DMN Blog: Cowboys sign Saftey to fill Roy Williams' spot
by Todd Archer
Having suffered a broken right forearm for the second time this season, Pro Bowl strong safety Roy Williams was put on injured reserve Tuesday.
The Cowboys signed Daren Stone, who worked out for the team earlier in the day. Stone played in 12 games for Atlanta last season and had 10 tackles. He had an interception in the preseason before he was cut. The 6-3, 215-pound Stone played at Maine.
--------Background--------
A vastly underrated talent, Stone not only proved to be a punishing tackler from his strong safety position, but is also drawing considerable interest from NFL teams as a potential candidate to play outside linebacker in a Cover-2 scheme. With his speed and range, this reliable tackler is ready to make an impact at the next level.
Stone competed as a defensive back and wide receiver at Lockport High School, serving as team captain in 2002. He recorded the most tackles by a defensive back in school history and was named the team's Defensive Player of the Year in 2002. He added first- team All-League and second-team All-Western New York honors as a senior. He also garnered second-team All-League honors in basketball and first-team All-Western New York accolades in track.
Stone enrolled at Maine in 2003, seeing limited action in 11 games as a free safety. That year, he totaled five tackles (four solos). As a sophomore, he shifted to strong safety, starting nine of 10 contests. He sat out the Rhode Island game after being suspended for missing classes. He still managed to rank third on the team with 77 tackles (47 solos), including 3.5 stops for losses. He intercepted four passes for 61 yards in returns and one touchdown and deflected three other throws.
Again on the move, Stone started the team's first eight games of the 2005 season at strong-side cornerback. He was limited late in the year by a right ankle sprain that forced him out of the starting lineup, but he delivered 41 tackles (30 solos) with a sack and 5.5 stops for losses. He gained 28 yards on five interception returns and broke up three passes, earning third-team All-Atlantic Ten Conference honors.
In 2006, Stone was named All-Atlantic Ten second-team. He shifted positions again, taking over strong safety chores in 10 games. He sat out the Shaw contest (coach's decision), but produced 50 tackles (30 solos) with four sacks and 7.5 stops behind the line of scrimmage. He caused a fumble, intercepted one pass and batted away five others. He also scored on a 21-yard blocked punt return.
In 41 games at Maine, Stone started 27 contests. He recorded 173 tackles (111 solos) with five sacks for minus-47 yards and 16.5 stops for losses of 85 yards. He gained 96 yards with a touchdown on 10 interceptions and scored on a 21-yard blocked punt return. He deflected 11 passes and caused one fumble.
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Positives: Long-limbed athlete with a well-defined, muscular upper body, tight waist and minimal body fat (four percent)...Bit high cut, but has good thickness in his thighs and calves and room on his frame to carry at least another 10-15 pounds for a possible move to linebacker, without having the additional bulk affect his overall quickness...Very physical open-field tackler with the range to make plays along the perimeter...Flashes good explosion behind his hits and is an efficient wrap-up tackler...Shows the sudden burst to close on plays in front of him and is very physical with tight ends and backs in press coverage, using his hands to effectively reroute...Tough athlete who plays with pain...Has loose hips, but because he is high-cut, he struggles some in transitioning out of his backpedal...Shows very good ball skills, reacting instantly on screens and does a good job of understanding route progressions and combinations, handling the switch-off flawlessly...Has the hip flexibility to get back in the play when he over-pursues and does a fine job of timing his leaps in jump ball battles...Has an explosive burst shooting the gaps and though he wasn't used often on the blitz until his senior year, he shows the ability to shed blocks and penetrate quickly to pressure the pocket...Has good rip, swim and spin moves to surprise a lethargic offensive lineman and generate good back-side pursuit... Takes proper angles to the ball and greatly improved his tackling ability in 2006, keeping his head up, arms extended and pads low to wrap and secure...Has natural hands for the interception and gets great elevation to attack the ball at its highest point...Very smooth dropping off in the zone...Has an explosive closing burst and hip snap turning on the ball...Understands run defense schemes and can mirror receivers down field...Quick to recover and adjust when the ball is in flight...Times the pass perfectly and consistently gets in front of the receiver to try and get a piece of the ball...Comes up hard to fill the lanes in run support...Extends his hands properly going up for the interception...Can strike, jolt and wrap-up the opponent with force...Smooth switching off in the zone and frequently makes the big hits in one-on-one situations...Plays with a cornerback's quickness and a linebacker's aggression...Very rare to see him caught out of position, as he won't be fooled by play-action or pump fakes...Has enough strength to split double teams when playing inside the box.
Negatives: Can get overaggressive at times, which takes him out of the play...Has problems dealing with the underneath pass, allowing too much cushion on the receiver... Gets too high in his stance (high-cut) and, despite good hip rotation, he gets off balance in his backpedal and looks sloppy coming out of his breaks, taking soft angle cuts...Has made good improvement timing his leaps in 2006, but in the past, he would tend to jump too early, resulting in big catches for the opponent (see 2005 Hofstra game)...Can play cornerback in a pinch, but because of backpedal issues, he loses mirror with the opponent running deep routes...Efficient wrap-up tackler, but will revert to ankle biting or taking a side, allowing the ball carrier to side-step the hit...Must keep his pads down in transition, as he tends to round his breaks when he doesn't...Struggled a bit in the classroom and needs several reps to digest the plays...Will play with pain, but his play is greatly affected when he is hurt...Sometimes gives too much cushion to slot receivers, giving up the play underneath...Twice suspended by the staff for academic issues...Hits with good power, but his weight room totals are marginal (295-pound bench).
Compares To: STUART SCHWEIGERT-Oakland...Stone is a big, physical tackler with experience at all secondary positions. Like Scheigert, he hits like a linebacker and has outstanding range. He's a bit high-cut and this causes problems transitioning out of his breaks. He is best playing in the zone rather than in man coverage, as he might have good timed speed, but will lose mirror covering receivers deep. He has a good feel for the ball, but might struggle grasping a complicated playbook. He showed improvement in 2006, but while he generates pop on contact, he is still an ankle biter with inconsistent tackle technique.
Having suffered a broken right forearm for the second time this season, Pro Bowl strong safety Roy Williams was put on injured reserve Tuesday.
The Cowboys signed Daren Stone, who worked out for the team earlier in the day. Stone played in 12 games for Atlanta last season and had 10 tackles. He had an interception in the preseason before he was cut. The 6-3, 215-pound Stone played at Maine.
--------Background--------
A vastly underrated talent, Stone not only proved to be a punishing tackler from his strong safety position, but is also drawing considerable interest from NFL teams as a potential candidate to play outside linebacker in a Cover-2 scheme. With his speed and range, this reliable tackler is ready to make an impact at the next level.
Stone competed as a defensive back and wide receiver at Lockport High School, serving as team captain in 2002. He recorded the most tackles by a defensive back in school history and was named the team's Defensive Player of the Year in 2002. He added first- team All-League and second-team All-Western New York honors as a senior. He also garnered second-team All-League honors in basketball and first-team All-Western New York accolades in track.
Stone enrolled at Maine in 2003, seeing limited action in 11 games as a free safety. That year, he totaled five tackles (four solos). As a sophomore, he shifted to strong safety, starting nine of 10 contests. He sat out the Rhode Island game after being suspended for missing classes. He still managed to rank third on the team with 77 tackles (47 solos), including 3.5 stops for losses. He intercepted four passes for 61 yards in returns and one touchdown and deflected three other throws.
Again on the move, Stone started the team's first eight games of the 2005 season at strong-side cornerback. He was limited late in the year by a right ankle sprain that forced him out of the starting lineup, but he delivered 41 tackles (30 solos) with a sack and 5.5 stops for losses. He gained 28 yards on five interception returns and broke up three passes, earning third-team All-Atlantic Ten Conference honors.
In 2006, Stone was named All-Atlantic Ten second-team. He shifted positions again, taking over strong safety chores in 10 games. He sat out the Shaw contest (coach's decision), but produced 50 tackles (30 solos) with four sacks and 7.5 stops behind the line of scrimmage. He caused a fumble, intercepted one pass and batted away five others. He also scored on a 21-yard blocked punt return.
In 41 games at Maine, Stone started 27 contests. He recorded 173 tackles (111 solos) with five sacks for minus-47 yards and 16.5 stops for losses of 85 yards. He gained 96 yards with a touchdown on 10 interceptions and scored on a 21-yard blocked punt return. He deflected 11 passes and caused one fumble.
-----------------
Positives: Long-limbed athlete with a well-defined, muscular upper body, tight waist and minimal body fat (four percent)...Bit high cut, but has good thickness in his thighs and calves and room on his frame to carry at least another 10-15 pounds for a possible move to linebacker, without having the additional bulk affect his overall quickness...Very physical open-field tackler with the range to make plays along the perimeter...Flashes good explosion behind his hits and is an efficient wrap-up tackler...Shows the sudden burst to close on plays in front of him and is very physical with tight ends and backs in press coverage, using his hands to effectively reroute...Tough athlete who plays with pain...Has loose hips, but because he is high-cut, he struggles some in transitioning out of his backpedal...Shows very good ball skills, reacting instantly on screens and does a good job of understanding route progressions and combinations, handling the switch-off flawlessly...Has the hip flexibility to get back in the play when he over-pursues and does a fine job of timing his leaps in jump ball battles...Has an explosive burst shooting the gaps and though he wasn't used often on the blitz until his senior year, he shows the ability to shed blocks and penetrate quickly to pressure the pocket...Has good rip, swim and spin moves to surprise a lethargic offensive lineman and generate good back-side pursuit... Takes proper angles to the ball and greatly improved his tackling ability in 2006, keeping his head up, arms extended and pads low to wrap and secure...Has natural hands for the interception and gets great elevation to attack the ball at its highest point...Very smooth dropping off in the zone...Has an explosive closing burst and hip snap turning on the ball...Understands run defense schemes and can mirror receivers down field...Quick to recover and adjust when the ball is in flight...Times the pass perfectly and consistently gets in front of the receiver to try and get a piece of the ball...Comes up hard to fill the lanes in run support...Extends his hands properly going up for the interception...Can strike, jolt and wrap-up the opponent with force...Smooth switching off in the zone and frequently makes the big hits in one-on-one situations...Plays with a cornerback's quickness and a linebacker's aggression...Very rare to see him caught out of position, as he won't be fooled by play-action or pump fakes...Has enough strength to split double teams when playing inside the box.
Negatives: Can get overaggressive at times, which takes him out of the play...Has problems dealing with the underneath pass, allowing too much cushion on the receiver... Gets too high in his stance (high-cut) and, despite good hip rotation, he gets off balance in his backpedal and looks sloppy coming out of his breaks, taking soft angle cuts...Has made good improvement timing his leaps in 2006, but in the past, he would tend to jump too early, resulting in big catches for the opponent (see 2005 Hofstra game)...Can play cornerback in a pinch, but because of backpedal issues, he loses mirror with the opponent running deep routes...Efficient wrap-up tackler, but will revert to ankle biting or taking a side, allowing the ball carrier to side-step the hit...Must keep his pads down in transition, as he tends to round his breaks when he doesn't...Struggled a bit in the classroom and needs several reps to digest the plays...Will play with pain, but his play is greatly affected when he is hurt...Sometimes gives too much cushion to slot receivers, giving up the play underneath...Twice suspended by the staff for academic issues...Hits with good power, but his weight room totals are marginal (295-pound bench).
Compares To: STUART SCHWEIGERT-Oakland...Stone is a big, physical tackler with experience at all secondary positions. Like Scheigert, he hits like a linebacker and has outstanding range. He's a bit high-cut and this causes problems transitioning out of his breaks. He is best playing in the zone rather than in man coverage, as he might have good timed speed, but will lose mirror covering receivers deep. He has a good feel for the ball, but might struggle grasping a complicated playbook. He showed improvement in 2006, but while he generates pop on contact, he is still an ankle biter with inconsistent tackle technique.
posted by The Gryphon at 5:15 PM
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