SB Nation - James Marten

The Significance of Seattle Signing Brandon Frye

John Morgan — Mon, 07 Sep 2009 20:35:23 -0000

If you remember Doug Free, 68, you are old school.

You might be surprised to read that Brandon Frye is a former Field Gulls superstar. Well, not Courtney Taylor big, but Frye was quite lauded before the 2007 draft. He was listed as one of my top ten offensive linemen at the 2007 NFL Combine because of his combined bench, short shuttle and 32 ½" vertical at 301. That list looks pretty good right now. Joe Thomas and Justin Blalock are young stars. Tony Ugoh and Allen Barbre are starters. Doug Free is the Cowboys backup for Flozell Adams at left tackle. Of the remaining players, only James Marten is as low as practice squad. The other four are on their teams' 53 man roster*.

That now includes Frye. I first saw Frye at right tackle, but his height and stoutness had me thinking guard by April of 2007. He was featured on my Sleepers list** because:

Frye didn't blow anyone away at the combine, but there is a lot to like about his recent performance at Virginia Tech. Like a 705 pound squat, 34" vertical, a 4.31 shuttle and a 29/38 on the Wonderlic. Frye is projected to slip into the second day on many draft boards, because, in large part, questions about his technique. Perhaps time will prove me wrong, but while I think technique is undervalued for skill position players, I think it's overvalued for lineman. Frye seems like a bright guy, and his body is NFL ready. If things play out like many have predicted, some smart team is going to get a very good right tackle or guard in the second day.

Houston drafted him in the fifth round but Frye was later released. Miami signed him, and he was worked into their guard rotation at the end of 2008. Miami has cut him and the Seahawks have now signed Brandon Frye and cut Kyle Williams. Williams is headed to the practice squad. Frye is now much what he was then. He's a powerfully built, athletic and agile lineman that creates huge explosion off the line and can move well in space. He gives Seattle another Mansfield Wrotto - another high upside guard that needs a lot of work on his technique. The Seahawks zone blocking scheme, with its emphasis on agility, open field blocking and quick decision making, should bring out the best in Frye.

I can't help it. I am excited. This is sort of homecoming. I hope Frye sticks and becomes somebody as a Seahawk. In this post-Brian Russell era, it's nice to be reminded that Field Gulls spends about 90% of its resources championing young players and only about 5% ripping veterans. The other 5%? Profantiy, pretention and carousing.

*I'll have to dust that formula off prior to the 2010 NFL Combine.

**That Adrian Peterson sure sucks, eh?

Dallas Cowboys sign QB Brooks Bollinger

Dave Halprin — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 18:04:35 -0000

The DMN blog has a list of updates for you.

The highlights:

- The Cowboys signed Brooks Bollinger for a pro-rated veteran minimum, $569,411 plus a $40,000 signing bonus. He’ll wear #5.

- Terence Newman plans to play against Philly.

- Deon Anderson, speaking for MB3, says the Barbarian will practice on Wednesday.

- Mike Jefferson (cut for Bollinger) will go back to the practice squad if he clears waivers. The Cowboys find out today if James Marten cleared waivers, if he did they’ll put him on the practice squad.

- Sam Hurd is out of the walking boot and will try to start running this week.

A quick hit observation from the game by me.

Cory Procter played pretty well. Now, I know he had two plays where he whiffed in pass protection and led to Romo getting popped, but other than those and a few run block whiffs, he was effective. They did give him a lot of help from Andre Gurode, but he did OK on solo missions, too. Was he the worst of the Cowboys linemen on the day? Most likely. But when a line plays at the level the Cowboys’ did on Sunday, even the least of a group can have a good game. Montrae Holland may prove to be a better fit, we’ll see in practices this week, but I’ve got a little more confidence in Procter now than I did going into the game. He did have a few fantastic run blocks on pulls that sprung the running backs.

Dallas Cowboys 53-man roster in flux

Dave Halprin — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 17:02:19 -0000

The Dallas Cowboys have about three or four days to get this all straightened out. What they presented as their 53-man roster and practice squad will surely change this week, and possibly next week, the question is how much.

We know that Keith Davis is going to be signed, possibly on Tuesday or Wednesday. That means one person is gone from the 53-man roster. Dallas is carrying one extra defensive back and one extra offensive lineman, so you would guess one of the bottom two corners, Alan Ball or Evan Oglesby, would get the boot. I don’t think they’d carry 12 defensive backs.

But there is another piece of the puzzle that could change who Davis replaces. Isaiah Stanback is going to attempt to practice in a shoulder harness. His success or failure will determine his future, which could go from playing in the season opener to landing on IR. The Cowboys will watch him at practice and make a determination on his season. If he can play on Sunday, Danny Amendola and Mike Jefferson will likely remain on the practice squad.

For the immediate week, it doesn’t look like the Cowboys are going to add a veteran WR, instead they will depend on either Stanback’s health or call up Amendola or Jefferson. Unless they are working on a trade, it appears they will go in-house for week one. After week one, they can look at outside free-agent options.

Also in the mix for the following week is a veteran QB coming on board to be the #3. Everybody says that it’s Brooks Bollinger and not Chris Simms. Dallas put Richard Bartel on the practice quad this morning, but his future is very unsure.

So let me try and sum it up:

Keith Davis is going to take a 53-man roster spot.
If Isaiah Stanback is healthy enough to play, Davis would displace either Ball or Oglesby, or possibly even James Marten.
If Stanback goes to IR, then Davis could take his spot.
But Stanback’s absence would most likely require a call-up of Mike Jefferson or Danny Amendola, meaning Ball, Oglesby or Marten will have to go.
Next week, barring a trade this week, the Cowboys could look at adding a WR, depending on health issues.
Next week, they might bring in a #3 QB and Brooks Bollinger appears to be the leader in the clubhouse.

Tank Johnson has changed his number to 95 and Montrae Holland will wear #64. The question is what number will Keith Davis wear? Tashard Choice has his old #29.

As noted above, Richard Bartel was added to the practice squad Monday morning.

The DMN says we’ve expressed interest in old friend Jamaica Rector but not Joe Horn or Freddie Mitchell. Freddie Mitchell?

Adam Jones has been a good guy.

Folkin-A!

Film review: Cowboys vs. Vikings - Bubble Watch edition

Dave Halprin — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 21:01:59 -0000

I’ve watched the film on the Dallas Cowboys game with the Minnesota Vikings and have compiled my film review – The Bubble Watch edition. Not quite a traditional film review, I concentrated on those areas where I think we have decisions to make. Mainly, this included the offensive line, WR, OLB and the secondary. Later tonight, I’ll post my 53-man roster prediction.

One note, the Cowboys sure wanted to get a look at the line, the receivers and Bartel because in the second half when the Vikings kept blitzing and getting pressure, the Cowboys kept on throwing the ball basically abandoning the running game.

Offensive line

Joe Berger – For the most part I liked the game he played and would rate it better than Pat McQuistan’s or Cory Procter’s. He showed good mobility when he had to pull and was also good about picking up the right defender on those plays. His pass protection was pretty solid for most of the evening. I saw him blow a pass protection on a stunt and then he just got beat another time. He was also slow getting out on a screen. But for most of the game he was delivering a very solid performance.

Pat McQuistan – McQ got almost all the snaps at Kyle Kosier’s vacant left guard position but had some problems along the way. He did have moments when he was powerful in the run game and showed some mobility on the pull blocks, but didn’t always find a guy to block. He had a few soft moments in pass protection including one pitiful play. He also had three plays where his run blocks were complete failures and one almost led to a turnover. He did get downfield nicely on a screen pass.

Cory Procter – Procter only played a couple of series at left guard towards the end of the game. My guess is they are not considering him seriously for Kosier’s spot. Procter still suffers from being a little soft in the middle, he’s very susceptible to getting pushed straight back and he’s not as agile when he has to pull. He showed nothing in this game that should really change his status one way or the other.

Doug Free – Good thing my man Free isn’t really fighting for a roster spot because he played a lousy game. He was repeatedly beaten in pass protection and had a hard time recognizing some of the blitzes and stunts. The speed rush was really giving him trouble.

James Marten – I actually came away with the feeling that Marten played alright for him, which isn’t an overwhelming endorsement. He still had plays where he whiffed on blocks or didn’t hold his ground, but they were fewer than I’ve come to expect from him.

Mike Jefferson – He had a few moments, especially towards the beginning where he caught some balls and made a few plays. He did have one easy drop and he didn’t show up on special teams at all. But he did get the nod as the starter next to Sam Hurd, so that could be an indication about how the Cowboys view him. He did get a couple of good blocks downfield in the run game.

Danny Amendola – He made a few plays catching the ball and blocking downfield, but really looks like if he’s going to stick it will be because he can add to the special teams. As both a backup punt and kick returner, he gets an advantage. But he didn’t exactly shine in this game, but didn’t make any big mistakes.

OLB

Justin Rogers – Don’t see him as “on the bubble” so didn’t chart him. They need his experience (the little he has) and his play on special teams.

Erik Walden – He didn’t really impress in the pass rush department but he did do a better job than I’ve seen him do before at standing his ground against the run. He did blow an easy tackle in the backfield on one play. But what caught my eye was that on four kick/punt coverage plays, Walden showed up around the ball and made a couple of tackles. If he can contribute on special teams, that’s a great sign for him sticking around.

Tearrius George – If George could have had a couple of more games like this or showed some of this in camp, the Cowboys would for sure create a place for him on the roster. The guy had at least six plays in the backfield. He had a great penetration blowing up a run, he got a couple of sacks and hit the QB a couple of other times disrupting passes. Now, he did a lot of this later in the game against the Vikings’ scrubs, but it still was an impressive performance. The question is - was it too late to change his future?

Darrell Robertson – Just didn’t do enough to change his fate.

CB/S

Evan Oglesby – Helped himself again this game with a nice breakup of a pass in the endzone, another pass break up later, a good tackle against the run and generally no big mistakes. The only bad thing I saw him do is use bad technique and turn his back to a receiver on a short pass. One problem for Oglesby is he doesn’t show up much on special teams and that could hurt his chances.

Alan Ball – Had one great special teams play on punt coverage and one good deep coverage but not much else. He just doesn’t make a lot of plays.

Dowayne Davis – A couple of nice tackles on defense but not much on special teams where he needs to shine to make the team. Didn’t really help himself much during the game.

Injuries causing uncertainty for the Dallas Cowboys

Dave Halprin — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 16:17:58 -0000

A couple things to preface this post. I haven’t really watched the Dallas Cowboys game against the Vikings last night in detail; I did try to keep up watching online on a tiny screen but not enough to really comment on how guys played. I do have it on Tivo though and will be going through it this afternoon specifically watching the bubble players and will post on that later. Last night, a lot of my attention was focused on this. The other thing I’d like to say is thanks to Brandon for posting the open threads and a game recap last night while I indulged my other football passion.

OK, on to the game. One play I did see last night that I wish I’d never seen was the injury to Sam Hurd. Are you kidding? Another receiver down for the Cowboys. We need to wait on the MRI results before speculating but even that might not tell the whole story, it could take a while to really know.

Hurd, who will have an MRI exam on Friday, seemed confident he could return in time for the Sept. 7 season opener in Cleveland with proper rest and treatment. But team doctors project that he'll be doubtful for the game due to the lingering nature of a high ankle sprain, which involves the ligaments connecting the tibia and fibia on the lower leg. Generally that type of injury requires a week of evaluation before an accurate timetable can be set.

Now, I’ve taken some flak for suggesting we can’t roll into the season with just T.O., Crayton and Hurd because we’d be one injury away from playing some totally untested guys in a real role on offense. I’ve suggested that a veteran will be signed at some point but with the top three healthy, we might wait until we get past the first game so we wouldn’t guarantee the salary for the year. But now with Hurd down, and everyone expecting he won’t be available next Sunday - except for Hurd himself – I feel even stronger about this. Jerry Jones expresses the opposite view, but I have to wonder if he’s playing poker.

"We want people on the field with [Tony] Romo that Romo's been throwing to," Jones said. "We won't have anybody out there that has not been on the team trying to move the ball against Cleveland."

If you take that statement as the truth, then it looks like Mike Jefferson and/or Danny Amendola are going to get a baptism by fire next week as they participate in a real NFL game, a game that counts in the standings and kicks off the Cowboys run at a Super Bowl. I’m sorry, but I’m just not comfortable with that. It’s been suggested that we have enough weapons on offense to get away with it and that some of the other guys like Felix Jones or maybe Martellus Bennett can be used in ways to minimize the impact. That may be what Jason Garrett has in mind but even those guys are untested and are rookies who need time to grow into their roles – that includes El Gato. I realize we still have Jason Witten, so we still have three WR-quality guys we can play. But it’s a real gamble to me, injuries in that game would really hamstring us and rookie mistakes could cost us. WR is one of the easier roles to integrate quickly, especially if the receiver has any familarity with the coordinator's offense and terminology.

I won't beat this subject to death, because without knowing if any decent WR gets cut from another team, it’s hard to debate the specifics of the issue. But there is one WR out there who is available.

When asked if he planned to contact [Terry] Glenn, Jones was non-committal.

"I'm going to keep that to myself, one way or the other," Jones said.

Interesting.

One thing I will be watching closely when I review the game is the play of our offensive line, especially the guys in the left guard competition. I feel just like Wade:

"It's hard to evaluate the inside blockers until we look at the tape," Phillips said. "Once we get the tape, I think we'll have a better feel how each of those guys played."

With the trade for Montrae Holland, we have 11 linemen for 10 spots on the roster; somebody is going when we make the last roster cut. It’s not going to be one of the starting five and it won’t be Doug Free or Montrae Holland. That leaves Pat McQuistan, Joe Berger, Cory Procter and James Marten. I won’t hazard a final guess until I watch the tape, but my early money is on Marten.

Could we be adding another player to the roster? It will be tough to do with all the injury problems but It could help us on our special teams.

When asked if the Cowboys would be interested in making an effort to re-sign [Keith] Davis, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said, "We haven't - we'll get into that tomorrow and see. It has everything to do with the kind of pressure we have on our 53-man roster."

Cowboys vs. Vikings: Offensive roster battles

Dave Halprin — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 16:08:37 -0000

The last preseason game. After tonight, the next time our Dallas Cowboys hit the field it will be for real. Yes, we are that close to actually starting the 2008 NFL season. We aren’t there yet though, we still have the last preseason game to complete and for the top of the roster it’s an opportunity to play dress up and not actually do anything, but for the bottom of the roster tonight means everything. Soon the Cowboys will have to get down to the 53-man roster limit meaning tonight will be the last time we ever see some players in a Cowboys uniform.

So what’s tonight all about? Roster battles.

Offense

QB - Richard Bartel vs. the practice squad. The Cowboys are deciding between three QB’s or just two. Bartel will get the whole game to prove his worth. My estimation is he probably can’t do enough in this game to stop the inevitable. Dallas enters the season injured and unsure about when they will have full health. They need extra players elsewhere. They are banking that they won’t get Matt Moore-ed by another team and that they can move Bartel to the practice squad. An eye-opening game tonight may sway that opinion, but the odds are not in his favor to make the roster.

RB – I’ve always contended they’ll keep three and I still believe that. Keon Lattimore and Alonzo Coleman haven’t forced their hand, one will probably make the PS.

FB – Julius Crosslin is still hanging around but hasn’t shown enough to make the Cowboys keep him. They decide to go short at FB to open the season with only Deon Anderson.

WR – Now this is tricky. It all depends on what they really think will happen with Isaiah Stanback and whether they think Miles Austin’s injury is a four-week deal or six. They need six WR’s to start the year unless the news on Austin and Stanback is so good and absolute, that they can revert to the philosophy from the beginning of camp; they were going to keep five and a sixth would have to force their way on the roster. I don’t think that’s the case right now, so Danny Amendola and Mike Jefferson have an opportunity here. I still think a vet signing is going to happen after league cuts, so even if they kept both, one may be gone within a week or so. I have Amendola slightly ahead of Jefferson at this point, mainly because of special teams work. Amendola has been playing on a lot of the units and has shown a little something along with his mistakes. Jefferson as a receiver can get open, his problem is catching the ball consistently and he’s doesn’t contribute much besides being a WR. Todd Lowber is still too raw and a mythical creation of Hard Knocks. (Because I wrote that, he’ll catch two TD’s tonight, it’s a given).

TE – The only possible question is keeping Rodney Hannah as a fourth TE and going long at a position to supplement the lack of FB’s, or go with three like normal. I don’t think Hannah has shown enough, he’s not special on special teams and he probably can’t block out of the backfield or handle other important TE jobs. He’s tall and athletic, but young and inexperienced, and we already have that guy in Martellus Bennett, and his upside is higher and was a second round pick.

OL – All eyes will be on Pat McQuistan and Joe Berger. Tonight is the final interview for the job of replacing Kyle Kosier for the first quarter of the season. Cory Procter is also in the mix but I think its McQ or Berger. Figuring out who it will be is the most important thing tonight, but the Cowboys need to decide if they will keep nine or ten offensive linemen. We know the starting five when Kosier is back, and we pretty much know that McQ or Berger will fill-in with the other being kept just in case. That gives you seven. Doug Free isn’t going anywhere, that’s eight, and Procter is the only true backup center giving you nine. That leaves James Marten and I don’t think the Cowboys want to give up on him yet and with the shifting around of the line because of Kosier, they probably hang on to him for insurance at this point.