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Division Links: Jerry Jones pushes DiNucci under the bus; BGN discusses Pederson’s next job; BBV discusses QB depth ahead of Seahawks game

Dallas Cowboys v Los Angeles Rams Photo by Katelyn Mulcahy/Getty Images
Blogging the Boys

Cowboys news: Jerry Jones throws Ben DiNucci under the bus

Ben DiNucci’s lone start this year was obviously not very good, as the rookie quarterback hasn’t so much as suited up since then, but Jerry Jones may have overstated the Nooch’s struggles on Tuesday when he compared it to the Broncos’ situation this past week.

In a Tuesday morning interview with 105.3FM the Fan, the Hall of Fame owner used the comparison to crutch a point regarding the integrity of the game, and his belief that competitive disadvantages still exist in a season ravaged by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

“I don’t know that Denver had any more of a challenge than we’ve had with [Ben] DiNucci or with the young quarterbacks that we’ve had,” Jones said. “And, by the way, two or three of those [Broncos] quarterbacks will be back from the [COVID/Reserve list].”

It’s a bold comparison, if not a downright inaccurate one that takes a swipe in both directions, seeing as the Broncos wished they had a QB of any sort to take on the Saints, while DiNucci would rather not be compared to a practice squad wide receiver.


Bleeding Green Nation

Weapon X Mailbag: Where is Doug Pederson coaching in 2021?

I’m of the opinion that Doug Pederson won’t be with the Eagles next year, as I’ve written previously here. A split is likely best for both parties (I lean towards thinking the same for Carson Wentz). Whether Howie Roseman is the one overseeing the coaching search is an entirely different matter, but for the sake of this exercise, I’ll say Pederson is fired at the season’s end.

My head immediately went to the Jets given that Adam Gase will be canned once their tankfest for Trevor Lawrence concludes. There’s an obvious connection here given that former Eagles executive Joe Douglas is now the general manager for the Jets. When dealing with maybe the best quarterback prospect in a decade though, I feel as if almost every organization would rather pair him with a young upstart in the Sean McVay mold (your Kliff Kingsburys, your Zac Taylors, etc.) than an older retread like Pederson, so let’s rule that out.

Same thing goes for the Jaguars and their likely draftee Justin Fields. The Jacksonville move feels a tad more intriguing because they need a huge cultural overhaul, but know what other team is in desperate need of that? The Lions. Detroit needs to wash away the stench of the Matt Patricia era. There’s already a great veteran quarterback in place in Matthew Stafford. The organization would drool over his championship and playoff pedigree.


Big Blue View

Giants at Seahawks Week 13 storylines: Quarterback questions, and more

Giants fans should likely prepare to see veteran Colt McCoy, 7-21 in his career as a starter, on Sunday vs. Seattle.

“Look, he’s a vet, he has a lot of experience. He goes out there with a good amount of savvy, can really manage a game,” Judge said. “But we’ll set the game up however we need to, whether it’s Daniel, whether it’s Colt, whether it’s Clayton [Thorson], whoever it ends up being, in terms of working to their strong points.”

Clayton Thorson, who has been on the team’s practice squad since the end of September, is likely to be No. 2 behind McCoy for the Giants vs. Seattle.

Interestingly, the Giants reportedly have a pair of journeyman backup quarterbacks — Alex Tanney and Joe Webb — going through COVID-19 testing protocols right now. That could mean that the Giants, with what happened to Denver when the Broncos lost all four quarterbacks due to COVID-19 for last Sunday’s game against the New Orleans Saints, might add both Tanney and Webb.


Blogging the Boys

The Cowboys will have an elite offensive line in 2021

The Great Wall of Dallas could be making a comeback.

To say this line has been decimated in 2020 would be an understatement. Back in October, we pointed out how offensive line coach Joe Philbin was doing a phenomenal job of handling all these changes to his line, and that’s still true today. While this line has fallen apart plenty of times recently, they currently rank ninth in adjusted line yards, tenth in power success rate, and eighth in adjusted sack rate. While their pass block win rate of 53% ranks them near the bottom of the league, this line is actually fifth in the NFL in run block win rate.

[T]he Cowboys have three top-ten run blockers on the interior of their line right now, with one of them also being an elite pass blocker. And next year they’ll be getting their two tackles back, both of whom are among the very best at their respective positions, which should help turn this offensive line into a juggernaut once again. The season obviously isn’t over, although there are plenty of fans who are already looking to next year. To those who are, the future is very bright in the trenches for Dallas.