even talking about all the yards he leaves on the field on any other random run, or the fact he only has two carries over 12 yards all year.
Yet the Cowboys continue to leave Choice on the bench. If he stays on the team past this year all signs point to Barber continuing to be the team's least effective back despite making the most money, an average of $6 million per year through 2014. It all adds up to the Cowboys not bringing him back, because most of the guaranteed cash is out of the way now.
So, if Barber will indeed be forced to miss time with this calf strain, it would be in Garrett's best interest to not look back. That's just the most obvious of a few moves that wouldn't hurt the Cowboys in the final five games, but could make a huge difference going into 2011.
How about Sean Lee replacing Keith Brooking on first and second downs entirely? Brooking seems to have held up OK against the run, and really well against the pass, but he's 35. He can still play, and maybe the Cowboys do bring him back next year just for nickel duties. But are they really going to go into 2011 banking on him standing up to the pounding of the interior running game? No, that's the reason they drafted Lee.
What about the case of Williams v. Bryant? If there's no salary cap, maybe you can find a way to keep Roy Williams around as the third receiver, but it's really not good business. It's obvious Dez Bryant needs to be on the field more than Williams, and it's obvious that's going to be the case next year and beyond, whether Williams is on the team or not. Why continue to shuttle the two? Bryant would get more benefit out of playing the starter's true share of the snaps.
The point is that Garrett's going to be here a while, and he's going to have to try to win with some assortment of these guys, plus a little help from free agency and the draft. His long-term credibility will in part be determined by the kind of clout he carries in the war room and in the Cowboys' roster decisions. Jimmy Johnson had it. Parcells had it. Garrett needs it.
"Certainly guys you're deciding to bring on to your football team and certainly when you're cutting your football team down and then ultimately who you're playing, those are things coaches really need to be involved in," Garrett said. "Obviously, we have a whole department full of people who are experts in that area. But the communication between the coaching staff and the personnel people and really all the decision makers in the organization is really critical."
There are already some changes that Garrett, Jerry Jones and the scouts realize need to be made.
They should act immediately.
