Should the Cowboys have drafted Dalvin Cook?

pupulehaole said:

Should the Dallas Cowboys have drafted Tom Brady?

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With Dave Campos and staff? Hell no. They'd have ruined Brady. He is lucky he ended up where he did, playing for the greatest coach and best run organization in sports.

xwalker said:

The Cowboys had pick #28 and #60 for the 1st and 2nd rounds respectively in 2017.

Dalvin Cook was drafted at #41.

I posted back then that if he dropped to #60 that the Cowboys should definitely draft him.

I also said that they should consider him at #28 or with a trade down from #28 or trade up from #60.

Most replies were that it was not a good idea and would be over-kill at the RB position. People also said the RB position is not valuable.

Cook had injury issues his first 2 seasons; however, just based on talent it would have been a good move in retrospect.

A healthy Cook coming into this season would have meant either the Cowboys would let Zeke holdout OR Zeke would not have held out.

Cook's speed/explosiveness looks better than Saquan Barkley to me...

The Cowboys drafted Taco at #28 that year...

Who would or would not have drafted Cook?

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The Cowboys had 1 DE suspended, 1 DT suspended, and 1 DE that played his 1st complete season after being injured and suspended. So they were going Defense in the first round.

Taco has 4 sacks in 5 games before injury to his elbow for the Dolphins after his Marinelli release.

The Cowboys took the 4th overall pick in 2016 and drafted Ezekiel Elliott and went 13-3 with a rookie QB. They were not going to draft a RB the next year in the 1st or 2nd round as a luxury pick.

quickccc said:

- DeMarco Murray ran a 4.41 time at the NFL pre-draft workouts
.... vs Zeke's 4.47 in his 40-time. during pre-draft/NFL combine workouts..

I'm always looking at how these players' workout 40 times translate to the playing field.

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Right, I believe Murrays combine weight was 213. Think I remember reading he drank a couple gallons of water to get his playing weight to around 230 starting 3 to 4 years into his career. Outside of Barkley who doesn't seem to be all that great running between the tackles in my opinion, I don't think 4.43, 4.48, 4.49 really matters all that much. Bell ran 4.6s and seemed to eek out a descent career!

eromeopolk said:

The Cowboys had 1 DE suspended, 1 DT suspended, and 1 DE that played his 1st complete season after being injured and suspended. So they were going Defense in the first round.

Taco has 4 sacks in 5 games before injury to his elbow for the Dolphins after his Marinelli release.

The Cowboys took the 4th overall pick in 2016 and drafted Ezekiel Elliott and went 13-3 with a rookie QB. They were not going to draft a RB the next year in the 1st or 2nd round as a luxury pick.

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My point is to look back to see if they (we) can learn anything from past decisions.

My OP was about possibly trading down from #28 or up from #60 for the only player even at #28 remaining on their board with a true 1st round grade.

Not everyone in the organization wanted to pick Taco. They waffled on Taco, Watt and a DB. If there were not certain, then it would have been good to attempt to trade down, even if just to #30, #31 or #32. The 5th year option does make it less enticing to trade down out of the 1st round.

Maybe get enough from trading down a few spots from #28 to use that pick to trade up from #60. The best value in the draft tends to be early/mid 2nd round with the talent most often falling off in the later part of the 2nd.

Cook would be a great compliment to Zeke and they could be on the field together at times with Cook's terrific receiving abilities.

In the games like the Vikings game or Saint game this year, when Zeke is getting shutdown, it would be great to have another option. Bring in Cook to stress the defenses on the edge and continue using Zeke to pound the ball in the middle.

The Cowboys would not have been "over a barrel" when Zeke was suspended in 2017 or when Zeke held out this year. He probably wouldn't hold out if Cook was on the roster and healthy.

If a team drafts a player with elite ability and that player plays as expected, then other teams will trade for that player at any point. The Saints got 3 season from WR Brandin Cooks and then got a 1st round pick back for him.

If a team has a higher confidence level in a specific player than other available players, then they generally should draft that player regardless of position. The needs of the team for the same season as the draft pick should not be a big consideration. Counting on a rookie is not the best strategy.

Because of the great season that Cook is currently having … ( and he’s showing every sign that he has fully recovered from that serious season ending ACL knee tear he suffered)
and because Cook is showing impressive explosiveness n in his game, .. and that zeke is NOT showing burst/explosion - that’s probably why there’s the Cook vs Zeke comparisons now.

But my bigger concerns is WHY has zeke lost the explosive splash plays that was so signature his rookie year ? and I can only guess work my eye on two questions:

1) Is zeke is showing signs of wear and tear body toll with the total amount of plays (run, catch, block) over just 4 years in the NFL ?

2) have these Cowboys coaches played a huge part in the decline of zeke’s explosiveness ?
Have they insist on added bulk to his frame for the sake of him being made into more a pounding, ball control runner, a more durable blitz-blocker ..and lesser of a homerun runner ?
also have they re-coach Zeke’s run style ? made him nto being more of a patient Levion Bell -style runner in waiting more at the line for a hole or lane to open ?

Between what I’ve seen with how the Rod Smith issue was handled, .. and how the current Tony Pollard situation is currently being handled, I would have to look and questioned the coaches with the zeke situation is being handled as well.

Can't blame the Cabo holdout for lack of burst , as zeke wasn’t even quite the same breakaway runner in 2018, as he was his first 2 years … people talk about Cooks’ dangerous screen passes
.. but that patented quick RB screen that we’d see zeke turn into home run TDs (ala Steelers, Niners) He used to have his own dangerous version –... but where is that now ?

Blame it on the OL for a supposedly lack of holes and openings is weak to me, when you have pro bowlers like Martin and Smith, etc included in that – and I see initial holes that zeke is not hitting with that 2016 burst, the physicality is still there, but he’s no longer feared as a homerun hitter.

If I am the opposing defense, I will easily take that every time. Big bruiser don’t scare defenses …Frank Gores don’t scare defenses … you’ll live to play the next down, but instant breakaway
home run hitters scare the hell outta defenses ! you simply cannot afford to let up or miss a gap not even for one play.
Constant pressure to stay disciplined and maintain or that home runner instantly changes the game around on any given play.

- Something changed within Zeke’s burst and home run game AFTER 2017 …and BEFORE 2018, imo.

And I still recall RB Gary Brown’s “ quotes” before the 2018 season, and reiterated to zeke to “ prepare to take quite a heavier load in 2018, “ that means an excessive
more amount of touches in run/pass game, but because of Rod’s worthlessness, Elliot was simply forced to stay on field
and was very difficult to take him out (and never saw him point to come out for breather as 2018)

But we have a more effective runner in Pollard to give zeke that necessary breather but it doesn't change that zeke's previous burst is clearly missing, and many upon many are taking
notice of it more than ever. ..even if Jerry claims he does not.

It's a bad point. You don't have to die on this hill. You absolutely do not trade down and take Dalvin Cook.

To be honest, and I think everybody probably already knows this, I would have much rather taken T.J. Watt. Now, having said this, I hated the Taco pick. Never thought he was a 1st rounder. Thought he was pushed up because of his position and because he played at Michigan. Cook is an interesting question thou. I didn't love Cook coming out, for the same reasons I don't really love him now. I mean, he was well worth the pick Minnesota used to take him but there were injury concerns with him and I don't really see him being a guy who has a very long career. At least at the level he is playing now. He is having a great season this year, but he's been injured previous two and the way he runs, he's not going to last a very long time in the League, IMO. He takes a lot of punishment in his running style and his game is based on speed and quickness. I think he's short lived but if he gives the Vikings a few seasons like this one, he'll be worth the pick IMO. But it's going to be interesting. It's not a coincidence that he is balling out this year. He has a contract coming up and he wants to get paid. Now, Minnesota won't want to pay him what he wants so that's going to be a problem but yeah, I'd take him over Taco every day, all day, in retrospect.

ABQCOWBOY said:

To be honest, and I think everybody probably already knows this, I would have much rather taken T.J. Watt. Now, having said this, I hated the Taco pick. Never thought he was a 1st rounder. Thought he was pushed up because of his position and because he played at Michigan.

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Pre- draft: I saw people mentioning Taco as a potential Cowboys pick .... I saw Taco's tape... I saw that slow get off at the line and lumbering movement... and I said .. " oh hell Naaaah !!! "

Should the cowboys have drafted everyone who had a good season and predicted it? LMAO

quickccc said:

Pre- draft: I saw people mentioning Taco as a potential Cowboys pick .... I saw Taco's tape... I saw that slow get off at the line and lumbering movement... and I said .. " oh hell Naaaah !!! "

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Yep. To me, he was a 34 DE or a Strong Side 43 DE but I just didn't see that drive either. Just didn't seem like he had the want to and I understand it way better now that we've seen him for a few years. Good luck to him but I'm glad he's moved on.

simplycowboys210 said:

Should the cowboys have drafted everyone who had a good season and predicted it? LMAO

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I don't understand this question? What does this even mean?

If Jerry would have drafted Cook, this site would have crashed beyond the point of repair after his second season in the league. Dude rushed for 900 or so yards and 6 TDs...in his first TWO seasons COMBINED. He was a walking injury. Props to him for rededicated himself and training his body to be ready for the wear & tear of a 16-game season. It only took him two years to do it. And in those two years, he would have had more 'love' from this site than Heath, Dez, Dak, Trysten Hill and our boy Matt Johnson would have received...combined. So, for the sake of this wonderful site, NO.

Randy Moss, that is all.

ShiningStar said:

Randy Moss, that is all.

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For every Randy Moss, there is a Taco Charlton. I mean, I'm not going to complain, our scouting staff and personnel group have done a very good job over the last several drafts. You can't hit on every one of them but Taco seemed to me like a very big miss. I think that pick was a management pick and not a personnel pick. JMO

xwalker said:

The Cowboys had pick #28 and #60 for the 1st and 2nd rounds respectively in 2017.

Dalvin Cook was drafted at #41.

I posted back then that if he dropped to #60 that the Cowboys should definitely draft him.

I also said that they should consider him at #28 or with a trade down from #28 or trade up from #60.

Most replies were that it was not a good idea and would be over-kill at the RB position. People also said the RB position is not valuable.

Cook had injury issues his first 2 seasons; however, just based on talent it would have been a good move in retrospect.

A healthy Cook coming into this season would have meant either the Cowboys would let Zeke holdout OR Zeke would not have held out.

Cook's speed/explosiveness looks better than Saquan Barkley to me...

The Cowboys drafted Taco at #28 that year...

Who would or would not have drafted Cook?

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So you had a running back on the roster who was the NFL rushing champion in his rookie season, a back who had every physical trait you look for, except "elite" speed (which except for maybe Bo Jackson no back has ever had), when your defense was ranked 14th overall and your top sack guy was Benson Mayowa with a grand total of 6.0 sacks, but you would have drafted yet another running back?

No.

quickccc said:

- and I think we are gonna always keep hear this or that 'whisper ' from supposedly inside the Star or public comment (ala Broaddus) here or there about Who was or Who was not
was on board with this or that player at 1st round or 2nd round.

- we'll hear a Brian Broaddus say " everybody including McClay" was on board with the Taco pick ...vs what we'll hear a Mike Fisher report that NOT everybody was on board with the Taco pick.

- what tickles me every single time on boards like this is posters will insist during the NFL season or one or two years after a certain draft, that they were making a hard pitch for" this or that "
player at draft time - once they see that player balling and wowing the NFL season, because they are wishing for that " I told you so " attention that they never even put out there in the first place..
.. it hilariously kills me every year !

- with what the Pats/Saints did with Cook trades vs the Cowboys draft/trades .i dont even see it relevant to what that has to do with the Cowboys.

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Bryan Broaddus originally said that Marinelli pushed for the Taco pick over Watt. McClay at some point specifically told Broaddus that he (McClay) did sign-off on the pick.

The Cowboys obviously were not certain which player they want to take at #28 (Taco, Watt or a DB).

The Cowboys draft results are much better when they were certain which player they wanted at a given pick.

I posted about wanted to draft Dalvin Cook during that draft as he was falling out of the 1st round.

I didn't know until later that he was the only player available at #28 that was a 1st round pick on the Cowboys board.

There were several people that wanted Watt over Taco at the time of the pick. I'll give credit to them; although, we still don't know exactly how well Watt would fit at DE in a 4-3.

Brandin Cooks is an example of getting the services of a talented player for basically free. The Saints drafted him, had him for 3 years then traded him for a 1st round pick.

LACowboysFan1 said:

So you had a running back on the roster who was the NFL rushing champion in his rookie season, a back who had every physical trait you look for, except "elite" speed (which except for maybe Bo Jackson no back has ever had), when your defense was ranked 14th overall and your top sack guy was Benson Mayowa with a grand total of 6.0 sacks, but you would have drafted yet another running back?

No.

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Short Sighted Thought Process vs Managing a Roster for the long term

• What if the Cowboys had been legit contenders in 2017 but would have been doomed when Zeke was suspended.
• They built their offense around running the ball and put extreme resources into the OL for that purpose.
• They do all of that but then make themselves dependent on 1 player and it's a player with a propensity to have a few off-field issues.
• Zeke's agent had them over a barrel this year with the holdout because they didn't have other legit options except for a 4th round rookie.
• Taking another position does not help when that player does not work out.
• The draft is an exercise in probabilities. Focusing on need reduces the probability of drafting an elite player and increases the probability of drafting a bust.
• The top goal should always be to get players that will succeed. The top goal in the 1st/2nd round should be to get players that will become elite NFL players.
• Focusing on the specific needs of the upcoming season has caused many teams to make bad choices in the draft.
• If need is considered when drafting, it should be about the need the following year. That approach allows for more rational decisions.
• Teams that draft a QB at the top of the draft end up doing it based on the year they have a top 10 pick and need a QB.
• That approach limits them to just choosing from the QBs that are available that year.
• If you look at any 3 year period, some of those years were much better to draft a QB than other years, especially when you consider "fit" with the team/scheme.
• Teams go ahead and use a top pick on a QB because they need one and they pick the best of the bunch that year, but often times it would have been better to attempt to trade that pick to be in position to draft a QB the following year when the player that they really want will be in the draft.

LatinMind said:

No, No, and NO

Elliot had just won the rushing title as a rookie, considering their needs, they should've went with TJ Watt at 28. I dont think he's a DE but considering how they've played randy Gregory he couldve been a pass rusher and develop and get stronger. And at 60 JuJu.

Could stomach Marlon Mack in rd 4 then Cook 1-2

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I didn't say it had to be at #28. They could have traded up from #60 to the early 2nd.

They needed to maximize their probability of success and Cook was the only player remaining that had a 1st round grade on their draft board.

That means they were most confident that Cook would be a good/great player of all the choices at #28.

Drafting Watt over Taco would have been good; although we don't know how well Watt would fit in a 4-3 defense.

The issue is that they were not "sold" on Watt or Taco. They were "sold" on Cook but just did draft him because of position.

Looking back at past drafts, the Cowboys (and other teams) likely would have come out ahead drafting the best available player regardless of position. The number of drafts busts would have been reduced.

If they had a healthy Cook and Zeke to to start the season (if Zeke was not holding out) they could have traded one for a DE.

exciter said:

Cook would have gotten 2 series a game the last 2 years, the screaming that the pick was wasted would be deafening... even worse than with Taco and it would have changed nothing with the contract or holdout.

Cooks combine time was 4.49, Zekes 4.48, Barkley 4.41!

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Forty times don't mean much when they're in the same range.

Forty times don't represent playing speed with that degree of accuracy.

CB Scandrick ran a 4.35 forty but during his peak years I twice saw Jeff Heath run past him.

There are unlimited examples of players playing faster or slower than the forty times.

RB is more about quickness anyway.

Jeff Heath ran down Barkley from behind with nobody in front of Barkley to slow him down; however, from a dead-stop Barkley would likely cover 5 yards before Heath covered 1 yard.


It is silly to say that a healthy Cook would not change Zeke's holdout.
- Either the holdout wouldn't happen or the Cowboys wouldn't give in to the contract demands.

xwalker said:

Forty times don't mean much when they're in the same range.

Forty times don't represent playing speed with that degree of accuracy.

CB Scandrick ran a 4.35 forty but during his peak years I twice saw Jeff Heath run past him.

There are unlimited examples of players playing faster or slower than the forty times.

RB is more about quickness anyway.

Jeff Heath ran down Barkley from behind with nobody in front of Barkley to slow him down; however, from a dead-stop Barkley would likely cover 5 yards before Heath covered 1 yard.


It is silly to say that a healthy Cook would not change Zeke's holdout.
- Either the holdout wouldn't happen or the Cowboys wouldn't give in to the contract demands.

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Lol! Yeah that was pretty much my point!