Turner: What do the Cowboys' pre-draft visits tell us about their intentions?

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What do the Cowboys' pre-draft visits tell us about their intentions?
By Kevin Turner 7m ago

Each year before the draft, NFL teams are allowed 30 official visits with prospects. These extensive visits normally include a look at the facility, a private workout and usually a physical. While the list is private, over the years numerous sources in DFW media have been able to present the public with some, if not all of the names on the list.

This fascinates me just because the Cowboys have a history of drafting players off their list. While not absolute, it’s a hint at the position groups the team is focusing on as well as some of the specific players.

Not every team uses the list the same way. The Packers normally use their 30 visits as interviews for players who they feel might not get drafted, to gain an advantage in signing them later. It’s an interesting way to utilize the opportunity, but I like the Cowboys' strategy better – even if it does tip their hand.

In this piece, we’ll take a look at who the Cowboys could be focusing on this year and what that might mean for their roster. But first, let’s examine the last few years.

In 2014, according to Blogging The Boys, the Cowboys had official pre-draft visits with Zack Martin, DeMarcus Lawrence, and the lesser-known defensive lineman duo of Ken Bishop and Davon Coleman. They also visited with Ryan Shazier, who the Cowboys admitted they would have selected had the Steelers not taken him one pick before.

The most interesting piece of that to me is that the Cowboys had visits set up with DeMarcus Lawrence and Kony Ealy, both of whom are pass rushers who fell to the second round. Their hand was tipped; if you followed the list, you knew the Cowboys had interest in one of those two guys.

In 2015, my friends at Blogging The Boys had a full visit tracker. Byron Jones, Randy Gregory, Damien Wilson, Mark Nzeocha, Ryan Russell, and Chaz Green were all on the Cowboys list. That’s 6 players on the list out of 30.

Another note is the number of players with off the field questions the Cowboys brought in. I think that’s a great way to utilize the list, as you’ll be able to spend quality time with players who have some question marks in their character or background. In 2015, not only did the Cowboys have Randy Gregory in, but also Frank Clark of the Seattle Seahawks, Marcus Peters who now plays for the Rams, and wide receiver Dorial Green-Beckham.

The Cowboys picked fourth overall in 2016. They had an official visit with Ezekiel Elliott. It should be noted they also brought in Jalen Ramsey, as well as the quarterbacks who went off the top – Jared Goff and Carson Wentz. Heck, they met with almost all the top quarterbacks in the draft, including current QB Dak Prescott.

Last year' Cowboys pre-draft visit list included their first and second round picks Taco Charlton and Chido Awuzie, as well as late-round steal Xavier Woods.

So far here’s what we know about who is slated for an official visit this year. According to the Blogging The Boys' 2018 visit tracker, we know about half of the players on the list of pre-draft visitors. Let the reckless speculation begin.

It has been reported that Washington DT Vita Vea, surprisingly, is on the list. The Cowboys historically do not place a premium on someone who would feature as a 1-technique defensive tackle, but Stephen Jones did give us a bit of insight back at the combine:

“I think we just feel like in Rod’s system that we can get the job done without a big, first-round nose, if that’s all he really is. Now, some of these guys might be more than a nose than you think. They could have some under tackle to them and you’re certainly looking at them if that’s the case. Obviously that under tackle position is a big one for us.”

The under tackle is the 3-technique DT, a position which is valued much higher in this particular scheme. It's also not what Vita Vea plays. Maybe the talent level of Vea would be too significant to pass up. Perhaps they would take him if he’s there at #19 (I highly doubt he will be), and play him at both defensive tackle positions.

The fact that they are having Vita Vea in makes me wonder if they will bring Alabama DT Da’Ron Payne in for an official visit as well. Like Vea, Payne’s primary position would be as a nose tackle in a 3-4 or the 1-technique in a 4-3 scheme.

As for the WRs on BTB's list, we can note that Calvin Ridley, D.J. Moore, Christian Kirk, and Northern Iowa’s Daurice Fountain are reportedly on the official 30 visit list.

There is a near-consensus that Ridley, Moore, and Kirk will be the top three wide receivers on the boards of most teams. Ridley is the clear WR1 for me, while Kirk is WR2. I have Colorado State’s Michael Gallup over Maryland’s D.J. Moore, but while watching the NFL Network’s “Path To The Draft” program last week, I thought it was interesting to note that Daniel Jeremiah predicted that D.J. Moore would go ahead of Calvin Ridley at 19.

Either way, Ridley and Moore both appear to be within the range of the Cowboys' pick. That’s possible for Kirk as well, but his range goes as deep as the mid-30s too, at which point the Cowboys could hypothetically trade their 3rd round pick to move up and snag him. (Obviously, that’s a hypothetical that has a lot of grey area to it)

As for the unknown player in that group, I've scouted Daurice Fountain. He’s 6’1”, 210lbs, and I have seen a 4.47 unofficial 40-time attached to him. The first thing that stood about Fountain is more of a disclaimer than a scouting nugget; the quarterback play at Northern Iowa wasn’t anything special (shocking, right?) and clearly handicapped him. Fountain has the height, weight, and speed to get drafted on day three of the draft. I have a 5th round grade on him, as he ran a limited route tree and played against inferior competition. I also didn’t feel great about his ball-tracking ability, but again, I want to be clear that the deep ball was a struggle up there at Northern Iowa for reasons that are out of Fountain’s hands. He’s a good athlete who shows the potential to get good separation. Add him to the group of Ridley, Moore, and Kirk and you see 4 guys on the list of 30 with an ability to create distance from DBs.

Meanwhile, the player the Cowboys are considering parting ways with (Dez), struggles in that area of his game.

The official visit tracker also shows that the Cowboys will be hosting an array of offensive lineman. Iowa’s James Daniels, UTEP’s Will Hernandez, Texas’ Connor Williams, and UCLA’s Kolton Miller all appear on the list.

Daniels and Hernandez would immediately plug in at left guard and fill the remaining hole on the offensive line. I see Kolton Miller as more of a swing tackle candidate, or perhaps the team would be looking at him to start at right tackle and move La’el Collins back to left guard.

My personal preference would be to stop playing musical chairs and leave Collins at right tackle, but I have talked myself into being okay with the Cowboys making the move, as long as they take one of the top two tackles in this draft. (Connor Williams of Texas and Mike McGlinchey of Notre Dame)

That’s where Connor Williams' presence list is really interesting. Are the Cowboys looking at him as a guard or a tackle? Does Dallas see La’el Collins as a guard or a tackle? Would they consider having other first-round offensive line prospects like Mike McGlinchey or Georgia’s Isaiah Wynn in for a visit as well?

Elsewhere on the list, let's move on to the widely-discussed position of linebacker. Boise State’s Leighton Vander Esch, Alabama’s Rashaan Evans, and South Carolina State’s Darius Leonard are all reportedly on the list of 30.

I have a 2nd round grade on Evans but would be okay with the Cowboys selecting him at #19. He’s really solid and could play all three linebacker positions. I see Vander Esch as a third-rounder, but can’t get over the Cowboys' infatuation with Boise State University. DeMarcus Lawrence, Tyrone Crawford, Orlando Scandrick, and QB coach Kellen Moore all represent the Idaho school.

I’m lower on Leighton Vander Esch than the rest of the world. I thought his tape was horribly inconsistent and he flashed when it was easy to flash. There are things about him that I like, his size among them. But I just don’t know if he’s fast enough to play weak-side linebacker if Sean Lee went down with another team crippling injury (God forbid.)

As for Darius Leonard from South Carolina State, he’s more of a day three prospect in my eyes. I have a 4th round grade on him. He flies around to the ball but struggles in taking on blocks. I feel better about him at weakside linebacker than I do as the middle linebacker.

There are many unknowns relative to the rest of the list, but I’d sure like to find out if this team has Georgia LB Roquan Smith or Virginia Tech LB Tremaine Edmunds on their radar, or if they’re already conceding that both players will be gone when it’s their time to pick at 19.

Lastly, the rest of the players that have been reported on the list are RB Nyheim Hines of North Carolina State and Texas safety Deshon Elliott. I have a 3rd round grade on Hines and he is my 8th-best RB in this draft. He serves as a great option behind Zeke, with his ability to gain big chunks of yardage and sub-4.4 40 time.

I'm not crazy about Deshon Elliott. I predict that he will go a lot higher than my grade says he should. I saw a player who doesn’t show the instincts necessary to be trusted full-time at free safety. He did have 6 interceptions last year, but after seeing them all on tape, 4 of those were gifts and handed directly to him. If the Cowboys wanted Elliott in round four, I’m all for it, but I’d prefer not to waste a premium pick on him. No offense, Longhorn fans.

As we move a little closer, history shows that we’ll learn the identity of the remaining players on the list. I’ll be sure to have a breakdown for you right here at The Athletic.
 
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