News: BTB: Cowboys Work Out Six Players Including Potential Backup Quarterback

[NewsBot]

The process of roster-building is never done in the NFL.

The Dallas Cowboys were busy today working out players for next season. One position the Cowboys might be in the market for during the 2017 season is backup quarterback. We know Dak Prescott is the starter, we think that Tony Romo will be playing somewhere else, and we hope that Mark Sanchez will be, too. That would leave a huge hole behind Dak.

Today, the Cowboys worked out quarterback Garrett Gilbert. Who? Okay, it’s unlikely that Gilbert would be the Cowboys primary backup quarterback this upcoming season, but he may be a third guy or possible practice squad addition. We also can’t forget that Kellen Moore is still a possibility for the backup spot, along with some potential veterans in free agency.

Gilbert was a college quarterback at Texas before transferring to SMU. He’s bounced around a bit in the NFL, finishing last season with the Oakland Raiders when they had so much injury trouble at quarterback. Gilbert was originally drafted in 2014 by the St. Louis Rams in the sixth round.

A little on Gilbert from his college days, he wasn’t invited to the 2014 combine.

Gilbert’s path to life as an NFL prospect was a circuitous one. Prior to his successful two-year run as the starter at SMU, the strong-armed Gilbert was at one time deemed the successor to Colt McCoy under center at the University of Texas. That transition wasn’t a smooth one, as Gilbert struggled during two-plus seasons with the Longhorns, before transferring to SMU, where his collegiate career took off under the tutelage of coach and offensive innovator June Jones. The move to SMU was not only beneficial on a football level for Gilbert, but also on a personal one.

With the struggles of his days in Austin behind him, Gilbert became a productive player as a junior at SMU, and saw his NFL draft opportunity become a possibility as a senior last fall. He threw for 3,528 yards and 21 touchdowns to just seven interceptions in 10 games with the Mustangs.
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Thanks to the ever-diligent Todd Archer, we have a quick rundown of the other five players the Cowboys worked out. The Cowboys are definitely interested in wide receivers, bringing in four potential candidates during the workout, with a couple of guys from the CFL.

[Gilbert] was joined by wide receivers Uzoma Nwachakwu, Brian Burnham, Quincy McDuffie and Corey Washington as well as tight end Andy McCleneghen.

Burnham caught 79 passes for 1,392 yards and six touchdowns last season for the BC Lions of the CFL. McDuffie led the CFL with a 27.7-yard kick return average for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and had two returns for touchdowns. Nwachakwu played at Texas A&M and has spent time with the Houston Texans, Miami Dolphins and was most recently with the Seattle Seahawks. He also spent time with the BC Lions.

Washington has been with six different teams since 2014 and caught five passes for 52 yards and a touchdown for the New York Giants in 2014.

McCleneghen was a defensive end at SMU, recording three sacks as a senior in 2015, but opted to move to tight end for NFL teams.
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