After the Dallas Cowboys Thanksgiving Day win over the Miami Dolphins, I have no problems calling Laurent Robinson the best wide receiver on the Cowboys' roster.
Sure, Dez Bryant is extremely talented and has the ability to break any play and turn it into a big one. However, is he someone who you can look to as a clutch receiver when the chips are down and you need to put points on the board? I don't think he is. He is more Alvin Harper than Michael Irvin.
However, Robinson is Michael Irvin in my eyes right now. I'm not saying he will end up being as great as Irvin was in his career with Dallas, but if there is anyone on the field that you need to deliver Irvin-styled play, it is Laurent Robinson. Of course, in stating this I am in no way demeaning the talent of Jason Witten because I am just talking about wide receivers. Witten is Jay Novacek in this comparison.
And DeMarco Murray is Emmitt Smith.
Yes, I am comparing the Dallas Cowboys' offense right now to the amazing group of players that won Super Bowls in the '90s. I'm not saying they are as good as them, but I'm not saying they aren't close. Murray is a stud in this offense, doing things that no Dallas Cowboys runner has done since Smith was on the field. In some ways, I think Murray is better. However, Emmitt always had a nose for the end zone, something Murray had at Oklahoma but has not developed yet in the NFL.
Witten is better than Novacek and I don't know of many people who can argue against that opinion.
Dez Bryant is better than Alvin Harper, and whoever else Dallas threw out there alongside Michael Irvin. Romo is not better than Troy Aikman, but he is Top 10 in the NFL right now. That brings me to Irvin.
Miles Austin has been tabbed the man for a few years now. When Romo was healthy two years ago, Austin exploded with 1,320 yards and 11 touchdowns. When Romo went down in 2010, Austin finished with 1,041 yards and seven touchdowns. He is good, there is no doubt about it. His first two games this year were spectacular.
However, he has been banged up and has only 14 receptions for 170 yards and no touchdowns in four games since that first injury. Now, he is hurt again. Meanwhile, Robinson joined the team in September and had to learn the playbook. In his second game with Dallas, he had 116 yards on seven receptions. He now has 554 yards on the season and has scored seven touchdowns in the last five games. Dallas has a four game winning streak and Robinson scored in all those games.
Robinson was supposed to be a star coming out of college for Atlanta. He was supposed to be a star when St. Louis picked him up. Now, he is in Dallas and he has finally become a star. As of Week 12 of the 2011 NFL season, Robinson is this team's Michael Irvin and is a big reason they are playing so well.
Author Shawn S. Lealos has followed the Dallas Cowboys since he was a child, his favorite players range from Roger Staubach and Tony Dorsett to the Triplets of the 90s. Through the great years of the '90s and the hard times of the '80s, Shawn never turned his back on America's Team.
Source: Dallas Cowboys
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