TheSport78;3884863 said:
I respect your opinion as well, but I just think this:
Cameron Jordan, Derek Sherrod and Danny Watkins > Tyron Smith and Wisniewski
We're bad in the trenches, period. We're bad on both sides of the ball. Olshansky wouldn't be a starter on any other team in the league. Well, maybe the Browns lol.
I honestly don't see a huge difference between Sherrod and Smith. Yes, Smith has more upside, but he also has a more likely bust factor, due to him not being that productive in college. Sherrod was a starter at LT ever since he was a freshman and was very productive.
Danny Watkins intrigues me because he's mature, has a nasty mean streak who can play guard and center. I get the feeling that he'll be committed to football. Heck, he's only been playing football for what, 2 or 3 years? He doesn't have a lot of tread on the tires. What do you think?
That is cool. I disagree about Smith not being "very productive" in college. Smith was one of the best offensive linemen in the Pac Ten. He played RT, because he wasn't playing at Wisconsin, Colorado, or Mississippi State. USC has way more talent than those schools. It gets to be a log jam.
I agree with the defensive line being in bad shape, but there is going to be exact value to begin to rebuild the offensive line. How many first round picks is Dallas going to put on that defense? It's always something... How about finding the next Chris Canty in round 3 or 4? That DE better be Richard Seymour, because Smith's upside at OT is very high.
Again, Cameron Jordan and J.J. Watt are not cornerstone players; DeMarcus Ware and Richard Seymour are cornerstone players. That is why Von Miller is going to go so high, due to the emergence of Ware. Seymour went number 4, I think.
I just really think the New York Jets built the best offensive line in football by taking D'Brickashaw Ferguson and Nick Mangold very high and in the same draft. They have been two the AFC Championship Game two years in a row. Those two players are the foundation to their line. A great offensive line can hide a whole lot of sins on your defense.
Smith is compared favorably to Ferguson, and Wisneiwski is going to be a better player than J.J. Watt, imso. I think his impact on offense (in 2012/at center) would have more boom than Cameron Jordan is going to give you on defense. A really good center is critical on offense. He's up to 313, and Dallas was at Penn State's Pro Day. That gives me some hope. I wouldn't be surprised if Wisniewski carried a first round grade like Shawn Lee.
I like Watkins, too. However, in the long run, which is how the Cowboys should approach this draft, Wisniewski (will play at 22 years old) is going to be the better investment, in the long run. Centers are really hard to find, especially the good ones. Gurode came out of round two and will play at 33 this year and 34 in 2012. Gurode's run blocking dropped big time last year and passing on Wisniewski would be another big mistake. Bunting thinks that he can make some Pro Bowls. You have to be in a position to draft these players, because there isn't very many of them. When will Dallas be in a position to draft an OT as talented and with the upside that Smith has to offer, again? Maybe, next year, if they pass on Smith, except he will not be there. He will be blocking Ware and Spencer if you run into him.
Plus, the Eagles, Giants, and Commanders need centers bad, and you can get a real good one and keep him away from your direct competition. It's a double win when you go OL in rounds 1 and 2. You address your biggest weakness. Also, you take the top rated and most talented OL in the draft and the number 2 rated center. In fact, the entire division needs offensive line help, and the rest of the division is most likely going to go for it in this draft. By starting that tackle run at 9, you hurt the Giants and Eagles, who need OTs, too. The Giants have Smith rated very high from one source that I read.
At the worst, Smith is going to be a top of the line RT, who excels in space and will have size and the power you like. He is a great run blocker, too. Smith played in a zone scheme at USC and was not a finished product. His athletic ability on the second level is ridiculous, and he is the exact prototype to get Felix Jones in space, to the outside, and to the second level, something that Dallas' right side couldn't do last year. (tosses, toss sweep, stretches, power o, screens...) Smith opens the entire field for Felix Jones and the playbook.
There is a reason why all Smith had to do was show up and measure in and lift at the combine, in order to jump into the number 1 or 2 slot at his position. Smith has the tape to back up his still developing physical body, and he does have the huge upside to his game. Smith plays with a wide base and is an athletic freak at the OT position. He is the prototype NFL, new age LT.
Both Smith and Sherrod are 6-5 and have long arms, Smith's length is freakish. They have that ideal height in common, and I think it will help them when compared with taller, leggy players like Solder or Carimi. Smith and Sherrod are going to be able to play with leverage better due to their height, and DEs/OLBs like Ware and Freeney are going to have a tougher time getting under them or bending and getting by them.
I still have to respectfully disagree. There is a significant gap in the level of athletic ability and overall level of play when you compare the two OTs, Smith and Sherrod. I think where they are going to be drafted will show you that. Smith is a more physical player than Sherrod for one thing, and he is a better run blocker. Smith's second level run blocking is outstanding. Sherrod needs to get stronger too, but he wasn't the physical player that Smith was at RT for USC.
I think both are going to be LTs in the NFL and both are much safer picks than Solder or Carimi. However, Smith has played RT in the Pac Ten, where speed lives. It is a speed conference like the SEC. Smith was a real good fit at RT in their scheme, at his weight.
Dallas has the luxury of playing him at RT during his first year if they choose to do that. Smith played at 285 at USC, and he will most likely play at 310-315 in Dallas (or where ever) and will be bigger and stronger than he was at USC. Plus, he's bringing that great athlietic ability with him.
Now, Solder is probably going to be better than Sherrod if he hits, but I view him more of a risk. He's a tall, leggy guy. He got beat inside at the Senior Bowl too many times.
I think when you are in the top 10, you are there for a reason. You are not very good. You better draft a cornerstone player.
5. Terence Newman
11. DeMarcus Ware (Thanks Detroit)
Those two players were cornerstone players. Greg Ellis was not that type of player. Ebuneezer Ekuban was not. Roy Williams was not.
Cameron Jordan and J.J. Watt are as good as they are going to get, and they are not cornerstone players. Carimi is as good as he is going to get. You can't make him more athletic. Jordan is polished. Watt will be over drafted. I wouldn't put Watt in Jordan's tier. I agree with Bunting when he separates them and rates Jordan higher.
Smith was very successful against Jordan in the running game and more than held his own against him and did it as a 19 year old junior.
Tyron Smith can give Dallas the same value at 9 (in the offensive line) that B.J. Raiji gave the Packers' defense at number 9.
Again, the last time Dallas traded down and left a real good value at OT on the board, they ended up with Robert Brewster and Jason Williams. Ouch..
Stay at 9, take the best offensive linemen in the draft, with ridiculous upside, and let the center fall to you at 40, because he probably will.
I'm not preaching at you. I just really have a conviction about this draft on the offensive line. That 2009 draft needs to be corrected now. There is a generation growing up, and they don't think of the Cowboys as champions.
The dynasties had really good to great offensive lines.
Browns 1950s
Packers 1960s
49ers 1980s
Cowboys 1990s
Patriots 2000s
The Steelers had Mike Webster and must have had more up there. The 1970s Cowboys had to be good up front, too. Rayfield Wright was a Hall of Fame RT.
I'm just about ready to concede the divsion to the Giants and Eagles and the NFL to the Packers. I think picking a DE or CB at 9 could seal the Cowboys fate.
DAL @ GB
LAR ARI
23%
IND TEN
14%
CAR @PHI
11%
