BREAKING: Cowboys Release Dez Bryant

Writer: Caleb Akpan

After a winter filled with rumors, vague responses to the media, and strange Twitter sessions, one of the biggest storylines of the 2018 NFL off-season seems to have an ending, or at least the beginning of one. ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports that the Dallas Cowboys have released wide receiver Dez Bryant after 8 seasons with team following the wide receiver’s meeting with team owner Jerry Jones earlier this morning.

h/t Tom Fox/Dallas Morning News

For Cowboys fans, the news marks the end of an era. Bryant had been the team’s leading wide-out since the midpoint of the Tony Romo years and at times was considered one of the best receivers in the league. Bryant peaked in 2014, when he racked up 1,320 yards catching for 16 touchdowns, the highest total of his career. That postseason was also the highlight of Bryant’s infamy in NFL lore, as he caught what was, at that time, called a dropped pass against the Green Bay Packers in the fourth quarter of that year’s NFC divisional playoff game.

Since that point, Bryant’s production has dropped significantly to say the least, and injuries have also troubled the former Pro Bowler. Since 2014, Bryant has only put up 2,035 receiving yards over three seasons for 17 touchdowns over those years, and that drop in production seems to be at the root of this releasing. The wide receiver was set to make $12.5 million dollars this year in his base salary, and Jones clearly didn’t seem to think the money was worth Bryant’s recent play.

This was made especially clear after the team signed 26-year old Allen Hurns at the same position. Hurns seems to be the de-facto number one receiver for the Cowboys going into next season, though that will be truly determined in training camp. The team also seems to have their eye on selecting a wide receiver in the early rounds of the draft. Bryant himself never seemed to mesh with quarterback Dak Prescott since the young QB became the Cowboys’ starter in 2016, we’ll see how the Cowboys pass offense fares with Bryant out of the game plan.

Despite recent woes, Bryant will without a doubt be the hottest item of the free agent market once the smoke clears, teams are likely rushing to inquire on his services already. Bryant himself tweeted out that he’s ready to “start the process” and is “unbothered” by what has transpired. Bryant also stresses to local media that “this wasn’t my decision”. If that is true, the wideout could be due for a rebirth in the 2018 season, but with what history tells us, there’s really no clue on which version of Dez Bryant will show up next season, or what jersey he will be playing in.

4 Issues The Cowboys Must Address in 2018

Writer: Caleb Akpan

Last Sunday, the Dallas Cowboys played their most important game of the year with a chance to keep playoff hopes alive. With Atlanta and Detroit losing earlier in the day, most of the work was on the ‘Boys to win out and hopefully have the Falcons lose again in Week 17. A Seattle team in the same situation entered AT&T Stadium, setting up a must-win, regular season playoff game, the winner keeping their hopes alive and the loser hoping for better luck next year. With Ezekiel Elliot back from suspension and the Seahawks struggling in their recent contests, the Cowboys seemed to have the edge going into the matchup, but by the end of the day, the Seahawks were the ones still alive and the Cowboys season was over, with issues from the whole season coming to a boiling point over the course of the game. Let’s try and solve a few of those today or see if they truly need to be fixed at all.

SB Nation

The Secondary

The Cowboys secondary should probably be the team’s smallest concern at the moment. Their very young, which is an excuse, but when you have a young group you allow some of the mistakes that were made this season. What needs to change is just how young the core of the pass defense is. It’s great that the Cowboys are trying to develop some young talent, much like they did with their offensive line in the years prior, but they could really use some veteran leadership to help those guys grow. Enter Earl Thomas, Legion of Boom member and one of the best safeties in the league at his peak and possibly still today when healthy. After the Seahawks beat the Cowboys, he ran after Jason Garrett and told the Cowboys coach “If y’all have a chance to get me, come get me”. Pretty strong words and some that are hopefully enticing for the Cowboys. They could really use someone like Thomas to help show guys like Chidobe Awuzie and Jourdan Lewis how to take their talents to the next level. Just as Thomas said, if the opportunity arises, Dallas would be dumb not to take it.

Offensive Play Calling

A new year is a new game in the NFL and if anything has proven that it’s the Cowboys’ offense from 2016 to 2017. Last year, Jason Garrett won Coach of the Year and OC Scott Linehan was being pegged as the next big head coach hire. Fast forward to Week 16 and most are saying owner Jerry Jones should fire both as players apparently are calling out the team’s “predictable” playbook. Dez Bryant rarely got opportunities and Ezekiel Elliott didn’t seem to get as many as he should have, especially when he was ignored on three consecutive end zone plays midway through the fourth quarter.

If the Cowboys hand off to Elliot in that scenario (down 21-12), maybe there’s still something to play for Sunday against Philidelphia, but instead we question how Garrett and Linehan could miss the obvious. Elliott is one of the best backs in the league when he plays, the fact that they wouldn’t even fake the ball his way is something to be seriously concerned about in season making or breaking moments like that. With Garrett having just won Coach of the Year, it makes some sense that Jerry Jones doesn’t want to pull the trigger on a firing just yet (though it’s still a bit of a head scratcher how Garrett survived multiple 8-8 seasons and no playoff appearances), but changes have to be made in who calls the plays in Big D. If Scott Linehan’s gotta go, then so be it, that one situation with Elliott is enough to show something’s not right, and there were plenty of examples outside of that in the game and throughout the season to support it.

The Wide Receiver Position

Dak Prescott and Dez Bryant have lacked a great connection since the now second year QB took over last season. Prescott’s passes always seem to be just a bit off when directed at Dez, and Bryant consistently disappears over the course of games, simply just not being targeted for large portions. With his lack of production, many are calling for Bryant to take a pay cut next year including former Cowboys great DeMarcus Ware, but maybe the change needs to be deeper than that. Bryant isn’t the only wideout struggling, in fact, the whole unit has been inconsistent and not nearly as good as their 2016 version this season. Cole Beasley and Dak Prescott’s automatic connection disappeared, Terrance Williams hasn’t caught a touchdown all season, and Jason Witten’s reliable hands weren’t looked at as much as they probably should’ve been. It might be time for Dallas to look at the draft or free agency to improve their receiving game, they may even need to make a trade. Or maybe the issue is at the quarterback……

 

Dak Prescott?

Last year Dak Prescott was the greatest rookie quarterback of all-time, the Offensive Rookie of the Year, and an NFL superstar before his first season was even over. Going into this season, most had him poised to continue his excellence, one writer on this site even put him into the MVP conversation, pretty stupid of them in hindsight. Prescott showed what was hopefully his youth this season, rarely playing consistently and tripling his turnovers from last season. Many are calling Prescott a bust and saying that he can’t perform without a running back like Elliot behind him, but maybe there’s a middle ground between the two extremes that’s a bit more accurate. Prescott clearly isn’t some sort of team savior, but maybe his issues can be linked to those playcalling ones, with a better and more unpredictable playbook, you’d like to think Prescott’s play would improve. Or maybe he is a bust and he can’t handle a tougher playbook and that’s the reason why Dallas was so predictable this season. What seems to be clear is that Prescott needs more time before conclusions can be drawn, time that the NFL rarely offers, especially for a Dallas Cowboys starting quarterback.

There’s something there in Dallas. They wouldn’t have had such a good year in 2016 if there wasn’t, but changes definitely need to be made, especially when it comes to the offense. If they can figure out how to create a threatening pass game and bring Dak Prescott’s turnover numbers back to their 2016 form, their defense should grow by default with another offseason and the team should be back on track. If they stay complacent and just hope for a better year with the same pieces and playbooks, the Cowboys hype train will come to complete stop as it begins to slow down already.

Are the Cowboys Destined for 8-8?

Writer: Anthony Aleman

Maybe, and here are some fixes to stop that.

Dallas Cowboys

The Dallas Cowboys came into this season as one of the top teams in the whole league, with many predicting a Super Bowl matchup against a powerhouse Patriots team. With the suspension of star running back Ezekiel Elliott on hold while legal proceedings take place, the team seemed destined for another division title through the play of duos Dak Prescott and Ezekiel while working behind one of, if not the best, offensive lines in football. However, the Jason Garrett lead team has had a rather poor start to this season, beginning the year 2-2 heading into what could be a critical game in the long run against the Green Bay Packers. The Cowboys played like the team who won 13 games in 2016 in the season opener against the Giants, but ever since then the team has seen struggles on both sides of the ball while dropping two of the last three games they have played. The offense cannot seem to gather a rhythm and the offensive line has been having issues integrating La’El Collins and Chaz Green to the starting rotation, which in turn has been affecting the run game ability of Zeke Elliot and Alfred Morris. Without a solid run game Dak Prescott has seen increased pressure on his ability to be a playmaker, something he has not been amazing yet this year. The defensive issues are another big thing the cowboys have been dealing with since the start of the season. The emergence of defensive end Taco Charlton has yet to arrive and it is quite possible we could see him inactive soon with David Irving returning to the lineup. Along with that we have seen injuries to the secondary and linebackers which are causing players such as Jaylon Smith and Jourdan Lewis to play larger roles on the team than what was expected. The defensive issues were highlighted on Sunday when the Los Angeles Rams came to Dallas and overpowered the boys in blue 35-30 via the tandem of Jared Goff, Todd Gurley, and Cooper Kupp. This perfect mix of imperfection seems to add up to something many Cowboys fans are used to: A season record ending in 8-8. The reality for Jerry’s team is that the team has one of the most difficult schedules of any NFL team for the remainder of the season. Looking at the schedule, it is difficult to see the Cowboys being favorites in more than about five or six of the remaining games the team plays. The team struggles on offense look very fixable, however the defense could be a season long issue that could be fixed by continuing to add pieces in the off season. Teams will look to block Tank Lawrence with more priority and once that occurs the team will have to have other players step up and make plays, there are not many playmakers on that defense who could potentially do anything close to what Lawrence has done at the beginning of this season. The Cowboys also must hope for Anthony Hitchens to come back 100% from the injury without losing a step, as he will need to play key snaps over Jaylon Smith if this team wants to see a playoff opportunity soon. Jaylon Smith looks to be the answer for this team in the long run, but for now the cowboys must pair Hitchens and Sean Lee together once possible to get the best defensive unit out there possible. Another player I believe should see more snaps is Xavier Woods, rookie free safety out of Louisiana Tech who has impressed in the secondary and become a huge playmaker for this team. Offensively I see a potential fix for the line by switching Collins and Green back to the original positions they played at their respective colleges. Trying Collins out at left guard and Green at right tackle could generate better line play which would help the run game regain its form from last year, which then in turn will allow Dak Prescott to open up the field passing wise through Dez Bryant and Jason Witten. While talking about receivers, the idea that the cowboys have yet to thrown the ball towards Ryan Switzer is terrible. Switzer was seen as a piece who could come in and help Cole Beasley open up the field in the slot, but so far none of that has happened and Beasley has been shut down via double coverage. Offensive coordinator Scott Linehan must use Switzer to open up the field and force the double coverage off Beasley to open him up as well. This Cowboys team has the ability to go 12-4 or 8-8, and they must make adjustments to ensure they win the division and make the playoffs for a second season in a row.

Dallas Cowboys Week 3 Review

Writer: Elliot Adway

The Salt Lake Tribune

It might have taken longer than expected, but the Dallas Cowboy’s offense is officially back on track after the 28-17 win over the Arizona Cardinals. Dak Prescott finished 13 for 18 with 183 yards passing and a pair of passing touchdowns to Brice Butler and Mr. X himself, Dez Bryant. An underrated aspect of Prescott’s performance last night was his ability to incorporate the zone read option. The first time to team ran the play, Dak made the wrong read and lost Ezekiel Elliott a couple of yards. A few plays later, Prescott made the correct read and it resulted in a high flying rushing touchdown for the second year pro. While the offense resurging is huge, the big story coming out of Glendale is the emergence of Demarcus Lawrence. The Cowboys have not seen a defender as dominate as Lawrence has been through 3 weeks since another Demarcus who has the last name Ware. As we all know, consistency has been a problem for Dallas’ defense, but with number 90 causing so much havoc on the line, look for teams to rely on their running backs and tight ends to help contain Mr. Lawrence. With opposing teams starting to game plan for the beast on the outside, expect the Cowboys to utilize more nickel blitzes in the coming weeks.

Why Tonight is Important for Dak Prescott

Writer: Anthony Aleman

Dallas Morning News

Dak Prescott faced what was more than likely one of his worse game of his short career so far, completing 30 of 50 pass attempts for 238 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions. A QBR of 35.1, Prescott could not torch the broncos due to the stifling von miller lead defense that kept both the pass and run game of the cowboys shut down. The normal rhythm the cowboys show with Prescott and Ezekiel Elliott was nowhere to be found as the team could only muster up 40 yards rushing on 14 attempts. With no run game to worry about, the Denver defense spent most of the game pinning its ears back and blitzing Prescott to force him to try and beat the team by passing. Dak could not deliver for the most part, and the likes of Chris Harris Jr and Aquib Talib kept most of the cowboys receivers in check. This was not the type of game many cowboys fans expected; most expected Elliott to lead the way rushing which would in turn open up the deep passing game to receivers Dez Bryant and Jason Witten, however this never came to fruition and the offense struggled the whole afternoon. Dak Prescott and the cowboys now face an Arizona Cardinals team that they should beat by double digits, but with the tape out on how to bottle up the run game of the cowboys, will Dak Prescott be able to handle a Gunslinger game if asked to do so. The cardinals will more than likely come into the game with a similar defensive game plan as the broncos had: force the cowboys to pass and make Dak Prescott beat you, not Zeke Elliott. If the run game gets shut down, Dak will have to show he can lead this team past a Tyrann Mathieu and Patrick Peterson lead secondary. Right now, I see Dak Prescott as a park the bus kind of quarterback, not a drive the bus kind. What I mean by that it right now Prescott does not look like a quarterback who can lead you back from being down two or three touchdowns once the run game has been neutralized, without help he just cannot seem to do it. Dak must develop into a quarterback who can do more than just rely on quick short routes and play action, or else he’ll fall to the same fate as Colin Kapernick in San Francisco and many other who got figured out after short stints of success.

Five NFL MVP Candidates

Writer: Caleb Akpan

NFL football will be back on our TV screens very soon. Come Thursday, the best of best will take the field to try and eventually play on the biggest Sunday of the year. The night prior to Super Bowl 52, the 2018 NFL Honors will take place, recognizing the greatest performers of the season, including the Rookie of The Year, Defensive Player Of The Year, and of course, the MVP. Today we’ll look at five candidates for the most coveted award of the season, five players who have a chance to lead their teams to Super Bowl victory:

Sports Illustrated

. Le’Veon Bell, Running Back, Pittsburgh Steelers

If Bell didn’t sit out of training camp, he’d probably be higher on this list, but even though the star back just signed his franchise tender to officially join the team for 2017, he still has an opportunity to do great things. There’s almost no chance coach Mike Tomlin doesn’t immediately plug Bell back into the gameplan, seeing that he can do so much on the field. The Steelers will need Bell to once again contend for a championship, and with the perfect pieces around him, all Bell really has to do is keep on pace with his 2016 season (1884 yards from scrimmage, 9 touchdowns) and play a few more games (he only played 12 in 2016) to deserve MVP consideration.

4. Matt Ryan, Quarterback, Atlanta Falcons

Back-to-back MVPs aren’t completely out of the ordinary. Legend Joe Montana won back-to-back in the 80s. Peyton Manning did it twice for four of his five. Brett Favre three-peated from 1995 to 1997. Matt Ryan isn’t on the same level as those three Hall Of Famers, but he probably has more to prove than any of them did in their MVP winning seasons. The sting of Super Bowl 51 will probably never go away, but 2017 offers a chance for redemption and Ryan seems unlikely to regress with a great team still around him, even with offensive coordinator, Kyle Shanahan, gone to the 49ers. If Ryan decides to take his frustration for the historic loss out on the league, watch out for a quarterback who can do major damage.

3. Dak Prescott, Quarterback, Dallas Cowboys

Dak Prescott has done a lot of good things to start his NFL career. He successfully filled in and then fully replaced a Pro Bowl Quarterback in Tony Romo, essentially sending him into retirement. He brought the Dallas Cowboys back to (actual) relevancy, and relevancy that seems like it will stay for years to come. Prescott has his doubters heading into year number two, but he also has a great opportunity. There’s still a decent chance that his partner-in-crime (no pun intended) Ezekiel Elliott will be suspended to start the year, and that happening could shoulder a large amount of the Cowboys offensive load onto Prescott’s shoulders. If he handles that anything like the pressure he faced in 2016, Prescott will be more than just a great young prospect this year.

2. Aaron Rodgers, Quarterback, Green Bay Packers

After an already insane 2016 campaign, the sky’s the limit for Aaron Rodgers in 2017. Bad taste left in his mouth after the NFC championship game? Check. Coming off a career year in pass completions? Check. A healthier and likely better team around him? Check. Everything looks right on paper for Rodgers, he just has to execute, and if he’s shown the NFL’s viewing audience anything since he took the reigns on Green Bay in 2008, it’s that more often than not, he can get the job done.

1. Tom Brady, Quarterback, New England Patriots

The Patriots are going to run the table, be the greatest team ever, destroy everybody, blah blah blah. That’s an uncertainty at this point, if anybody knows how hard that is, it’s New England, and they already have a major setback with the injury to Julian Edelman. What can almost be called a guarantee is Tom Brady being really good at football. It rarely matters who lines up with Brady, but even with Edelman gone, Brady still has Rob Gronkowski (for now) and Brandin Cooks, whose already drawing comparisons to Randy Moss, who Brady threw 23 touchdowns to in the almost perfect season. If Brady can create a connection like that with Cooks and do what he always does with Gronkowski, few will be able to compete with him for the title of the NFL’s best player.