Cowboys Fill Needs With Their Draft Picks

Regular readers will know that I am a huge fan of the Dallas Cowboys, and I also love the NFL draft -- so the last three days have been a lot of fun for me.

This year, the Cowboys were pretty thin at a couple of positions (defensive end and cornerback) -- and they addressed those needs in the first three rounds of the draft. I don't know that any of those three will be instant starters, but the hope is that all three can play and contribute this next year. The fourth round pick was a wide receiver, but also an excellent punt returner -- which is probably how he'll contribute this season.

They also got a couple more defensive backs and a couple of defensive linemen (and another wide receiver) later in the draft. We'll have to wait until training camp to see if they make the team -- but the Cowboys have a good history of finding players in the later rounds, so they might work out.

On the whole, I think they did a very good job of drafting this year.

Here are the draft picks for the Cowboys:

ROUND 1

(28th pick)
Taco Charlton (Michigan)
Defensive End
6' 6" - 277 lbs.

ROUND 2

(60th pick)
Chidobe Awuzie (Colorado)
Cornerback
6' 0" - 202 lbs.

ROUND 3

(92nd pick)
Jourdan Lewis (Michigan)
Cornerback
5' 10" - 188 lbs.

ROUND 4

(133rd pick)
Ryan Switzer (North Carolina)
Wide Receiver / Punt Returner
5' 9" - 181 lbs.

ROUND 5 (no pick)

ROUND 6

(191st pick)
Xavier Woods (Louisiana Tech)
Safety
5' 11" - 197 lbs.

(216th pick)
Marquez White (Florida State)
Cornerback
6' 0" - 194 lbs.

ROUND 7

(228th pick)
Joey Ivie (Florida)
Defensive Tackle
6' 3" - 300 lbs.

(239th pick)
Noah Brown (Ohio State)
Wide Receiver
6' 2" - 222 lbs.

(246th pick)
Jordan Carrell (Colorado)
Defensive Tackle
6' 2" - 290 lbs

Dallas Cowboys Draft Picks In 2016 NFL Draft

As regular readers of this blog will probably know, I am a die-hard Dallas Cowboys fan. I have only missed seeing or hearing one Cowboys game since their inception in 1960. That was when I was having surgery to repair a gunshot wound in 2005 -- and even then, my first question when waking up was "Did the Cowboys win?" (they had not won that one).

So, I hope you'll bear with me as I part with politics for a minute to celebrate the Cowboy's draft picks for this year.

Here are those picks:

4th pick (round 1) -- Ezekiel Elliott, running back, Ohio State (6'0", 225 lbs)

34th pick (round 2) -- Jaylon Smith, linebacker, Notre Dame (6'3", 229 lbs)

67th pick (round 3) -- Maliek Collins, defensive tackle, Nebraska (6'2", 311 lbs)

101st pick (round 4) -- Charles Tapper, defensive end, Oklahoma (6'4", 260 lbs)

135th pick (round 4) -- Dak Prescott, quarterback, Mississippi State (6'2", 226 lbs)

189th pick (round 6) -- Anthony Brown, cornerback, Purdue (5'11", 192 lbs)

212th pick (round 6) -- Kavon Frazier, safety, Central Michigan (6'0", 217 lbs)

216th pick (round 6) -- Darius Jackson, running back, Eastern Michigan (6'0", 221 lbs)

217th pick (round 6) -- Rico Gathers, tight end, Baylor (6'8", 273 lbs)

I have no doubt that Ezekiel Elliott will make an immediate impact, especially running behind the great offensive line of the Cowboys. But this draft will be judged by the players taken after him.

Jaylon Smith was originally projected to be a top five pick in this draft, but then he hurt his knee. He is expected to recuperate fully, but probably will not play until the 2017 season. If he does return to the form he had in college, this this will be remembered as a great pick. He just won't be able to help the team this season.

For me, this draft will be judged as good or bad by how the next four players work out. Can Maliek Collins, Charles Tapper, and Anthony Brown help to improve the defense in the coming season? Will Dak Prescott turn out to be the team's future quarterback (as expected)? Nobody knows, but I hope they are all as good as I think they are. We'll find out when training camp opens in July.

Cowboys Use #4 Pick To Select Running Back Ezekiel Elliott

The Dallas Cowboys used their number 4 pick in the first round of the 2016 NFL Draft to select Ohio State running back Ezekiel Elliott.

I was a bit surprised, because I think the Cowboys have more holes on defense than offense -- but Elliott seems to be the consensus best running back in this year's draft. If it takes us back to the type of run offense Dallas had with Emmitt Smith, then I won't complain. And that could happen, since Dallas has one of the best offensive lines in the NFL.

The pick of Elliott could also take some pressure off of quarterback Tony Romo, as defenses will have to respect the run now. And according to the sports pundits, Elliott is also an excellent blocker and pass receiver.

I think this might have been a very good pick -- and I'll like it even better if the Cowboys can get some defensive help in the second and third rounds.

(NOTE -- The "fashion-plate" picture of Elliott is from Newsday. The football photo of Elliott is from WKYC.com.)

Cowboys Picks In Rounds Four Through Seven

The Cowboys drafted well in the first three rounds, and I expect all three of the players chosen to make the team and contribute (at least as a backup) in the coming season. But the players chosen in rounds four through seven are never "sure-things". The Cowboys have struck gold in the past in the lower rounds (Everson Walls was a 14th round pick), and they've made some draft mistakes. How will they do with those picks this year?

If nothing else, they did try to address some needs for the team -- drafting a linebacker in the fourth round, a defensive end in the fifth round, and a linebacker, an offensive tackle, and a tight end in the seventh round. The tight end choice was somewhat a surprise for me, since they are pretty well set at that position. I expect he will mainly be used as a blocker. Here are those picks:

4 (127th overall) -- Damien Wilson of University of Minnesota, inside linebacker (6'2", 240 lbs)

5 (163rd overall) -- Ryan Russell of Purdue University, defensive end (6'4", 269 lbs)

7 (236th overall) -- Mark Nzeocha of University of Wyoming, outside linebacker (6'2", 232 lbs)

7 (243rd overall) -- Laurence Gibson of Virginia Tech University, Offensive tackle (6'6", 305 lbs)

7 (246th overall) -- Geoff Swaim of University of Texas, tight end (6'4", 245 lbs)

It will be interesting to watch these players, and to see if they can make the team and contribute.

 (Photo of Damien Wilson is from minnesota.cbslocal.com.)

(Photo of Ryan Russell is from youtube.com.)

(Photo of Mark Nzeocha is from bloggingtheboys.com.)

(Photo of Laurence Gibson is from hokiesports.com.)

(Photo of Geoff Swaim is from espn.go.com.)

Cowboys Make Their Second And Third Round Picks

After drafting one of the top cornerbacks in the country (Byron Jones -- University of Connecticut) in the first round of the NFL draft, the Cowboys stood firm in the second round -- and their patience was rewarded.

With the 60th pick of this year's draft, the Cowboys selected Randy Gregory (6'6'', 240 lbs.) -- a Defensive End / Outside Linebacker from the University of Nebraska. The Cowboys needed a good pass rusher, and that's exactly what Gregory is -- one of the best pass rushers in the nation.

According to many experts, Gregory has the talent to have been in the top 15 selections. He dropped because of some off-field problems. But Jerry Jones says the Cowboys talked with Gregory and did their "due diligence", and are comfortable with drafting him. That's good enough for me at this point. If Gregory is serious about becoming a great player in the NFL, then this pick was a steal for the Cowboys.

In the third round (the 91st overall pick), the Cowboys made their pick for the other side of the ball -- picking Chaz Green (6'5", 314 lbs.), an offensive tackle from the University of Florida. The Cowboys offensive line is set, but they could use some back-ups -- and that seems to be the thinking in taking Green. This pick was a surprise to me, but you can never have too many really good linemen -- and Green is supposed to be pretty good.

On the last day of the draft, the Cowboys have a fourth round pick (127th overall), a fifth round pick (163rd overall), and two seventh round picks (236th and 243rd overall). It will be interesting to see what they can do with those picks.

(This photo of Randy Gregory is from football.com.)

(Photo of Chaz Green is from USA Today via scout.com.)

Cowboy's First Pick Is Cornerback Byron Jones (UConn)

I normally stick to blogging about politics and economics on this blog, but a few times each year I will talk about something else -- and these few days at the end of April and fist of May are one of the exceptions. That's because I am a die-hard fan of the Dallas Cowboys -- and I love the NFL draft. These draft days let the fans of all the league's teams do a little dreaming.

Thanks to a pretty good season last year, the Cowboys had the 27th pick in the first round of this year's draft. The player they selected was a 6'1" 199 lb. cornerback from the University of Connecticut --Byron Jones (pictured below). I'm pretty happy with the pick. Cornerback was a real position of need for the Cowboys, and his size will help help play against the taller receivers in the league.

Tomorrow the Cowboys have the 28th pick in the second round (60th overall pick), and the 27th pick in the third round (the 91st overall pick). Personally, I'd like to see them pick a couple of defensive lineman -- a tackle and a rushing end.

(This photo of Byron Jones is from cbs.com.)

Cowboys Sign Undrafted Free Agents

The official NFL Draft is over now, and the Dallas Cowboys were able to draft 9 players that will hopefully improve their team. But the end of the draft was not the end of finding and signing college players. As soon as the draft was over, Cowboys staff got busy signing college players that were not drafted, but might have enough talent to play in the NFL. Following is a list of 23 players that sources say have signed with the Cowboys. They will attend the rookie mini-camp next week, and probably go to the Cowboys' Training Camp at the end of July -- and perhaps, one or more of them could even make the team.

Chris Whaley (Texas), defensive end
J.C. Copeland (LSU), fullback
Dustin Vaughan (West Texas A&M), quarterback
L'Damian Washington (Missouri), wide receiver
Cody Mandell (Alabama), punter
Brian Clarke (Bloomsburg), guard
Jordan Najvar (Baylor), tight end
Davon Coleman (Arizona State), defensive end
Dontavis Sapp (Tennessee), linebacker
Casey Kreiter (Iowa), long snapper
Chris Boyd (Vanderbilt), wide receiver
Ben Malena (Texas A&M), running back
Ryan Smith (Auburn), safety
Keith Smith (San Jose State), linebacker
Ronald Patrick (South Carolina), guard
Jarrod Pughsley (Akron), offensive lineman
Glasco Martin (Baylor), running back
Evan Wilson (Illinois), tight end
Marvin Robinson (Ferris State), safety
Jocquel Skinner (Bethel), defensive back
Josh Aladenoye (Illinois State), offensive lineman
Joe Windsor (Northern Illinois), defensive end
Andre Cureton (Cincinnati), offensive lineman

Cowboys' 2014 Draft

The 2014m NFL Draft is over, and 256 college players have been drafted. They won't all make it on a NFL squad when the season when the season starts, but at least they have a shot at becoming an NFL player. They will get a contract and go to training camp -- and the rest is now up to them. The last player chosen in the draft (dubbed "Mr. Irrelevant") was Memphis safety Lonnie Ballentine, who goes to the Houston Texans.

Dallas seems to have filled some needs by drafting seven players on the last day of the draft (giving them nine players drafted this year). Hopefully several of them will make the team and become important contributors this year. Here are the nine players drafted by the Dallas Cowboys this year:

Round One (16th overall pick)
Zack Martin (Notre Dame)
Offensive Lineman
6' 4" - 308 lbs

Round Two (34th overall pick)
Demarcus Lawrence (Boise State)
Defensive End
6' 3" - 251 lbs

Round Four (119th overall pick)
Anthony Hitchens (Iowa)
Linebacker
6' 0" - 240 lbs

Fifth Round (146th overall pick)
Devin Street (Pittsburgh)
Wide Receiver
6' 3" - 198 lbs

Seventh Round (231st overall pick)
Ben Gardner (Stanford)
Defensive End
6' 4" - 277 lbs

Seventh Round (238th overall pick)
Will Smith (Texas Tech)
Linebacker
6' 2" - 230 lbs

Seventh Round (248th overall pick)
Ahmad Dixon (Baylor)
Safety
6' 0" - 205 lbs

Seventh Round (251st overall pick)
Ken Bishop (Northern Illinois)
Defensive Tackle
6' 0" - 306 lbs

Seventh Round (254th overall pick)
Terrance Mitchell (Oregon)
Cornerback
6' 0" - 190 lbs

Now the Cowboys will try to make sure they better their team by signing some undrafted rookie free agents. Most of them won't make the final team, but every now and then a team can strike gold with an undrafted player -- remember, Tony Romo was not drafted and was signed as a free agent. I'll list these free agents as soon as I know who they are.

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Micheal Sam was drafted in the seventh round (249th overall) by the St. Louis Rams. Sam was an All-American and SEC Defensive Player of the Year -- and he should have gone much earlier in the draft. But most clubs were afraid to draft him because he is openly gay (and they should all be ashamed of themselves). St. Louis drafted him later than they should have, but at least they gave him a chance. I believe they'll be very happy that they did. Gay or not, he's a very good player.

Cowboy's Draft

The first three rounds of the NFL Draft have been completed, and 100 college football players have been chosen. Two of those 100 players are now Dallas Cowboys.

On Thursday night, the Cowboys chose an offensive lineman -- Zach Martin from Notre Dame. On Friday night, they addressed an equally important need on the other side of the ball, by choosing Demarcus Lawrence of Boise State -- a defensive end. To get Lawrence, the Cowboys traded their second and third round picks to move up and choose the second player of round two. That's fairly expensive, so the Cowboys' brain trust must have really liked Lawrence. I hope he's as good as they think he is, because he'll be needed to step up and contribute right away.

 The Cowboys will have a bunch of picks on Saturday -- one in round four, one in round five, and six picks in round seven (for a total of eight picks). Here's how the Cowboys' draft looks so far:

Round One (16th overall pick)
Zack Martin, Notre Dame
Offensive Line
6' 4" -- 308 lbs.

Round Two (34th overall pick)
Demarcus Lawrence, Boise State
Defensive End
6' 3" -- 251 lbs.

Cowboys Draft An Offensive Lineman In 1st Round

The draft got kind of scary for a while. Texas A&M quarterback Johnny Manziel kept dropping in the draft, and the pundits on ESPN kept talking about how the Cowboys wanted him. I was hoping that wasn't true, because the Cowboys need a player that can help them right now -- not one that will sit on the bench waiting for Tony Romo to retire. Fortunately, the Cowboys brain trust was smarter than the ESPN pundits.

With the 16th pick of the NFL Draft, the Cowboys selected Zack Martin -- a 6'4" 308 pound offensive lineman from Notre Dame. He last played offensive tackle for Notre Dame, but is supposed to be athletic enough to play either tackle or guard for the Cowboys -- and the chances are good he may replace Bernadeau at right guard this coming year. At the very least, we now have some depth on the offensive line.

I'm happy with the pick, and I think they actually took the best player available at the 16th pick. But we still need defensive line help (at both end and tackle). Hopefully that will be addressed tonight, as the 2nd and 3rd rounds of the draft are held.

The Argument Over Being Gay In A Professional Sport

(The picture of Michael Sam above from Sports Illustrated is by Matthew Visinsky.)

A few days ago, college football player Michael Sam admitted publicly that he was a gay man. This should not have been a news story, but it has become one -- mostly because the owners, coaches, and players in the National Football League seem to still have some growing up to do. Some of them have tried to make the idiotic argument that he would be a disruptive factor in the "locker room". But the truth is that they would be the disruptive ones -- not Mr. Sam.

The sad fact is that Mr. Sam, through his public admittance of something that should not even matter, has probably cost himself a lot of money. As the SEC Defensive Player of the Year, he was a very highly rated player and would probably have been drafted in the top couple of rounds of the NFL Draft. Now he is being projected to go in the fifth round or lower (which would mean his initial contract would be for much less money).

Frankly, I don't understand why his sexual orientation should matter at all -- whether he's a football player or doing some other job. He can either do the job, or he can't -- and his sexual orientation doesn't have anything to do with that. And if he can do the job (and his college career has shown he most likely can do it very well), then that is all that should matter when it comes draft time (and time to field the best players a team can get).

I know some people will try to say sports is different, because the men must shower together. But that is an incredibly stupid argument -- and one that shows that person's own insecurities and inadequacies, not those of Mr. Sam (or his ability to do the job).

It is time for this country to get past this kind of bigotry, whether in sports or any other profession. And fortunately, most Americans agree with that. The charts below show that. They are taken from a new YouGov Poll (taken of 1,000 nationwide adults on February 10th and 11th, with a 3.7 point margin of error).

Note that a large majority of Americans would approve of their team signing a gay athlete (65%). For them, the talent level would be far more important than whether the athlete preferred a man or woman in a love relationship. In fact, most of the public (68%) don't think it would be appropriate for the team to even investigate a player's sexual orientation. And an even larger percentage (74%) think it would be inappropriate for the news media to "out" a person as being gay (it seems that Mr. Sam came out publicly because the media was investigating that question).

It's time for the NFL and the news media to do some growing up. It's time for them to take a cue from the public at large, and dump their bigotry.

Cowboys Finish Draft With 3 More Picks

The Cowboys tried to add a little depth at some critical positions with their last three picks of this year's draft -- picking players at cornerback, running back, and outside linebacker. The players they picked are:

114th PICK (17th pick in round 4)
B.W. Webb, William and Mary
cornerback (5' 11", 185 lbs)

151st PICK (18th pick in round 5)
Joseph Randle, Oklahoma State
running back (6' 0", 204 lbs)

185th PICK (17th pick in round 6)
DeVonte Holloman, South Carolina
outside linebacker (6' 2", 243 lbs)

That wraps up the Cowboys draft for 2013. If they get anymore help this year, it'll have to come from signing some good free agents (players who didn't get drafted). And that is a definite possibility, since the Cowboys are traditionally one of the best teams at finding free agents who can play some football. It is not unusual for one or two free agents to make the team each year. Remember, Tony Romo was a free agent.

I'm going to give the Cowboys a draft grade of B- this year. Of course, that grade could go up or down, depending on how many make the team after training camp and are able to effectively contribute to the team's success.

I think Frederick will make a good serviceable lineman for several years, either at center or at guard, and will probably start for the team this year. He's not the superstar I was hoping for, but I think he will help to improve the offensive line. And Wilcox, the safety taken in round 3, also has a very good chance of starting this year. That makes two probable starters, which is not too bad.

I also believe Webb, the cornerback, and Randle, the running back, could contribute in the upcoming season -- not as starters, but as quality back-ups (and the Cowboys needed some depth at both positions). The two players I'm not sure will get much playing time, assuming they make the team, are tight end Escobar and wide receiver Williams. Both are going to have to compete with some very good players to see much game action. I don't know much about linebacker Holloman, and just hope he was worth picking.

Cowboys Get 3 Players In 2nd & 3rd Rounds

I'm a little more satisfied with the Cowboys draft after day two. With their three second day picks, the Cowboys beefed up their receiving corps with a tight end and a wide receiver -- then they picked a free safety. All three seem to be good players. The tight end will have to earn his way to playing time (since the Cowboys already have two good tight ends in Witten and Hanna), but the wide receiver is very fast (4.4 on the 40) and has a good chance of getting a lot of playing time. The safety could be a starter, if he's as good as the Cowboys think he is. Here are those three picks:

47th PICK (15th pick of 2nd round)
Gavin Escobar, San Diego State
Tight End (6'6", 254 lbs)

74th PICK (12th pick of 3rd round)
Terrance Williams, Baylor
Wide Receiver (6'2", 207 lbs)

80th PICK (18th pick of 3rd round)
J.J. Wilcox, Georgia Southern
Safety (6'0", 213 lbs)

On Saturday, the Cowboys have three more draft picks -- the 114th (17th pick of 4th round), the 151st (18th pick of 5th round), and the 185th (17th pick of 6th round). It would be nice if they could get some defensive line help and a good running back.

Cowboys Take Wisconsin Center In 1st Round

It's hard to get a real difference maker in the NFL Draft when you have a mediocre football season -- a season that's not good enough to get you in the playoffs and not bad enough to get a superstar draft pick. I was hoping for a really good offensive or defensive lineman -- a "can't miss" pick that would be a sure upgrade for the line. But when the 18th pick came around all the best linemen on both sides of the ball had already been picked.

The Cowboys traded their 18th pick for a number 31 pick and a third round pick (from the 49ers). Then with the 31st pick, the Cowboys reached down into the second round and picked a center from the Wisconsin Badgers -- Travis Frederick (6' 4", 338 lbs). The Cowboys were weak at center last year, so maybe this is an upgrade. I really hope so. Being picked in the first round (even at number 31), Frederick needs to be a starter next season -- and a good one.

I still think they need another guard or tackle and an interior defensive lineman. Unfortunately, you never know what you're really getting when you draft after the first round. It could be a diamond in the rough, or it could be a poser. I guess we'll have to trust that the Cowboy scouts have found some guys with real value further down in the draft. All in all, I'm pretty disappointed in the first day of the draft.

Cowboys Get 5 Players On Draft's Final Day

Any player drafted in the first round is expected to immediately contribute to his new team, and should be a starter right away. In the second and third rounds the players might not be expected to be immediate starters, but if correctly picked, they should make the team and work their way into a starting position. The same cannot be said of players picked in the fourth through seventh rounds. They might turn out to be great players, or they might not even be on the team on opening day. We simply won't know until they get to training camp and compete for a position on the team.

But on the draft's third day, all teams are excited about the players they were able to pick in the final four rounds -- and the Cowboys are no exception. They drafted five players on day three, and hope that those players will turn out to be wise choices and real contributors to the team. Here are the five players chosen by the Cowboys in rounds four through seven:

Fourth Round, 18th pick (113th overall pick)
Kyle Wilber (6'4", 250), outside linebacker, Wake Forest

Fourth Round, 40th pick (135th overall pick)
Matt Johnson (6'1", 212), safety, Eastern Washington

Fifth Round, 17th pick (152nd overall pick)
Danny Coale (6'0", 200), wide receiver, Virginia Tech

Sixth Round, 16th pick (186th overall pick)
James Hannah (6'3", 245), tight end, Oklahoma

Seventh Round, 15th pick (222nd overall pick)
Caleb McSurdy (6'1", 245), inside linebacker, Montana

Now that the draft is over, the Cowboys can get busy trying to sign some undrafted free agents. Most of them will just be fodder for training camp, but the Cowboys have been as good as any team in finding some real players among the undrafted -- remember, Romo and Austin were both undrafted free agents.

Cowboys Draft Boise State Defensive End

It was a long stretch between the Dallas Cowboys first and second draft picks -- about 75 places (because they had traded away their second round pick), and that made for a fairly boring second night of the draft. I'm not really complaining. I think it was well worth losing the second round pick to get Morris Claiborne, the LSU cornerback, in the first round -- a player who makes the defense much better (and probably will for a long time).

The Cowboys finally got to pick again in the third round, with the 81st pick of this year's draft. The player they picked was Tyrone Crawford, a 6'4", 275 pound defensive end who played for Boise State. The Cowboys needed a little more help on their defensive line, but from what I hear Crawford is a little raw. Hopefully, he is a fast learner and a hard worker and can contribute in the coming season. Here is what NFL.com had to say about him:

STRENGTHS

 Crawford is quick to get out of his stance off the snap and has the instincts to slant and hit a gap without being touched. He is consistently disrupting plays in the backfield and is a solid tackler. He is a strong player who shows an explosive arm jolt when keeping blockers at bay. Crawford shows good change of direction when stopping to pursue plays laterally. As a rusher, his motor is the key to his success. He never gives up on a play and can use a strong burst to get to the quarterback. He has a ton of upside, which undoubtedly increases his values to teams who are set at the position and willing to patient and work with him. Despite his size, he could even play special teams early on in his career because he has such a nasty demeanor.

WEAKNESSES

 Crawford is a raw prospect who only has one year of collegiate playing experience at the Football Bowl Subdivision level. He would be a project early on for the team that selects him, and he could have a tough time adapting right away. He has had trouble getting off double teams, which could be a technique issue, a likely possibility given his well-documented strength. Crawford will need extra coaching and attention to adjust to the NFL.

Today, the draft finishes up with rounds four through seven. The Cowboys have five picks -- two in round four, one in round five, one in round six, and one in round seven. Will there be any future Cowboy greats among those five picks? There's no way to know. In picks past the third round a team can strike gold or strike out. It will be interesting to see who they are though.

Cowboys Move Up & Draft LSU Cornerback

It's no secret that one of the biggest weaknesses of the Dallas Cowboys last year was in their secondary. They just gave up too many receptions last year, especially late in the game. The Cowboys had already addressed this problem in free agency -- by signing a top-notch cornerback (Brandon Carr) and a solid safety (Brodney Pool). Because of this, most people thought the Cowboys would use their pick (14th in the draft) to get a pass rusher (either a defensive lineman or an outside linebacker).

But Jerry Jones is nothing, if not unpredictable. In his 21 years of NFL drafts, he has traded his first round pick in all but six years. Usually that meant he traded down to get more overall picks. But this year he went the other way. Jones traded the Cowboys first and second round picks to the Los Angeles Rams for their first round pick (the 6th overall pick of the draft).

With that 6th pick of the draft, the Cowboys chose LSU cornerback Morris Claiborne -- who was generally regarded as not only the best cornerback in the draft, but also the best overall defensive player in the draft. With the addition of Claiborne ( a true "shutdown" corner) to Carr (considered one of the league's top corners), Orlando Scandrick (just signed to a new long-term contract), and Mike Jenkins (still recovering from an injury), the Cowboys have gone from a weak secondary to having possibly the best secondary in the league.

I think trading up to get Claiborne was a stroke of genius, and I can't believe it only cost them a second round pick. That's almost highway robbery. Even Stephen Jones said he was surprised they didn't have to give up more than just a second round pick to get Claiborne -- who the Cowboys said was the only player they would trade up to get. He was the second player on their draft board (behind quarterback Andrew Luck who was picked first in this draft).

Well done Jerry, Stephen, and Jason! I hope you can repeat this magic in your remaining draft choices.

Cowboys Get Lucky In The Draft !

I couldn't believe it! The Cowboys were able to draft from the bottom of the NFL Draft, and still wind up with one of the best players available -- Oklahoma State wide receiver Dez Bryant (6'2", 225 lbs). Most scouts had Bryant picked as the best wide receiver in this year's draft, and he was expected to be picked in the top ten -- surely no later than 15th. But that didn't happen.

As most teams seemed to pick for need (as opposed to the best available player), and some teams even reached to fill that need, Bryant (pictured) kept slipping lower and lower in the draft. When he dropped into the number 24 slot, Jerry Jones couldn't believe his luck and quickly arranged a trade to move up three positions and draft Bryant. While the Cowboys' most pressing needs were for an offensive lineman and a safety, they can certainly use a wide receiver with Bryant's talent.

The Cowboys only had one wide receiver that played great last year -- Miles Austin. Roy Williams on the other side was a huge disappointment and seemed to disappear altogether in some games. Bryant will pressure Williams to either step up his game or take a seat on the bench, and that's a good thing. Now we can only hope that the Cowboys are able to pull off a couple more coups in rounds 2 through 4, and get the safety and offensive lineman they need.

Meanwhile, the other Texas team (Houston Texans) drafted in the number 20 spot, and it looks like they may have gotten some help in the defensive backfield. They drafted cornerback Kareem Jackson (5'10", 196 lbs) from the University of Alabama.

And the Big 12 Conference showed its strength. The first four players chosen in the draft were from the Big 12, and they wound up with nine players chosen in the first round.

Cowboys To Draft 27th On Thursday

Drafting a great future football player is fairly easy in the first few rounds of the NFL Draft. But finding a great player worthy of being a first-round pick becomes a lot harder when a team drafts late in the round. That's Dallas' problem this year. The Cowboys have the 27th pick in the first round.

The Cowboys have a couple of immediate needs that could be addressed in the first round. They badly need a top-notch left offensive tackle and a safety, and many of the pundits predict they'll try to fill one of those needs in the first round. The two players mentioned most in the mock drafts are USC safety Taylor Mays and Maryland offensive tackle Bruce Campbell. It is likely that one or both of them will be available at the 27th pick, and both were impressive at the NFL workouts.

The question the Cowboys need to answer now is are they great future football players, or are they just "workout warriors" (players who do great in individual workouts but are unable to translate that talent to the football field). Workout statistics may be impressive, but they don't do a team much good unless the player can put his talent to good use on the field during a game.

Mays has impressive size and skills. He stands 6' 3" and weighs 230 pounds. During workouts he ran the 40 in 4.43 seconds, had a 41-inch vertical leap and could do 24 repetitions of a 225 pound weight. The talk is that he's a great tackler and could be switched to linebacker, but is deficient is pass coverage. That sounds to me like the second-coming of Roy Williams, and that's not good.

While another linebacker might be nice, the Cowboys need a safety a lot more. In the modern NFL, a safety needs to be great both in pass coverage and tackling. A deficiency in either one leaves a gaping hole in the defense. The Cowboys should know this, since they tried for several years without much success to cover for Roy Williams' lack of pass coverage skills. Hopefully, the Cowboys will pass on Mays.

That leaves Bruce Campbell (pictured) as the likely first-round choice. He also has impressive size and workout skills. He is 6' 61/2" tall and weighs 314 pounds -- adequate size for an offensive tackle. He also blew away other prospects his size in the workouts, running the 40 in 4.85 seconds, has a 32-inch vertical leap and lifted 225 pounds with 34 repetitions. That is very impressive size, speed and strength.

That only leaves one question. Is he a football player? Can he make that size, speed and strength work for him on the football field where it really counts? After all, he'll be counted on to protect Tony Romo's blind-side, where failure could be devastating.

Casting some doubt on his ability to be a player is the fact that he only started 17 games at Maryland, and didn't receive a single vote for first-team or second-team All Conference at his position. That's a bit worrying, but at #27 there's going to be doubts about nearly any player. There are no "sure things" at #27 or lower in the draft (although many good players have been found lower).

The rumor is that Jerry Jones is in love with Campbell's potential, and that gives him a great shot at being drafted if he falls to #27. If the choice comes down to Mays or Campbell, I hope the Cowboys pick Campbell. At least he doesn't have any known deficiencies -- like Mays poor pass coverage. And maybe he'll turn out to be a great player.

Anyway, we'll know Thursday night who the first-round pick is for the Cowboys. And being the Cowboys "homer" that I am, I'll be in front of the TV waiting to see who it is.

NFL Draft Goes "Prime Time"

This move wasn't totally unexpected. After the last NFL draft, there was talk about moving the next one to prime time television viewing hours. But now it's official, and it starts with next year's draft.

Since 1995, the NFL draft has been a two-day affair held on Saturday and Sunday. But it's popularityhad both the NFL and ESPN eyeing prime time. This year the draft attracted 39 million viewers. Moving to prime time should create an even larger audience.

The first round of the draft will be held on Thursday night, April 22. It will start at 6:30pm CST. The second and third rounds will start at 5:30pm CST on Friday, April 23. Rounds four through seven will then start at 9:00am CST on Saturday, April 24.

Both ESPN and the NFL network will televise all seven rounds.


NOTE - It's less than a week until the Dallas Cowboys open their pre-season camp in San Antonio. Camp will open on July 29th. Football is back!