First, I asked All-Star intern TC to compile the catch % of all of the Cowboys receivers to see if the numbers back up my thoughts on how incredibly spare Roy Williams has been. The numbers don’t lie. Here are the entire 16 game numbers for all of the players, where he had 82 balls thrown at him combined:
Player Catch %
M.Barber 85%
M.Bennett 74%
P.Crayton 71%
T.Choice 70%
J.Witten 68%
T.Curtis 67%
T.Owens 60%
M.Austin 57%
Ro.Williams 44%
TC Writes:
As you can guess, these are not the only numbers that indicate Roy Williams did not have the initial return we were all looking for. Of the 79 players ranked, he is 75th in DVOA at -17.1%. He was also 76th in DYAR with -39. Any way you look at it, he was one of the worst wide receivers playing football this year. It's not hard to see why: between the Lions and Cowboys, he was thrown at 82 times. He turned those opportunities into 430 yards and three touchdowns. I've got a strong feeling that Danny Amendola could pick up at least 430 yards if he was given 82 passes. I have that same feeling about nearly every receiver in the league and some that aren't. On the other side, Martellus Bennett is as awesome as Williams is sucky. He led tight ends in DVOA, and finished 13th in DYAR (the counting statistic) despite having been thrown only 27 passes. To put that in perspective, Chris Cooley is 14th in DYAR, and he was thrown 111 passes.
Meanwhile, reports broke yesterday that the Lions have at least some interest in Jason Garrett taking their job …I wonder if he wants out of this circus bad enough to take that job…I wonder how badly they want him…I wonder if he regrets his Atlanta and Baltimore decisions….
The Lions made history on Sunday, completing an unprecedented 0-16 season with a 31-21 loss at Green Bay. On Monday, they began working on the future -- again -- after firing coach Rod Marinelli and announcing two anticipated front-office promotions.
Tom Lewand, formerly the chief operating officer, is the new team president, while Martin Mayhew is the general manager. Both had been operating in those roles on an interim basis since Matt Millen was fired as president in September. Now both will spearhead what is expected to be a wide-reaching search for Marinelli's successor. And the work to find the Lions sixth coach since 2000 begins in earnest this week.
The Lions already have received permission to interview two of the top NFL candidates, New York Giants defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo and Tennessee Titans defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz, a league source said. According to the NFL Network, the Lions also plan to interview Dallas Cowboys offensive coordinator Jason Garrett, Minnesota Vikings defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier and Washington Redskins secondary coach Jerry Gray.
Spagnuolo was a leading candidate to land the vacant Washington Redskins coaching position last winter, but he removed his name from consideration and signed a contract extension with the Giants. That three-year, $6 million deal makes him one of the league's highest-paid coordinators. And with the Giants on a postseason bye week -- they practice today and Friday -- that interview is expected in the next few days, though Spagnuolo, 49, figures to have more than one team visiting him.
"We'll just let it play out," Spagnuolo told Newsday last week. "If the good Lord presents me with an opportunity because we had a bye week, then we'll take it from there. I'll give it the thought or address it when it happens."
Adam Scheffter looks at the top of the 2009 draft …
After a history-making 0-16 season, the only consolation for Detroit are these words: The Lions are now on the clock.
In fact, the teams at the top of the 2009 NFL Draft are. The official order of the first round of the draft still is being worked up and finalized, but here is the order of the first nine picks of the draft on Apr. 25-26.
1. Detroit — A franchise QB or linchpin left tackle would be enticing.
2. St. Louis — If the Lions don’t take an OT, the Rams will.
3. Kansas City — Could this be the year the Chiefs go quarterback in round one?
4. Seattle — An offensive line that was old and injured needs help.
5. Cleveland — Defense, defense, defense.
6. Cincinnati — More defense for Ohio.
7. Oakland — A big-time wide receiver would help JaMarcus Russell.
8. Jacksonville — After losing so many offensive linemen this season, it would be nice to add one.
9. Green Bay — A run stuffer who also could get some QB pressure is ticketed for Green Bay.
The Lions will use the Cowboys pick at #20 most likely …
By virtue of the Roy Williams trade that sent the receiver to Dallas for a first- and third-round draft pick, the Lions will get either the 19th or 20th choice in the first round.
The Cowboys are currently sitting at No. 20, but they could move up to No. 19 if San Diego goes to the Super Bowl. (The two Super Bowl contestants are automatically moved to No. 31 and No. 32 in the draft order -- with the winner going to No. 32.)
The Chargers are currently selecting in the 16th place and they'll stay there if their playoff run ends short of the Super Bowl.
For the third-round pick, the Lions will have the Cowboys' 17th or 18th choice in that round (again, depending on a possible Chargers' Super Bowl run). The Lions will have at least five overall picks in the top 82 choices.
According to multiple sites, the Cowboys 2009 opponents:
Cowboys 2009 schedule (dates announced in April)
HOME
Philadelphia
NY Giants
Washington
Atlanta
Carolina
Oakland
San Diego
Seattle
AWAY
Philadelphia
NY Giants
Washington
New Orleans
Tampa Bay
Denver
Kansas City
Green Bay
AFC West and NFC South. Who knows what is tough anymore, but the AFC West looks reasonable.
And then there has been a high demand for information about the The future of the Pro Bowl …
The Pro Bowl will be played one week before the Super Bowl in 2010 and both games will be staged in Dolphin Stadium, a person directly involved in the decision told The Associated Press on Monday.
The official spoke on condition of anonymity because the NFL has not announced the move, but Hawaii's governor and Honolulu's mayor both confirmed the situation later Monday.
"While I am disappointed the Pro Bowl likely will not be played in Hawaii in 2010, I respect the NFL's decision to play the post season all-star game in the same city as the Super Bowl, one week before the Super Bowl, on a one-year test basis," Hawaii Gov. Linda Lingle said in a statement.
It's not a new notion to have the game moved up to take place between the conference championship games and the Super Bowl. The NFL has discussed it multiple times in recent years, and commissioner Roger Goodell told the AP last month that having the game precede the Super Bowl would avoid a "somewhat anticlimactic" ending to the season.
"Plans for future Pro Bowls are not final, but we have stated publicly several times that we are giving strong consideration to moving the Pro Bowl to the week before the Super Bowl," NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy said. "We also have been exploring playing future Pro Bowls at the site of the Super Bowl as well as in Honolulu."
The Pro Bowl has been held in Honolulu since 1980, and it's probable that the game will return to Hawaii after 2010, although not on the permanent basis as has been the case over the past three decades. Lingle said she was hopeful a deal could be struck in time for the 2011 game to return to Honolulu, and the city's mayor, Mufi Hannemann, told The AP that he also is optimistic for eventual Pro Bowls.
Cris Carter loves Terrell Owens
Quality Minor League Fight
1 comment:
To me, it would be great if there were 2 major changes with the Cowboys this off season:
1- Hire a GM, Jerry. It's all about checks and balances. Someone who knows football.
2- Be committed to character. Don't get rid of anyone yet. Set guidelines about behavior and expectations and let the players hang themselves if they so desire. Have sideline behavior guidelines. Have an expressed chain of command. And simply sit guys or make them inactive if they don't comply. You can't cut them all due to cap stuff. If the player's association will allow some fines to be levied, then that would be an avenue, too.
It's hard to not be emotional about what went down this season, but give it some months and then look at the thing. Getting people healthy will help. Imagine being the Patriots right now and looking at not having your star quarterback for possibly ANOTHER season, which basically signals the end.
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