Okay, so I read through 7 full pages hoping to find someone with some sanity about the Switzer/Ward trade that wasn't going off half-cocked, and running with a BS rumor created by taking things out of context.
Seriously, the Cowboys didn't trade away Switzer because they acquired Tavon Austin. Austin is on a one-year deal. Beasley's contract runs out at the end of 2018. The Cowboys plan to have Switzer as a replacement for Beasley didn't change because of the acquisition of Tavon Austin.
The reality is that the RAIDERS initiated a trade offer for Switzer because they liked him. In order to PRY HIM AWAY from the Cowboys, they had to offer up a former 2nd round pick at a position the Cowboys needed, and a player they liked in the draft a couple of years ago. The Cowboys weren't dumping Switzer. They had an unexpected opportunity to improve the team by giving up a player THEY VALUED, for another player of value. The Cowboys didn't so much "give up" on Switzer, as they seized an opportunity to improve the Defensive Line.
Certainly, Switzer is entitled to feel a little confused and rejected. That's just normal human reaction. But Switzer was trying to be positive about his new team overall in the interview. The Cowboys never said he did anything wrong. It was he reporter who posed the question. Then a third party Pro Football Talk (PFT) swooped in, took a quotation out of its context, and tried to create a negative story concerning the Cowboys - which was clearly not the intention of Switzer. Switzer wasn't trying to throw shade at the Cowboys, at all.
As for Tavon Austin converting to RB, last year with the Rams, he had 13 receptions, and 59 carries. Two seasons prior, he had 52 carries as a RB for 434 yards. If anyone "converted" Austin to a RB, it was the Rams, not the Cowboys. That doesn't mean the Cowboys were trying to convert Switzer to RB, or that Austin affected the status of Switzer on the team.
It came down to this.
- For the Raiders new coaching staff, the value of WR Switzer > the value of DT Ward, especially after just drafting DT Hall and DT Hurst. So they offered Ward to the Cowboys.
- For the Cowboys, the value of DT Ward > than the value of WR Switzer, especially after just drafting Gallup and Wilson, and signing Hurns and Thompson. So they accepted the Raiders offer.
It's not about Tavon Austin, or the Cowboys wanting to turn Switzer into a RB.
Right after the story broke, Ryan Switzer tweeted back at the PFT story
PFT defended their headline by quoting Switzer directly. And then there was this response on Twitter:
. @VixtolR
Replying to
@ProFootballTalk @Switz
He didn’t claim that he didn’t say that; he was stating that you took the negative and made it the headline to focus on
9:47 AM - 7 May 2018
PFT responded
And this is the next response to PFT
Fitz @Keenan_Fitz
Replying to
@ProFootballTalk @VixtolR @Switz
So you mean falsely shaping a person’s character and dedication to the sport and their team and making it seem as though blame is being thrown around is the best way to write headlines ? Gotcha.
10:03 AM - 7 May 2018
Finally, go read the actual interview:
https://247sports.com/nfl/dallas-co...xamines-abrupt-divorce-from-Cowboys-118031958
Really, guys, it wasn't that hard to look up what was actually said, and the context in which it was said. Pro Football Talk purposely misrepresented the overall context by pulling a quotation out, and making it the focus of their reporting. In context, Switzer responded to a question about what he did wrong to get traded, and say "I don't know" several times, but offers a bit a speculation because while he had 6 receptions, he also had 4 carries in his rookie season. But in the same interview, he says that he did the best he could, and what the coaches asked him to do. He also says the Cowboys didn't take advantage of all his skills, which is certainly true. But it doesn't mean the Cowboys didn't have a plan to use his skills that would have been implemented if the opportunity to trade for Ward had not come along.