JBell
That's still my Quarterback
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Take us inside the virtual war room, when a guy no one is expecting to be available at 17 is there. When the 16th pick goes off, who talks first, who makes the case for what, and how do you settle it?
McClay: We talk about it leading up to it. The draft is two fold - need and best player available. We had a couple guys we liked on the defensive side of the ball, but at the end of the day, Lamb was the best player available on our board.
Scouting report on Lamb?
McClay: Ability to play all 3 WR positions. Can do some things in the backfield. Elusive after the catch. Another weapon you can add with Zeke, Dak, the WR's, the TE, our new offensive schemes.
You had a discussion on Diggs/Gallimore in the 2nd round. Can you walk us through it?
McClay: After free agency started, you lose Byron, and you have expiring contracts coming up, so when it's coming down and you have similar grades. When you look at the draft, you look at the depth of your evaluations and the depth of positions. We were looking for long athletic corners that could start right away. We felt there was more depth at DT. There was less of Diggs' type available at that point in the draft.
Was Lamb a total consensus?
McClay: It was unanimous. When you're in the first round, you're looking for a guy that can make an immediate impact and check all the boxes. If he's near the top of the draft board you'd be crazy not to take him.
Was this approach different than previous drafts with the Cowboys?
McClay: No there was no change in approach. We want value players the right way. We make sure we get them where we're comfortable with them, that stayed the same.
Lamb - what part of the draft did you know you had a chance?
McClay: When you start considering the needs of other teams, the best available player at a position of need for other teams, at about 9 or 10 we started to somewhat process it a little bit.
Was there any sort of celebration for the Lamb pick?
McClay: Oh yeah, there was fist bumps and virtual high fives for sure.
Scouts' impact during this process?
McClay: Our process stayed the same [even with COVID 19]. We do a continuous study. Our area scouts are the GM of their areas. They know their players better than anyone else. We continued that, we just didn't have the pro days. We had the virtual interviews.
Your scouts were scouting for Jason Garrett's staff. Then MM was hired. Talk about that transition. Did you have your area scouts present their stuff in a different way?
McClay: The first thing is, this was a unique situation. We've been with that staff for 10 years and know their likes/dislikes. Then we get a new staff and entertain what they wanted and what they're looking for. One thing that had me jumping up and down was when McCarthy said "players over scheme." That was a unique thing to hear and opened the door for a lot of things. We did a good job of addressing some needs during free agency. We went over the area stuff first and set a board, then did a big meeting with the decision makers and represented the scouts' inputs, the medical, the character issues.
McClay: One of the greatest things about our process is that we all get to communicate.
Talk about day 3. Were you surprised about the players that were still available?
McClay: Yeah you want to get a return on your investments. When you put together your board, you value guys a certain way. We have guys we project as starters, quality backups. The unique part about this draft is that we may not have had as much info for the media, like "who did the Cowboys bring in for visits?" and trying to deconstruct who the team likes. But we got some great assets at lower investments.
Did you have a guy that the Cowboys took on Day 3 that was a pet cat for you?
McClay: They're all my pet cats, but I got one guy that is bigger. Anae was huge for us in the 5th. But I had one guy who I felt if we got him by the 4th round I thought it'd be huge. Robinson. His traits.
Reggie Robinson seems like a traits guy, and Anae didn't test well but had great tape. How do you balance that?
McClay: We want to see if the tape matches the traits. But something we're big on, is the reactive athleticism. Are you able to do all those things in situations where you have to use that athleticism. Anae's instincts allow him to play faster. His poor testing wasn't a deterrent for us. Terrell Suggs didn't run well at his pro day either.
Can you run through 1 or 2 guys that you'd say keep an eye on those UDFA's.
McClay: Guys left on our draft board are the priority guys we go after in free agency. They're on the draft board for a reason. After the draft we take every step we can to get them because we valued them in that way. We look at those guys as extra 7th round draft picks.
You said Mike's approach was rare, the "players over scheme" comment?
McClay: When you have a coach that says let's get good football players, if they can't make the scheme work then it's not a very good scheme. He realizes it's not the X's and O's, it's the Jimmie's and Joe's. We can give the coach's a better idea of what we're drafting with that mindset. It's not a highlight tape, it's the good and bad of what they can do.
Who makes the pick?
McClay: The GM, Jerry Jones. Our job in scouting is to be the lawyers and present the information. The good the bad, we give them a grade. Jerry looks at all that input, and goes are we good with that?
McClay: We talk about it leading up to it. The draft is two fold - need and best player available. We had a couple guys we liked on the defensive side of the ball, but at the end of the day, Lamb was the best player available on our board.
Scouting report on Lamb?
McClay: Ability to play all 3 WR positions. Can do some things in the backfield. Elusive after the catch. Another weapon you can add with Zeke, Dak, the WR's, the TE, our new offensive schemes.
You had a discussion on Diggs/Gallimore in the 2nd round. Can you walk us through it?
McClay: After free agency started, you lose Byron, and you have expiring contracts coming up, so when it's coming down and you have similar grades. When you look at the draft, you look at the depth of your evaluations and the depth of positions. We were looking for long athletic corners that could start right away. We felt there was more depth at DT. There was less of Diggs' type available at that point in the draft.
Was Lamb a total consensus?
McClay: It was unanimous. When you're in the first round, you're looking for a guy that can make an immediate impact and check all the boxes. If he's near the top of the draft board you'd be crazy not to take him.
Was this approach different than previous drafts with the Cowboys?
McClay: No there was no change in approach. We want value players the right way. We make sure we get them where we're comfortable with them, that stayed the same.
Lamb - what part of the draft did you know you had a chance?
McClay: When you start considering the needs of other teams, the best available player at a position of need for other teams, at about 9 or 10 we started to somewhat process it a little bit.
Was there any sort of celebration for the Lamb pick?
McClay: Oh yeah, there was fist bumps and virtual high fives for sure.
Scouts' impact during this process?
McClay: Our process stayed the same [even with COVID 19]. We do a continuous study. Our area scouts are the GM of their areas. They know their players better than anyone else. We continued that, we just didn't have the pro days. We had the virtual interviews.
Your scouts were scouting for Jason Garrett's staff. Then MM was hired. Talk about that transition. Did you have your area scouts present their stuff in a different way?
McClay: The first thing is, this was a unique situation. We've been with that staff for 10 years and know their likes/dislikes. Then we get a new staff and entertain what they wanted and what they're looking for. One thing that had me jumping up and down was when McCarthy said "players over scheme." That was a unique thing to hear and opened the door for a lot of things. We did a good job of addressing some needs during free agency. We went over the area stuff first and set a board, then did a big meeting with the decision makers and represented the scouts' inputs, the medical, the character issues.
McClay: One of the greatest things about our process is that we all get to communicate.
Talk about day 3. Were you surprised about the players that were still available?
McClay: Yeah you want to get a return on your investments. When you put together your board, you value guys a certain way. We have guys we project as starters, quality backups. The unique part about this draft is that we may not have had as much info for the media, like "who did the Cowboys bring in for visits?" and trying to deconstruct who the team likes. But we got some great assets at lower investments.
Did you have a guy that the Cowboys took on Day 3 that was a pet cat for you?
McClay: They're all my pet cats, but I got one guy that is bigger. Anae was huge for us in the 5th. But I had one guy who I felt if we got him by the 4th round I thought it'd be huge. Robinson. His traits.
Reggie Robinson seems like a traits guy, and Anae didn't test well but had great tape. How do you balance that?
McClay: We want to see if the tape matches the traits. But something we're big on, is the reactive athleticism. Are you able to do all those things in situations where you have to use that athleticism. Anae's instincts allow him to play faster. His poor testing wasn't a deterrent for us. Terrell Suggs didn't run well at his pro day either.
Can you run through 1 or 2 guys that you'd say keep an eye on those UDFA's.
McClay: Guys left on our draft board are the priority guys we go after in free agency. They're on the draft board for a reason. After the draft we take every step we can to get them because we valued them in that way. We look at those guys as extra 7th round draft picks.
You said Mike's approach was rare, the "players over scheme" comment?
McClay: When you have a coach that says let's get good football players, if they can't make the scheme work then it's not a very good scheme. He realizes it's not the X's and O's, it's the Jimmie's and Joe's. We can give the coach's a better idea of what we're drafting with that mindset. It's not a highlight tape, it's the good and bad of what they can do.
Who makes the pick?
McClay: The GM, Jerry Jones. Our job in scouting is to be the lawyers and present the information. The good the bad, we give them a grade. Jerry looks at all that input, and goes are we good with that?
