Patrick Crayton? Seriously?

[elgreazy1]

Crayton really is in the wrong here. Look I understand where he thinks he stands on the roster but he has to realize, everyone is expendable on any roster. The only WR on the Cowboys who isn't in jeopardy of losing his job is Miles Austin, for everyone else, it's a free for all for the starting and slot positions.

He has a legitimate shot at helping a team win a Super Bowl. Mind you this is a team that drafted him as a project when the Cowboys were at their worst. This is also the team that gave him a pretty decent sized contract a couple years ago to show their gratitude towards him. Why jump ship now? He was there to help build it and now he can help them win the big one. He's a very good #2 WR with solid hands and a nack for getting open in the middle. He's proven he can contribute as a starter and as a role-player. In the scheme he'll be either #3 or #4 (once/if Bryant develops) meaning he will clearly be a mismatch for #3 & #4 CBs and he'll have an opportunity to feast on scrub CBs all day while the defensive coordinators are preoccupied with stopping Witten - Jones/Barber/Choice - Austin, etc.

He won't get cut, period. The only WRs on the roster are Roy Williams (looking like a bust), Miles Austin (could suffer a 2nd year slump), Sam Hurd (a still unproven project), Kevin Ogletree (2nd year player with little experience) Jesse Holley (yes, the 4th & Long winner) and Dez Bryant (rookie). I don't see how he doesn't make the roster. And if he does get cut, I guarantee you the guy who drafted him and was a big fan of his play - Bill Parcells - will be more than happy to add him to the Dolphins who have a dearth of WR talent themselves.

The way I see it, Crayton is butt-hurt and wants to take his ball and go home. That to me is not a competitor or anyone you want on the roster. The guy should have welcomed the challenge and used it to push his play further much like he did last year when he was popping of kick returns and making key catches in crucial situations. Say what you will about the TOs of the NFL but at least those guys welcome a challenge, in Crayton's case, he just needs to stop being a little b*tch, plain and simple, and get on the field. The more time off the field, the more opportunities those youngin's have of getting extra reps and learning the offense.

[wwharton]

Quote: Originally Posted by deaduck

You raise an interesting point...but how many 4's could be a 3 or 2 on another squad? I'm not saying I know, but it's an interesting point.

Nobody knows the answer to that until some of those guys get a chance to play #2. Miles Austin was a #4 a year and/or two ago. The difference here is Crayton had his chance, and yet the organization traded the farm for Roy Williams, had Austin pass him and then drafted Bryant. Clearly they don't feel he's a #2. If he proved it on the field instead of in the media, none of this would even be an issue. Instead... he's another 4th string WR getting treated like one.

[CM Hooe]

Quote: Originally Posted by elgreazy1

Crayton really is in the wrong here.

Not sure how you come to that conclusion.

The Cowboys have actively been trying to replace Crayton really since he started getting any significant playing time, and really since he had that drop in the playoffs against New York. In 08 he was playing opposite TO and we trade for Roy Williams. In 09 we see the emergence on Miles Austin and we sign Allen Rossum to take over punt returns (he never did due to injury). In 2010 we draft Dez Bryant. Yet, all that time, Crayton was meeting the expectations set for him.

I also don't see how Crayton would make the opening day roster, simply due to economics. Why keep Crayton as the multi-million dollar fourth wide receiver when in that fourth WR spot you can have much cheaper options in Kevin Ogletree, who the Cowboys' brass is really high on, or Sam Hurd, who is what he is at this point (that being a decent spot player and a good special teams player)?

If Crayton is a number two wide receiver like you say he is, why shouldn't he expect to get the playing time of a number two wide receiver in the prime of his career?

[ProfessaPackMan]

I thought it was more likely Hurd would get cut than Crayton, especially from what I've read about the Boys this offseason.

[grunt]

Crayton is gone. We don't run 4 wr sets too often. We have Witten and our 3 wr sets and I think they will have to figure out how to get Bennet of the field more. Crayton is done.

[elgreazy1]

The main reason he's in the wrong is because he's under contract. He's in no position and has zero leverage in trying to get his way so he might as well keep his mouth closed and soldier on.

The organization did him a favor a couple years back when they signed him to a deal that was above what a player of his calibre deserved all the while the team was sifting it's way through old vets like Keyshawn Johnson & Terry Glenn. He was in the exact same boat as the younger guys: a project WR from a small school who the team took a chance on to develop. This is how he's repaying them?

This is the NFL, no one's job is guaranteed, especially a player who's mouth is causing a ruckus and who's skills might soon get outshined by other players.

[CM Hooe]

Quote: Originally Posted by elgreazy1

The main reason he's in the wrong is because he's under contract. He's in no position and has zero leverage in trying to get his way so he might as well keep his mouth closed and soldier on. The organization did him a favor a couple years back when they signed him to a deal that was above what a player of his calibre deserved all the while the team was sifting it's way through old vets like Keyshawn Johnson & Terry Glenn. He was in the exact same boat as the younger guys: a project WR from a small school who the team took a chance on to develop. This is how he's repaying them? This is the NFL, no one's job is guaranteed, especially a player who's mouth is causing a ruckus and who's skills might soon get outshined by other players.

So in your view a player must go out of his way to honor his contract while the team can decide to stop honoring it at any point? That's not very fair.

I wouldn't expect Crayton to do anything different in the situation he's in, honestly. Particularly in today's NFL, if a player is vocal enough about not wanting to be in a particular situation, he'll end up out of that situation sooner rather than later.

[fugazi]

He sees himself as deserving a real legitimate shot at the #3 spot, if not considered the default there.

To some degree, that is valid. I think he stands a chance at beating Williams out for that spot, presuming Austin and Bryant are 1-2.

Hurd is redundant, Ogletree brings loads of speed.

Crayton would make this team as one of the top 4 WRs, and possibly as a PR/KR