1st Preseason Game: Cowboys 24 Broncos 23

Let's just start off by saying that the score, the end result of preseason games, means absolutely nothing. That being said, its always nice to beat anything that involves Tim Tebow. As much as people seem to hate preseason games, I always enjoy them for evaluation purposes and here is what we can come away with from this game:

The Cowboys are still very much a work in progress, especially on defense. There is no reason to panic, as the first team defense has only practiced together for one full week, and they were visibly out of sorts playing in a brand new scheme last night. Then again, maybe we should be concerned. This defense SUCKED last year and only Alan Ball has been replaced by Abram Elam. They gave up a good chunk of down field passes last night, 2010 deja vu.

Here are a few other things from the game:

-Tony Romo looked sharp in limited action, his first football game since week 7 last year. He completed his first 3 passes and finished 3/5.

-3rd string QB Stephen McGee can play. He looked like a young gunslinger out there last night. He was 14/24 with 208 passing yards and 3 TD's. He calmly led the Cowboys on a game winning drive, including a gutsy 2-point conversion to cap it off.

-Rookie WR Dwayne Harris really looks like he could be something. He had 5 grabs for 127 yards, 2 touchdowns including the game winner. He made ran a lot of smart routes including going to a hot route when he noticed a blitz, which led to his second touchdown.

-Gerald Sensabaugh could be a cause for headaches once again. I know he is just learning the system but he gave up some big plays last night. hmmm looks familiar.

-Jason Hatcher and Victor Butler were constantly putting pressure on the Denver QB's. This would be a good year for both of them to break out.

-Tim Tebow sucks.

Terence Newman Groin Injury

Cowboys CB Terence Newman will have an MRI taken on his groin after getting tangled up in practice this afternoon. This shouldn't be a shock to any Cowboys fans because Terence Newman is always getting hurt and he's old now (32). And yet, the Cowboys have done nothing to address their secondary which was downright disgusting (actually disgusting....this is not meant to be a good connotation) last season. Yet EVERY SINGLE CULPRIT, from that horde of misfits is still on the team. Alan Ball is the only one who won't get a starting job this season. They re-signed Sensebaugh, who is decent at best. Jenkins had an abysmal year last season and Newman wasn't much better. Compile that with the fact that Newman will almost certainly not make it through the entire season and you have a situation that can best be described as fucked.

Why not at least sign some people to create competition. How can we not punish Jenkins for his play last season. How can we continue to rely on old CB's who get injured and who just don't have it anymore? The Cowboys best area is not on offense or defense. It is their PR department, because year after year they somehow get us to believe that all these crusty old, washed up, worthless veterans are going to bounce back and take the league by storm. The Cowboys need to address this secondary situation now.

Cowboys start of FA with prudency

Thanks to Jerry Jones' eyes being bigger than his stomach...actually thats not quite the appropriate analogy...thanks to the fact that he's a moron...the Cowboys barley have any money to spend on free agents this offseason because of the revitalization of a hard cap this season. Luckily, Jason Garett has Jerry's full ear now and the Cowboys can go back to making prudent moves and that is exactly what they have done thus far.

First they got rid of all of their under-achieving players and gave themselves a little bit of breathing room. Marion Barber, (once my favorite offensive player on the team) Roy Williams (never a favorite of anyone's) Marc Colombo (super-big shredder) and Leonard Davis (bass shredder) are all gone and that was important.

Now they have resigned 3 very important free agents...none of them are sexy signings and they were all already on the team but they are still very important. The Cowboys resigned Doug Free who looks like he will be an elite tackle very soon and at the very least a substantial and lasting foundation on the offensive line. They also agreed to a 3 year deal with the savy veteran Kyle Kosier. Kosier is a solid player who relies on his head and determination to remedy his small frame. The Cowboys offensive line always seems to play better when he is in the lineup...that is his issue. He is often injured but if he can stay healthy this he is as good as most other offensive guard free agents that are available. Finally the Cowboys agreed to a 5 year deal with DE Marcus Spears. Most people underappreciate Spears...he was first round pick and has never produced sexy numbers, notably in the sacks category. But Spears is a 3-4 DE whose job is not to usually sack the QB but to be stout against the run and demand double teams, which he often does, so tha the outside LB's can get sacks. Trust me, Demarcus ware wouldn't have as many sacks as he does if it weren't for the likes of Spears and Ratliff dominating in the middle. I think this is a very helpful signing, especially since rotational DE Stephen Bowen just left to go to D.C. Good start Cowboys, but now go get Nmadi!

I Need you to cut the fat: I need you to fire all the fat people

The Cowboys opened for business and quickly did their best to trim their heavy waistline. The Cowboys mid section has been sagging with inflated contracts on under-producing players but Jason Garrett ushered in the start of his first full season at the helm with definity. He cut all the underperformers no matter how many zero's were above their respective dotted lines. This is his team for sure. The Cowboys cut Marion Barber, Roy Williams and the real fat boys Marc Colombo and Leonard Davis.

This means a few things. First and most importantly, Colombo and Davis will have much more time to play in their death metal band "Free Reign." Second, the Cowboys aired our the room a little bit and at least gave themselves some...just some....mobility. Lets face it...Every single one of these guys deserved to get cut, albeit for different reasons. Barber just isn't the battering ram that he used to be and is essentially ineffective. He also didn't seem too enthusiastic with the Red Jesus rules (Garrett rules). Williams was always heard, rarely seen...except when fumbling the ball in big situations....actually... to be fair he had a productive year last year for the most part and I would have liked having him as a third option, possession receiver. Colombo played with so much heart and determination last year but his body just can't keep up anymore. Leonard Davis played football with the courage of a vegan, he will not be missed.

The Cowboys should now have enough room to resign both Doug Free (a # 1 priority) and the savy, but often injured veteran, Kyle Kosier. If Kosier can stay healthy, they can be part of a rebirth of a group that last year, was more of a punchline than an offensive line. After that they will have little money to dole out and the likely hood of landing a top tier free agent seems unlikely at this point.

NFL Right around the corner

The NFL's wheels seem like they're ready to finally start turning again so that means I am back on the blog beat. With the NFL's longest work stoppage in the final lap of its seemingly interminable race I think it's time we look at the potential changes and how they could affect the upcoming season.

Here are some of the key changes and arguing points that the owners and players squabbled over for the past 6 months.

Revenue Splits:

This was the the main issue that the players and owners couldn't agree on. In the previous format, the players were taking in about 50% of the revenues from NFL's profits. The owners, claiming they had to put up the money for new stadiums and other gigantic expenses wanted a bigger piece of the pie. I think it clear that the owners were in the wrong on this argument point but either way the players still make out pretty well. They will now get anywhere from 46-48% of over 9 billion dollars.

Rookie Wage System-

This has been a a huge problem recently in the NFL. Rookies are getting paid an obscene amount of money for having done nothing. This mine as well be called the Jamarcus Russell Rule. Now rookies will make considerably less off the bat then their counterparts made just last year. I think this will at least make it easier to sign first round picks who so often think they deserve money without having proved a thing on the field. Under the new proposal, all picks can be signed to 4 year deals with an option for a 5th. That option, if picked up, would work like a franchise tag in that the team would be required to pay at least the median of what picks from that year make by position.

Bart Scott called the abolition of 2-a-days "Whimping Out"

TRAINING CAMP/PRACTICES

This was a win for the players, I guess, but I think a loss for the fans. The players, who have long claimed that the NFL does not really care about their safety, demanded that their contact practices be lowered dramatically in count and in the process they basically eliminated 2-day practices during training camp. Bart Scott called this "whimping out" and I couldn't agree more. 2 even 3 a day practices have long been sewn into football's fabric. High School teams always have at least 1 week of triple sessions and these professionals are crying about 2-a days? The coaches don't run long, exhaustive practices because they're dickheads. They want the team to get better and be prepared both physically and mentally. The players are going to be missing out on a ton of reps and I think the game will suffer for this. We are going to see a lot of sloppy games from now on and we will see more players who are less prepared for a season than ever before. Total cop out.

RETIRED PLAYERS BENEFITS:

This one was a long time coming. For years the NFL has basically neglected the players who have made the game so great, while their bodies and minds have deteriorated, beginning in their mid 30's. The NFL's past attempts to appease some of the medical demands of NFL players is borderline insulting and I think this is one of the best aspects of the entire CBA. Now the NFL has pledged over 1 billion over the next 10 years to retired players.

There are still a few kinks to work out before we are officially back in football mode but I am confident they can be overcome. The most important factor that looms is whether or not there will be a hard cap. Reports seem to indicate that there will be and that it will stand somewhere around 120 million. This could be treacherous for teams like the Cowboys who are well over that mark with the bloated contracts of players like Marc Colombo, Marion Barber and Roy Williams.

The King is nothing more than a Court Jester

When the lights clicked on and the camera’s started rolling last summer, everyone eventually walked away in absolute disgust. The Decision will live in infamy as one of the most pompous displays of egotism in sports history. It also marked the beginning of a timeline where anyone who wasn’t sure what they thought of Lebron James, or even those who liked him, began to despise him. It is almost comical how much everyone hates this guy and I’m right in front of the line quenching my haterade thirst.

By deciding to “take his talent’s to South Beach” Lebron showed us a few things. A. He is not a real winner and never will be. B. He is a coward. Only a select few players in the NBA’s history have been deified for putting their respective team on their back and not letting them down until the ring or rings were securely on their fingers. Jordan, Russell, Kobe, Magic, Bird… to name a few.  I believe that Lebron, the self-proclaimed King, always believed that somehow these rings and the reputation of a “legend” would somehow wrap themselves around him, as if they were in his Nike shoe contracts. Then Lebron panicked, after coming up short, multiple times against adversity. He pushed the panic button, plain and simple. It was never about the money…Lebron doesn’t need to worry about that. He saw an easy to the championship…let Dwayne Wade take him there and then perhaps, everything would fall into place and he could begin carving his legacy. One problem. You need to have heart and true-will. Dwayne Wade can’t do this for you Lebron, Dallas is too good for that, and it is hilarious to watch this “King” crumble right before our eyes.

I don’t really need to go over Lebron’s stats thus far in the series (Dallas leads 3-2 by the way.) He scored 8 points in game 4 and was called out for “shrinking in the moment.” He played with such apathy during the game that if I were Dwayne Wade I would have been incensed. So how does he respond? With another lackluster performance in a pivotal game 5. Wade got leveled by the Custodian AKA the Hitman, Brian Cardinal, and was in and out of the game. That would have been a good time for Lebron to step up his game. I know he had a triple-double but he only scored 17, and none when it counted AGAIN! Getting 10 assists and helping out your teammates is nice but the Mavericks offense is too good for Lebron to play facilitator, which is just a code name for SCARED. He was scared of failing again and that in its self is a failure. Sorry Lebron but being a facilitator does not cut it in this type of spotlight. You whine and whine and then prance around the court after a big dunk…you deserve all the attention, positive and negative that comes your way.  

And what about Dallas? They have been unremitting the entire playoffs. They have been the opposite of Lebron James. They have not always played well in these finals; until last nights game, their shooting was unusually terrible, but they have been assiduous with their effort in every phase of the game. Their defense has played well beyond expectations. 

Tyson Chandler has been a force in the middle. Marion, the Matrix, has played superb D on Lebron (as has Stevenson) and has come up with big points that have kept Dallas afloat. Jason Terry has played with great perseverance. Despite his poor play in the first few games, he did not shy away from the moment last night when it counted most. JJ Barea also came up big last night after starting off the series slowly. Finally there is the Dirksaster. Dirk is a true champion. He has put this team on his back since Day 1 and never let them down. He shows up (even when he has 102 fever) in the fourth quarter and will’s his team to victory. He deserves this ring more than anyone else in the NBA. He wants it, he isn’t scared of going after it, and I don’t see a way where he doesn’t get it. It’s time to put the kids to bed and exile the King. 

-ONE MORE THING:

Just when I thought Lebron and Wade couldn't get any dumber...we saw them in typical fashion over-celebrate prematurely in game 2 and then deny it. Then we see them making fun of Dirk Nowitzki at the shoot around--they pretended they were coughing and sniveling like Dirk did when he had his 102 degree fever. Last time I checked...Nowitzki BURRIED you guys with that fever, in arguably his worst performance. If I were Dirk and I had no class (he does though so this won't happen) I would have one of my teammates (preferably black) put on a black wig and fake tits while I strap-on a Delonte West mask and then bend em over. Right in front of Lebron. Come Get Some.

American Sports---Time to Man Up

It has been a gradual process but it is now at its pinnacle: Our sports are growing softer by the minute. We are at the brink of seeing our favorite sports, the games we have grown up with, and obsessed over since we could first pick up a bat or catch a ball in our backyard, change for the worse. Dissipate from a hard-nosed T-bone steak into a vegan salad. Professional sports are teetering between the thin line of prudent safety measures and outlandish compromise to natural forces. The NFL is on the brink of sinking into flag football, baseball babies their pitchers along and cry foul when a key player gets hurt on a bang-bang play and basketball sends every player to the line if they are hand-checked.

The main culprit, the sport that dons most of my, as well as the nation’s spotlight, is Football. I am of course talking about the implementation of rules to “protect” the NFL players in the line of duty. I am not ignorant to the ramifications of playing football and I understand and respect the studies done on blunt force head trauma that is rendering some retired football players incapacitated. Still, there is a line in the sand and the NFL has jumped way too far over it. If and when the NFL does resume, we are not going to be watching the same game that we have become accustomed to. We will be watching a mockery of a sport that has forged its definition through gritty toughness and harsh brutality.

As for the changes, here are some of the key ones:  They have changed wedge rules on kickoffs and moved the ball forward so that essentially, any kicker worth a dime of his contract will induce a touchback. This means much fewer kickoff returns. That means that players like Devon Hester and Josh Cribbs are essentially useless.

The NFL has basically put enclosed the quarterbacks in an impenetrable fortress of whistled protection. In the past few seasons, we have seen 15-yard penalties for a defensive player who inadvertently touched the QB’s helmet with his hand, or landed on his leg. Aside from interceptions, the QB sack is the most exhilarating aspect of defense. Players (i.e. Demarcus ware, Clay Matthews) are drafted for the sole purpose of sacking the quarterback. Now what are we going to have them do? Two-hand touch the quarterback… or simply have them give up if they get too close to him?

Finally, they have basically given all receivers a free shelter from hard contact right after the catch. They must be allowed to protect themselves (as if the defenders aren’t at risk when they go for a tackle) before they can be hit hard.  A defenders mentality is first and foremost, to stop forward progress and to separate the ball carrier from the ball. If we disallow this, we are essentially playing a HS 7V7 type of game. I am okay with penalizing leading with the head or hitting a player on his dome but why penalize hits with the forearm or shoulder and hits on the shoulder. Last time I checked, my brain wasn’t located in either of those places. Rest assured, there will be a frustrating flurry of flags in this department next season.

I will acquiesce to the fact that many defenders are poor tacklers, and that often times they should concentrate on wrapping and rolling the ball carrier instead of going headfirst for a knockout hit and subsequently missing, but why are we taking the physicality out of the game? It is why football is so immensely popular. We love the big hits. We glorify them. The NFL and ESPN and like mediums glorify them, but hypocritically scold and penalize them. Remember when ESPN had Jacked Up? That was football at its best.  Ask anyone who played football in the NFL (not quarterbacks because they are soft) they NFL is taking away the heart of the game.

So what are the defenders supposed to do now? I believe that football will remain popular but there is going to be a severe amount of backlash against these measures that are essentially turning football into a timid sport. Rugby fans around the world are surely scoffing at these rule changes.  James Harrison, arguably the best defensive player in the NFL is entitled to that honor because of his backbreaking hits and his absolute ferocity on the field. How can you ask him to tone it down? Football is a game for men and the men controlling the rulebook are clearly not that.  It is an unfortunate result in football when a player is injured, but it is an inevitable consequence of playing the game. No one forced these players to play this violent sport….they worked their asses of so that they could have the privileged to play it. They knew what they were signing up for. Football has been a violent sport since its nascent beginnings in the early 1900’s. Players have always suffered severe injuries…It is simply part of the game. It’s why a majority of us don’t play it.

Buster Posey Broke his leg at this play at the plate

On a similar note, I saw as the San Francisco Giants young star catcher, Buster Posey suffered a severe ankle break the other night while he was blocking the plate and was leveled by Marlins CF Scott Cousins. I have sympathy for Giants fans, because no one wants to see anyone get hurt, especially such a bright young star. Still, this type of play is also a part of baseball. It always has been. Posey is not the first person to take a beating during a home plate collision. Now his agent is calling for a rule change to protect catchers from such plays. First off…If this was a no-name catcher, I doubt this would warrant a discussion, but I have a bad feeling that this will get some serious consideration. Baseball is conservative in the way it evolves its rules but this is why it is such a great sport. If it ain’t broken, don’t fix it. Cousins was doing everything that he could legally do to score, and he succeeded. He should be applauded. Baseball players suffer severe injuries much more commonly by simply throwing the ball…maybe they can change that rule to. Have the pitchers softball toss it so as to avoid torn ligaments.

There is one more party to blame for all of this rule changing, game softening nonsense. ESPN. God knows I love ESPN and all the access it gives millions to the sports we love. Still, they put every little play under a microscope, talk it to death, and all of a sudden people want to change rules. Back in the day, there wasn’t as much talk about rule changes because people weren’t having 50 ESPN analysts talking about a play that resulted in injury. There aren’t more people getting injured in professional sports now, we just see it more often because of the access we have to the games. ESPN is great, but it is definitely a culprit in this mess.

In conclusion: Let the kids play.