Is Morris Claiborne the worst Dallas Cowboys draft bust of the 2000’s?

I, like most of you,  was surprised to see the Cowboys trade up to draft Morris Claiborne. The team’s corner back situation was dire and Claiborne had played out of his mind at LSU. I honestly thought he was a better corner than former teammate Patrick Peterson, who was drafted fifth overall the year before by the Cardinals.

I was wrong.

Claiborne has been terrible thus far, and is likely to remain so for the rest of his career. After three seasons of little improvement, it is unreasonable, but not impossible, to expect him to undergo sudden, massive improvement. So, with that being said, how does he, a not particularly good corner drafted ahead of where excellent corners usually are, stack up with other Cowboys draft busts of the last twelve years?

Sep 22, 2013; Arlington, TX, USA; Dallas Cowboys cornerback Morris Claiborne (24) on the field during the game against the St. Louis Rams at AT&T Stadium. The Dallas Cowboys beat the St. Louis Rams 31-7. Mandatory Credit: Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports

The first thing to understand is that the Cowboys have actually been pretty good in the first round. Not every pick was a superstar, or even a consistent starter (looking at you, Felix Jones), but most of them didn’t suck. Most of them weren’t like Morris Claiborne. Jones, though generally perceived as a disappointment, was still better than Claiborne. So too was Marcus Spears, who perfected the “just good enough to be a starter but not good enough to be impactful” shtick.

Only one player can actually compete, and you know who he is: Bobby Carpenter.

(An aside: the only direct experience I have watching Bobby Carpenter came when I played Madden 07, the one with Shaun Alexander on it. I don’t remember much–that game is seven years old, and I played 08 more–but I do remember Carpenter. He was terrible at everything except running fast. I remember him being particularly bad at tackling. He still had trade value as a high potential rookie, so I always traded him for first round picks. In that regard, he was great.)

The Cowboys drafted Carpenter 18th over all in 2006. It has been difficult to find in-depth scouting reports like you can now, but here is one that isn’t that positive. It was spot-on except for “very good starting linebacker”.

"Bobby was a very frustrating linebacker to evaluate because he no doubt has the size, strength, playing speed and athleticism to be a productive all around linebacker, but he is not one now and is unlikely to ever become one. While he tests out like a warrior, his lack of instincts hinder his ability to play up to his off-field workouts – He is often a beat late moving at the snap and lacks the explosiveness to catch up once he loses a step. When he is aggressive with his hands, he does a good job jolting blocker, getsarm extension and can shed and get free to make plays on runs at him – He has shown the ability to do a good job of maintaining “Force/Contain” responsibility. Overall, Bobby is going to test out big time and will be drafted higher than I rate him because of it, but he will struggle to become a big play impact linebacker that is expected of such high draft picks. I believe that he will develop into a very good starting linebacker, who like many current NFL starters, makes a lot of tackles chasing down plays in pursuit, but does not make big plays to impact games."

Oct 21, 2012; Foxboro, Massachusetts, USA; New York Jets wide receiver Jeremy Kerley (11) is tackled by New England Patriots linebacker Bobby Carpenter (59) during the second quarter at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Greg M. Cooper-USA TODAY Sports

Carpenter never became a “very good starting linebacker.” To put his standing with the team in perspective, the Cowboys traded him to the Rams for Alex Barron, who is literally only notable for ruining a comeback bid against Washington. He was one of the league’s worst before the trade. Prior to the trade, he had started three games in four years as a (consistently, if not constantly, used) backup.

More importantly, the opportunity cost in essentially lighting the 18th overall pick on fire was huge. The 2006 draft was STACKED. The Cowboys missed out on Antonio Cromartie, Tamba Hali, Davin Joseph, Johnathan Joseph, DeAngelo Williams, and Nick Hardwick–within the next eleven picks.

Morris Claiborne didn’t have anyone questioning his instincts. He was supposed to be incredible, a star, a demigod that would recreate Revis Island. This summary from Walterfootball.com was pretty representative of the general consensus.

"Claiborne projects to be a shutdown corner at the next level. He is an excellent man cover corner who blankets receivers in their routes. Claiborne has an elite skill set with the size and speed to match up against top NFL receivers. His quickness and athleticism should allow him to be a cover corner against the weekly No. 1 wideout. Plus, Claiborne has the ball skills to punish teams for throwing his direction. He also has the talent to be a ballhawk in the NFL and has Pro Bowl protential. His NFL team may not want to risk his health on kick returns, but he could be a good returner if given that role."

Claiborne hasn’t been a “ballhawk” or “cover corner who blankets receivers in their routes.” Whatever the opposite of blanketing is more accurately describes him. Still, he started all but four games he’s played in. While the Cowboys’ current secondary is probably worse than the 2006 sqaud’s linebacking corps, Claiborne has still, mostly, remained a starter. Carpenter never broke in.

There also isn’t the opportunity cost. The players picked immediately after Claiborne haven’t been as dominant. Luke Kuechley is one of the league’s best inside linebackers, and Dontari Poe is pretty good, but there isn’t the wealth of talent from picks 7-17 in 2012 as there was picks 19-29 in 2006.

It isn’t really possible to do a statistical comparison–the positions are just deeply different–but it appears that Claiborne is still better, even if not by much. The Cowboys also missed out on less (in the first round–the Cowboys’ second round pick became Alshon Jeffrey) by picking Claiborne. Carpenter is worse, but neither has proven to be an adequate option.