attacking, and pressure filled this unit is. Mickey Spagnola at DC.com had a great article up on Tuesday about this very thing. Here is my rookie attempt at designing a graphic that shows the alignment!

In his article he went into pretty in depth detail about how the defense was lined up at one point in the day, and I must tell you this type of scenario is going to cause major headaches for opposing offenses.

Everyday it seems I hear about the competitions taking place on the defensive side of the ball, and each and every one of these guys are pushing each other to be the best. This unit already has there competitive juices boiling over, and its FREAKING JUNE!

This unit is priming itself to have a major impact not only within the team, but they are looking to, in the immortal words of Ebby Calvin ‘Nuke” LaLoosh “Announce their presence with authority!”

We have all heard the old saying “where there is smoke there is usually fire!” all I can say is that the defense of the Dallas Cowboys has had a ton of smoke emitting from its smoke stack!

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This is what I think of Pac-Man: He is an animal, he swallows up the field in front of him, weaving himself through what looks like a maze, demolishing everything in his way. With every step he takes he’s working his way to the next level… He’s amazing and I’d take him on my team any day…

The only problem is… He’s a Video Game character!

The Pac-man that you probably thought I was talking about is a trouble making, slightly talented thug, who consistently ruins the chance to be something by being unable to curb the temptation of mans desire. He has completely been a cancer, finding himself in strip clubs and bars, drowning in pools of violence and poor decisions.

Incase you haven’t been paying attention, there has been increasing speculation that the Cowboys are interested in the second coming of Pac-Man Jones, according to a blog by Nick Eatman.  The blog goes on to say:

“Jones was quoted in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram about the slim possibility of bringing back the troubled cornerback, who was released this off-season.”

It’s important to remember that Adam Jones did produce, stacking 33 tackles and 4 interceptions last season for the Cowboys, but that doesn’t justify his childish actions. It’s also important to know that Jones quickly squashed this rumor by sending out his spokesman Rich Dalrymple who said “I have no plans to bring Adam back”.

So when do the rumors stop? I swear I come home from work everyday and there is a new rumor surfacing or criticism being handed where it isn’t needed. In case you haven’t noticed the Cowboys are apparently re-vamping their locker room to paint the portrait of a straight edge franchise, and Pac-Man doesn’t exactly fit the equation.

Besides, Our secondary is better than it’s been in years with Newman, Hamlin, Sensabaugh, Scandrick, Jenkins, Smith, and Mickens. There is so much talent there that the addition of Pac-Man would just cause unneeded competition not to mention the drama that would set Dallas back into a replica Cirque Du Soleil.

So here  is some truth for you Adam isn’t coming back, so if you’re one of the FEW fans who are awaiting the return of Pac-Man… Let it go, for the sake of the franchise, Let it Go!

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Those pushing for a regime change at Valley Ranch might want to keep their television sets handy Friday at 6:30, as the Owner of www.FireTheCowboysGM.com is scheduled to do an interview on Sports Talk with David Marcus this evening.

Sports talk airs on KFWD-TV 52. Click here to find your local cable channel.

In addition, the guys at www.CowboysFanRebellion.com tell me that a request to Dale Hansen of WFAA 8, the local DFW ABC station, to publicly support the movement has been denied. Here’s what Dale had to say:

“Oh I’m with you ….. but since I know it’s such a futile effort I’m staying away from it … he won’t ever change …..

But I’ll ask him about it when I can and see what he says

Good luck with it

dale”

It’s a rather confusing response considering that Dale has been outwardly critical of Jerry Jones in a special series he’s doing all this week. Seems like he’d be the perfect candidate to get behind this since he says he’s “with” us.

Don’t be like Dale Hansen, if you agree that Jerry Jones should hire a real GM, then head on over and sign the petition, and donate to the billboard.

“All it takes for evil to succeed is for good men to do nothing” – Edmund BURKE

Jerry Jones may not be evil, but just think about it …

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With the latest and shameful coming out of Valley Ranch this week, it makes sense finally to put some of these pieces into place for next season. One of my favorite speculations at this point is coming from www.CowboysFanRebellion.com. MSchmidt64 is the author, and you can also find him over at www.DallasCowboysCentral.com. Here’s a piece of his article followed by a link to check out the whole thing.

COWBOYS TO HAVE NEW HEAD COACH IN ‘09

Many of the more level-headed among us had a feeling that this team wouldn’t open up Yet-To-Be-Decided-Corporate-Sponsor Stadium with Wade Phillips at the helm. Or at least, that’s what we hoped.

Come on. Wade Phillips? A head coach who has never won a playoff game in his long, long, NFL career? A man who has just presided over quite possibly one of the most embarrassing seasons ever for your Dallas Cowboys? A character who, in terms of the always important marketability angle, is more likely to cause fans to part with their hard earned dollars for a multitude of various prescription and non-prescription drugs as opposed to personal seat licenses?  

So it was no real surprise when I logged onto the interweb recently and found out, officially, that he’s no longer running the show. Sure, there had been evidence before. Hints dropped here and there. But now we know for sure. Ladies and Gentlemen, the Head Coach for the 2009 Dallas Cowboys will be…. Jerry Jones.

Head Coach Jerry Jones. To be honest, I wanted to come up with a catchier moniker for the old-new big man, one that would appropriately characterize his role as Owner/General Manager/Head Coach/Team Physician/Quality Control/Character Consultant for the organization. But with “slash” already taken by Kordell Stewart, and “solidus,” while appropriately sinister, sounding more like one of the Transformers, I’m just not creative enough to do better (aside: work in Jerry Jones reconstructive face surgery angle here? Take this down). Maybe Jerry/Jones? Ehh.

So Head Coach Jones it is. And why not?

• He already decides what schemes we’ll run (Was Phillips the best coach available? Or the best 3-4 coach available?).
• He already decides if players are being utilized correctly.
• He’s already refused to bring in much needed help for former head coach Wade Phillips, and, in refusing to hire him a Defensive Coordinator, essentially relegated him to that role.
• He already sets the fines for players who break team rules.
• He’s already the guy that players go to when they have complaints about other coaches or players.
• He’s already the guy that gives pre- and post-game pep talks in the locker room and on the sidelines.
• He’s already the guy that looks at the X-Rays on injured players.
• He already sits next to Wade during Press Conferences and probably has provided him with note cards with what he’s supposed to talk about on them.

You can see the full article and comment on it by going to www.CowboysFanRebellion.com. While you’re there take a minute and sign the petition to have Jerry Jones hire a real GM. We’re really starting to gain some support, so you won’t be alone. Sign The Petition.

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It’s time for another in a series that I’ve started here, sites that wish to see a new GM in Dallas.

The reactions to each of these sites have included a mixture of support and disdain from readers of each site, as well as on other sites like www.TheBlueAndSilver.com where a member was threatened with removal from the site for posting his link. Also on www.LoneStarStruck.com where I was graciously allowed to present www.FireTheCowboysGM.com to the readers as a new contributor to the site. Thanks go out to Kelly Horn and Joe Decaro for the extra rope.

It seems that most people are in favor of sharing the idea, even if they don’t agree with it. Personally, I can think of a few good reasons not to support these sites if I were to only follow their presentation of the goal. But I choose to see it in my own way, and that has gone a long way in gaining my support for the removal of Jerry Jones as the GM of the Dallas Cowboys.

You can find my posts on the other sites in my Featured Sites archive, which where this entry is placed as well. Meet www.CowboysFanRebellion.com, brought to us by a co-owner of www.DallasCowboysCentral.com. You can also catch their mission statement on the CN.net Forums.

Their primary goal is the same as the others I’ve written about here, even encouraging people to sign the petition. They have another way of trying to accomplish their goal though, and it’s a tad beyond what I expected to see. They are asking fans that are fed up with the GM to donate to their fund, a fund that will be used to purchase a billboard ad at Valley Ranch that will display the message loudly and clearly to the Cowboys Owner. He is the only one who can make this happen. The recommended donation is at least $10, not a bad price to pay if you want to get in on the action.

The image above is a representation of what the billboard might look like once they’ve gotten enough donations collected, and I’ve got to admit that it’s a nice idea. The exposure level has been growing steadily the past three weeks for these sites, and this is just another example of how well received this movement is among many fans.

Go check out www.CowboysFanRebellion.com.

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I support the efforts to convince Jerry Jones to fire his GM, though I know some of you wonder why anyone would support that idea. One of the sites I’ve featured on CowboysNation.net is, in my mind, leading the efforts with the petition they have for folks who agree that the Cowboys GM is long overdue in that dreaded unemployment line.

It’s a simple idea … try to create enough buzz to plant the seed in Jerry’s mind so at least he’ll consider the notion that we may be right about his performance as a GM in the NFL. And to be clear, nobody is knocking Jerry Jones for his work as the owner.

Well very recently Cowboys fans got a bit of a boost in support and exposure of this novel idea. If you live in the Dallas-Fort Worth metro area, or receive network coverage from the area, then you might already know about this. For the rest of you though, I’ll explain.

In Dallas the ABC affiliate is News 8 WFAA, and they have decided to take an interest in the FireTheCowboysGM.com website. The owner of that site is Robert Monarrez and he’s done an interview with a WFAA reporter regarding his website, and the idea driving it. This is a big step for his site, which has been open since mid-January, and for those of us who wish to see a solid football guy take over the role of General Manager in Dallas.

You can check out the story, both in text and video, here.

And his site can be found here. www.FireTheCowboysGM.com

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I posted yesterday about a new site that I’d found through the comments on DallasCowboys.com, www.FireTheCowboysGM.com.

Since then I’ve begun talking with the fan in charge of that site. It seems that many of us fans have a solid connection with our love for this team. I dug through the site further last night and started to really understand where he is coming from. I ended up signing the petition because while I don’t fully agree that Jerry Jones is the sole cause of the problems, I do believe that hiring a dedicated GM for the team would be an improvement.

Some people think it has to do with hating Jerry or the team, but really it’s about trying to figure out the best way for this team to utilize the abundance of talent and potential it has.

Jerry Jones is a great business man, and as the Owner of the club he has done more for this team than anyone else has done for any team, in a business sense at least.

But the Dallas Cowboys became America’s Team because of a great football mind, not a great business mind, and that’s what we need here again now. We need someone that will do nothing but focus on the football. Someone that isn’t worried about the media, the new stadium, or merchandising. Someone that can assemble the troops and keep everyone focused through business oriented discipline and the common sense that comes with it.

Jerry Jones has been a great Owner for this team, indeed, but he has not been a good General Manager for America’s Team.

Robert at www.FireTheCowboysGM.com has more than made a decent case for his claim, and mine, that Jerry Jones should resign as the GM, and hire a true football mind to take over the position. I encourage everyone to read his site, and hopefully, sign the petition.

I welcome anyone that doesn’t agree to please share your thoughts on the matter in the comments to this post. Never hurts to get another opinion.

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