Draft Stock

472

Well, that was fun.

I can’t remember a Cowboys season that flew by so fast. Wait, it’s still going on? Technically, yes. Sadly and realistically, it’s over.

Leb RomoThis season, which was on life support to begin with when Tony Romo came back last weekend, was practically put to bed when No. 9 went down with another collar bone injury on Thanksgiving vs. the Panthers. He’s now out for the season, and that may be a good thing at this point. More on that in a minute.

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The most amazing thing – Dallas is only two games back of co-division leaders Washington and New York. Yes, the Cowboys are guaranteed a non-winning season but are within striking distance of the Redskins and Giants.

Those who honestly believe that the Cowboys can still pull off the highly improbable and compete for the NFC East, please stand up. No, Jerry, you can sit down now.

Dallas still has the same issue it had two weeks ago – Matt Cassel is the backup QB, and worse, this team has no running game.

Clearly, it’s time to tank. And all the Cowboys really need to do is run out on the field, sadly. One more move does need to be made, however. Cut Greg Hardy and let Demarcus Lawrence and Randy Gregory play as many snaps as possible in development as rush defensive ends. Hardy never should have been on this team, but that’s another story. Since he was signed for football performance only, cut him for football gain in both money and development.

The need to address the backup quarterback position for the future couldn’t be more obvious. The Cowboys desperately need to draft or acquire a young signal-caller and develop him over the next few years while Romo plays out his final productive seasons (and be available to come in should he go down again).

Right now, the Cowboys would have a top-5 pick in the first round. But with 12 teams currently at four wins or fewer, a victory or two would catapult Dallas into the middle of the pack. This also is not the best year to have a need to draft a quarterback with a thin class of “no-brainers,” with Cal’s Jared Goff, Michigan State’s Connor Cook, and Penn State’s Christian Hackenberg probable as the first QBs to be taken.

Of course there’s always the guy that Jerry almost took two years ago currently up in Cleveland. Yes, I know what you’re thinking – too much of a side show; is Johnny committed to football or partying? All good questions to ponder. But we all know Jerry’s going to at least kick the tires if Manziel is made available by the Browns. The other problem – the team that Manziel does end up with after the Browns needs to tailor their offense around his mobile style, not something easily done with Romo as the starter.

The best-case scenario for this team is to get as good a draft position as possible. The Cowboys are not making the playoffs, so we might as well hope for some good young players added next April.

Psst – hey, Jerry, did you see that Broncos game last night? That’s what drafting and developing a quality backup quarterback in the second round looks like.

Am I asking you to root for the Cowboys to lose? No. It obviously doesn’t matter what you or I root for. With no running game and Cassel under center, the losing and the draft position will take care of itself.

 

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Rob Scichili (shick-lee) has worked in professional sports for over 31 years in PR and communications, including time with the Dallas Stars, Anaheim Ducks, MLB.com, Minnesota Timberwolves and Dallas Mavericks. A journalism graduate of Texas A&M, he is co-owner and editor at ScoreboardTx and VP at Tony Fay Public Relations. Scichili is a consultant to New York Islanders ownership and was recently named to the Dallas Stars Hall of Fame Selection Committee.