December 28, 2008 Week 17 inactives: CB Alan Ball, RB Alonzo Coleman, LB Bobby Carpenter, QB Brooks Bollinger, CB Courtney Brown, OG Joe Berger, OG Montrae Holland, TE Rodney Hannah.
Our View:Tony Romo (back, illness), Roy Williams (foot) and Jason Witten (ankle) are all active and will start. Additionally, Marion Barber (toe) is active and will share carries with Tashard Choice.
November 13, 2008 Cowboys linebacker Bobby Carpenter is not practicing with the team on Thursday due to a groin injury, according to the Dallas Morning News.
Our View:Carpenter has been a supreme disappointment as a former first-round pick. He is a backup and plays on special teams and has just 11 tackles this year.
August 29, 2008 Though he has been a disappointment as a former first-round draft pick, Cowboys linebacker Bobby Carpenter probably will not be cut due to his play in nickel and dime packages, along with his special teams contributions, according to the Dallas Morning News.
Our View:Carpenter had just 18 tackles last season, and he has been described often as too soft to play the game, something that came to the forefront on the recent episode of HBO's Hard Knocks, as a teammate labeled him "Barbie" Carpenter.
August 3, 2008 Reports from Dallas indicate linebacker Bobby Carpenter is making it awfully difficult to keep him out of the mix for snaps despite the deep roster of options at the position, according to the Dallas Morning News. Carpenter has spent the first week of training camp playing both inside linebacker positions and had his most productive practice Saturday morning. He intercepted a Tony Romo pass for what would have been a touchdown, knocked away a pass to tight end Martellus Bennett and put a hit on wide receiver Miles Austin.
Our View:For the loyal IDP fantasy owner, Carpenter has been on the radar for some time, but a lack of opportunity has hampered his rise. Thus far he has been penciled into the backup spot behind veteran Zach Thomas in the middle, but there is reason to believe that such status should not hide his potential. Thomas is no spring chicken and the Cowboys are going to need to keep him fresh by pushing Carpenter to the field to provide relief. Of course, Bradie James and Kevin Burnett are lined up on the inside as well, giving the Cowboys enviable depth and talent. That opens the door to trade rumors, but it sounds like Carpenter is a player to keep. We'll keep an eye on the situation as the fantasy implications could be rather sizeable.
June 27, 2008 Bobby Carpenter is getting a shot to backup Zach Thomas as the Cowboys, but this may be his last chance to make an impact in Dallas, reports the Dallas Morning News.
Our View:It's hard to fathom that the former first round pick could fall from grace so quickly, but that appears to be the case. Carpenter has not been productive in his two seasons with the team, amassing just 37 total tackles in 29 games.
