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By Jennifer Floyd Engel
Listening to Cowboys owner Jerry Jones talk about his plans for the NFL Draft that goes live from New York this p.m. -- despite ongoing legal wrangling, he sounded so sensible, so prudent, so very not himself.
He sounded like an actual GM.
OK, he had his Jerry-isms going, run-on sentences and open verbal doors for every scenario, except taking a QB, and a few "wait, that is not" statements. Yet almost everybody walked away feeling like he was poised to eat his football vegetables, either staying at No. 9 and taking USC offensive tackle Tyron Smith or moving down for Boston College's version in Anthony Costanzo.
And I hate sensible Jerry.
If ever there was a year to go all in on Jerry being Jerry, this is the year. My advice is to trade up however far to grab LSU cornerback Patrick Peterson, a player many list as best available.
As in better than Cam Newton.
Better than Nick Fairley.
And better than A.J. Green.
Most mocks have Peterson going to Arizona at No. 5, although I also have seen him falling to seven. This lands him within spitting distance of Jerry if he's willing to part with, say, a third-round pick. And let's be honest, after reading Clarence E. Hill Jr.'s viciously factual takedown of Cowboys drafts in this very publication a couple of days ago, does anybody have a lot of faith in finding a productive long-term member of the Cowboys with that pick anyway?
Good NFL teams are made by what they do with second-round picks and beyond. And in lieu of that happening, at least nail a home run in the first round.
Peterson screams home run, a playmaking havoc-wreaking guy to add into a secondary loaded with questions. I realize "loaded with questions" describes a lot of Cowboys positions, such as running back and defensive line and offensive line. A few of us have been begging Jerry to shore up an aging and often underachieving group since forever.
He usually opted for flashier, and even as recently as Tuesday tried to sunshine pump about his offensive line.
"In my 22 years, I don't know that I've ever gone to bed worried about protecting the passer with a left tackle. That's been a quite a luxury," said Jerry, obviously forgetting the Torrin Tucker experiment and the tail end of the Flo "False Start" Adams era.
"If that has been a pattern or preference, that has changed," Owner Jones said. "If you look at how the league has addressed approaching offensive linemen, especially offensive tackles, there is a willingness to take them high.... I am not reluctant to invest a first-round pick to an offensive lineman."
And with Peterson just waiting to be stolen, Jerry suddenly wants to go all bricks-and-mortar, to build a line through young collegians rather than aging free agents. Now he wants to be sensible.
Tyron is likely to provide a lovely addition, a young kid who is only going to get bigger and better. And I am sure Costanzo is every bit as smart as advertised. Both qualify as responsible, even necessary, picks in light of Doug Free's possible freedom, and they have been trotted out as what the Cowboys should and will pick in almost every mock draft.
I admit most mock drafts often amuse me, a group of sports journalists like myself flip-flopping in unison on who will go first, where and when. Much of this based on what they read in somebody else's mock draft and usually gets all blown to hell when Oakland or Washington or Dallas goes off the reservation.
Just look at No. 1 pick speculation in recent weeks: Newton. Then Gabbert. Now Newton.
Good luck with all of that, Carolina.
I would not take Cam Newton with the first pick in the Washington Redskins draft, and I wish fail on all thing 'Skins and Snyder. I base this on my feeling that he represents an amazing talent who will not be an amazing NFL QB.
What I know for sure is we are all guessing, with few exceptions.
And Cam will probably go No. 1 anyway. Carolina needs a QB, a way to sell tickets and generate interest, and QBs tend to be overvalued in drafts.
And maybe Peterson is.
Maybe, Prince Amukamara.
Ninety nine percent of the draft, Jerry would be wise to do the un-Jerry thing, which would likely result in a better class. In the case of this draft and this player, however, Jerry is better off going all in on being Jerry.
Listening to Cowboys owner Jerry Jones talk about his plans for the NFL Draft that goes live from New York this p.m. -- despite ongoing legal wrangling, he sounded so sensible, so prudent, so very not himself.
He sounded like an actual GM.
OK, he had his Jerry-isms going, run-on sentences and open verbal doors for every scenario, except taking a QB, and a few "wait, that is not" statements. Yet almost everybody walked away feeling like he was poised to eat his football vegetables, either staying at No. 9 and taking USC offensive tackle Tyron Smith or moving down for Boston College's version in Anthony Costanzo.
And I hate sensible Jerry.
If ever there was a year to go all in on Jerry being Jerry, this is the year. My advice is to trade up however far to grab LSU cornerback Patrick Peterson, a player many list as best available.
As in better than Cam Newton.
Better than Nick Fairley.
And better than A.J. Green.
Most mocks have Peterson going to Arizona at No. 5, although I also have seen him falling to seven. This lands him within spitting distance of Jerry if he's willing to part with, say, a third-round pick. And let's be honest, after reading Clarence E. Hill Jr.'s viciously factual takedown of Cowboys drafts in this very publication a couple of days ago, does anybody have a lot of faith in finding a productive long-term member of the Cowboys with that pick anyway?
Good NFL teams are made by what they do with second-round picks and beyond. And in lieu of that happening, at least nail a home run in the first round.
Peterson screams home run, a playmaking havoc-wreaking guy to add into a secondary loaded with questions. I realize "loaded with questions" describes a lot of Cowboys positions, such as running back and defensive line and offensive line. A few of us have been begging Jerry to shore up an aging and often underachieving group since forever.
He usually opted for flashier, and even as recently as Tuesday tried to sunshine pump about his offensive line.
"In my 22 years, I don't know that I've ever gone to bed worried about protecting the passer with a left tackle. That's been a quite a luxury," said Jerry, obviously forgetting the Torrin Tucker experiment and the tail end of the Flo "False Start" Adams era.
"If that has been a pattern or preference, that has changed," Owner Jones said. "If you look at how the league has addressed approaching offensive linemen, especially offensive tackles, there is a willingness to take them high.... I am not reluctant to invest a first-round pick to an offensive lineman."
And with Peterson just waiting to be stolen, Jerry suddenly wants to go all bricks-and-mortar, to build a line through young collegians rather than aging free agents. Now he wants to be sensible.
Tyron is likely to provide a lovely addition, a young kid who is only going to get bigger and better. And I am sure Costanzo is every bit as smart as advertised. Both qualify as responsible, even necessary, picks in light of Doug Free's possible freedom, and they have been trotted out as what the Cowboys should and will pick in almost every mock draft.
I admit most mock drafts often amuse me, a group of sports journalists like myself flip-flopping in unison on who will go first, where and when. Much of this based on what they read in somebody else's mock draft and usually gets all blown to hell when Oakland or Washington or Dallas goes off the reservation.
Just look at No. 1 pick speculation in recent weeks: Newton. Then Gabbert. Now Newton.
Good luck with all of that, Carolina.
I would not take Cam Newton with the first pick in the Washington Redskins draft, and I wish fail on all thing 'Skins and Snyder. I base this on my feeling that he represents an amazing talent who will not be an amazing NFL QB.
What I know for sure is we are all guessing, with few exceptions.
And Cam will probably go No. 1 anyway. Carolina needs a QB, a way to sell tickets and generate interest, and QBs tend to be overvalued in drafts.
And maybe Peterson is.
Maybe, Prince Amukamara.
Ninety nine percent of the draft, Jerry would be wise to do the un-Jerry thing, which would likely result in a better class. In the case of this draft and this player, however, Jerry is better off going all in on being Jerry.
