SB Nation User Blog: llutherr

My pet pussycat

llutherr — Wed, 08 Aug 2007 01:47:03 -0000

I didn't see him drop a single ball in 8 practices. He found a way to get open almost every play. He's not flashy. He's not an attention getter. He caught every single ball, whether a pass, kickoff, or punt, with his hands. He caught passes from the quarterbacks in between drills. He has the softest hands on the team (I never heard the "pop" when he caught the ball). He reminds me of last year's Sam Hurd.

His name is Jerard Rabb and he probably won't make the team this year. I hope we find a place for him on the practice squad because I think he will be a good player in the NFL. Urban and Richardson are probably ahead of him at this point. But I saw a player and I'll be pulling for him.

Hail to Grizz!

llutherr — Wed, 08 Aug 2007 01:37:41 -0000

First of all, Grizz knows football, and Grizz especially knows the Cowboys. Count me impressed.

Second, it takes something special to be able to watch practices and then report them in accurate detail. Grizz did that and he did it great. I had to read his reports to remember what I saw. And, dammit, his report was always more accurate than my memory.

Third, I want to express how pleasurable it was to watch these practices sitting near Grizz and Shango (another knowledgeable and sharp guy). They both had enough class to answer my dumb questions without making fun of me (most of the time at least). They also added odd details that were pertinent and interesting.

Grizz and Shango made my few days of training camp wonderful. Thanks Grizz and thanks Shango.

Sat and Sun at camp

llutherr — Mon, 06 Aug 2007 04:08:03 -0000

Sat with Grizz and Shango today. It was nice because these guys know football, and they know the Cowboys.

A few impressions of the team this weekend:

There are constant substitutions on defense, all the time. I'm hoping that this will keep everyone fresh so they can go all out.

I expect a number of the players we cut will play on other teams this year. The talent level is high, and deep, at some positions.

Anthony Henry is physical and smart. He abuses the young receivers.

The first team O-line is much better than the rest.

They are spending lots of practice time on special teams. Not sure if that's good or bad.

Nick Folk is my choice at kicker. Both he and Grammatica are better than Vanderjack.

Romo continues to impress.

Comments on Friday's camp

llutherr — Sat, 04 Aug 2007 00:38:11 -0000

Met Grizz today. As Dunkman predicted, I could hardly get to him for all the girls. (some of the older ones might have been in their teens)

Some things I noticed today:

Today was by far the best I've ever seen Miles Austin. Got open a lot, caught the ball with his hands, turned upfield fast. Looked good!

Carpenter can cover. He runs and covers like a good cornerback when he locks on to a receiver. Impressive. He's also a great blitzer on the inside. We need him on the field. I don't know if he can read and make good decisions, but he has the skills.

Nobody can block Ware in drills. Nobody.

Junior Glymph is almost as unblockable as Ware. If he can figure out coverage, etc. he could be a real asset.

Patrick Crayton was a star today. He has a knack for getting open in the middle. And sure hands. Pretty effective combination.

Good day for the secondary. Good overall coverage. All the quarterbacks were checking down all day (would have been lots of sacks in a game). Non-starters that looked good to me were Butler, Reeves, Elam, and Thomas.

Julius is walking around with more spring in his step this year. Barber is walking around like always ... like he has an enormous chip on his shoulder.

Speaking of Barber there's another thing I noticed. Today was a "shell" day with limited contact. Except when Barber ran the ball. You could hear the difference, the pads popping. He ran where he wanted to run knocking down defenders and offenders, anyone in his way. It's hard not to like that kind of runner.

Brad Johnson plays with passion. There was an offensive penalty when he was at the helm and he came unglued. Nice to see that (thinking back to Bledsoe).

On a bad day Romo is still impressive. It was nice to see him throw the ball away a few times today (see #5 above).

Thursday's camp observations

llutherr — Fri, 03 Aug 2007 02:15:03 -0000

Brad Johnson can play. If Romo goes down, the team moves along nicely (less the long ball).

In my book Owens, Glenn, Crayton, and Hurd are in. They are a clear step above the rest.

Miles Austin is much better player than last training camp. His routes are more defined, and he seems to know what he is doing (last training camp looked kind of lost). He's a physical beast, just hope he can channel that into an NFL receiver.

Jerard Rabb is a player. Hope he gets in because he will make plays IMO.

Davis and McQuistan on the right side look very good. Yes, McQ. looks better than Columbo, to me.

Romo has all the throws. He has all the smarts. He has all the charisma. All he lacks now is some hard-knocks experience. I can't wait!

Boy, can Newman flat return punts. I know it's scary, but boy can he return punts.

Hamlin is what we need at FS. Charisma, leadership, ability ... and excitement. I like it.