I do think Parsons was the guy all along

[Typhus]

I don't post them for anyone but me... and when I post I told you so.

Would expect nothing more from you Joe

 

[xwalker]

They wanted one of the corners then traded down once they weren't there end of story.

Exactly, they wanted either of the two corners, both went before they could pick, and wisely traded down, got an extra pick and took their third choice. Good move.

The Cowboys had Parsons ranked above the CBs based on pure talent. They don't build position value/need into their board. They evaluate position value/need at draft time.

It is possible that position value/need would have caused them to draft a CB if available; however, they did have Parsons above the CBs in terms of pure talent.

One of the TV draft media guys said he talked to 5 teams after the 1st round and that all 5 had Parsons ranked in the top 3 of non-QBs.

Those 2 CBs were not on the same level as many top 10 picks at that position over the years. Nobody would taken them over Stephon Gilmore if they in the same draft and Gilmore was 10th overall. They were not considered to be in the same ballpark as Patrick Peterson as prospects.

 

[ESisback]

They wanted one of the corners then traded down once they weren't there end of story.

IMHO, that sounds like the easiest narrative for those that despise the front office, but I agree with the OP. They wanted a fast tackling machine at MLB—a difference maker. I think that the CB thing was actually cover. They wanted CB, and probably figured that’s what they’d probably end up with, but Parsons was the real target. Remember Claiborne? Didn’t save us then, either!

 

[kskboys]

No one owes you an explanation!

Didn't ask for one from you, sweetcheeks!!!!

 

[kskboys]

Were so.

You wear granny panties.

 

[jterrell]

I didn't initially buy it but I do now.

Stephen Jones stating it was about the salary cap pretty much sold me.
Jaylon is expensive and LVE is costly now but would cost a fortune to retain after this year.
Getting a younger, cheaper, more athletic player is pure Stephen Jones stuff.

But I do know they knew Horn was going for sure because we all did. Carolina didn't even try to hide it.
So they were going to get PS2 or Parsons there at 10 and the fall may have been because they preferred PS2.

What's clear is those 2 guys were the only realistic options for them.
They had ruled out offense altogether.

 

[kskboys]

I didn't initially buy it but I do now.

Stephen Jones stating it was about the salary cap pretty much sold me.
Jaylon is expensive and LVE is costly now but would cost a fortune to retain after this year.
Getting a younger, cheaper, more athletic player is pure Stephen Jones stuff.

But I do know they knew Horn was going for sure because we all did. Carolina didn't even try to hide it.
So they were going to get PS2 or Parsons there at 10 and the fall may have been because they preferred PS2.

What's clear is those 2 guys were the only realistic options for them.
They had ruled out offense altogether.

Sounds plausible.

 

[buybuydandavis]

At first, I thought it was nothing more than the usual spin from the front office trying to make themselves look good but the more I see this unfolding, I think that's a fact.

How does a CB help a defense that struggles against the run? Quinn was hired to fix that first and when the Legion of Boom was assembled, SEA already had a solid run defense.

Look at how Quinn devotes his time, he's all about the front 7 because that's where the leaks are.

There wasn't a DL ranked in the top 15 that could help with stopping the run, which is unusual for any draft, so what's the next best thing? A tackling machine MLB. A fast tackling machine MLB.

I don't think the Cowboys get him at 12 if he plays in 2020. His last college game was the Cotton Bowl where he was MVP with 14 tackles, 2 sacks and 2 forced fumbles and he is the first player in Penn State history to lead the team in tackles as a freshman and he only started 1 game. Let that sink in.

If you were apprehensive about this pick, you might want to revisit his last full season at the most famous college for LB's in history. That season was so special with just about every individual honor a player could get that he could afford to opt out in 2020 and still be regarded as a top 10 pick. I think if he plays in 2020, he's the first non QB off the board.

Every great Dallas D had that guy, that MLB that led the team in tackles, made drive stopping plays and lifted the D around him and I am not saying Micah Parsons is that guy but this team has to have that guy so taking him makes perfect sense to me. Because until we do find that guy, we do not field a true contender defense to play in January.

For all the talk about CBs as a premier position, they've spent a lot on LBs in recent years. Seems like more of a trend than a fluke.

They took Byron in the 1st in 2015, but I'm convinced the plan draft day was to get a single high FS, and I approved of that plan. Wouldn't have taken him as a CB that high.
Before that, it was Mo. Before that, Mike Jenkins in 2008.

At LB, since 2016 we've picked a broken Jaylon at 34, a very raw LVE with health issues at 19, and a totally healthy and capable Parsons at 12.

Maybe they did want the CBs more. Maybe that kind of talk was just talk. It certainly hasn't matched their walk for a while.

 

[JoeKing]

You wear granny panties.

You squat to pee.

 

[BermyStar]

helluva player.
he'll fulfill the legacy of what hollywood henderson would've been over a longer period.
very excited we got him...for a long,long time.
THE LION OF MT. NITTNAY

This is much easier to read then those that talk as though on behalf of the team.

 

[Diehardblues]

There is only one cat with the Cowboys to follow closely and he feeds what he wants to them.

I think one clue was that comment about players that opted out not getting as much love. Why even broach that subject?

I think we saw the influence of Quinn and probably Edwards on the Joneses thinking about how to fix the defense.

If you gave Quinn his choice of any player on that SEA D to start a D with, I think that would be hands down Bobby Wagner. Same at ATL with Deion Jones. A MLB that can play sideline to sideline is a gift form the football gods. And Quinn knew why he was hired and Nolan fired, that run D. CB's aren't fixing that.

Parsons was a great pick after the fact our two targeted CB’s were taken right in front of us. There’s been no material I’ve read to the contrary. If you have something I’d love to see it.

The good news is I think it might work out for us. Sometimes you get lucky as Parsons was touted best defensive talent in draft . But CB was our priority regardless what we think.

 

[ThreeandOut]

As others have noted, I don't think Parsons was the guy because they were potentially willing to lose him in the trade down. I believe it was also reported that they were willing to do the trade down because Slater would have been available if Parsons had been taken.

 

[CouchCoach]

I didn't initially buy it but I do now.

Stephen Jones stating it was about the salary cap pretty much sold me.
Jaylon is expensive and LVE is costly now but would cost a fortune to retain after this year.
Getting a younger, cheaper, more athletic player is pure Stephen Jones stuff.

But I do know they knew Horn was going for sure because we all did. Carolina didn't even try to hide it.
So they were going to get PS2 or Parsons there at 10 and the fall may have been because they preferred PS2.

What's clear is those 2 guys were the only realistic options for them.
They had ruled out offense altogether.

In the early predicting, Surtain was going to DEN, the only hesitancy was what they might do at QB.

I think in their draft meetings, if they came away with one of these three D players, they were happy. CB's are usually valued higher in drafts so I think they became comfortable with Parsons because he is not the typical LB and would give Quinn some options around the line.

And I think they decided and Booger decided to come out with that statement about players opting out not getting as much consideration. It made no sense other than he was trying to lay down a smokescreen. It was a foregone conclusion that of the top 10 pickers, the Cowboys were going D if Pitts was off the board. When CAR got Darnold, that put them in the D game.

DEN was always the wild card in the top 10 and I wonder if the Bears approached them with a trade proposal? The Bears were the wildest card in the draft, they had Dalton and a GM and HC on the hot seat and this move might have just bought them an extra year waiting for Fields to develop.

 

[Typhus]

In the early predicting, Surtain was going to DEN, the only hesitancy was what they might do at QB.

I think in their draft meetings, if they came away with one of these three D players, they were happy. CB's are usually valued higher in drafts so I think they became comfortable with Parsons because he is not the typical LB and would give Quinn some options around the line.

And I think they decided and Booger decided to come out with that statement about players opting out not getting as much consideration. It made no sense other than he was trying to lay down a smokescreen. It was a foregone conclusion that of the top 10 pickers, the Cowboys were going D if Pitts was off the board. When CAR got Darnold, that put them in the D game.

DEN was always the wild card in the top 10 and I wonder if the Bears approached them with a trade proposal? The Bears were the wildest card in the draft, they had Dalton and a GM and HC on the hot seat and this move might have just bought them an extra year waiting for Fields to develop.

I had thought Denver would be targeting Parsons all along,, but they needed a corner and they got one.

 

[CouchCoach]

As others have noted, I don't think Parsons was the guy because they were potentially willing to lose him in the trade down. I believe it was also reported that they were willing to do the trade down because Slater would have been available if Parsons had been taken.

I think there were some things going on behind the scenes that made them feel comfortable with trading down and getting him because they knew PHL and NYG wanted Smith badly.

If that had been me, I would have worked the Giants to move up one spot to get Smith and lock PHL out, get my guy and maybe a 2nd instead of a 3rd. The Cowboys were comfortable with the belief both PHL and NYG were going after WR's so they weren't concerned about losing Parsons to either.

One little piece of evidence that convinces me that Parsons was the target was that comment from Booger about players opting out. He set that up and there was no reason to even mention that if he wasn't taking a player that opted out.

I do not think there was a D player in this draft that teams felt the need to move up for, it was pretty blah for the D side of the ball with the QB's, WR's, Pitts and a generational LT.

And this is all speculation on my part but what the hell, that's what we do here. If y'all want facts, I don't know where to send you because those sports show talking heads are just doing what we're doing.

 

[Kingofholland]

I do think the corners were the primary targets but it w

At first, I thought it was nothing more than the usual spin from the front office trying to make themselves look good but the more I see this unfolding, I think that's a fact.

How does a CB help a defense that struggles against the run? Quinn was hired to fix that first and when the Legion of Boom was assembled, SEA already had a solid run defense.

Look at how Quinn devotes his time, he's all about the front 7 because that's where the leaks are.

There wasn't a DL ranked in the top 15 that could help with stopping the run, which is unusual for any draft, so what's the next best thing? A tackling machine MLB. A fast tackling machine MLB.

I don't think the Cowboys get him at 12 if he plays in 2020. His last college game was the Cotton Bowl where he was MVP with 14 tackles, 2 sacks and 2 forced fumbles and he is the first player in Penn State history to lead the team in tackles as a freshman and he only started 1 game. Let that sink in.

If you were apprehensive about this pick, you might want to revisit his last full season at the most famous college for LB's in history. That season was so special with just about every individual honor a player could get that he could afford to opt out in 2020 and still be regarded as a top 10 pick. I think if he plays in 2020, he's the first non QB off the board.

Every great Dallas D had that guy, that MLB that led the team in tackles, made drive stopping plays and lifted the D around him and I am not saying Micah Parsons is that guy but this team has to have that guy so taking him makes perfect sense to me. Because until we do find that guy, we do not field a true contender defense to play in January.

Maybe it was a smoke screen, but reports of the Cowboys inquiring on trading up and then trading down when it was their pick suggest to me it was one of the corners. However, doesn't mean they weren't happy to get Parsons who many thought was the best defensive player in the draft. Parsons could have been their highest rated defensive player, but perhaps they felt better about LB depth in other rounds or that CB was the more immediate hole to fill.

I have no issue with how the 1st round played out though.

 

[CouchCoach]

I had thought Denver would be targeting Parsons all along,, but they needed a corner and they got one.

Look who they've got at QB in their division and the same can be said for CAR. ATL, NO and TB want to move the ball through the air and in the East, the other three would like to stay on the ground.

When you look at the NFC East, stopping the run with Barkley and Gibson is a hell of a lot more critical than the QB's.

There wasn't a team in the top 10 with a more defined and specific need than the Cowboys. If they can't stop the run, we can start talking about the next top 10 pick.

 

[Bullflop]

Whatever the case was with Parsons, I'm happy with the outcome. He was the best LB to had. He'll help our defense immensely.

 

[GMO415]

Jaylon's garbage and it's already a forgone conclusion that LVEs gone.

 

[ThreeandOut]

I think there were some things going on behind the scenes that made them feel comfortable with trading down and getting him because they knew PHL and NYG wanted Smith badly.

If that had been me, I would have worked the Giants to move up one spot to get Smith and lock PHL out, get my guy and maybe a 2nd instead of a 3rd. The Cowboys were comfortable with the belief both PHL and NYG were going after WR's so they weren't concerned about losing Parsons to either.

One little piece of evidence that convinces me that Parsons was the target was that comment from Booger about players opting out. He set that up and there was no reason to even mention that if he wasn't taking a player that opted out.

I do not think there was a D player in this draft that teams felt the need to move up for, it was pretty blah for the D side of the ball with the QB's, WR's, Pitts and a generational LT.

And this is all speculation on my part but what the hell, that's what we do here. If y'all want facts, I don't know where to send you because those sports show talking heads are just doing what we're doing.

I think there was a legitimate risk of losing Parsons in the trade down. True, probably no one was going to trade up for an off the ball LB. But only one of Philly or NY was going to get Smith. NY could have easily taken Parsons at 11 if they hadn't traded down. Although they clearly wanted WR, any WR taken at 11 would have been a reach. Parsons could have been a BPA for them.

The comment about not taking players that opted out was a bit of a head fake. But the strongest evidence for your argument was probably Jane Slater's report on draft day of the Cowboy's interest in Parsons. However, that might have just been another head fake to keep someone for trading up ahead of them for one of the CBs.