Eric Walden...

[Doomsdayblitz]

I'm sorry, but I can't keep it in any longer. I have been seething since the draft about the 167th pick in the 2008 draft. I figure we're in dead time, so I'd better get it in before TC. Is there anyone out there that can explain why Eric Walden was the player to pick with the FIRST pick in the 6th rd.? Was he the best: Pass rusher, special teams ace, LB, water boy, left after 5 rds.?

I just don't get it. It's not like a low 7th rounder where you just say, "The heck with it, where's the dart board?", is it? PFW had Walden ranked as the 58th best OLB. That's FIFTY EIGHT....meaning there were 57 other OLBs ranked higher....and that's just OLBs!

There were so many other players still available who would have at least stood a chance to make the team. I know SS Josh Barrett, Arizona St. lasted until the 220th pick, but from what I read, he was a monster his Jr. year. He played hurt last season & I think it was insinuated he was dogging it. However, a player who was named the MVP his team's defense & earned the "Hard Hat Player" award for his offseason conditioning is not likely to sluff off. Just the fact that his size/speed ratio, (6-2, 220/4.36), is off the charts, and going by his Jr. stats alone, he would be worth the pick. Plus, with all of the uncertainty surrounding Roy Williams, and the lack of depth at that position, it seems like a no-brainer.

Just a few other players that warranted a pick that high:

Ahtyba Rubin, NT, Iowa St.--Massive NT would have allowed Jay Ratliff to move to his more natural position of DE, with Rubin backing up Tank Johnson.

John Sullivan, C, Notre Dame--With Cory Proctor & Joe Berger the only backups, depth at this position is thin. Sullivan is a big, strong, nasty player who can also play OG, and maybe replace Kosier in a couple of years.

Alex Hall, DE/OLB, St. Augustine's--If you have to take a pass rushing OLB, why not one who had as many sacks & more TFLs than Walden over the past two seasons, and, at 6-5, 240, has room to get much bigger & stronger.

The list goes on, but you get the idea. If you just want to whine about me nit-picking, don't bother. I know it is. I just hate to waste ANY draft picks. If you can help me make any sense from the pick, then by all means, I'd love to hear it.

 

[Boysboy]

I'm sorry, but I can't keep it in any longer. I have been seething since the draft about the 167th pick in the 2008 draft. I figure we're in dead time, so I'd better get it in before TC. Is there anyone out there that can explain why Eric Walden was the player to pick with the FIRST pick in the 6th rd.? Was he the best: Pass rusher, special teams ace, LB, water boy, left after 5 rds.?

I just don't get it. It's not like a low 7th rounder where you just say, "The heck with it, where's the dart board?", is it? PFW had Walden ranked as the 58th best OLB. That's FIFTY EIGHT....meaning there were 57 other OLBs ranked higher....and that's just OLBs!

There were so many other players still available who would have at least stood a chance to make the team. I know SS Josh Barrett, Arizona St. lasted until the 220th pick, but from what I read, he was a monster his Jr. year. He played hurt last season & I think it was insinuated he was dogging it. However, a player who was named the MVP his team's defense & earned the "Hard Hat Player" award for his offseason conditioning is not likely to sluff off. Just the fact that his size/speed ratio, (6-2, 220/4.36), is off the charts, and going by his Jr. stats alone, he would be worth the pick. Plus, with all of the uncertainty surrounding Roy Williams, and the lack of depth at that position, it seems like a no-brainer.

Just a few other players that warranted a pick that high:

Ahtyba Rubin, NT, Iowa St.--Massive NT would have allowed Jay Ratliff to move to his more natural position of DE, with Rubin backing up Tank Johnson.

John Sullivan, C, Notre Dame--With Cory Proctor & Joe Berger the only backups, depth at this position is thin. Sullivan is a big, strong, nasty player who can also play OG, and maybe replace Kosier in a couple of years.

Alex Hall, DE/OLB, St. Augustine's--If you have to take a pass rushing OLB, why not one who had as many sacks & more TFLs than Walden over the past two seasons, and, at 6-5, 240, has room to get much bigger & stronger.

The list goes on, but you get the idea. If you just want to whine about me nit-picking, don't bother. I know it is. I just hate to waste ANY draft picks. If you can help me make any sense from the pick, then by all means, I'd love to hear it.

Yes, I'll bother-you ARE nitpicking.

Those 3 guys mentioned above would need a year or 2 grooming before they see action anyways.

I agree we need a massive NT, but they don't exactly grow on trees, much less fall on the 2nd day of the draft.

 

[speedkilz88]

Erik Walden played hurt last year and so far he has impressed with his speed and pass rush ability. He is also expected to be a really good STs guy.

 

[cowboyjoe]

no problem cogan,

i agree with you, there were some players that i wanted the cowboys to pick, in fact, the cowboys most likely could have traded that pick down some and gotten a 7 pick;

there were 2 linebackers, etc that i wanted and hall was one of them, even best i remember the fullback from arkansas,

the deal on walden i have heard is this;
the cowboys are thinking that walden will be faster than what he was timed at due to a serious foot injury;,

second, walden i have read reports on say that he has extrememly quick first step, just like ware has;

so the cowboys reports vary, some say he will play outside, but some inside at linebacker;

main thing though, walden has a extrememly quick first step,

now am i happy about that not to a degree because walden is supposedly 4.75 in the 4- which isnt fast for a linebacker, due to fact, walden is real big,

so i do agree with you, and the cowboys drafted a defensive end way back in ebezanor ekuban, not sure how to spell his name, as a 1st rounder, he had a quck first step too, but thats all he had, and we know how that played out

so i do agree with you, only time will tell on walden

now reports i am hearing about is daryl robertson, he maybe a sleeper with good size, and he had a chest injury, so he may offset that with walden if walden doesnt work out, just have to let it play out and see how walden plays

 

[Hostile]

Nice to see we can still obsess over the worth of every Draft pick we make.

 

[dooomsday]

Nice to see we can still obsess over the worth of every Draft pick we make.

Just the wasted ones!

...Oh shoot, I AM obsessing!

 

[big dog cowboy]

I'm sorry, but I can't keep it in any longer. I have been seething since the draft about the 167th pick in the 2008 draft.

On draft day I would have agreed with you 100%.

Since then, the word started leaking out about his injury last season and how he performed in the recent mini camps, I'm actually pretty excited to see this guy.

He sounds like a pretty good player with lots of upside and has a very legit shot at making the practice squad. We need to be grooming a good OLB to replace Ellis soon and he might actually be the guy.

Hey, you never know. When NE drafted Brady in the 6th round I'm sure some of their fans were scratching their heads wondering why they would waste a pick that late on a QB.

 

[speedkilz88]

2. Which player will jump out of obscurity and into prominence during training camp?

Phillips: The Cowboys have hit on several late-round picks in recent years (Patrick Crayton, Jay Ratliff), and this year's sixth-rounder, Erik Walden, could grab one of the final roster spots. Walden must switch from 4-3 defensive end to 3-4 outside linebacker (a la DeMarcus Ware, Anthony Spencer) but he has natural pass-rush skills and could help on special teams. The coaches already like his grit; he played through a painful turf toe injury as a senior at Middle Tennessee State.

Eatman: While he spent a year on the practice squad, not much was said about wide receiver Mike Jefferson. But he made huge strides from training camp to the end of the season last year. He doesn't have blazing speed but runs crisp routes and can get open. Look for Jefferson to work his way into the mix for those final two or three roster spots. Also, watch out for nose tackle Junior Siavii and offensive tackle Cory Lekkerkerker to push for roster spots.

Spagnola: Last year that guy was kicker Nick Folk, but this year watch for another sixth-round pick, outside linebacker Erik Walden. No one knows much about the former defensive end from Middle Tennessee State, but he appears to have great feet and is very athletic, giving him a shot at not only making the transition to outside linebacker but becoming a special teams contributor. If the toe injury hampering him all last season is totally healed, and he claims it is, look out.

http://www.dallascowboys.com/news/news.cfm?id=FFAAA8BB-E558-89FE-01194CF001D3235F

 

[cowboyjoe]

true, we have to wait and see if walden is a true sleeper,

the cowboys have had success with low round draft picks, leon lett, nick folk, deion anderson, alan ball, courtney brown, mcquistan,

 

[TwoCentPlain]

Let's see what the guy can do first before complaining. What if he is better than Bobby Carpenter? It is possible. We will see.

 

[sago1]

Walden was a DE at Middle Tennessee State so don't understand why PFW rated him 59th at OLB unless they projecting him to that position in Cowboys 3-4. Do know he set school record with 20 sacks in only 21 games; he got 11.5 sacks in his junior year but only 2 in senior year because of toe injury which forced him to miss some games & play thru pain.

Supposedly Wade really liked this kid when we drafted him and believes he can play both ILB & OLB in his 3-4. He has a great work ethic & is very smart kid. 6-2, 236 & 22 years of age; has already graduated. Have also heard he looking pretty good in OTAs and minicamp.

While some may think he probably makes it to the PS, count me as one who thinks he makes the roster. Like has already been said, the Cowboys seem to draft pretty good in the late rounds while Parcells was here and continue to do same with his departure. Heck, when we drafted Folk & Anderson in the 6th round of 2006 I thought what a waste. Well those picks sure turned out pretty good as did our 2 7th round picks (Brown & Ball).

So don't sweat the small stuff unless he turns out to be a dud which allows you to say "I told you so". OTOH, what happens if this kid is a very pleasant surprise?

 

[DaBoys4Life]

I'm sorry, but I can't keep it in any longer. I have been seething since the draft about the 167th pick in the 2008 draft. I figure we're in dead time, so I'd better get it in before TC. Is there anyone out there that can explain why Eric Walden was the player to pick with the FIRST pick in the 6th rd.? Was he the best: Pass rusher, special teams ace, LB, water boy, left after 5 rds.?

I just don't get it. It's not like a low 7th rounder where you just say, "The heck with it, where's the dart board?", is it? PFW had Walden ranked as the 58th best OLB. That's FIFTY EIGHT....meaning there were 57 other OLBs ranked higher....and that's just OLBs!

There were so many other players still available who would have at least stood a chance to make the team. I know SS Josh Barrett, Arizona St. lasted until the 220th pick, but from what I read, he was a monster his Jr. year. He played hurt last season & I think it was insinuated he was dogging it. However, a player who was named the MVP his team's defense & earned the "Hard Hat Player" award for his offseason conditioning is not likely to sluff off. Just the fact that his size/speed ratio, (6-2, 220/4.36), is off the charts, and going by his Jr. stats alone, he would be worth the pick. Plus, with all of the uncertainty surrounding Roy Williams, and the lack of depth at that position, it seems like a no-brainer.

Just a few other players that warranted a pick that high:

Ahtyba Rubin, NT, Iowa St.--Massive NT would have allowed Jay Ratliff to move to his more natural position of DE, with Rubin backing up Tank Johnson.

John Sullivan, C, Notre Dame--With Cory Proctor & Joe Berger the only backups, depth at this position is thin. Sullivan is a big, strong, nasty player who can also play OG, and maybe replace Kosier in a couple of years.

Alex Hall, DE/OLB, St. Augustine's--If you have to take a pass rushing OLB, why not one who had as many sacks & more TFLs than Walden over the past two seasons, and, at 6-5, 240, has room to get much bigger & stronger.

The list goes on, but you get the idea. If you just want to whine about me nit-picking, don't bother. I know it is. I just hate to waste ANY draft picks. If you can help me make any sense from the pick, then by all means, I'd love to hear it.

this could be said about all of our draft picks especially Felix Jones.

 

[Alexander]

I'm sorry, but I can't keep it in any longer. I have been seething since the draft about the 167th pick in the 2008 draft. I figure we're in dead time, so I'd better get it in before TC. Is there anyone out there that can explain why Eric Walden was the player to pick with the FIRST pick in the 6th rd.? Was he the best: Pass rusher, special teams ace, LB, water boy, left after 5 rds.?

I just don't get it. It's not like a low 7th rounder where you just say, "The heck with it, where's the dart board?", is it? PFW had Walden ranked as the 58th best OLB. That's FIFTY EIGHT....meaning there were 57 other OLBs ranked higher....and that's just OLBs!

There were so many other players still available who would have at least stood a chance to make the team. I know SS Josh Barrett, Arizona St. lasted until the 220th pick, but from what I read, he was a monster his Jr. year. He played hurt last season & I think it was insinuated he was dogging it. However, a player who was named the MVP his team's defense & earned the "Hard Hat Player" award for his offseason conditioning is not likely to sluff off. Just the fact that his size/speed ratio, (6-2, 220/4.36), is off the charts, and going by his Jr. stats alone, he would be worth the pick. Plus, with all of the uncertainty surrounding Roy Williams, and the lack of depth at that position, it seems like a no-brainer.

Just a few other players that warranted a pick that high:

Ahtyba Rubin, NT, Iowa St.--Massive NT would have allowed Jay Ratliff to move to his more natural position of DE, with Rubin backing up Tank Johnson.

John Sullivan, C, Notre Dame--With Cory Proctor & Joe Berger the only backups, depth at this position is thin. Sullivan is a big, strong, nasty player who can also play OG, and maybe replace Kosier in a couple of years.

Alex Hall, DE/OLB, St. Augustine's--If you have to take a pass rushing OLB, why not one who had as many sacks & more TFLs than Walden over the past two seasons, and, at 6-5, 240, has room to get much bigger & stronger.

The list goes on, but you get the idea. If you just want to whine about me nit-picking, don't bother. I know it is. I just hate to waste ANY draft picks. If you can help me make any sense from the pick, then by all means, I'd love to hear it.

I can't argue with a couple of these players. Barrett, Rubin and Sullivan would probably have been better choices there if you go off college production. I can't say that much about Hall, I have never heard of him, just like Walden.

 

[BAT]

Walden will not be replacing Ellis at strongside OLB, that's Spencer's job to lose. Walden is supposed to have a great first step so that may may mean he will be backing up Ware on the weakside. Walden's a little light to play the strongside anyway.


If anything, Walden's best fit may be as a utility backer who can play all the LB spots.


Here's hoping that the Cowboys grab Andy Studebaker from the Eagles once they put him on PS. Studebaker is the one I was rooting for the Cowboys to draft in the 6th, Studebaker's a freak of an athlete and a better pure pass rusher than Walden. If it wasn't for his lis franc and shoulder injuries his senior year, he would have been drafted several rounds higher.

 

[dmq]

Sometimes it's not about where the draft guys have you, but where other teams have you. OLB in today's NFL is a hot commodity. You can NEVER have too many of them. We may have gotten word that NE was about to pounce on him. That'll make any team pull the trigger too early these days.

 

[cowboyjoe]

Bat, I am with you, andy studebaker was one of the guys i wanted too, would be awesome if we can get him from the eagles, put him on our roster and watch andy tear the eagles up in games, now that would be super

 

[CanadianCowboysFan]

If that is the only thing you have to worry about, it isn't much

 

[Boysboy]

If that is the only thing you have to worry about, it isn't much

Pretty much since that Jimmy fiasco in the mid-90's, it seems like Zoners here still don't trust Jerry a whole lot.

Personally-he's done a fantastic job in the last few years, especially after Bill left. But I can understand the lack of trust over him still.

 

[BAT]

Bat, I am with you, andy studebaker was one of the guys i wanted too, would be awesome if we can get him from the eagles, put him on our roster and watch andy tear the eagles up in games, now that would be super

They have Studebaker learning the SAM LB spot behind Gocong (another player better suited for 3-4 rush OLB). The guy has never played LB before so will have a tough time learning how to not only read coverages but playing in reverse when every instinct has him flying toward the QB/RB.


Studebaker is 6'3 255 and runs in the high 4.4s/low 4.5s. Not to mention his 17 sacks as a JR and 20 plus TFL. Combine that with his work ethic and crazy athleticism here's hoping the Eags try to sneak him on PS and that someone on the Cowboys is aware enough to steal him. I would love to see him opposite Ware one day.

 

[JonJon]

This is what the scouts are paid for. They are paid to evaluate talent and to find potential in the most obscure places. Many people, including myself, who I proclaim to be fairly knowledgeable about college prospects, never heard of Walden. So naturally when his name was called, the response was, "What the heck? Who is this loser?"

As it turns out, I am the loser, because I don't know what I am talking about. If it was up to me, I would have selected Adarius Bowman in the 7th round. Not only did this guy not get drafted, but he wasn't even signed to participate as training camp fodder by any NFL team. That right there is saying something.

There is a reason why guys like Bowman and Josh Barrett were passed over so many times by so many teams. It remains to be seen whether teams will regret not signing Bowman, but something tells me that the scouts know more than I do about evaluating talent. Maybe it is because they are getting paid hundreds of thousands of dollars to do so and I'm not.....