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          Dallas Cowboys

          Dallas Cowboys' Twitter mailbag, Part 2

          • Todd Archer, ESPN Staff WriterSep 27, 2014, 10:00 AM ET
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              Todd Archer is an NFL reporter at ESPN and covers the Dallas Cowboys. Archer has covered the NFL since 1997 and Dallas since 2003. He joined ESPN in 2010. You can follow him on Twitter at @toddarcher.
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          IRVING, Texas – Part 2 of the Dallas Cowboys’ Twitter mailbag is ready.

          In it we discuss:

          If you want to see Part 1, click here.

          Away we go:

          @toddarcher: Honestly, I'd put most of it on the lack of a pass rush. You could have Deion Sanders, Darrell Green, Ed Reed and anybody else you want at safety and they would not make many plays. That's the problem. Now, the secondary lacks true playmakers that can come up with the moments on their own. They don't have guys who naturally get the ball. But when a quarterback has all day to throw, then it's impossible to play defense in the NFL these days with the way the rules favor the offense. Austin Davis lit up these guys up last week. Maybe he turns into the next Kurt Warner, but a third-stringer is not a guy who should throw for 327 yards against a defense. Would the Cowboys love an Earl Thomas? Sure. So would 28 other teams. There aren't a lot of those guys to go around, but if you had a better pass rush, then Barry Church and J.J. Wilcox would have a better chance to make some plays.

          @toddarcher: I asked Jason Garrett that question this week. I keep waiting to see DeMarco Murray walking around the halls of Valley Ranch with a football and his teammates with orders to try to poke it free. So far that hasn't happened. I get that Murray hasn't been a fumbler in his career, but this is something that has happened in four straight regular-season games. They can't just say it will change. They can't just do the same drills. There has to be some consequences for the actions. And now people will say, 'Why don't they bench Tony Romo when he throws a pick?' Well, it's different for a quarterback. I do think they should consider sitting Murray for a series. The only thing that gets attention is when you take the game away from a player. I know Murray doesn't want to fumble and isn't trying to fumble, but these are critical plays. The problem is that he is such a big part of their success that sitting him even for a series is a tough thing to do.

          @toddarcher: Great question, and I don't have a great answer. I thought we'd see the runners more involved in the passing game. But I would say the passing game has not been as good as I thought it would be overall. It's not just what Romo has or hasn't done. It's the design. There haven't been many dynamic plays. Or at least as many as I thought we would see early. They will need more from the passing game going forward. Maybe that starts to develop as defenses play the run more and play-action becomes more of a factor. Dez Bryant is still getting his, but you're not seeing Jason Witten or Terrance Williams involved much, either.

          @toddarcher: To me, he would need to put on more bulk. He said the other day he weighs 273 pounds. He was close to 285 in the spring, when the thought was he would play more three-technique than end. I don't know what his natural spot is. It might be 3-4 defensive end. He just hasn't played enough for anybody to know. I think he was set up with expectations that were too lofty by guys like Jason Hatcher, Romo and Jerry Jones, who were singing his praise before he suffered his Achilles tear and as he was coming back. I'm in no way giving up on him or believing he is not going to develop, but there comes a point where you need to see more production. If he is forced to play tackle Sunday and produces, then maybe the Cowboys should keep him there.

          @toddarcher: How about who should they keep? Of that crew, Bryant, Murray and Dwayne Harris make the most sense. Beasley is a restricted free agent, so they will have his rights if they want him. The other guys you mention - Rolando McClain, Justin Durant, Anthony Spencer, Brue Carter and George Selvie - all come down to price. McClain would have the most upside, considering his age, but let's see him play a few more games before even thinking about a multiyear commitment to him. The other guys, I'm not sure it would be worth keeping. And as of now I don't think the Cowboys pick up the option on Henry Melton's deal that would guarantee him $9 million in 2015.