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Phillips: Hope vs. Hype

CowboysBlog.Net will be there on the onset of Cowboys Training Camp this year, and we'll get to the bottom of the question posed here: Does Wade Phillips provide us with hope or hype?

At the end of the season, all hope seemed lost after we barely made it into the playoffs by losing two important games in a row. No one wanted to go into the Wild Card game in Seattle on a losing streak.

Cowboys 7 Eagles 23
Cowboys 31 Lions 39
Cowboys 20 Seahawks 21 (playoffs)

The Cowboys hit rock bottom after that heart-wrenching loss to Seattle. Who can remember that awful feeling in the lower stomach after Romo lost the snap and ran for the 1st down or game winning TD. What fan was not screaming "NOOOO!!!" at the top of their lungs with watery eyes from the shear disappointment of what should of been. All hope was lost for fans. Fans lost hope that Parcells could get this team to the Super Bowl after his latest debacle by the defense and anemic offense. Fans looked at Parcells defense and called it "bland, vanilla, too simple" and some called the offense "too conservative" I would agree with all that.

So, now Parcells is gone, and then came the whole coaching charade. We saw Norv with Jerry at Irvin's induction announcement, and this looked to be our next coach. Norv would turn Romo into Aikman, and the offense would be explosive. But what derailed this team towards the end? It was the defense, it was horrible. It was the same people getting burned everytime. Roy, Bradie, and no pressure from the defensive line, a complete bust. Mike Zimmer was a 4-3 guru, and could not put his own spin on the 3-4, let alone Parcells bland 3-4 of the late 80s-90s.

Jerry wanted to fix the defense and that means, hire the guru of defense, Wade Phillips. The Phillips 3-4 is what the Cowboys need, and the player personnel is here for instant success. So, is this a bunch of hype or hope? I'm going with the later, hope. Phillips is doing everything to get this group of young players together for a run at the Super Bowl. Phillips has reshuffled the locker room by mixing the defensive players with offensive players, they are no longer segregated by squad. He's brought the team together and brought his family oriented philosophy to the locker room.

With young players eager to display their skills for Phillips, this year, we're gonna see a whole new level of performance from some players considered to be underachievers in years past. Players like Marcus Spears, Chris Canty, and Bradie James all want to get a chance to make their mark on this new scheme, and they will have their chances. But, by no means can you count out young players like LB Bobby Carpenter, who's sideline-to-sideline play make a perfect match for this Phillips 3-4, I see good things to come for Carpenter. Rookie Anthony Spencer has all the makings of the next Demarcus Ware, who can beat that? This is all reason to see hope is on our side.

Much is said about Wade's last outings as a Head Coach, and how he could not get teams over the hump. This is by far the best team, Phillips has ever inherited, and in addition, this could be the best team with the smartest offensive coordinator in Jason Garrett. Phillips never had a decent offensive squad and offensive guru like Garrett. I'm ready to see what these two minds bring to the table. Phillips brings hope that we're going to be the real deal this year.