Talkin' Cowboys: Who Bounces Back In 2018?

Sometimes you gotta go back to where you started. Ain't that true? The roots? But and then we're gonna get into some guys bounce back boys. These guys all picked a couple of guys we want to highlight who need to have a bounce back season, offseason, what you may. But everyone obviously looks a little bit tired, or maybe it's just me. I was because I'm staying up so late watching that insane National Championship. Thank you for that. Yeah, and it's a good tire because that was a hell

of a game. I know, not as good as it gets right there, and I know I'm sitting in a room full of SEC men right here and these guys. I doubted the SEC national championship because the last time we saw this LSU Alabama pretty boring, real boring. And it's a matchup you've seen before, so it's kind of yeah, you can see that in the fall. Didn't get across the fifty that day at LSU, Yeah they didn't. Nope? Yeah,

so or a touchdown? Did they nope? True freshman is all we'll be hearing about for a long time in college football. You know what, can I throw something out there real quick about that game? I didn't think that was a gutsy move at all by Nick Saban. Oh you're gonna argue with me what to change quarterbacks? Quarterbacks? We had this argument upstairs. I think I think great I think great coaches understand the condition of their teams. I think they do. I think they have that ability

to understand that. You know, hey, I am we're not getting it done with this guy today. We have to make a change. We have to do something different. You know, he saw what was happening in the first half, he saw how Georgia was playing him, you know, and the thing about the quarterback that he brings in that we don't get to see. And I made this funny because of Tom Rinaldy was over there doing a story about somebody crying. You know, he was not watching practice. Nick

Saban watches practice. He understands what his freshman quarterback could do and what he couldn't do, you know. And people say, well, it's a national championship game. But you know, coaches, regardless of the situation, understand their team. They understand what they have to do to maybe give themselves a chance to win the game. And I felt like that putting that freshman quarterback in there, he'd seen the kid enough, the

staff knew what the kid was. He was capable. Heck, he plays eighteen freshmen to begin with, as is well fair enough because at the end, I think you're right, Brian, you know, obviously starts him at the beginning of the second half, but then at the end when they needed just that, I think he was a terrible interception if you remember that, ye was it that where they just wanted to move the ball a little bit for the field goal and they said, hey, we're gonna just put

in Jalen Hurts just for this one play the steadier hand here. Oh he was worried that he screwed up the time clock. Yeah, he brought the team to the line and watched the clock tick tick tick tick. He didn't he didn't run a play. Yeah, he didn't supposed to run a play. Was supposed to run a play, take a knee, or move into the middle of the field. Basically saw tweet Mick that was dedicated to you. I told Brian already, Papa John's greater than Papa Natos or

Nastos blessing sick. Am I wrong about the coach team? I thought so. I don't know about you, guys, but I couldn't go to sleep after right after, so I did. I watched some of the post game stuff and then analysis, and Tom think it was. It was Joey Galloways when they were talking about pulling the quarterback who had been what twenty five and two or whatever the number was. He said it took some brass ones and I thought

so too. But I didn't disagree with him, although I think he got lucky because you mentioned the one interception very bad. The touchdown pass to tie the game should have been an interception. If Ridley didn't intercept the interception, he wasn't throwing the woodley. He was thrown to that guy in the back of ze Yeah, the running back that got knocked around a little bit. The freshman, Yeah, made an excellent Yeah. I'm not going to disagree with you,

but I think he could be both. It's great coaching, but it's also gutsy because, yes, you needed something to juice up your team, but that stage, you're putting a true freshman in that stage who really hasn't played the entire season. You don't really know how he's going to react, no matter what you've seen in practice. I saw his numbers though, and I assume it was mop up time. Yeah, but they were pretty good. Yeah, mop up time against

I understand. But the way they were portraying it on television was this guy had never played like this was the first time they threw him in there. See this is he had been playing. Hats off to Jalen Hurt's attitude, and you guys saw the way he was acting the whole game after that change happened. First one to celebrate him on that touchdown, First one to talk. He was talking to ESPN. I thought he had a great attitude.

He was in the Huddles still engaged. He turned in his transfer papers yet, Yeah, let's get ready for that. Oh I know. Well, the only reason I say that change position would be a hard position to be in because obviously you're feeling anybody would feel like, hey, I got you here. Yeah, well, actually a great if when you when you watch the draft show, we talk about a lot of those guys. It's not the quarterback, but no, and I'll say this though, the freshman quarterback came in

and played within the pocket. And that's the problem that Hurts had everything that flashed on him. He was out and guys, weren't you know, he just wasn't handling the situation. They will not play they in the SEC. They will play some teams that have some really good defenses. George's defense is exceptional. It really really is exceptional. And so with that being said, though, he had to make a switch there, and I don't I go back to great coaches know when to make changes. Yeah, they had the

pulse of their team. They had the pulse of the team. They see the direction of the team and Mickey, okay, okay, I hope So yeah, I was saying I was coughing at my point. But no. The thing about it is, I just feel like though that Nick Saban has a great and he has the ability because of the skins on the wall. He can go to the offensive coordinator, to the staff and say, all right, we're getting the kid ready in the second half, and they they flip it.

They flipped there. Okay, now we can throw the ball down the field. But what happened with Alabama they were able to make more place from the pocket and then when he had to run, he had the escape play where he got the first down, the fourth down play. Mickey, it was right that ball was going to somebody else. Ridley just made a hell of a play. You know what. I'm on the flip side. I know we got to

get back to cowboys. But that's all right, what d Dave told us, good good, good, No Sony Michelle got one no carries in the fourth quarter. That's the problem you have. Now. On the other side, that's the flip side, I'd stay coaching. I mean, wow, he when they when he had the ball, it was gold for them. They tried to get cute. They started cute, they started the what did they call it, the wild dog or yeah, it worked once Yeah, although the touchdown, it's good play. Yeah,

now you're gonna keep doing it. Well, they that could say when they hand the ball to Michelle that you could see and that's why a lot of people have him where they do him. And you know, the the Auburn kid Johnson. I mean, there's some backs in this sec the you know geist You got to keep an

eye on a lot of these sec backs. But yeah, I think taking the ball out of Michelle's hands was was you look at the you look at how they were going, and then all of a sudden they had the sack that knocked him out of knocked him off off kilter there a little bit. But sometimes these coaches again we talk about the really smart ones and we talk about the ones that why do you make that decision? Again, That's where I feel like, you have to know the

condition of your team. You have to know when to go for it, you have to know when to punt it. I think Seattle did a good job against the Cowboys. They knew that, hey, their own offense wasn't going to move the football. What do you do? Keep the Cowboys back? Make the cow you know, make them have to do something different, and you win the football game. Hey, I like it. We're talking about SEC and we're talking about coaches, and he brought up the Cowboys at trying to go

to Columbus Missouri, Columbia, Columbia. See, haven't been there, haven't been there? What would take me there? Maybe to visit my old friend Derek Dooley, who has now been promoted to their offensive coordinator, and he will be leaving the Cowboys as the wide receivers coach, quarterback coach, and quarterback coach. Of course, yes, you got to have a quarterback to coach. Yes, and that kid hadn't made his decision. He better stay. Micky's going to be on Derek Dooley. But what do

you guys think about that move? Of course we only another confirmed move is Loney to retire. Of course, Steve Loaney, the tight ends coach, will be retiring. He has made that clear. And then presumably this still kind of within rumor because nothing has been official. Wade Wilson, I can confirm that. Okay, So Wade Willson out. I think I think the rumor with Dooley was for a while. I think he had the itch to go back to college. Yeah, I had a chance to I think re up last

offseason and chose not to. I think it's something he was always looking at, maybe getting back into college. So it's think he was looking for more responsibility to ye, to kind of be his own guy again and and maybe take a route to get another chance coaching in college. Yeah, this is once you've been a head coach and you've tasted that, you know, you've had that drink. You kind of going back and trying to resuscitate your career is a little bit of Okay, something you have to do.

We're going to see it with Josh McDaniels. I mean, he can end up as the head coach with Indianapolis, but he had to go back. He had to find a way to kind of re re established and re established, reinvent guy's a good word. Mickey, re established his name, the credibility, you know, Eric Dooley, You look at what they were able to do, you know, receiver wise, it didn't show up last year, but you look at with Beasley and Dez Bryant, guys like that. I mean, he's

done what he had to do. It looked like, you know, you had does Bryant sideline outburst and stuff. Dully, you know he handled I mean that's a lot of egos in that room, a lot of egos, and you know that's that's something. But you know, once these guys get that taste of being a head coach, it's it's okay, how can I get back to that level? And you know, Dully will do. I think he'll do a fine job at Missouri, I really do. I think he's a very

bright coach. You know, he's he's very well respected and uh, you know, if he gets another opportunity at East Carolina or Louisiana Tech or one of those places, much like you know Lane Kiffin has done. You know at Florida Atlantic, he next thing. I mean he signed a big deal. But you never know. At Saving Coaching tree Man, Yep, it's it's vast. Yeah, just tell them make sure you're patient with all those young Mickey's there in Jay school. Yeah,

that's part of the education. As to mckheemy, just keep coming out of there. Yeah. Well, with the issues with the wide receivers you had this last year, you know, how do you see that impacting the position with the new yea, I'm glad you went that direction. And you know, This is my hope for the Cowboys. I hope that they're they do and usually you'll get assistance that come from programs that have been released, maybe the Colts, the Bears,

Arizona guys like that. You know, you have an opportunity to the Raiders, you know, you have an opportunity to maybe hire somebody. I hope for the sake of the staff that they do go that route of outside and nothing against uh, you know, Valero and guys like that. They're the young coaches here and I understand trying to get elevated and get promoted, but I hope for the sake of having different ideas. I hope for the sake

of of back and forth. Hey, at this place, we did this, you know, receiver wise, route wise, maybe you're coming from a place. Maybe you get a guy that is very well respected as a teacher first and then his ability to interact with the players, but come up with ideas to say, and this is their down package, this is what we did. Well, you guys are pretty

good at that. Well, tell me about you know. I hope that they that that that that transpires with how they rebuild this coaching staff, because it's gonna be several openings on it as well. Absolutely, and I think I think that's their intention, counter to what everybody's trying to report here lately. UM. I think that they're going to take their time and they're going to search what's available and see what their options are, and not just saying, okay,

you get this job, right, get this job. I think that they'll do a thorough suit diligence and look, they know people right, right, will knows people yes, uh so, And they're obviously listening to Steven yesterday. They're in no hurry to do any of this stuff because you now everybody wants no, well what are you gonna do with this? What are you gonna do with that? And Stephen goes, I think we're only one week away from the season ending,

and you just don't make emotional decisions. You can make emotional decisions on Twitter if you want, you know, and and whatever else in the paper or whatever, but you got to sit back and kind of look at the whole picture before you start doing things, and look and see, what what are my options at at at at wide receiver coach? You what are my options at the quarterback coach? And I think that there's a lot of options out

there that they have to consider. We've seen this staff go through January through the Senior Bowl until they made decisions on staff. In fact, they've held interviews at the Senior Bowl before with coaches that kind of congregate there. It's almost like an unofficial job. Fair at times, it is. It wasn't hard for yeah a minute, Yeah, yeah, it almost is an official job. Sad, saddest things you'll ever see that in scouts. Yeah, walking around it's going on

now too. Yeah, I think that, you know, Mickey, I like what I'm hearing because Mickey obviously has got this finger on the pulse of what's going on on that side of the building and next. I appreciate that. I wonder though, like I said to me, like the Kellen Moore stuff, Yeah, talk to him if that's what you

want to do. But you know, if you if there are other ideas out there, by all means, explore those other ideas, try and try and think of things if you want to, if you really want to shake some things up, and I mean shake it up in a positive way, I don't mean the same. Okay, let's just keep doing this, doing this, doing this because the head, the offensive coordinator, wants to do it this way. I think having other ideas coming into the building always does

things better for you. And I think Steven yesterday when they basically acted like when they were asking the questions on one oh five three the fan that Kellen Moore was the quarterbacks coach, he said, well, that's not true. Yeah, nothing's been finalized. So that tells me that they're there. They are their planet. And he said it. They're planning on talking to him, But that doesn't mean he's going to be the guy. He could be the assistant assistant

quarterback coach. Yeah, like Colombo is king bring a guy along. That doesn't mean he's going to be the guy telling Dak Prescott what to do. Now, if you get in a bind and you don't find what you're looking for, well you've got Jason Garrett on the staff. You've got Scott Linahan on the staff. Those guys can take care of the quarterback U. So yeah, some thoughts that maybe that was going on. Yeah, I think that. I mean, you know, and nothing. I love Wade Wilson, I really

really do. I can understand a little bit. I mean, he's one of the reasons why you have Dak Prescott. He did the leg work on him, so give him credit for that. But really the last three years, I mean it seems like to me watching practice, Scott Linahan has a big hand in what goes on with the quarterbacks here. You know, maybe Wade Wilson runs the meeting. Oh look at who's still here at Kellen Moore. Yeah, yeah,

that's absolutely right. Well, a lot of people, these rumors of Kellen Moore going into coaching, I don't even enough that you can call them rumors. I think he's expressed it himself. You know last year when he had his injury, he really enjoyed doing all of that, you know, kind of helping out where he could. You look at two if I'm right, Mickey and rob On Taylor, I think that when they signed their futures, he was not one of the practice guys. He wasn't And can he has.

He'd been in the league long enough to where he doesn't. I haven't double checked that. If he's can he be a future guy. But you're right, and Stephen said on the radio yesterday that he does. Kellen he thinks does as expressed, he wants to be a coach, now, yeah, so that would you know. That's and he's from a football family. His father coached him in high school, was a four time state champion in the Washington State. I mean, it's it's gonna take you one more. It's kind of

in his blood. His grandfather was a pretty renowned high school basketball coach in the Chicago area. It's a matter of fact, I found out after I did research on him that his grandfather actually in the fifties coached at my high school. Wow, Kellen helped with the MAVs too. Yeah, he chipped in, all right, So there there's some coaching bloodlines there. And you know, when he was on IR last year, they don't take IR guys to the Way games, but they brought him. He was helping kind of an

ad hoc coach. So yeah, I'm sure they would like to keep him and groom him, but that doesn't mean they're just automatically giving him the job. My people here who have been here so long long enough to know this answer to this question. Wade Wilson when he was hired on obviously played for the Cowboys. How was that How did he kind of transition into coaching? You know, a lot of people don't realize that Wade Wilson did in fact play for the cow Yeah, but he actually

played nineteen years in the league. It was he was some guy off the street nineteen years. Yeah. I remember Wade when he finished up and then came here. He was with Jack Riley and that Dave Campbell administration that we all went through. And then then he went away from Chicago for about three years, three or four years, and then came back. So yeah, he's he's been around. You know, I have a ton of respect for him,

I really really do. I he's a he's a guy that I always thought he had a really good eye for quarterback play. And I mean he's been around some great quarterbacks in his life as a backup guy, you know, a lot like Jason Garrett. He's been around some some backup quarterbacks in this day. So I you know, I always respected a guy at that. But again, I think that his time was not really coaching the last three years since Scotland hands man, I think that's been frustrating

to him. Yeah, but it was frustrating. You know. It was funny about Wade is he really he really enjoyed that aspect of the job. You know, how long was he a quarterbacks coach in the league where that was his one job. I think he's had oppres He's had opportunities to be a coordinator, maybe even a head coach, and he just kind of enjoyed that role that he was in. So, um, you know, it issues to fill. So we'll see, I will say, Dak if Kellen Moore

does become the guy. DAK has been highly complimentary of what Callen has provided in terms of just advice. Dac is a coachable guy. Yeah, yeah, Well, let's get to some of the rumors and much more when we come back from our first break here. The time just flies when it's talking Tuesday, so join us when we come back. It can be hard to find the right resource for learning about important financial matters. You search how to build savings, you end up reading about the one weird ingredient from

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and warranty limitations apply. So if you love for details, this is talking cowboys Well, Tommy John, if you'll just pass me a liner there, Mick, I'll just doing off the topic. Great Tommy John and football off in the quickest plays. Mixing with some good old fashioned ingenuity are the key to winning. Kind of like Tommy John's horizontal quick draw fly Mick love it most intuitive, simple and

speedy feature underwear Brett Brands elsewhere in the market. Just don't have shop exclusive Cowboys underwear at Tommy John dot com forward slash Cowboys Man. You guys just feed off each other, well, then feed off these rumors because we gotta break some truth here. Okay, So Mickey the guy who knows it, Waid Wilson gone, we'll miss you, a big guy. But then there are a few other rumors are and don't let me add one thing to that too. So when I talked to him, I was like, you

plan on retiring? And he says, well, he goes, if the if the absolute perfect exact job came up, he said, I'd consider it, he goes, but I'm he goes, I think my number one priority right now is taking care of my health. Yeah, that's great. So you know thirty so nineteen and seventeen. That's thirty six, right, thirty six years in the National Football League. Yes, originally picked up by the Vikings in the eighth round, two hundred and

tenth overall in the nineteen eighty one NFL draft. As he said, not bad for a little kid from Commerce, Texa. Not at all. He's a pro bowler, y'all. Bowl heck of a playing career too, by the way, Yeah, super Bowl champ. He's got a ring that not any of us have. So you gotta give okay, Brian, oh sold, Brian short, Brian, you haven't been wearing it. I forgot glaring in the eye. Where's it been? Man? I don't know? Man work in these Cowboys shows. People are your packer ring.

People don't kind of Hey, take to you very well. Pombine week, you gotta rocket, Oh you know that. Some GM stuff and now the Cowboys. Cowboys fans always love a lot of people don't know Will McClay. But everyone who's listening to this podcast doesn't know who Will McClay is. And so that makes you knowledgeable on the fact that he is great. And a lot of other teams know

that and oftentimes they want to poach him. But the latest rumor, of course, Rick Smith out at Texans to for some family issues and Will McClay was an obvious choice there. Well he's one of the one of six. Yeah, they've got they they're going to consider him. Yeah, yeah, And the story there is really more about you said, Rick Smith's wife has breast cancer. I'm sorry to hear that. Yeah, he's taking a year leave of absence. He told the ownership there, Hey, if you need to get a general manager,

will get a general manager. And so, uh, you know, Bill O'Brian is in a situation right now where he and Rick Smith really weren't seeing eye to eye on some things, so he's taken a step back. Well, you know, then now you have the head coach is involved in the search, and the head coach has this guy, a guy named Brian Gaine who was here at one time with Jeff Ireland. He was at Houston at one time, left to go to Buffalo last year and the thought

of bringing him back. He's the first guy that's gotten interviewed there, but they have several guys they want to interview and Will McClay being one of those. Now, Mickey I talked to Will yesterday myself and asked him, as anything changed from the statement that you gave the other day where you haven't heard from the Texans and that was yesterday, and he said, no, I have not, So I don't know if we've heard from the Texans or not that on that front. But yeah, he Will is

from Houston. He has family there, his mother, his brother lived there, and uh, you know that's a you went to Rice. Yeah, so obviously it's a it's a situation where it's a hometown team and you know, if he gets the opportunity to interview there, I'm absolutely positive he will blow them away, and Stephen, when asked about it, said, I'm assuming will will be here until I hear something different.

So yeah, and Will's point on Sunday when this came out, you know, there's a report out of Houston from a very reliable, long time reporter John McClane, Yeah, that he'd informed the Texans that he wasn't interested in the job. That wasn't the case, Willson was. He hasn't. He can't comment on any of that because technically he has not heard from Houston at all. There's just been reports that, like Mickey said, there's a there's a list of what six, so he's on that list, and uh, maybe he'll hear

from him. I don't know why they wouldn't. He'd be a heck of a of a choice. But obviously the Cowboys really value what he does here. He is one of the most fascinating humans. I mean, just to know his background story, the way he finds these players, what he thinks. He's figured out the triangle here, and it's to have success, you have to figure out the angle. At the point of the triangle is the Jones is one of the on the right side is the coaches. On the left side is the scouts, and he's in

the middle of the triangle. And Will does a great job of managing all that's within the triangle. He has people that hate him, and I mean this in a nice way. I don't mean this hate. But he has people that that question him, whether it be the Joneses, the coaches, and the scouts. So it's not playing a game. But he does a great job with his personality and his knowledge of managing the triangle. And that's to have success in this organization, you have to be able to

manage the triangle. And he's done it better than than a lot of guys that have been that have been in that chair before him. And you know, and if you think about it, I mean, unless you're chasing a title that says GM's, he's got a pretty good situation here. They kind of take care of them. I try to keep them. The thing that I would that personal men want to do is to run their own operation. And I know they take care of him. I'm totally with

you on that. The Joneses are outstanding the work with I do think though, that as a as a guy, he would like to run his own organization. I think he would like to make his own decisions. He'd like to be able to hire maybe his own coach. He'd like to have his own fifty three man roster. But yeah, he does a heck of a job for what he's asked to do here. He does a tremendous job. He does have a lot of cloud here, right, Absolutely sure he does. There's a downside with that too, because then

you got to take all the blame. You know what you will to get the opportunity. You'll take the blame, all right. Jerry Jones used to say this, and he used to say to Larry Lacewell. He said, Lace, I hate it the fact that people blame you for the

personnel problems. He goes, I want to take the blame, but he also wants to get the credit when things work, like when he won the award for a Front Office for Executive of the Year that I remember talking to Jerry at the Senior Blow after he won that award, and he was as proud of that as any other award I think he's ever gotten, maybe a super Bowl because it came from the media people that have bashed him. Ever, it gave him, It gave him credibility. It gave him

credibility for one year. Yeah, and then he got stupid. Well that's yeah, but that's you know, that's kind of yeah, that's always going to be the way. But for that one year, he you know, people recognized him that his way, that this was the right way to do things. Yeah, and so I just think that, you know, and you do you want to have You want to have that

ability to to to run your own operation. And will McClay if he gets that opportunity, there's no doubt in my mind, he will do an outstanding job wherever he goes, if he goes, if he in fact leaves the Cowboys, absolutely, and other rumors that a lot of people are talking about rich Bessaggia, who could be led out of his contract to pursue other coaching opportunities. A lot of people are looking at him chasing the raiders. He is, that's

going to be the deal. Yeah. He and he and John worked together in Tampa, and so that opportunity will present himself. John's kind of got his staff together as far as his coordinators, and so it sounds like a couple of those could be announced as early as today. Yeah, they might even announce John. They might even announce it before John actually takes the job. That's what they're talking about. So yes, hey they're moving to Vegas. I get it.

Oh yeah, two years in Oakland still and then two and then the next two more years, two two more years, two more years. Yeah, twenty awkward situation. It is awkward. Yeah, you know what though, you guys were there, Tell me about that fan base. Okay, fan base at the game. A lot of Cowboy fan what was that? Mickey was

welcomed with open arms into that black hole? So but I'm asking was there a lot of Raider fans or even yeah, there was, even though they think they knew that was the last well, I think they were thinking this could be the last well, it was the last home game of the seat, right, But I'm asking though back see to me, if I was the Raiders and in ten thousand people were sure up for the game, yeah, I would have just took the operation to San Diego

because there's more. There's more Raider fans in southern California. There was a good fifty thousand. Yeah. See that's I'm saying. They still have interest even though that they've put shovel in the ground in Las Vegas. We pulled in and the parking lots were packed with people tailgating, a lot

of birds the bus. You know, some some fingers to the bus and you know they've got that upper deck tarped over right, They're they're not gonna have a huge crowd, but that place was rocking in the second half when they started getting some momentum and get back in the game. That was That was a good atmosphere for a football game. This is what this is what Gruden's gonna do. He's gonna hold them over for two years until they make the transition. That's what they do. And they got to

help their quarterback is another thing too. Well, hey, he got a good contract with it all right. Well, these guys were great and they helped me today. Get you guys, some guys you need to look at. Bounceback boys. I'll start with you, Rob because you had two bees. I did double bee Bailey and Beasley. Bailey and Beasley. Let's start with Bailey. Okay, okay, why does he need to

bounce back? Well, I mean, he had the most forgettable month of his career by far, coming off the growing injury, and it's gotta be a weird situation for him to come back from that injury, have the struggles he's had and not have the opportunity to work himself out of it. Maybe maybe it's the best thing for him is to take the off season and try to regain some sort of rhythm kicking the ball. Yeah, but it was alarming

for sure. I think he was seven of seven the first half of the season had the growing injury, and then was eight of thirteen, which is so uncharacteristic. Two missed extra points. He was wide right against Seattle and he was wide left against Philadelphia, which shows you it's it's like a golf swing. It was just kind of all over the play. The distance that he missed was alarming. Points the distance he missed from I think was the

most alarming. Yeah, you can deal with the giants ones that were fifty yards and yeah, and it was windy, Yeah, the comdecions, but yeah, the short ones, he doesn't miss those, he doesn't. He doesn't miss those. He Dan Bailey doesn't miss extra points, Rob And I think you're absolutely right about that. I think that to me, that's the thing that was just you know, when he's missing twenty five yard field goals and thirty three yard extra points, I

think that's say something is clearly wrong with tho. Is it alarming enough to bring in a kicker in the spring. I think I think you do. Yeah, right, I think you do. You got to kind of cover yourself. You do have to think absolutely, let him have some competition. You have to figure this out. I mean, I don't think you want a kicking derby coming through here. Yeah, I think you want to figure out though, the best

way to do things. It's crazy that we've reached that point with him because he's been so automatic and he's still the second all time leading field goal percentage guy. I asked Garret about him in the last press conference of the season and he said, you know, he's just got to reflect on who he is and and remind himself how good he is and try to get back in a rhythm. And they're they're confident that he will. But with kickers, you always have to see you know,

we've seen it with other kickers. It can go south and it can stay south. So we'll see there. On Beasley, you know, we've talked a lot about the wide receiver position. When there's a lot of talk about Dez. When you look at Beasley, he led the team and catches last year was seventy five. He dropped to thirty six this year and that's his lowest total since his rookie season when he only played ten games. And there are a

lot of different reasons for it. He still had four touchdowns in the season, but I think he just had a lot more attention paid to him. You know, he got bracketed a lot, he got doubled, he got you know, they would teams would devote their best dB to stop him in the middle of the field. And I don't know how much of it is scheme or how much of it is him, you know, finding other ways to

get open. But that hurt them because I thought in Dak's rookie season he was such a safety valve for Dak and the production just wasn't there this past season. It's something they've got to look at because because he can give them something in the middle of the field underneath. At eleven sixteen am today, Cole Beasley announced that he is starting his music career. He yeah, this is for real, he has and I love what everything you said, but

this is just something. In addition to this, he will be performing his debut single, eighty Stings, now available in all digital stores, is written and performed by Cole Beasley and produced by Victor faz faz I Hope, I pronounced that? Pha z Z Clark, how are you? And he has started his new entertainment company, Cold Nation Records. There you go, there you go? So yep, just want to let you play it right now? Is it edited? Yep? So there you go. Just what I want to tell you that.

Well that's good. Yeah? Good. He has a fallback, yeah, yeah, definitely does. Yes, he doesn't bounce back. Yes, that's a good point, Mick, all right, you're not Was it a bounce back for him or a bounce back for how they utilized him? Because if you remember, one of the reasons he caught all those passes the year before was out des missed a bunch of games. When you when you have half the production that you had the year before,

I think I think he's a bounced back guy. No, I'm saying, but are you saying he's got to play better or they've got to use him? But I said both, so they might need to scheme up ways to get him a little more involved. But I think he could. I think all these receivers, I think the charges to do a better job of giving Dak an open target. I think, you know, we could say that about every

receiver on this team. I'm about to say about one myself. Okay, Okay, I mean Witton's numbers were down, Yeah, Terrence Williams numbers were down, Deza's numbers were down. There you go. Bryce Butler's numbers were down. Yeah. So I mean, when you're the third receiver, you don't normally catch seventy passes, but when your lead receivers missing how many games did he missed? Three? Four? Okay, that's last year. Okay, it's not. If he missed the whole season, then I would agree with you and say

that's why he was the leading receiver. But he was obviously a main guy for Dak in his rookie year. I got Dams on the field or not. Yeah, So, yeah, he's a bounce back guy for me. Okay, I think it's got to be let me question your answers. Go ahead, now. I said it's a bounce back system that they've got to be better overall throwing the football. Okay, Mick, well you are next. I am next, guys. I think we forget that Chaz Green has one more year on his contract or does so does he get a chance to

bounce back? Uh? Steven said yesterday he'll be back. He did say that. That's what made me think of that. Now can he get back to working in the off season and training camp at one position? Not two? What position you want to mat? I still think he can play tackle, and obviously they did for three quarters of that Atlanta game. They wouldn't give up on it and we saw him do it. So can he can he recover or did one game put his career in the tank? Yeah?

That's a bounce back to me, right, because the most obvious bounce back ever. But okay, keep going. We can't be obvious. I didn't hear anybody else break it up. I don't know. I just kind of went around whatever you guys said. Uh. And then the other one that I thought was and again I don't know it was because it was having to play two different positions. But I thought they would get more out of Malik Collins me too. I think he ended up with three three sacks,

three and a half Sacks. I was expecting eight, I was two. I was expecting a potential Pro Bowl season. I was. I was right down that album he was. He was high on their lists. In quarterback pressures, he had like twenty five right, But he didn't have that many tackles either. I just thought he would be more of a an electrifying inside guy for them. And I know that he had to step aside for David Irving, but even when Irving was missing, he he just didn't

do that. So I think you can get more out of him and we'll see where they end up putting him. Was he fully healthy? He was not. That foot bothered him that second half of the season quite a bit and you saw where he wasn't practicing fully all the time. So maybe he can get back to where he was, and I think that would be significant, especially whatever decision they decide on David Irving. Yeah, I like it all right, Well you've hinted at yours and yeah, we have a

few minutes before we have to go to break. Yeah, I'll make it quick. Does Brian I think does Bryant? And when you talk about the you know, the receivers, I think Mickey brings up a good point about the scheme and what needs to be done. Hey, Dez Bryant needs to get off on a good foot with whoever the receiver's coach is. I think if that guy can come in and help him. Duley tried to help him with the route running stuff. They've got to find ways scheme wise or maybe technique wise to get him more

involved in things. You know, there was clearly not a connect there between Dak Prescott and Dez Bryant this year, whereas last year we saw it. I think there was some improvement at the end of the season where we saw a little bit of that, the ability to work. They need to get back to that whatever whatever was the final seven games in the playoff game last year. The twenty sixteen needs to be two and eighteen's version. That needs to happen right now. Again, does that help

him with route running? Does that help him with scheme? Does that help him with just connection with the quarterback? Need him to be I don't see them messing with his money. I really don't. I see them playing this like they did Brandon Carr. I have nobody's whispering in my ear telling me that I just feel like that they don't not want to. They won't want to push future money out when they can get out of this deal here in a couple of years if things don't

get better. My second guy is Anthony Brown. I think Anthony Brown needs to have anthy Brown's a very talented player as a rookie. We saw that when they took him off the field. He started making some improvements, though, as you know, instead of being a starter. It's kind of like it was a little bit of a wake up call. I think Anthony Brown needs to take whatever he did after the time they took him out of the lineup and kind of put that in like, Okay,

I don't want to feel that way anymore. I don't want to be He needs to try and once again be a starter. It's gonna be tough, though. I think it's gonna be tough. I think these rookies, you know, when you talk about a Woozier, when you talk about Lewis, I think those are guys you're starters. He needs to be hungry again to try and get that his starting job back. So like to see him have a bounce back year and do some of the things that we saw in the second half, and he was getting closer

to that. He was season ended, but let's see him. But he's got to do it. He's got to do it again. Yeah. Absolutely, y'all bring the heat, bring the music. Go listen to eighty stings as we take our final break here on Talking Cowboys. Cowboys fans know that the second best of anything simply won't cut it, and your

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Stetson hats are hand made right here in Texas and have been on Cowboys heads for over one hundred fifty years. The rest of you can visit stetson dot com slash cowboy to find a retailer nearest you. What does it mean to be a Dallas Cowboys fan. It means you've got the passion and the heart to do your part supporting the boys no matter what. That's why when the game's on the line, you're on your feet, whether you're at home or in the stands. Actually, you're more than

a fan. You are a member of Cowboys Nation, and so is AT and T doing their part to keep you connected to America's team all season. Law AT and T is a proud member of Cowboys Nation. This is talking Cowboys, and we're still talking Papa John's pizza because we know it tastes so great with those ingredients that are always fresh hole never frozen, and the pepperoni one

hundred percent pork and beef. I don't know if they've still got two for one going on, but check it out online and you might get an extra pizza with good ingredients at Papa Jones of Stuff. All right, Well, a lot of people don't know this about our awesome producer Kent Garrison. He was in a world traveling band for many, many years, Forever the Sickest Kids. Kent an amazing musician himself. He's about to give us you are

so nice. He's been to countries that we can only dream of, formed in crowds much larger than we've ever seen. What was the name of the band, Forever the Sickest Kids, The Sickest Kids from Dallas Texas. Okay, yeah, good music, not good you great music. I listen to it all the time, and I'm ronson is a big fan. I do. I will type scouting reports while I listen to it. They do it. They did a hell of a job at Kent's a goat. He's so I'm just gonna say

something real quick. You know, I'm fascinated by musicians and their travels and stuff. Kin's the shyest guy in the world. To ask him about festivals and stuff, He'll like, well, you know, yeah, we played this. I like this one. But he's sick thousand people. Yeah, so, I mean he's formed in front of huge crowds and he's just so shy about talking about very humble, yeah, very humble, but down the band was really I gotta get some some drinking. You what your in? What do you play? I play guitar,

made me. I played keys and piano and stuff in that band. A little bit of guitar. But sing. No, I didn't know this about. I sing a little bit all over the world doing this. Not great at it. Yeah, but speaking of singing, oh, I know, Kent was gonna give us a little This is the intro Rob's Twitter poll. It might be the song to Rob's Twitter pool, play me some of that eighty stings. Just the debut of Cole Beasley. By the way, it is clean right if it's not debut, you're all over the age of eighteen,

hopefully say a load. He missus slept, dont down, big headed, so I'm head straw had to be just to be headed to where I was going, Like my head gone, it said, I'm crazy, but I told him all that is no biggie bunch of dead wrong and the brawng one to be swept off up the don't swept him us off. A wonderfusslove to come from the mud. Yes, Mickey's part, I think is at it towards the end or thanks? Okay, yeah, you're in the music video though. For sure he's got to be the hype man Denny Oh.

He is young guys like Missouri spags in the house and Missouri black top on the glasses and he's like he's in the corner just like raising the roof. What do you think grades on that grades? I'll tell you what I last. I've tried. I've tried, I like it. I like it. Did you ever do the thing on one oh five three where they had you, Yes, they have you still have it? Well, what is it? They you have to wrap? You have to wrap a line? No, and I and I did and I forgot which one?

I oh, we could dig that up. Yeah, I'm sure I can't confine that find it? But I had to. I had to rap rap and I was so bad at it because I couldn't keep can't You gotta have some flow to it, as you guys say, right, I had. I had no flow. I mean I was terrible. But they put it to music and then yeah, find Mickey's Oh I'm sure did that some they have it? You got some beats? Oh oh, I was terrible. Enjoyed kindle lamar last that's right. Yeah, shows you how much I know.

He was watching the coach. I liked it so much. I went and listened to the coaches at halftime. Laman someone great careers right now, showing you what you need to know, all right. Rob Stroterpole got introduced by mister miss slept On. I think that's I need to look up the lyrics of this. Yeah, I want to memorize it. Look up Yeah, genius lyrics. Remember Jeremy Mincy was the

last one to do this. He was he had what was his song, keep it one hundred or something something like that, and they played it a pretty six six sacks shade you're gonna be on his next distract? Heard that one more time? Yeah, he led the team in sacks. Okay, when do you have six? You hated MENSI and I don't know why I liked him? All right? Uh? Paul? Today, which of these spots is most important to address in

the off season? And we talked about some of the guys that can bounce back, say one more time, which spot of these four? Okay, thank you is most important to address in the off season. Okay than four spots? Yeah, gotcha go. Linebacker, pass rusher, swing tackle, or wide receiver is their own fifth one? Whatever you want, kicker, all

the you know, pass rush. I felt like this past year might be the best we've seen under Rod Marinelli's group, Nicky's guys, Tapper's coming back, He'll help there you go. But I put it in there because you can never have enough pass rush. And while it got better this year, I think it can certainly be a looted you know, it's you know, It's funny about this thing. You say, pass rusher. That will not be one of the questions when we have go into the training camp where the

pass rush will come from? That always seems to be a when we get to our twenty questions and we get down to the very end, it's like, where's the pass rush going to come from? They had thirty eight sacks. That was an improvement. Absolutely, that's still middle of the pack, I bet in the league. Still you still want to see some development from the young guys. Taco you need to step in and obviously you expect Lawrence to be back, but it scares you more Mickey the offensive tackle or

the linebackers, which is going to hold you hostage? Well, number one, I gotta resign Hitchens. Yeah yeah, all right, So let's just start right there and if that takes place. And Stephen spoke about that yesterday and it sounded like he wanted all three guys Sean Lee, Jalen Smith improving and Hitchens. He said, you have to have depth to get through an NFL season. It likes absolutely right about that, and he didn't and he didn't have it this last year.

I think the way he put it, he said, between Sean and any linebacker corps, it's hard to keep everybody healthy. And he basically said, we do need three guys like Sean, Jalen and hitch So and it's made it sound like that that was one of their priorities to try to get him to resign. But I'll take the swing tackle. It just killed him, just absolutely ruined this offense that

they couldn't replace Tyrann Smith. I'll tell you what the rob I wrote about it yesterday for your gut feeling, and I said, the one guy I thought that that the inconsistency, the miss was Tyrn Smith as much as as much as Sean Lee and all that, and they couldn't win a game without him on the field. I just point it's hard to say because I feel like that linebackers, he's talking about death. And you know, if Stephen Jones could pull it off and get Anthony Hitchin's done,

good for him. But if he can't, you're gonna have to look at that linebacker crew. You're gonna have to look at that. I'd be your first round pick, might have to be. Yeah, I'm not saying the swing tackle is gonna be a first round pick. I didn't say you did say that, but I'll say it wants to be a priority. What if the swing tackle was the last player on the board at in their first round grades at nineteen? You know what I'm saying. What do you mean the last player on the board, like first

round first round grades? Have they have eighteen first round grades? And say and mcclinchey, I'm just the one to name out there the Notre Dame tackle or O'Neill from Pitt they say he's a first round tackle. Would you consider a first round tackle at nineteen if he was your last player on your first round grades? If he could play guard? You said that because with Flozell Adams and stuff like that, they did that. He can move inside and looking at start because I need a guard left guard,

he needs a guard. Yeah, Cooper is a free agent. Yes, do this people, I look to trade down in that situation. People. I've I've kind of jumped on people on Twitter about asking me about moving Lyle Collins back to guard. You have to tackle play Collins at guard. I mean, I get I see your guys look, so I see everybody's face. Well, no and no, you and I had this discussion last week about versatility and can that be a curse? Like we talked about, oh how versatile Byron Jones is do

you just need to leave him at one spot? Chaz Green? Last year Collins, you invested Collins, He just said that name too. You invested a year in moving Lyle to tackle. Yeah, you want to see that through or you want to move him back again to guard. I think he was pretty well down the stretch. Yeah, it was he good

enough to keep his guard spot though. See, That's what I think I've tried to tell people is that once once that Ron Leary got the job, Ron Learry didn't let go of the job, you know, I mean he it was it was basically okay, go get healthy and it was Wally Pip. Yeah, he was Wally Pip. I mean, was he good enough guard to want to move back to guard? Well, he never came back. He was he was out for the season one, n't he? Yeah? But the previous year, I mean no, I meant the yeah, No,

you're right when he started the rights at guard. You're right, you're actually Larry got Wallypip two years ago because he got hurt by Lyle took they ran with it. Yeah, it's an interesting question, but I would lean towards keeping him at tackle because I'm paying him like a tackle. He played his best football down the stretch when, by the way, he also was hurt. Am I wrong? Is your right guard about to be the highest paid offensive lineman you have, probably because he's the last one that's

getting signed. Yeah. Yeah, So you're thinking about paying these guards? You know? Yeah, I can't pay another guard, but I gotta find somebody that can maybe do both. I know I'm being greedy there, but that's my deal. He got t I want speedy receivers, but I well, I'm on that like wish list area over here because I saw what the fans voted, and you can announce that, but I know why they said that. You know, I was going to share that after you and the fans agree.

Wide receiver forty percent, followed by swing tackle twenty seven percent, linebacker twenty six percent, pass rusher only seven percent. Obviously, the law, the law takes a little pressure. See this time last year, I guarantee you pass rusher would have been the first one. Yep, yeah, no question. But man, you better keep restocking that fridge because that's that's such a key to your defense. Yeah, not to mention Lawrence is technically a free agent. Party. See when they see

that Lawrence, Yeah, they'll franchise him. No, I mean maybe next Oh yeah, eight after eighteen, I have to franchise him. Yeah. Can someone correct something for me? Can We were talking about some of the draft show. Can can the guy Washington get franchise the third time? I believe so. Kirk Cousins thought twice was the rule. I thought twice was the rule as well. I should have looked it up. But we were talking about that and Dane was talking about but the number goes up to like thirty two

million dollars. Yeah, because the franchise tag. It's either the average of the top five at that position, right or I want to say one hundred and of your last contract, whichever is greater. Yeah, when you just make a deal with the guy instead of trying to take him, feel like you appreciate him. Right, it's a thirty two million dollars for a season. I can't you know what I under The people are really this tired of the wide receiver corps here, aren't they. Terence Williams had zero touchdowns.

Cole Beasley struggled because of coverage and scheme, and I pointed that out by the way. I mean, they can find ways to get him more open. I don't think he just decided he's not a good football. No, I understand. I mean no, no, I think I think all bounce back. I think your bounce back is right. I think and I but they can help him too, absolutely that. I think they can help all these receivers find way. Just like you said, you were talking about fine ways to

do things a little bit differently. It seems like to me coming into the seat last season, wide receiver was not going to be a question. I think everybody was excited about the wide receivers. I think we said in training camp it might be their most deep position. So what happened, That's that's a good question. I'll tell you what happened. Offensive line, the offensive line. Offensive line. Yeah, they gave up four games, Tyrant Smith myths. They gave

up nineteen sacks, nineteen nineteen out of thirty two. Yeah, that affects all those wide receivers. Agree, that affects the quarterback. I said it yesterday. My deal, my good feeling thing, and even though Sean Lee playing without Shaun Lee was no bargain either. That was just no, that was no bargain. I see why the fans say that though, And we're also sitting here on January like they're tired of Dez. Yeah, it's probably your storyline. Yeah, you know what, it's gonna

it's the same. This is gonna turn out to be like it was with Tony last year. It's a question is gonna follow until they make an official decision, like what do you do? It does? That's that's the new offseason question. I just don't they don't do anything, then, Yeah, you don't have to answer you have to do you have to argue with me on everything else. I'm just everything. No, I'm just saying you said, they say what they're gonna do it does? They don't have to say anything, right.

I don't think they do anything with Dez. I'll say that again just because I tend to agree with you, man, I think they do. I think they're gonna play this like Brandon car I don't think they want to push any more money out in the future on Dez Bryant. They just let it go, just let him play. Just me. Yeah, they've already proven that to me. They everybody was screaming for Brandon cars money. They never never went after his

money and never said anything. Well, he finally did take a pay cup, but it was a couple of years down the road. Oh yeah, so yeah, but he got money up front. Yeah, Rob bear with Mickey. It's very tired. He was staying up late watching the game, I think. And we'll talk about this tape probably throughout the offseason until they make a decision or announce or don't announce. If you let him go, like all of a sudden, now you got a big hole at receiver, a big hole.

And this he's twenty nine years old. He's not on the I don't think he's on the downhill of his career. I think he still has a chance to do some help in his prime. He's not thirty five years old. You let him go, and all of a sudden, that number nineteen pick very well could be devoted to a wide receiver. We talked about linebacker, we talked about tackle guard,

all that stuff. That's why when you guys were talking about everything and you are and you were making great points about pass rushing guards and what you need to do to get your team to a spot where they can compete in the playoffs. You know, you didn't even mention wide receiver yet because there are a lot of other needs that cost a lot of money. Yeah, to

have a championship team. It's either not you're dealing with you know, rookie deals or low end deals right here that you're gonna have to pay up eventually Seattle Seahawks, or you're paying a lot of money for it. I mean a lot of wide receivers in this draft, by the way, is it a lot? Pretty deep? And with that before we close out you guys, another draft show Thursday, Yes, thank you. I moved to two times a week. Yeah, two times a week and hopefully have everybody wants to

pop on, come say hello, Tay. I know we're gonna be fine stuff with you and on the social side of it and kind of talk about these players. Mickey. You doing the social stuff with me too, Yeah, absolutely, Yeah. Well we'll do some coaches room, yeah, bela mus someone can miss it, can miss it. Thank you, guys. We will be back on another talking Tuesday next week. You see all those people arguing it amongst themselves, they're not even picking on me. They're picking on each other now,

Oh Mickey leaves you with a hot one. He'll be on kolef Easley's next trap. Join us then. This has been a production of Dallas Cowboys dot Com and the Dallas Cowboys Football Club