The Dallas Cowboys Most Valuable Player For 2012 Is…Tony Fiammetta?
Alright Cowboys fans! Let’s get out our magic crystal ball and take a look into the not-too-distant future. Who do you project to be the most valuable player at the end of next season? I know a question like this is impossible to get right. There are always the surprise players that do better than what we could have anticipated along with the crafty veterans that we had almost written off. The two that come to mind that would fall under these categories respectively would be Sean Lee and Kyle Kosier.
If you would have asked me at the beginning of last season if these two would have done as well as they had I would have probably laughed in your face. Sean Lee at the time was a huge question mark because of his injury history and I did not know if he would be able to learn a new defensive scheme in time to make any sort of impact on the field. I was wrong there.
Along the same lines I did not believe Kosier could stay on the field for any stretch of time either. My other concern was if he had enough left in the tank to make an impact on the offensive line. I felt like they let the wrong guy, Leonard Davis, go before the season, and that it should have been Kosier instead. Again I was wrong, to a certain degree. Kosier successfully transitioned from left to right guard in order to help out rookie right tackle Tyron Smith with line calls and protections. By being able to do these two things, along with executing his own blocking assignments, Kosier proved to be more valuable than I would have originally suspected.
What I am trying to get at with these two examples is that you never fully know how players are going to perform year in and year out. Unless it’s DeMarcus Ware, it’s hard to get a handle on what the players are actually going to give us each year. That’s why there are categories like breakout player and bounce-back player of the year, because there is always a surprise come season’s end.
Now on to next year’s MVP and the stats I have found that attempt to back up my theory. I truly believe that next year’s MVP will be Tony Fiammetta. I know it’s a shocker right? Not a quarterback, wide receiver, or a running back. That’s right a fullback. Now hear me out on this. I predict that the offensive line is going to take a step forward next year, but I still don’t think it will be a lock-down unit. Fiammetta will provide that added security Tony Romo needs in order to give him the time needed to make throws in the pocket. Everyone remembers how bad it can get if you have an inexperienced back blocking in the backfield.
Two seasons ago we suffered through that nightmare when Romo went down with a broken clavicle and then an already bad season got even worse. I truly believe the fullback at the time, Chris Gronkowski, was to blame for the injury. Michael Boley, linebacker for the New York Giants, got a full speed, clean shot on Romo and made the best of the opportunity, knocking Romo out for the game and eventually the season. Had Gronkowski picked up that blitz like he should have then Romo would have never been lost for the year and we might have been able to salvage the season. This is one example of how Fiammetta could be the MVP next year. He knows his assignments, he has experience, and he is a very good blocker. All of the above give a boost to the passing game.
Along with helping out the passing game, the biggest contribution Fiammetta can make is in the running game. We all saw what he did for DeMarco Murray last season. Fiammetta opened holes and took on would-be tacklers so Murray could break out and eat up opposing defenses. There was a huge drop-off in the running game when Fiammetta was out of the lineup and not only did it hurt Murray’s numbers, but the passing game suffered from the lack of balance. With Fiammetta out of the lineup last year the Cowboys only rushed for 83.8 yards a game, averaging 3.3 yards per carry. When he was in the game the Cowboys averaged 5.6 yards per carry and produced roughly 145 yards per game. As long as Fiammetta, a restricted free agent, gets resigned I predict numbers close to this for most of next year.
Now this is just my view on the matter and who knows, things could completely blow up in my face. Let’s hear what you have to say. Comment and tell us who you think is going to be next year’s MVP for the Cowboys. Surprise and shock the world Cowboys fans.
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