OGs in the draft... - Dallas Cowboys Forum

silverbear · 04-18-2012

With the signing of Mackenzy Bernadeau and Nate Livings in free agency, drafting an OG became less of a priority for the Cowboys... at the same time, neither of those free agents are Pro Bowlers in the making, so I could see the Boys looking to upgrade at guard in this draft...

The marquee guard in the draft, of course, is David DeCastro from Stanford, the rare highly rated guard who might not even still be on the board at pick 14... as I've said earlier, if I'm drafting for the Cowboys, I'd sit tight at 14 and wait to see if Fletcher Cox, Mark Barron or DeCastro is still on the board... if any of them are, I make that pick quickly, and grin... at one time, I would have said that DeCastro would be the least likely of the three to still be on the board, but in recent days Barron and Cox seem to be climbing the draft boards, while DeCastro's stock seems to be declining a bit...

Even if the Boys need to beef up their defense in this draft, if David DeCastro is on the board at pick 14, I take him... that gives me a pair of potential Pro Bowlers on the left side of my line, Tyron Smith at left tackle, David DeCastro at left guard... that side of the line is set for the next 10 years (barring injury, of course)...

The thing is, DeCastro is not my favorite guard in this draft, even if he is the highest rated... I think I like Cordy Glenn from Georgia even more, he strikes me as being very much in the Carl Nicks mold... Glenn could be had if the Boys traded down from pick 14 into the 20s, I think...

In the second round, the Boys can choose between Kevin Zeitler from Wisconsin and Amini Silatolu from nearby Midwestern State... in the third round are two Brandons, Brandon Washington from Miami and Brandon Brooks from the Miami in Ohio... in the 4th round, there's Jeff Allen from Illinois, who the Cowboys reportedly like for his ability to play tackle as well as guard...

There are a trio of players likely to be drafted in the late rounds (6th or 7th) that I like, including Rishaw Johnson from California (Pa.), Ryan Miller from Colorado and Joe Looney from Wake Forest... to tell you the truth, though, with the offseason free agent signings at guard, and with Nagy and Arkin still factoring into the equation at that position, if the Boys don't draft a guard early, I don't think they'll draft one at all... IOW, if it's not DeCastro or Glenn or Brooks, pass on the guards...

Then after the draft, you have a list of prospects that I like including Mark Asper from Oregon (at 6-7, he might be able to help the depth at tackle too), Justin Anderson from Georgia (really like this 340 pound wide load), Ronald Leary from Memphis (the Boys have met with him), Lonnie Edwards from Texas Tech, Terence Edge from UAB or Hayworth Hicks from Iowa State...

Manwiththeplan · 04-18-2012

Do you or anyone think it's possible that we take Kevin Zeitler in round 2 and play him at center? He did some center during senior bowl practices, so I am a bit curious.

silverbear · 04-18-2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by Manwiththeplan

Do you or anyone think it's possible that we take Kevin Zeitler in round 2 and play him at center? He did some center during senior bowl practices, so I am a bit curious.

The most honest answer I can give you is I don't know... do you know if he was effective in his stint there at the Senior Bowl??

burmafrd · 04-18-2012

Glenn has been slipping because his hype has not been able to hold up vs his slow agility times at the combine and his tape has shown that he is not the hardest worker and does not have all that great a motor.

And he is not really quick enough to do well at the second level and Red Ball thinks that is very important.

Manwiththeplan · 04-18-2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by silverbear

The most honest answer I can give you is I don't know... do you know if he was effective in his stint there at the Senior Bowl??

not sure, I remember seeing a blurb on it, that's it. Just curious, outside of being able to snap and making line calls, what makes a good center versus a good guard? I would imagine that's it. Unlike Tackle, it's really the same size (centers can actually be shorter I think) and the same skill set, no?

Eskimo · 04-18-2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by burmafrd

Glenn has been slipping because his hype has not been able to hold up vs his slow agility times at the combine and his tape has shown that he is not the hardest worker and does not have all that great a motor.

And he is not really quick enough to do well at the second level and Red Ball thinks that is very important.

I absolutely agree with all those points - I don't see us picking Glenn. He doesn't fit what we want to do.

I think the pick is Zeitler if he's there in the second or Brandon Brooks.

ThreeandOut · 04-18-2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by Eskimo

I absolutely agree with all those points - I don't see us picking Glenn. He doesn't fit what we want to do.

I think the pick is Zeitler if he's there in the second or Brandon Brooks.

I'm skeptical about the Cowboys going OG in round 2 unless a players falls to them that they think can beat out Livings or Bernadeau. The Cowboys usually want to get immediate impact from their second round pick. Backup OL usually don't get enough snaps to provide that impact.

CATCH17 · 04-18-2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by ThreeandOut

I'm skeptical about the Cowboys going OG in round 2 unless a players falls to them that they think can beat out Livings or Bernadeau. The Cowboys usually want to get immediate impact from their second round pick. Backup OL usually don't get enough snaps to provide that impact.

I think if the Cowboys go interior OL it will be more of a guard center combo and they will want it to lean more towards center.

Zeitler could probably play center.

I keep coming back to Philip Blake though.

We could potentially get 7-8 years from him.

ThreeandOut · 04-18-2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by CATCH17

I think if the Cowboys go interior OL it will be more of a guard center combo and they will want it to lean more towards center.

Zeitler could probably play center.

I keep coming back to Philip Blake though.

We could potentially get 7-8 years from him.

I agree with you on Blake.

dwmyers · 04-18-2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by silverbear

.. in the 4th round, there's Jeff Allen from Illinois, who the Cowboys reportedly like for his ability to play tackle as well as guard...

Ourlads, at least, ranks Jeff Allen around 8.1 or so, which would make him second round talent in their book.

I'll also note that David DeCastro ranks 7th overall by Ourlads, and outranks both Cox (maybe 9 or so) and Brockers (13th).

D-

dwmyers · 04-18-2012

More comments; there isn't much *good* G talent, according to Ourlads (only one of the scouting bureaus I've looked at much.). The same problem exists at C, where there is the kid from Wisconsin and no one else for 3 whole rounds. If there is a run at guard, Zeitler will be gone. That's because it's DeCastro, then Zeitler, then whomever you think is also a 2nd round choice (Jeff Allen if you're Ourlands, Amini Silatolu if you're the Bear).

With 22 positions on the football field (2 of them guard), and 31 people in between our first and second round picks, how much chance is there that one of them really wants a guard?

That said, I like the idea of Zeitler in the second, but I wouldn't be averse to Alameda Ta'amu either.

D-

**ABQCOWBOY** · 04-18-2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by Eskimo

I absolutely agree with all those points - I don't see us picking Glenn. He doesn't fit what we want to do.

I think the pick is Zeitler if he's there in the second or Brandon Brooks.

I think that before you say that he doesn't fit what we want to do, you have to consider what it is that our new OL Coach has done in the past. What we have done, up until his arrival, is probably not a good indication of what we will do now. JMO

InmanRoshi · 04-18-2012

Jeff Allen is going to go before #45 as a tackle. He played both the left and right side tackle at Illinois as a a "weakside" tackle, because they flipped their offensive linemen around depending on the play. That kind of versatility is going to attract a team desperate for a tackle (which is about half the league).

As far as a 3rd rounder, I really like Kelechi Osemele moving inside to a guard position. Strong as an oxe, big, smart, hard worker, 4 year starter, 36 inch arms. I could see him being able to play both guard positions and filling in at right tackle.

CowboyFan74 · 04-18-2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by silverbear

With the signing of Mackenzy Bernadeau and Nate Livings in free agency, drafting an OG became less of a priority for the Cowboys... at the same time, neither of those free agents are Pro Bowlers in the making, so I could see the Boys looking to upgrade at guard in this draft...

The marquee guard in the draft, of course, is David DeCastro from Stanford, the rare highly rated guard who might not even still be on the board at pick 14... as I've said earlier, if I'm drafting for the Cowboys, I'd sit tight at 14 and wait to see if Fletcher Cox, Mark Barron or DeCastro is still on the board... if any of them are, I make that pick quickly, and grin... at one time, I would have said that DeCastro would be the least likely of the three to still be on the board, but in recent days Barron and Cox seem to be climbing the draft boards, while DeCastro's stock seems to be declining a bit...

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Nice write up/analysis... Here's hoping we get one or two of those C/G...