jday
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For those of you unfamiliar with this concept, this is my opportunity to give voice to my inner optimist (ME), pessimist (MYSELF) and realist (I) all in one contribution granting you the reader ring side seats to my internal battle royale as it pertains to the 2018 Dallas Cowboys draft haul. By default, I can say before having penned a single word on paper that this will be far too lengthy for the TL/DR crowd; be ye fairly warned. That said, as I am often wont to say, self-inflicted illiteracy doesn’t necessarily mean you are stupid; but it is a common denominator.
Without further ado…
ME
In BOOM Or bust I was honestly trying my best to extend an olive branch to the Leighton Vander Esch (LVE) fan club of Cowboys nation (they are many, they are proud, and they are loud), providing therein both my Pros and Cons of that acquisition. Based on the negative feedback I received in response, it would seem I failed miserably despite my efforts to the contrary to be both objective and unbiased. Having watched more film on LVE since the Cowboys acquired him, little has changed from my initial estimation of him (project over substance / athlete over football player), however, I will say rather than seeing the ascension I would have liked to see over 3 to 4 years for my first pick, there is a pronounced incline to his progression throughout 2017.
LVE gradually improved in both technique and production throughout his first and only year of starting. He posted stupid stats, particularly in tackling, so make no mistake the Cowboys did find themselves a player who once he gets his paws on the ball carrier, he doesn’t let go. If that aforementioned ascension continues at its current rate, LVE will be viewed as a Godsend by season end in 2018.
In my head going forward I will from hence forth say that we took Connor Williams in the first and LVE in the second. I said prior to the draft getting underway that the important consideration for fans when the Cowboys take a player is not so much what that player can do as compared to his peers (e.g. how he is rated on all the so-called experts boards) but more importantly what can that player do for the Cowboys particular scheme. The best possible example of what I am talking about there was acquired in the second round, when the Cowboys selected Connor Williams as a Guard (formerly he played as a Left Tackle for our very own Texas Longhorns). I also said the Cowboys trenches on both sides of the ball were a piece a way from being dominant….and I think they may have found that missing puzzle piece for the offensive line.
If the Cowboys got the right one (which I lean towards saying they did because the Cowboys front office has proven to be pretty good at selecting offensive lineman) then they knocked that pick out of the ballpark. Not only does this pick potentially return the Cowboys to their 2016 greatness, it also gives the Cowboys some tractability in how they will ultimately play their top 5 offensive lineman in consideration of Connor’s noted flexibility to play and play well at literally any position on the line.
Well before the Cowboys picked at 50, the run on receiver had begun in earnest; 5 receivers were already off the board by the time the Cowboys had a decision to make between Connor Williams and Jessie Bates III FS; the Cowboys ultimately chose the guy higher on their board and in my opinion absolutely made the right decision in their efforts to be more Dak-friendly. From 50 to 81, 3 more wide receivers were snagged, leaving only 1 player left on my own personal Wide Receiver hit list. That player? None other than what I would describe as a Grand Slam, Michael Gallup. I call it a “Grand Slam” not because Gallup is the second coming of Dez, but because of the ridiculous amount of patience the Cowboys displayed in waiting for him to fall to 81.
You have to think the Cowboys were seriously considering making a move at some point between 50 and 81 to go get their receiver; clearly, they at least wanted to add one who could compete with their current starters (Allen Hurns & currently injured Terrance Williams) and not just walk away with two developmental prospects on the third day, as is Cedrick Wilson.
For those of you concerned about how he will make the adjustment to the pro’s, know this: Michael Gallup is not a consolation prize….not in the least. Michael represent one of the more complete receivers that was available in this year draft; in fact, behind only Calvin Ridley, Gallup was the most polished route runner available; some even describing him as a route technician. Add to that a guy who plays much bigger than his 6’1” 200 lb frame, he wins the majority of 50/50 balls thrown in his direction and can actually give the Cowboys a little something (and then some) after the catch.
But there is one quality Gallup possesses that he shares with draft mates TE Dalton Schultz and WR Cedric Wilson: they are all willing (if not polished) blockers. If you are looking for reasons to be giddy about this year’s draft, just remember one thing: the Cowboys want to run the ball and run it a lot. The Cowboys eschewed the notion that you need a #1 receiver in favor of putting all their chips in Ground & Pound and that showed in this year’s draft with almost every acquisition. And just in case you forgot what they will be all about this coming season, they concluded their draft by taking Bo Scarbrough late in the seventh; my favorite pick of the third day.
Granted, he may not touch the ball very often (should he actually make the team) but when he does you can bet it will normally be when the Cowboys are trying to put an opponent away. And what better way to do it than with a 6’2” 236 lb human hammer who ran a respectable 4.5 40 at this year’s combine. Bo needs some runway to get up to his top speed, but like Brandon Jacobs of old, once he gets started he is a hard man to stop…and that will likely be even moreso the case when the Cowboys put him in to spell Zeke Elliott.
To be honest, outside of the acquisitions that help the Cowboys in their efforts to control the ball on the offensive side of the line (Connor Williams, Michael Gallup, Dalton Schultz, Bo Scarbrough, to a lesser extent Cedric Wilson), I was less than impressed with the Cowboys defensive draft haul, but I will leave the belly-aching and whining of this narrative to Myself. That said, and despite what Myself has to say on the topic, I suspect those “wasted picks” will still be all for naught as the Cowboys will once again dominate the ground (shades of 2016) and by extension the clock, therefore protecting their half-measure acquisition efforts on defense this past offseason.
MYSELF
“Sure thing.” That was the buzz word many detractors seized upon immediately when I penned my preference for first rounds picks versus what the Cowboys ultimately came away with in LVE. They rightfully stated “there is no such thing as a sure thing in the draft.” That is absolutely the truth…but, you can hedge your bets…particularly in the first round. There are just a couple of qualifiers I personally like to put in place to improve my odds of getting that elusive “sure thing” in the first round and they are as follows:
1. In the first, let’s get a 3 to 4 year starter please. LVE only had only 1 year of starting experience with the Boise State Broncos.
2. Big time program that’s played against Big time competition. Boise is considered Division 1, however, they play in the Mountain West Conference which in my opinion simply isn’t on the same level as the SEC, Big 12 or Big 10. They may be close, but the level of competition they play is suspect.
Therein was my issue with LVE. It’s not a pronounced issue. It certainly isn’t a reason to renounce my vow to always love the Cowboys no matter what they do. But I do think there were better fits available for what I believe the Cowboys should have been focused on…which is shutting down the oppositions run in 2018. If what I have contributed in this past offseason were a song, shutting down the oppositions run game would be the chorus. I’ve repeated it and repeated it. And then the Giants and Commanders went and drafted the #1 (Saquon Barkley) and #2 (Derrius Guice) running back available in this year’s draft. So would anybody like to hear the remix to my offseason song?
It goes something like this…
My reason for saying over and over again that the Cowboys should be focused more on shutting down the run versus shutting down the pass is simple: Complementary football. If the Cowboys want to control the ball on the offensive side of the ball (which begets such benefits as a fresh defense and a tired oppositional defense) they have to return the favor on defense; they absolutely cannot allow the opposing offense to establish a run game or all of those aforementioned benefits mentioned encapsulated in parenthesis disappear.
With the Giants overhauling their offensive line (added ex-Patriot Nate Solder and drafted Cowboys fan-fav Will Hernandez in the second round) and adding the highest rated player period (regardless of position) in this year’s draft at running back, anyone care to guess what the Giants intend to do to the Cowboys this year? At a guess, I’d say they plan to return the favor of the past two seasons where we shoved Zeke down their proverbial throat. Anyone still feeling great about that cover linebacker we got in the first?
But the truth is, at this point, LVE may be the least of the Cowboys defensive problems because rather than continuing to address defense where the really needed it, which is right up the middle (DT, S) the Cowboys stuck with their own definition of Dak-friendly by addressing both his protection (Connor Williams) and his weapons (Michael Gallup) with the next two picks.
Of course I like Connor Williams and Michael Gallup (I wanted trenches in the first and second and got it in the second / Gallup is a guy I took in mocks several times in the third, so no surprise there) but the Cowboys had 10 picks to start the draft and only addressed defense 3 times (4 if you count trading Switzer for Jihad Ward; a guy the Raiders were likely throwing away any way). But in those 4 times, they did not find either a 1-tech Defensive Tackle or a Safety, Free or Strong, meaning yet another in-game Safety carousel featuring such stalwarts as Jeff Heath, Kavon Frazier, and Xavier Woods.
Now let’s discuss those defenders not named LVE; you know, the guys that make LVE look like a great get by comparison:
Dorance Armstrong Jr. Were it not for the fact that I’ve seen this story before I might actually allow myself to get excited about this player. Someone tell me if this sounds familiar. The story on Dorance is he had a great 2016, followed by a lack luster 2017 because of a defensive scheme change. Here’s the stat line: 2016: 40 solo tackles, 16 assist, a staggering 20 tackles for loss and 10 sacks. 2017: 33 solo tackles, 30 assist, 9.5 tackles for loss and 2 sacks.
What happened?
Kansas moved from a 4-3 to a 3-4 and rather than convert him to passrushing outside linebacker, they simply kept him at defensive end, which meant more double-teams he would have to deal with than what he was used to. My guess is he doesn’t necessarily have ideal speed for an outside linebacker, based on his 4.8 speed posted at the combine, but considering the sacks and tackle for loss stats he put up in 2016 and, of course, the various scouting reports I’ve read, he does have good explosion off of the line.
Again, like I said before, without the benefit of dancing to this song before, I might have actually added it to my playlist, but as it turns out the Cowboys played this same exact song for Charles Tapper.
I said Charles Tapper…you know, that Defensive End out of the University of Oklahoma. We drafted him in 2016 at the top of the fourth round before taking Dak at the bottom. He’s still on the roster people! But you probably have either forgot him or have never heard of him (dependent on your level of fandom) because he just can’t seem to stay on the field.
Now, I get it, it might be a mistake to pigeon-hole Dorance as the next Charles Tapper; a waste of roster space and coaches breath. But until I see Dorance do anything worthy of that fourth round selection, which I doubt he’ll be given any meaningful opportunity in 2018 to display because he’s built and sized like a LE, which is currently manned by both Demarcus Lawrence and Taco Charlton, I will continue to dislike this selection.
The next and only other defender the Cowboys selected was Chris Covington, a linebacker out of Indiana. I’m going to let NFL.com’s scouting report let you down easy:
Covington is a better athlete than skilled linebacker at this point in his development, but he has intriguing length, speed and athleticism that could be moldable on the next level. He still needs to get stronger and improve his technique, but he could become a special teams factor on coverage teams if he makes the squad. His ability to play in the league may rest upon whether or not he can improve his instincts and feel for blocking schemes.
In summation, no immediate 2018 help there; unless you count Practice Squad or Special Teams, his apparent talent ceiling for this year.
I’m going to throw ME a bone. I’m going to parrot what he implied, only do him one better by coming out and saying it. Based on the strength of the second round pick (and that second round pick alone) the Cowboys will be in the Playoffs at the end of this year…yeah, I said it!
But…
They won’t go much farther with that abortion they call a defense. So once again, they’ll have a draft pick late in the 2019 first round that likely places them within a few spots of where they’ll watch their last true first rounder go to someone else, just like they did this year when Derwin James went to the Chargers 2 picks before they threw away their first rounder at LVE.
I
Imagine for a moment that instead of being a blogging sports fan, you are instead a food critic; after all, when you stop to think about it, very little separates these two otherwise completely different types of people. Your job is to taste test the best cuisine fine dining establishments have to offer, then sing their praises or verbally-destroy their edible-fare, so that your readership can partake or avoid this establishment dependent on how they process and view your opinion.
I’m not sure how much you know about a food critics occupation, but I think we all know that the routine is pretty standard: you go into the restaurant, you order your food and drinks, you consume your food and drinks, and then you go home (or wherever you go) to write a review. Simple.
If you were reading closely you may have noticed that in between ordering the food and consuming the food, at no point did you follow the waiter back to the chef, watch as the chef prepared your dining experience, and at various points recommend different ingredients to use instead of what he normally uses. After all, that would contradict your whole purpose for being there.
My point is this. The Cowboys have a plan. The Cowboys have clearly stuck to that plan. And the Cowboys are seemingly happy with the entrée they are cooking up for Dallas. Far be-it for me to criticize that meal before they have even had an opportunity to serve it.
My draft plan was pretty simplistic: Trenches>Defense>Offense.
Overall, I wanted the Cowboys to address the trenches because both lines, in my opinion, were a piece away from being dominant. Had the Cowboys figured out a way to land a 1-tech and Connor Williams early I would be a very happy camper right now, regardless of what happened in the ensuing rounds.
From the beginning, I recognized the Cowboys could probably land a starter-ready wide receiver as late as the third round, and Michael Gallup just happened to be one of my targets. I understood and liked Dalton Shultz (TE) because of the late-arriving news of Witten’s potential retirement. But after that and all the way up to Bo Scarbrough, I was honestly disappointed by the lack of attention placed on the defensive side of the ball. Given how crowded that receiver room is as it stands, I honestly don’t see how Cedric Wilson makes this team.
That said, and the truth that MYSELF deftly ignores, when you sit down and take a close look at the draft and how it unfurled, you should be able to completely understand every selection the Cowboys made. The only player also available at the same time as LVE that I would have been interested in was none other than Rashaan Evans. And (like LVE) Rashaan featured his own set of Red Flags. He doesn’t meet the 3 to 4 year starter criteria; based on production, it’s hard to believe he started even one whole season. He did play for a big program (Alabama), but his production simply was not on the same level as LVE. Lastly, Rashaan opted to not run a 40 at either the combine or his pro day, which reportedly disappointed quite a few scouts…and I would not be surprised to learn if one of those scouts happened to belong to the Cowboys. After all, linebacker was clearly high on their to-get list.
But I think we collectively should have seen the Cowboys focus on offense coming.
Why?
Here’s yet another thing you may have read me say over and over this offseason:
Above all and more than any other positional need the Cowboys have, they need Dak to be their next franchise QB. It is critical. If Dak isn’t, it will set them back, likely for years. From Troy Aikman to Tony Romo, many have forgotten the QB drought that featured such notable franchise leading QB’s as: Quincy Carter, Ryan Leaf, Vinny Testaverde, Chad Hutchinson, Drew Henson, Drew Bledsoe…the list is actually longer than that but ultimately too depressing to utter further.
The front office and coaches alike want to be sure they give Dak every possible opportunity to prove again he can lead this franchise. They want him in particular to succeed not just because of his skillset and all of the roster moves they have made to support the ideal scheme Dak can execute, but also because of who Dak is as a person and a leader.
The ugly truth of this entire situation is the Cowboys actually need Dak to ascend to that position and prove he is the man for the job more than they need to win in 2018. I realize on the surface that statement doesn’t make sense, but what I’m saying is, the Cowboys very well may know that unless they unearthed a hidden gem in this year’s draft or a second/third defensive player takes the next step in learning his craft, they presently on paper do not have a Championship caliber defense. I suspect the front office and coaches are hoping their defense can be forged into one over the course of the season, but recognize as it stands right now, they are going to need all the help they can possibly get from injury-luck and that offense to keep their defense off the field.
But, if another early-out of the playoffs because of their notorious defensive woes is balanced against Dak proving beyond a shadow of a doubt he is the Dallas Cowboys quarterback of the foreseeable future, the Cowboys front office and coaches will take that with a smile on their face and thankfulness in their hearts…and given their sorted quarterback history, it is certainly hard to blame them…but we will absolutely do it anyway!
Thoughts?
Without further ado…
ME
In BOOM Or bust I was honestly trying my best to extend an olive branch to the Leighton Vander Esch (LVE) fan club of Cowboys nation (they are many, they are proud, and they are loud), providing therein both my Pros and Cons of that acquisition. Based on the negative feedback I received in response, it would seem I failed miserably despite my efforts to the contrary to be both objective and unbiased. Having watched more film on LVE since the Cowboys acquired him, little has changed from my initial estimation of him (project over substance / athlete over football player), however, I will say rather than seeing the ascension I would have liked to see over 3 to 4 years for my first pick, there is a pronounced incline to his progression throughout 2017.
LVE gradually improved in both technique and production throughout his first and only year of starting. He posted stupid stats, particularly in tackling, so make no mistake the Cowboys did find themselves a player who once he gets his paws on the ball carrier, he doesn’t let go. If that aforementioned ascension continues at its current rate, LVE will be viewed as a Godsend by season end in 2018.
In my head going forward I will from hence forth say that we took Connor Williams in the first and LVE in the second. I said prior to the draft getting underway that the important consideration for fans when the Cowboys take a player is not so much what that player can do as compared to his peers (e.g. how he is rated on all the so-called experts boards) but more importantly what can that player do for the Cowboys particular scheme. The best possible example of what I am talking about there was acquired in the second round, when the Cowboys selected Connor Williams as a Guard (formerly he played as a Left Tackle for our very own Texas Longhorns). I also said the Cowboys trenches on both sides of the ball were a piece a way from being dominant….and I think they may have found that missing puzzle piece for the offensive line.
If the Cowboys got the right one (which I lean towards saying they did because the Cowboys front office has proven to be pretty good at selecting offensive lineman) then they knocked that pick out of the ballpark. Not only does this pick potentially return the Cowboys to their 2016 greatness, it also gives the Cowboys some tractability in how they will ultimately play their top 5 offensive lineman in consideration of Connor’s noted flexibility to play and play well at literally any position on the line.
Well before the Cowboys picked at 50, the run on receiver had begun in earnest; 5 receivers were already off the board by the time the Cowboys had a decision to make between Connor Williams and Jessie Bates III FS; the Cowboys ultimately chose the guy higher on their board and in my opinion absolutely made the right decision in their efforts to be more Dak-friendly. From 50 to 81, 3 more wide receivers were snagged, leaving only 1 player left on my own personal Wide Receiver hit list. That player? None other than what I would describe as a Grand Slam, Michael Gallup. I call it a “Grand Slam” not because Gallup is the second coming of Dez, but because of the ridiculous amount of patience the Cowboys displayed in waiting for him to fall to 81.
You have to think the Cowboys were seriously considering making a move at some point between 50 and 81 to go get their receiver; clearly, they at least wanted to add one who could compete with their current starters (Allen Hurns & currently injured Terrance Williams) and not just walk away with two developmental prospects on the third day, as is Cedrick Wilson.
For those of you concerned about how he will make the adjustment to the pro’s, know this: Michael Gallup is not a consolation prize….not in the least. Michael represent one of the more complete receivers that was available in this year draft; in fact, behind only Calvin Ridley, Gallup was the most polished route runner available; some even describing him as a route technician. Add to that a guy who plays much bigger than his 6’1” 200 lb frame, he wins the majority of 50/50 balls thrown in his direction and can actually give the Cowboys a little something (and then some) after the catch.
But there is one quality Gallup possesses that he shares with draft mates TE Dalton Schultz and WR Cedric Wilson: they are all willing (if not polished) blockers. If you are looking for reasons to be giddy about this year’s draft, just remember one thing: the Cowboys want to run the ball and run it a lot. The Cowboys eschewed the notion that you need a #1 receiver in favor of putting all their chips in Ground & Pound and that showed in this year’s draft with almost every acquisition. And just in case you forgot what they will be all about this coming season, they concluded their draft by taking Bo Scarbrough late in the seventh; my favorite pick of the third day.
Granted, he may not touch the ball very often (should he actually make the team) but when he does you can bet it will normally be when the Cowboys are trying to put an opponent away. And what better way to do it than with a 6’2” 236 lb human hammer who ran a respectable 4.5 40 at this year’s combine. Bo needs some runway to get up to his top speed, but like Brandon Jacobs of old, once he gets started he is a hard man to stop…and that will likely be even moreso the case when the Cowboys put him in to spell Zeke Elliott.
To be honest, outside of the acquisitions that help the Cowboys in their efforts to control the ball on the offensive side of the line (Connor Williams, Michael Gallup, Dalton Schultz, Bo Scarbrough, to a lesser extent Cedric Wilson), I was less than impressed with the Cowboys defensive draft haul, but I will leave the belly-aching and whining of this narrative to Myself. That said, and despite what Myself has to say on the topic, I suspect those “wasted picks” will still be all for naught as the Cowboys will once again dominate the ground (shades of 2016) and by extension the clock, therefore protecting their half-measure acquisition efforts on defense this past offseason.
MYSELF
“Sure thing.” That was the buzz word many detractors seized upon immediately when I penned my preference for first rounds picks versus what the Cowboys ultimately came away with in LVE. They rightfully stated “there is no such thing as a sure thing in the draft.” That is absolutely the truth…but, you can hedge your bets…particularly in the first round. There are just a couple of qualifiers I personally like to put in place to improve my odds of getting that elusive “sure thing” in the first round and they are as follows:
1. In the first, let’s get a 3 to 4 year starter please. LVE only had only 1 year of starting experience with the Boise State Broncos.
2. Big time program that’s played against Big time competition. Boise is considered Division 1, however, they play in the Mountain West Conference which in my opinion simply isn’t on the same level as the SEC, Big 12 or Big 10. They may be close, but the level of competition they play is suspect.
Therein was my issue with LVE. It’s not a pronounced issue. It certainly isn’t a reason to renounce my vow to always love the Cowboys no matter what they do. But I do think there were better fits available for what I believe the Cowboys should have been focused on…which is shutting down the oppositions run in 2018. If what I have contributed in this past offseason were a song, shutting down the oppositions run game would be the chorus. I’ve repeated it and repeated it. And then the Giants and Commanders went and drafted the #1 (Saquon Barkley) and #2 (Derrius Guice) running back available in this year’s draft. So would anybody like to hear the remix to my offseason song?
It goes something like this…
My reason for saying over and over again that the Cowboys should be focused more on shutting down the run versus shutting down the pass is simple: Complementary football. If the Cowboys want to control the ball on the offensive side of the ball (which begets such benefits as a fresh defense and a tired oppositional defense) they have to return the favor on defense; they absolutely cannot allow the opposing offense to establish a run game or all of those aforementioned benefits mentioned encapsulated in parenthesis disappear.
With the Giants overhauling their offensive line (added ex-Patriot Nate Solder and drafted Cowboys fan-fav Will Hernandez in the second round) and adding the highest rated player period (regardless of position) in this year’s draft at running back, anyone care to guess what the Giants intend to do to the Cowboys this year? At a guess, I’d say they plan to return the favor of the past two seasons where we shoved Zeke down their proverbial throat. Anyone still feeling great about that cover linebacker we got in the first?
But the truth is, at this point, LVE may be the least of the Cowboys defensive problems because rather than continuing to address defense where the really needed it, which is right up the middle (DT, S) the Cowboys stuck with their own definition of Dak-friendly by addressing both his protection (Connor Williams) and his weapons (Michael Gallup) with the next two picks.
Of course I like Connor Williams and Michael Gallup (I wanted trenches in the first and second and got it in the second / Gallup is a guy I took in mocks several times in the third, so no surprise there) but the Cowboys had 10 picks to start the draft and only addressed defense 3 times (4 if you count trading Switzer for Jihad Ward; a guy the Raiders were likely throwing away any way). But in those 4 times, they did not find either a 1-tech Defensive Tackle or a Safety, Free or Strong, meaning yet another in-game Safety carousel featuring such stalwarts as Jeff Heath, Kavon Frazier, and Xavier Woods.
Now let’s discuss those defenders not named LVE; you know, the guys that make LVE look like a great get by comparison:
Dorance Armstrong Jr. Were it not for the fact that I’ve seen this story before I might actually allow myself to get excited about this player. Someone tell me if this sounds familiar. The story on Dorance is he had a great 2016, followed by a lack luster 2017 because of a defensive scheme change. Here’s the stat line: 2016: 40 solo tackles, 16 assist, a staggering 20 tackles for loss and 10 sacks. 2017: 33 solo tackles, 30 assist, 9.5 tackles for loss and 2 sacks.
What happened?
Kansas moved from a 4-3 to a 3-4 and rather than convert him to passrushing outside linebacker, they simply kept him at defensive end, which meant more double-teams he would have to deal with than what he was used to. My guess is he doesn’t necessarily have ideal speed for an outside linebacker, based on his 4.8 speed posted at the combine, but considering the sacks and tackle for loss stats he put up in 2016 and, of course, the various scouting reports I’ve read, he does have good explosion off of the line.
Again, like I said before, without the benefit of dancing to this song before, I might have actually added it to my playlist, but as it turns out the Cowboys played this same exact song for Charles Tapper.
I said Charles Tapper…you know, that Defensive End out of the University of Oklahoma. We drafted him in 2016 at the top of the fourth round before taking Dak at the bottom. He’s still on the roster people! But you probably have either forgot him or have never heard of him (dependent on your level of fandom) because he just can’t seem to stay on the field.
Now, I get it, it might be a mistake to pigeon-hole Dorance as the next Charles Tapper; a waste of roster space and coaches breath. But until I see Dorance do anything worthy of that fourth round selection, which I doubt he’ll be given any meaningful opportunity in 2018 to display because he’s built and sized like a LE, which is currently manned by both Demarcus Lawrence and Taco Charlton, I will continue to dislike this selection.
The next and only other defender the Cowboys selected was Chris Covington, a linebacker out of Indiana. I’m going to let NFL.com’s scouting report let you down easy:
Covington is a better athlete than skilled linebacker at this point in his development, but he has intriguing length, speed and athleticism that could be moldable on the next level. He still needs to get stronger and improve his technique, but he could become a special teams factor on coverage teams if he makes the squad. His ability to play in the league may rest upon whether or not he can improve his instincts and feel for blocking schemes.
In summation, no immediate 2018 help there; unless you count Practice Squad or Special Teams, his apparent talent ceiling for this year.
I’m going to throw ME a bone. I’m going to parrot what he implied, only do him one better by coming out and saying it. Based on the strength of the second round pick (and that second round pick alone) the Cowboys will be in the Playoffs at the end of this year…yeah, I said it!
But…
They won’t go much farther with that abortion they call a defense. So once again, they’ll have a draft pick late in the 2019 first round that likely places them within a few spots of where they’ll watch their last true first rounder go to someone else, just like they did this year when Derwin James went to the Chargers 2 picks before they threw away their first rounder at LVE.
I
Imagine for a moment that instead of being a blogging sports fan, you are instead a food critic; after all, when you stop to think about it, very little separates these two otherwise completely different types of people. Your job is to taste test the best cuisine fine dining establishments have to offer, then sing their praises or verbally-destroy their edible-fare, so that your readership can partake or avoid this establishment dependent on how they process and view your opinion.
I’m not sure how much you know about a food critics occupation, but I think we all know that the routine is pretty standard: you go into the restaurant, you order your food and drinks, you consume your food and drinks, and then you go home (or wherever you go) to write a review. Simple.
If you were reading closely you may have noticed that in between ordering the food and consuming the food, at no point did you follow the waiter back to the chef, watch as the chef prepared your dining experience, and at various points recommend different ingredients to use instead of what he normally uses. After all, that would contradict your whole purpose for being there.
My point is this. The Cowboys have a plan. The Cowboys have clearly stuck to that plan. And the Cowboys are seemingly happy with the entrée they are cooking up for Dallas. Far be-it for me to criticize that meal before they have even had an opportunity to serve it.
My draft plan was pretty simplistic: Trenches>Defense>Offense.
Overall, I wanted the Cowboys to address the trenches because both lines, in my opinion, were a piece away from being dominant. Had the Cowboys figured out a way to land a 1-tech and Connor Williams early I would be a very happy camper right now, regardless of what happened in the ensuing rounds.
From the beginning, I recognized the Cowboys could probably land a starter-ready wide receiver as late as the third round, and Michael Gallup just happened to be one of my targets. I understood and liked Dalton Shultz (TE) because of the late-arriving news of Witten’s potential retirement. But after that and all the way up to Bo Scarbrough, I was honestly disappointed by the lack of attention placed on the defensive side of the ball. Given how crowded that receiver room is as it stands, I honestly don’t see how Cedric Wilson makes this team.
That said, and the truth that MYSELF deftly ignores, when you sit down and take a close look at the draft and how it unfurled, you should be able to completely understand every selection the Cowboys made. The only player also available at the same time as LVE that I would have been interested in was none other than Rashaan Evans. And (like LVE) Rashaan featured his own set of Red Flags. He doesn’t meet the 3 to 4 year starter criteria; based on production, it’s hard to believe he started even one whole season. He did play for a big program (Alabama), but his production simply was not on the same level as LVE. Lastly, Rashaan opted to not run a 40 at either the combine or his pro day, which reportedly disappointed quite a few scouts…and I would not be surprised to learn if one of those scouts happened to belong to the Cowboys. After all, linebacker was clearly high on their to-get list.
But I think we collectively should have seen the Cowboys focus on offense coming.
Why?
Here’s yet another thing you may have read me say over and over this offseason:
Above all and more than any other positional need the Cowboys have, they need Dak to be their next franchise QB. It is critical. If Dak isn’t, it will set them back, likely for years. From Troy Aikman to Tony Romo, many have forgotten the QB drought that featured such notable franchise leading QB’s as: Quincy Carter, Ryan Leaf, Vinny Testaverde, Chad Hutchinson, Drew Henson, Drew Bledsoe…the list is actually longer than that but ultimately too depressing to utter further.
The front office and coaches alike want to be sure they give Dak every possible opportunity to prove again he can lead this franchise. They want him in particular to succeed not just because of his skillset and all of the roster moves they have made to support the ideal scheme Dak can execute, but also because of who Dak is as a person and a leader.
The ugly truth of this entire situation is the Cowboys actually need Dak to ascend to that position and prove he is the man for the job more than they need to win in 2018. I realize on the surface that statement doesn’t make sense, but what I’m saying is, the Cowboys very well may know that unless they unearthed a hidden gem in this year’s draft or a second/third defensive player takes the next step in learning his craft, they presently on paper do not have a Championship caliber defense. I suspect the front office and coaches are hoping their defense can be forged into one over the course of the season, but recognize as it stands right now, they are going to need all the help they can possibly get from injury-luck and that offense to keep their defense off the field.
But, if another early-out of the playoffs because of their notorious defensive woes is balanced against Dak proving beyond a shadow of a doubt he is the Dallas Cowboys quarterback of the foreseeable future, the Cowboys front office and coaches will take that with a smile on their face and thankfulness in their hearts…and given their sorted quarterback history, it is certainly hard to blame them…but we will absolutely do it anyway!
Thoughts?
