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"We All Know Where Their Needs Lie''
Posted by Rafael at Tuesday, March 01, 2011
That was the answer a source gave to the question about Cowboys draft surprises. This suggests the quarterback discussions are, as many have considered, an attention-grabbing feint by Jerry Jones. And after a month of media silence, perhaps caused by the Super Bowl seating snafu, was anybody surprised that Jerry went looking for a microphone or a hundred?
So here we go, clear your throats and say them with me. What are the Cowboys pursuing? And where do team needs match up to draft strengths.
1. Dallas needs a defensive end. This draft is rich in 3-4 5-technique candidates. It's not so rich in nose tackles, one reason our draft guy Wes Bunting wrote before the Combine that Phil Taylor could land in the top half of the first round.
The linemen were very impressive in their workouts, with all the big names like Fairley, Dareus and Jordan solidifying their places high in the 1st round. This is a very real position for Dallas, in the 1st, 2nd or 3rd rounds. Given the quality and quantity at DL, it would be crazy to ignore this position.
2. Dallas needs an offensive tackle, and probably a guard as well. This draft has a solid layer of offensive tackle prospects, and then drops off once that list -- Carimi, Castonzo, Ijalana, Sherrod, Smith, Solder -- are selected. Ijalana looks like the most likely of this group to slip a bit, though it's unclear if he would slip all the way to Dallas' second pick. It seems that if Dallas wants a quality tackle, it can't wait. I wouldn't be shocked if Dallas went defense with its first pick, but I'll admit, I'll be disappointed.
Bill Parcells gambled the '05 season on Rob Petitti and he wasn't up to it. The team likes Sam Young, or so they claim, but we haven't seen him take any significant number of snaps in a real game. If Dallas plays the '05 Parcells game, and Young lets them down, they'll be looking for another OT high next year.
3. Dallas needs secondary players, at corner and at safety. I see a corner coming out of this draft. The class is deep, with good players likely to be found in the 3rd and 4th rounds. The safety class is thin, and I don't want to push a safety from this group just to get one. Akwasi Owusu-Ansah may be an answer at strong safety. Veteran free safeties can also be found. Safety is a much cheaper free agent position than corner. For these reasons, I'm looking for a matchup with the talent pool.
4. Dallas could use another young inside linebacker. The talent here, Mr. Bunting has told me over and over since the fall, is poor. Dallas may look for one in the middle or later rounds, but the o-line, d-line and secondary needs are so much greater that I just can't see an early pick being spent on this position, at the cost of beggaring those other areas.
The talent seems to align itself. D-linemen and O-linemen should be there for Dallas early, with corners and safeties a little later.
Or so we see it. What the Cowboys see may be another matter altogether.
Posted by Rafael at Tuesday, March 01, 2011
That was the answer a source gave to the question about Cowboys draft surprises. This suggests the quarterback discussions are, as many have considered, an attention-grabbing feint by Jerry Jones. And after a month of media silence, perhaps caused by the Super Bowl seating snafu, was anybody surprised that Jerry went looking for a microphone or a hundred?
So here we go, clear your throats and say them with me. What are the Cowboys pursuing? And where do team needs match up to draft strengths.
1. Dallas needs a defensive end. This draft is rich in 3-4 5-technique candidates. It's not so rich in nose tackles, one reason our draft guy Wes Bunting wrote before the Combine that Phil Taylor could land in the top half of the first round.
The linemen were very impressive in their workouts, with all the big names like Fairley, Dareus and Jordan solidifying their places high in the 1st round. This is a very real position for Dallas, in the 1st, 2nd or 3rd rounds. Given the quality and quantity at DL, it would be crazy to ignore this position.
2. Dallas needs an offensive tackle, and probably a guard as well. This draft has a solid layer of offensive tackle prospects, and then drops off once that list -- Carimi, Castonzo, Ijalana, Sherrod, Smith, Solder -- are selected. Ijalana looks like the most likely of this group to slip a bit, though it's unclear if he would slip all the way to Dallas' second pick. It seems that if Dallas wants a quality tackle, it can't wait. I wouldn't be shocked if Dallas went defense with its first pick, but I'll admit, I'll be disappointed.
Bill Parcells gambled the '05 season on Rob Petitti and he wasn't up to it. The team likes Sam Young, or so they claim, but we haven't seen him take any significant number of snaps in a real game. If Dallas plays the '05 Parcells game, and Young lets them down, they'll be looking for another OT high next year.
3. Dallas needs secondary players, at corner and at safety. I see a corner coming out of this draft. The class is deep, with good players likely to be found in the 3rd and 4th rounds. The safety class is thin, and I don't want to push a safety from this group just to get one. Akwasi Owusu-Ansah may be an answer at strong safety. Veteran free safeties can also be found. Safety is a much cheaper free agent position than corner. For these reasons, I'm looking for a matchup with the talent pool.
4. Dallas could use another young inside linebacker. The talent here, Mr. Bunting has told me over and over since the fall, is poor. Dallas may look for one in the middle or later rounds, but the o-line, d-line and secondary needs are so much greater that I just can't see an early pick being spent on this position, at the cost of beggaring those other areas.
The talent seems to align itself. D-linemen and O-linemen should be there for Dallas early, with corners and safeties a little later.
Or so we see it. What the Cowboys see may be another matter altogether.