My 1st attempt at a full off season mock

[tm1119]

1st, I want to say that I'm doing this mainly for my own enjoyment so I will be by no means crunching #'s or try have an exact 53. However, I do plan to keep it as realistic as possible so hopefully the cap isn't an issue

In House Moves
Unrestricted
Dez Bryant, wide receiver- signed to a big $$$ long term extension
Bruce Carter, linebacker- Really never had a fit in this D it seems, signs elsewhere
Tyler Clutts, fullback- Resigned for cheap
Justin Durant, linebacker- Gone....too injury prone and he can't like where he is on the depth chart now
Doug Free, tackle- Parnell is ready...thanks for the service Doug
Dwayne Harris, wide receiver- I think he seeks more of an opportunity elsewhere
Nick Hayden, defensive tackle- Something tells me he's back, but this my mock so he's outta here
Rolando McClain, linebacker- Can't imagine it would make sense for him to go elsewhere. Resigned on an incentive laden deal
Henry Melton, defensive tackle- It was a good idea that just didn't work...Melton goes elsewhere
DeMarco Murray, running back- Dez signing marks the end of Murray in Big D....he'll get big $ somewhere
Jermey Parnell, tackle- Say hello to the new starting RT....reasonable 3 year deal
George Selvie, defensive end- I've seen enough to know what he is...peace George
Anthony Spencer, defensive end- This is a tough 1...In the end I think he comes back because of lack of interest elsewhere
C.J. Spillman, safety- Resigned....could be the new McCray
Tony Hills, tackle- Nope


Restricted free agents
Sterling Moore, cornerback- 2nd round tender
Cole Beasley, wide receiver- 2nd round tender
Lance Dunbar, running back- He comes back, no tender
Chris Jones, punter- I think we can do better

June 1st CUTS
Brandon Carr- Just way too expensive for his production level at this point


FREE AGENT ADDITIONS
Jaabal Sheard- Reasonably priced pass rusher who is still only 26. Former early 2nd round pick who has 23 career sacks with 8.5 and 7 his 1st 2 years before losing snaps to free agent Kruger and top 15 pick Kiki Mingo

Patrick Robinson- Former 1st round pick out of FSU who has had an up and down career thus far. Carr is gone and we have to bring in a veteran presence to replace him. Robinson is 27 and a change of scenery and a more simple scheme could benefit him.

DRAFT
Round 1- Trade Back!!....not much interesting left on the board at this point. Let's just make up a scenario where WR's are coming off the board quickly and the Jets are desperate to add a weapon so they trade us their 2nd and 3rd to move up and secure 1.

Round 2- Tevin Coleman RB, Indiana- Let's just nip this RB situation in the butt huh? Coleman is an instant starter and has the potential to be an absolute monster. Good size at 6' 210 with the speed to take any run to the house. Good vision and I believe he fits what we need for this system to a T.
http://www.draftbreakdown.com/gif-embed/?clip=254349&gif=SharpBareAchillestang


Round 2- Trey Flowers DE, Arkansas- We all know how Jerry loves his Arkansas boys.....this one is definitely worth it though. I think Trey projects perfectly as SDE who brings a legit pass rush threat. 6'4 270 with long arms and a muscular frame. He's not going to be a pure speed edge rusher who bends the corner, but he he is plenty quick, strong, and has a very good motor. Versatile defender who played with his hand down, standing up, and even times inside.

Round 3- Quinten Ross CB, Miami (Ohio)- Played point guard for 4 years in college and didn't turn to football until gaining an extra year of eligibility as a 5th year Sr. Despite not playing football in a while he was the MAC defensive player of the year with 16 passes defended and 7 ints. You can just tell by watching him that he's a special athlete. At 6' 205 he is a smooth athlete with a lot of speed and and great hands. Obviously needs work, but he has the potential to be something special.
http://www.draftbreakdown.com/gif-embed/?clip=254182&gif=OptimisticImaginaryHorseshoebat

Round 3- Jamil Douglas OG/OT AZ State- Can't stop adding to the o-line...Douglas has 30+ starts for AZ State playing LG his soph and jr years and moved to LT his senior year and played well. 6'4 300 lbs of muscle with plenty of room to keep adding weight. Probably projects best to LG in the NFL but could be a backup at multiple positions early on.

Round 4- Chucky Hunter DT, TCU- 6'1 305 and he can bench 500 lbs and squat 750. In other words this guy is not easy to move around. He can consistently get push into the backfield and does a good job of occupying blockers and not losing his ground. Needs to work on disengaging from blocker better, but he does actually move pretty well in space. Would come in and compete for 1 tech playing time from day 1.

Round 5- Hayes Pullard LB, USC- 3 year starter in the middle of the USC defense and an important leader. Smart, instinctual player who does best in space and coverage. Needs to bulk up a little to play at the LOS in the NFL, but shouldn't be a problem. Hard to find guys with his experience who have the necessary athleticism to play.

 

[xwalker]

1st, I want to say that I'm doing this mainly for my own enjoyment so I will be by no means crunching #'s or try have an exact 53. However, I do plan to keep it as realistic as possible so hopefully the cap isn't an issue

In House Moves
Unrestricted
Dez Bryant, wide receiver- signed to a big $$$ long term extension
Bruce Carter, linebacker- Really never had a fit in this D it seems, signs elsewhere
Tyler Clutts, fullback- Resigned for cheap
Justin Durant, linebacker- Gone....too injury prone and he can't like where he is on the depth chart now
Doug Free, tackle- Parnell is ready...thanks for the service Doug
Dwayne Harris, wide receiver- I think he seeks more of an opportunity elsewhere
Nick Hayden, defensive tackle- Something tells me he's back, but this my mock so he's outta here
Rolando McClain, linebacker- Can't imagine it would make sense for him to go elsewhere. Resigned on an incentive laden deal
Henry Melton, defensive tackle- It was a good idea that just didn't work...Melton goes elsewhere
DeMarco Murray, running back- Dez signing marks the end of Murray in Big D....he'll get big $ somewhere
Jermey Parnell, tackle- Say hello to the new starting RT....reasonable 3 year deal
George Selvie, defensive end- I've seen enough to know what he is...peace George
Anthony Spencer, defensive end- This is a tough 1...In the end I think he comes back because of lack of interest elsewhere
C.J. Spillman, safety- Resigned....could be the new McCray
Tony Hills, tackle- Nope


Restricted free agents
Sterling Moore, cornerback- 2nd round tender
Cole Beasley, wide receiver- 2nd round tender
Lance Dunbar, running back- He comes back, no tender
Chris Jones, punter- I think we can do better

June 1st CUTS
Brandon Carr- Just way too expensive for his production level at this point


FREE AGENT ADDITIONS
Jaabal Sheard- Reasonably priced pass rusher who is still only 26. Former early 2nd round pick who has 23 career sacks with 8.5 and 7 his 1st 2 years before losing snaps to free agent Kruger and top 15 pick Kiki Mingo

Patrick Robinson- Former 1st round pick out of FSU who has had an up and down career thus far. Carr is gone and we have to bring in a veteran presence to replace him. Robinson is 27 and a change of scenery and a more simple scheme could benefit him.

Don't take any of this personally. I'm just going to say what I see in game footage, but I have not spent a lot of time studying any of the draft picks in your list. I've generally watched all of their snaps from 1 game and more for a few of them but that's all. I prefer a discussion over and argument.

The free agent moves seem fairly accurate both in terms of what I think they will and what I thing they should do. I might bring Tony Hills to camp just in case. They were OK with him being the backup this season in the 7 games that Parnell started. Hopefully, some younger guys would beat him out in TC.

I'm hoping for more than Sheard. Either adding another mid-tier DL or adding one higher level pass rusher. I've watched some footage of Sheard and thought his talent level is on par with Mincey or slightly better.

My favorite mid-tier pass rusher is McPhee and at the top tier, if he is acquitted I think Greg Hardy is the best pass rusher.

Robinson is an interesting free agent CB. I could see him being both better and cheaper than Carr's current salary.

DRAFT
Round 1- Trade Back!!....not much interesting left on the board at this point. Let's just make up a scenario where WR's are coming off the board quickly and the Jets are desperate to add a weapon so they trade us their 2nd and 3rd to move up and secure 1.
I'm OK trading back depending on what is really available.

Round 2- Tevin Coleman RB, Indiana- Let's just nip this RB situation in the butt huh? Coleman is an instant starter and has the potential to be an absolute monster. Good size at 6' 210 with the speed to take any run to the house. Good vision and I believe he fits what we need for this system to a T.
http://www.draftbreakdown.com/gif-embed/?clip=254349&gif=SharpBareAchillestang
Honestly, I'm not as impressed as I expected after watching some game footage. I don't dislike the player, but I'm not wowed either.

He is fast in the open field. His style does seems to fit this offense with 1-cut and get up-field. I could be off on this, but it seems that he needs a couple of steps once he makes his cut to accelerate whereas, I tend to like RBs that hit that burst on 1 step.

Even if he is one of the top few RBs, I'm torn on the concept of drafting a RB early. I like the theory of using early picks on positions that will be expensive in free agency like pass rusher, CB, LT, etc; however, on the other hand you can get a top 5 RB here but probably can't get a top 10 pass rusher.


Round 2- Trey Flowers DE, Arkansas- We all know how Jerry loves his Arkansas boys.....this one is definitely worth it though. I think Trey projects perfectly as SDE who brings a legit pass rush threat. 6'4 270 with long arms and a muscular frame. He's not going to be a pure speed edge rusher who bends the corner, but he he is plenty quick, strong, and has a very good motor. Versatile defender who played with his hand down, standing up, and even times inside.
Yes, he has some good qualities in terms of an SDE. I would really like to get a more dynamic DL here. Flowers lacks suddenness, IMO. I think both Mincey and DLaw can play SDE if the Cowboys find some super quick guys to play WDE.

The Cowboys have many options at SDE, IMO, but need more at WDE.

Round 3- Quinten Ross CB, Miami (Ohio)- Played point guard for 4 years in college and didn't turn to football until gaining an extra year of eligibility as a 5th year Sr. Despite not playing football in a while he was the MAC defensive player of the year with 16 passes defended and 7 ints. You can just tell by watching him that he's a special athlete. At 6' 205 he is a smooth athlete with a lot of speed and and great hands. Obviously needs work, but he has the potential to be something special.
http://www.draftbreakdown.com/gif-embed/?clip=254182&gif=OptimisticImaginaryHorseshoebat
I couldn't find Quinten Ross, but I think you're referring to Quinten Rollins.

He has a very solid build. He seems to have the required athletic ability. He can flip his hips and seems to have good speed. As expected he is raw a several areas. It seems like a reasonable pick.

Round 3- Jamil Douglas OG/OT AZ State- Can't stop adding to the o-line...Douglas has 30+ starts for AZ State playing LG his soph and jr years and moved to LT his senior year and played well. 6'4 300 lbs of muscle with plenty of room to keep adding weight. Probably projects best to LG in the NFL but could be a backup at multiple positions early on.
Another guy that has some good qualities but I would like to see more suddenness. He tends to lumber in his movements as-if he's not in a hurry, but he does move smoothly and has good balance and decent power. He's hard to project without watching some more footage. I need to see him against a really quick interior DL because I think he might struggle off the snaps with quickness.

Round 4- Chucky Hunter DT, TCU- 6'1 305 and he can bench 500 lbs and squat 750. In other words this guy is not easy to move around. He can consistently get push into the backfield and does a good job of occupying blockers and not losing his ground. Needs to work on disengaging from blocker better, but he does actually move pretty well in space. Would come in and compete for 1 tech playing time from day 1.
I see some potential. He seems raw as a football player often just putting his head down with no awareness of where the RB is located and his hand usage needs a lot of work. He does have some suddenness and obvious power.

The 4th seems early as he reminds physically of Ken Bishop one of last years 7th round picks.

Round 5- Hayes Pullard LB, USC- 3 year starter in the middle of the USC defense and an important leader. Smart, instinctual player who does best in space and coverage. Needs to bulk up a little to play at the LOS in the NFL, but shouldn't be a problem. Hard to find guys with his experience who have the necessary athleticism to play.
He appears to have good instincts and knows the defense.

Physically he appears smaller than his listed size of 6-1, 235. I don't dislike the pick, but in general I would like a physically higher upside type player here if possible. If a 3-year starter for USC is available in the 5th it's a good indication that he is physically limited. If a player is unlikely to start or play a significant amount and his rookie season is basically a developmental season, then a raw but more physically talented player is the best option, IMO.

 

[Hardline]

Round 2- Trey Flowers DE, Arkansas- We all know how Jerry loves his Arkansas boys.....this one is definitely worth it though. I think Trey projects perfectly as SDE who brings a legit pass rush threat. 6'4 270 with long arms and a muscular frame. He's not going to be a pure speed edge rusher who bends the corner, but he he is plenty quick, strong, and has a very good motor. Versatile defender who played with his hand down, standing up, and even times inside.

Name one Arkansas player the Cowboys have ever drafter outside of Felix Jones.

 

[tm1119]

Don't take any of this personally. I'm just going to say what I see in game footage, but I have not spent a lot of time studying any of the draft picks in your list. I've generally watched all of their snaps from 1 game and more for a few of them but that's all. I prefer a discussion over and argument.

The free agent moves seem fairly accurate both in terms of what I think they will and what I thing they should do. I might bring Tony Hills to camp just in case. They were OK with him being the backup this season in the 7 games that Parnell started. Hopefully, some younger guys would beat him out in TC.

I'm hoping for more than Sheard. Either adding another mid-tier DL or adding one higher level pass rusher. I've watched some footage of Sheard and thought his talent level is on par with Mincey or slightly better.

My favorite mid-tier pass rusher is McPhee and at the top tier, if he is acquitted I think Greg Hardy is the best pass rusher.

Robinson is an interesting free agent CB. I could see him being both better and cheaper than Carr's current salary.

DRAFT
Round 1- Trade Back!!....not much interesting left on the board at this point. Let's just make up a scenario where WR's are coming off the board quickly and the Jets are desperate to add a weapon so they trade us their 2nd and 3rd to move up and secure 1.
I'm OK trading back depending on what is really available.

Round 2- Tevin Coleman RB, Indiana- Let's just nip this RB situation in the butt huh? Coleman is an instant starter and has the potential to be an absolute monster. Good size at 6' 210 with the speed to take any run to the house. Good vision and I believe he fits what we need for this system to a T.
http://www.draftbreakdown.com/gif-embed/?clip=254349&gif=SharpBareAchillestang
Honestly, I'm not as impressed as I expected after watching some game footage. I don't dislike the player, but I'm not wowed either.

He is fast in the open field. His style does seems to fit this offense with 1-cut and get up-field. I could be off on this, but it seems that he needs a couple of steps once he makes his cut to accelerate whereas, I tend to like RBs that hit that burst on 1 step.

Even if he is one of the top few RBs, I'm torn on the concept of drafting a RB early. I like the theory of using early picks on positions that will be expensive in free agency like pass rusher, CB, LT, etc; however, on the other hand you can get a top 5 RB here but probably can't get a top 10 pass rusher.


Round 2- Trey Flowers DE, Arkansas- We all know how Jerry loves his Arkansas boys.....this one is definitely worth it though. I think Trey projects perfectly as SDE who brings a legit pass rush threat. 6'4 270 with long arms and a muscular frame. He's not going to be a pure speed edge rusher who bends the corner, but he he is plenty quick, strong, and has a very good motor. Versatile defender who played with his hand down, standing up, and even times inside.
Yes, he has some good qualities in terms of an SDE. I would really like to get a more dynamic DL here. Flowers lacks suddenness, IMO. I think both Mincey and DLaw can play SDE if the Cowboys find some super quick guys to play WDE.

The Cowboys have many options at SDE, IMO, but need more at WDE.

Round 3- Quinten Ross CB, Miami (Ohio)- Played point guard for 4 years in college and didn't turn to football until gaining an extra year of eligibility as a 5th year Sr. Despite not playing football in a while he was the MAC defensive player of the year with 16 passes defended and 7 ints. You can just tell by watching him that he's a special athlete. At 6' 205 he is a smooth athlete with a lot of speed and and great hands. Obviously needs work, but he has the potential to be something special.
http://www.draftbreakdown.com/gif-embed/?clip=254182&gif=OptimisticImaginaryHorseshoebat
I couldn't find Quinten Ross, but I think you're referring to Quinten Rollins.

He has a very solid build. He seems to have the required athletic ability. He can flip his hips and seems to have good speed. As expected he is raw a several areas. It seems like a reasonable pick.

Round 3- Jamil Douglas OG/OT AZ State- Can't stop adding to the o-line...Douglas has 30+ starts for AZ State playing LG his soph and jr years and moved to LT his senior year and played well. 6'4 300 lbs of muscle with plenty of room to keep adding weight. Probably projects best to LG in the NFL but could be a backup at multiple positions early on.
Another guy that has some good qualities but I would like to see more suddenness. He tends to lumber in his movements as-if he's not in a hurry, but he does move smoothly and has good balance and decent power. He's hard to project without watching some more footage. I need to see him against a really quick interior DL because I think he might struggle off the snaps with quickness.

Round 4- Chucky Hunter DT, TCU- 6'1 305 and he can bench 500 lbs and squat 750. In other words this guy is not easy to move around. He can consistently get push into the backfield and does a good job of occupying blockers and not losing his ground. Needs to work on disengaging from blocker better, but he does actually move pretty well in space. Would come in and compete for 1 tech playing time from day 1.
I see some potential. He seems raw as a football player often just putting his head down with no awareness of where the RB is located and his hand usage needs a lot of work. He does have some suddenness and obvious power.

The 4th seems early as he reminds physically of Ken Bishop one of last years 7th round picks.

Round 5- Hayes Pullard LB, USC- 3 year starter in the middle of the USC defense and an important leader. Smart, instinctual player who does best in space and coverage. Needs to bulk up a little to play at the LOS in the NFL, but shouldn't be a problem. Hard to find guys with his experience who have the necessary athleticism to play.
He appears to have good instincts and knows the defense.

Physically he appears smaller than his listed size of 6-1, 235. I don't dislike the pick, but in general I would like a physically higher upside type player here if possible. If a 3-year starter for USC is available in the 5th it's a good indication that he is physically limited. If a player is unlikely to start or play a significant amount and his rookie season is basically a developmental season, then a raw but more physically talented player is the best option, IMO.

You don't think Lawrence is a WDE? I was also thinking that Sheard would be as well. Not the most ideal situation in the world obviouly, but Lawrence and Sheard at WDE and Mincey, Flowers, and Spencer at SDE isn't exactly bad and an upgrade over this past year imo.

And good call on Quentin Rollins instead of Ross. Mixed 2 guys together somehow

 

[xwalker]

You don't think Lawrence is a WDE? I was also thinking that Sheard would be as well. Not the most ideal situation in the world obviouly, but Lawrence and Sheard at WDE and Mincey, Flowers, and Spencer at SDE isn't exactly bad and an upgrade over this past year imo.

And good call on Quentin Rollins instead of Ross. Mixed 2 guys together somehow

I think Lawrence can play either side. I want to stockpile as many WDE types as possible or WDE/SDE tweeners which is how I see Lawrence and Mincey.

 

[Tobal]

I don't have an issue trading down. I reserve judgement on the RB's as I haven't watched many of them. It looks like there will be capable backs in the middle rounds. So I don't think I take someone in the early 2nd unless I think he's pretty damn special.

xwalker and I are thinking alike on the DE situation. We don't need a SDE. In a perfect world we'd find RDE, the problem for me is there doesn't appear to be anyone like that at 27 or in this case trading down to the early second. So if I don't have someone I love there at another position I start looking for traits. I need someone to rush the passer. I need someone the opposing QB wants know where he is, if that means he's a liability against the run this yr I can live with that. I want a guy that comes in on pass rush downs, slide DLaw to the strong side and Mincey to Tackle and lets go get the QB.

 

[tm1119]

Don't get me wrong, I'd love to mock us a stud WDE....I'm just not sure where it's coming from this off-season. Like I said, I'm no #'s cruncher, but one of the best pass rushers via free agency doesn't seem realistic and getting 1 at 27 also seems very unlikely.

I think I also like Sheard a little more than you guys. I really liked him at Pitt and think he could be an 8 sack a year guy who also plays the run well like he was his 1st 2 years. Again, not ideal or the best situation in the world, but I think Flowers, Sheard, and a full year of D Law + Mincey and Spence could produce a pretty legit pass rush. Definitely a huge upgrade over last year.

 

[darthseinfeld]

I dont want to get too cute with the HB position. Yes you can get a good HB in the 4th and 5th, but we win games by dominating the LOS on offense and chewing up yards. Yes we have a big peice of that in a dominant OL, but an excellent HB is an important component of that too. Thats why I would like to see the name of one called by the end of the third round

In regards to the OP, Id be very happy if that was Coleman

 

[big dog cowboy]

Round 2- Trey Flowers DE, Arkansas- We all know how Jerry loves his Arkansas boys

Based on? I'll give you Felix Jones.

Very good post however.

 

[reddyuta]

I like Ajayi a bit more because he can get the "dirty yards" to keep the chains moving and there is more of a chance of him lasting till our 2nd rd pick.

 

[Derinyar]

The biggest problem I see is that resigning neither Carter nor Durant pretty much means we need to find at least 2 LB somewhere else.

 

[jazzcat22]

Good stuff here. Gives me some players to look at. Especially when mock drafts come out from web sites to compare. See where theses players come up.

 

[John813]

The biggest problem I see is that resigning neither Carter nor Durant pretty much means we need to find at least 2 LB somewhere else.

Well the paper line up would be Lee-McClain-Hitchens, I'm assuming

*With Lee manning the WLB spot.

With cheap depth as the backups.

 

[Future]

Pretty thorough, but I'm not sure I like what it would do to our LB corps and I'm not a big fan of Sheard.

 

[Derinyar]

Well the paper line up would be Lee-McClain-Hitchens, I'm assuming

*With Lee manning the WLB spot.

With cheap depth as the backups.

But the problem is with McClain/Lee as starters you probably need quality in at least one backup if not two. That's where someone like Durant comes in or sign Carter for SAM and then Hitchens becomes a high quality backup.

 

[tm1119]

But the problem is with McClain/Lee as starters you probably need quality in at least one backup if not two. That's where someone like Durant comes in or sign Carter for SAM and then Hitchens becomes a high quality backup.

Can you really count Durant as a loss? He didn't even play a full season over the 2 years he was here. Lee fills right in for his spot on the 53.

But you're right, a vet would probably be brought in to for depth purposes to replace Carter....I just wouldn't get your hopes up for what kind of veteran it wil be. I could easily see it being an Orie Lemon type.

The 3rd lb (strong side) is probably the least important player on the field in Marinelli's scheme in my opinion. Id actually be pretty curious to see what % of the time we had 3 LB's on the field at the same time.....anybody know if that type of information is available???

 

[Derinyar]

Can you really count Durant as a loss? He didn't even play a full season over the 2 years he was here. Lee fills right in for his spot on the 53.

But you're right, a vet would probably be brought in to for depth purposes to replace Carter....I just wouldn't get your hopes up for what kind of veteran it wil be. I could easily see it being an Orie Lemon type.

The 3rd lb (strong side) is probably the least important player on the field in Marinelli's scheme in my opinion. Id actually be pretty curious to see what % of the time we had 3 LB's on the field at the same time.....anybody know if that type of information is available???

I still think you need someone better then a replacement level scrub as your primary backup because of health. The 3rd LB isn't an issue with Marinelli's scheme its an issue with the fact that the 3 wide set is becoming a core set in offenses currently, so you spend a lot of time in the nickle. But there's enough time in the base defense you really need that 4th decent LB to allow you to move Hitchens when either Lee or McClain gets nicked up.

 

[xwalker]

Can you really count Durant as a loss? He didn't even play a full season over the 2 years he was here. Lee fills right in for his spot on the 53.

But you're right, a vet would probably be brought in to for depth purposes to replace Carter....I just wouldn't get your hopes up for what kind of veteran it wil be. I could easily see it being an Orie Lemon type.

The 3rd lb (strong side) is probably the least important player on the field in Marinelli's scheme in my opinion. Id actually be pretty curious to see what % of the time we had 3 LB's on the field at the same time.....anybody know if that type of information is available???

They were in Nickel over 50% of the snaps in 2013. I'm fairly certain thay played Nickel way over 50% in 2014.

A good indicator would be to look at Moore's snap count since he was the Nickel CB. If he was on the field than then the 3rd LB was definitely not.