Take a look at the pre-season and current statistics of the Dallas Cowboys who made fantasy rosters around the nation. A few things stood out: (1) Dan Bailey was the best pickup, post draft night; (2) DeMarco Murray was the 2nd best sleeper pick up; and (3) the Cowboys defense is a bust.

YTD Stats and CBS’ Pre-season outlook (as of 12/18/11): *Disclaimer: the stats are taken from CBSSports, based on rules in MY league. (more…)

1. How many sacks will DeMarcus Ware get this week?

I will probably ask this question every week, if for no other reason than to remind you that it was way back in week 1 when I wrote that Ware would have the chance to set a new personal record for sacks in a season. Against the Jets, he was used in a multitude of ways that I have never seen before. He ended up with 2 solo sacks and several pressures.

It is hard to imagine that the SF line will handle Ware much better than the Jets did. Watching what Ryan does with a Ware is going to be a delight this season. Ware made the Jets pay for failing to double-team him several times; will the 49ers dare to leave him singled up against anyone? I will also be watching how many snaps he will take on the bench. (more…)

Can Mike Jenkins return to his Pro Bowl form?

There is no question that the weakness of the Dallas Cowboys defense last season was the secondary. Game after game there would be a breakdown somewhere in coverage and you would see opposing teams beating the defense “deep.

It is already being reported that the Cowboys will be looking to bolster their secondary when the free agency period finally picks up by going after a safety. , but there is another player who will be under fire — cornerback Mike Jenkins.

Scouts Inc.’s Matt Williamson offered up his analysis on which Cowboys player needs to improve the most, in his latest “Pressure Points” feature. He writes:

“He is still a very young man — 26 years old — and he is not declining physically. His movement skills were not as strong last season. Maybe there were injuries that not everyone was aware of. Jenkins was too aggressive, gave up too many big plays and ended up taking too many pass interference calls when he guessed wrong. Jenkins needs to pay much more attention to every nuance of the position. New defensive coordinator Rob Ryan might be able to help.”

I don’t necessarily think the drop off in production this past season was all Jenkins’ fault. Former head coach Wade Phillips, who also ran the defense, was putting Jenkins and fellow cornerback Terrance Newman, in bad positions weekly. Jenkins was often out on an island, instead of playing in a zone which is where he excelled. You could see an improvement in Jenkins’ game once Paul Pasqualoni took over the defense.

Regardless of the scheme, Jenkins will need to improve and I believe he will. As long as he has been studying Rob Ryan’s new defensive scheme, we should see a new and improved Mike Jenkins when the season starts. The best part about Jenkins improving? Dallas has all of the makings of an incredible defense if he can return to his Pro Bowl form.