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[h=1]Dear Cowboys: Draft Best Available After You Go Big First[/h] By Rob Phillips on April 13, 2014 • ( 1 )
There’s a moment in “Draft Day” when Penn (Denis Leary), new Cleveland Browns coach and pompous cross between Jim Harbaugh and John Calipari, flashes the swanky Super Bowl ring he won years earlier with the Cowboys and tells his unimpressed new GM (Kevin Costner), “They win a LOT down in Dallas.”
The movie theater let out a collective groan – the kind people make when Miley Cyrus pops on-screen wearing a loincloth and Joker makeup.
My girlfriend looked at me and giggled, knowing the crowd’s reaction would find its way into this blog. And here we are. 8-8, right? No rings in sight.
The groans are getting louder by the year. People down here are desperate – desperate – for a truly meaningful season again. If you need hope, here’s a glimmer: the Cowboys have a decent and reasonably competitive roster, particularly on offense with a top-half-of-the-league quarterback when healthy. They’re in a weak division with no sure frontrunner. And, unlike GM Sonny Weaver Jr., Jerry and Stephen Jones have all their draft picks intact. No moving parts – yet.
For the franchise to reach 9-7 or 10-6 before Tony Romo’s back gives out for good, they have to do something meaningful with them.
Myth About Draft Day (The Real One)
At every pre-draft press conference, Jerry gets asked whether he can truly take “the best player available.” General theory says it’s an unattainable goal – to some degree, every team drafts out of need. In reality, “best available” is more realistic than teams may think.
In the salary cap era, just about every position can become a need fairly quickly if you’re replacing an aging player, an underperforming player, or even a productive/expensive player. The Cowboys’ roster is proof:
QB – It’s not too early to start grooming 34-year-old Tony Romo’s heir.
RB – DeMarco Murray turns 27 next year. Does the team re-sign him, or does this article scare the hell out of them?
WR – The depth chart behind Dez Bryant and Terrance Williams isn’t clear.
T – Doug Free is only two years removed from the worst season of any NFL tackle.
G – Ronald Leary and Mackenzy Bernadeau were solid last year. They aren’t Nate Newton and Mark Tuinei, though.
DL – Well-documented questions.
LB – Is Bruce Carter going to figure it out? Where on the field can Sean Lee stay healthy? Who’s the third starter?
CB – Orlando Scandrick, one of the the most criticized Cowboys of the last five years, was decidedly the best at his position in 2013.
S – More well-documented questions.
I left out two positions: tight end, where 2013 2[SUP]nd[/SUP]-rounder Gavin Escobar must – yes, must – develop into Witten’s heir; and center, where 2013 1[SUP]st[/SUP]-rounder Travis Frederick figures to play the next 7-8 years.
The Cowboys could devote a pick to any other position in just about any round without much surprise. Keep that in mind as May approaches.
Truth About the Cowboys (The Real Team)
Here’s where I contradict myself. I know, I know, I’m great at this.
The Cowboys have enough needs to draft relatively “purely,” as Jason Garrett says. But as presently constructed, they must strongly consider two defensive linemen with their first three picks. End and tackle are needs that can’t be ignored until Day 3. The safeties and corners will get better with a heavier dose of man coverage (I call it the Mo Claiborne Special) and more cover time.
This is why I question “best available” for this particular draft: if last summer someone told you that in eight months, the Joneses would be replacing DeMarcus Ware, Jay Ratliff and (whether he re-signs or not) the Anthony Spencer from 2007-2012, what would you say? “We’ve gotta go all defense in the draft.”
Rod Marinelli is a great coach but no Barbara Eden. Tyrone Crawford, Henry Melton and even George Selvie bring injury concerns. Even at full strength, if the Dallas Cowboys do not pressure quarterbacks significantly more often than they did last year, they’ll be lucky to win 8 games again. Believe it.
I’ll leave the war room board to the scouts. But whether it’s Tim Jernigan, Dee Ford, Louis Nix, Kony Ealy or somebody else, the Cowboys gotta think big first.
There’s a moment in “Draft Day” when Penn (Denis Leary), new Cleveland Browns coach and pompous cross between Jim Harbaugh and John Calipari, flashes the swanky Super Bowl ring he won years earlier with the Cowboys and tells his unimpressed new GM (Kevin Costner), “They win a LOT down in Dallas.”
The movie theater let out a collective groan – the kind people make when Miley Cyrus pops on-screen wearing a loincloth and Joker makeup.
My girlfriend looked at me and giggled, knowing the crowd’s reaction would find its way into this blog. And here we are. 8-8, right? No rings in sight.
The groans are getting louder by the year. People down here are desperate – desperate – for a truly meaningful season again. If you need hope, here’s a glimmer: the Cowboys have a decent and reasonably competitive roster, particularly on offense with a top-half-of-the-league quarterback when healthy. They’re in a weak division with no sure frontrunner. And, unlike GM Sonny Weaver Jr., Jerry and Stephen Jones have all their draft picks intact. No moving parts – yet.
For the franchise to reach 9-7 or 10-6 before Tony Romo’s back gives out for good, they have to do something meaningful with them.
Myth About Draft Day (The Real One)
At every pre-draft press conference, Jerry gets asked whether he can truly take “the best player available.” General theory says it’s an unattainable goal – to some degree, every team drafts out of need. In reality, “best available” is more realistic than teams may think.
In the salary cap era, just about every position can become a need fairly quickly if you’re replacing an aging player, an underperforming player, or even a productive/expensive player. The Cowboys’ roster is proof:
QB – It’s not too early to start grooming 34-year-old Tony Romo’s heir.
RB – DeMarco Murray turns 27 next year. Does the team re-sign him, or does this article scare the hell out of them?
WR – The depth chart behind Dez Bryant and Terrance Williams isn’t clear.
T – Doug Free is only two years removed from the worst season of any NFL tackle.
G – Ronald Leary and Mackenzy Bernadeau were solid last year. They aren’t Nate Newton and Mark Tuinei, though.
DL – Well-documented questions.
LB – Is Bruce Carter going to figure it out? Where on the field can Sean Lee stay healthy? Who’s the third starter?
CB – Orlando Scandrick, one of the the most criticized Cowboys of the last five years, was decidedly the best at his position in 2013.
S – More well-documented questions.
I left out two positions: tight end, where 2013 2[SUP]nd[/SUP]-rounder Gavin Escobar must – yes, must – develop into Witten’s heir; and center, where 2013 1[SUP]st[/SUP]-rounder Travis Frederick figures to play the next 7-8 years.
The Cowboys could devote a pick to any other position in just about any round without much surprise. Keep that in mind as May approaches.
Truth About the Cowboys (The Real Team)
Here’s where I contradict myself. I know, I know, I’m great at this.
The Cowboys have enough needs to draft relatively “purely,” as Jason Garrett says. But as presently constructed, they must strongly consider two defensive linemen with their first three picks. End and tackle are needs that can’t be ignored until Day 3. The safeties and corners will get better with a heavier dose of man coverage (I call it the Mo Claiborne Special) and more cover time.
This is why I question “best available” for this particular draft: if last summer someone told you that in eight months, the Joneses would be replacing DeMarcus Ware, Jay Ratliff and (whether he re-signs or not) the Anthony Spencer from 2007-2012, what would you say? “We’ve gotta go all defense in the draft.”
Rod Marinelli is a great coach but no Barbara Eden. Tyrone Crawford, Henry Melton and even George Selvie bring injury concerns. Even at full strength, if the Dallas Cowboys do not pressure quarterbacks significantly more often than they did last year, they’ll be lucky to win 8 games again. Believe it.
I’ll leave the war room board to the scouts. But whether it’s Tim Jernigan, Dee Ford, Louis Nix, Kony Ealy or somebody else, the Cowboys gotta think big first.
