We are still a few months from the beginning of the 2017 NFL season, but the expectations for this year's Cowboys really couldn't be any higher.
While I have a few reasons I believe we should probably pump the brakes just a tad, that hype train has certainly already left the station.
Ironically, the one player which doesn't have very high expectations coming into the season is their first round pick defensive end Taco Charlton. Not really adored by the Cowboys fan base prior to the draft, Charlton comes into his rookie season rather quietly.
Even if he was the first round pick for America's Team.
A few days ago, fellow Cowboys blogger Marcus Mosher posed this question on Twitter:
If I set the over/under on Taco Charlton sacks at 4.5, where you going?
— Marcus Mosher (@Marcus_Mosher) June 17, 2017
It's certainly an interesting thought. Typically, rookie pass rushers don't come away with high sack totals in their first season, unless they are Joey Bosa type. When you consider that Taco Charlton is not only a rookie pass rusher, but a rookie pass rusher taken in the back-end of the first round, it's hard to expect too much in terms of sacks.
Still, I think 4.5 is a good baseline to work from for Charlton. If he were to finish his rookie season with 4 sacks, I think that would be a relatively successful first year in the league. It would leave him some room to grow as a player for sure, but it would be a nice start.
Most Cowboys fans seemed to be replying to Marcus with “way over,” but I just don't know if that is reasonable. Personally, I think 4-5 sacks for Taco Charlton sounds about right in year one.
Hopefully, for the sake of the Dallas Cowboys, he can prove me wrong.
