Dallas Cowboys: We’re all Chaz Green Fans Now

Whether you like the guy or not, if you’re a Dallas Cowboys fan, you’re now a big-time Chaz Green fan. I’ll explain…

When the Dallas Cowboys selected Florida offensive tackle, Chaz Green, in the third round of the 2015 draft, they received truckloads of criticism. While many were upset Dallas ignored the multiple running backs still left on the board (Jay Ajayi at pick 159 comes to mind), most were upset at the quality of the pick itself.

People have a way of coming to accept surprising draft moves when the surprise is for a solid player. We’re fans. We can talk ourselves into anything. But the selection of Chaz Green really put that to the test.

Chaz Green, the selection

CBS Sports often posts position rank as well as predicted round valuation in their pre-draft player profiles. Despite the risk of looking foolish afterwards, they nobly keep those profiles and values up indefinitely.

So for better or for worse, all reasonable hope lies in Chaz Green right now.

Chaz Green was a player they didn’t predict to come off the board until the fifth or even sixth round. Green was ranked 16^th in his position group and 191^st overall. This essentially means the Dallas Cowboys picked him 100 spots earlier than predicted.

As we all know, national experts can be wrong or else they would have had Dak Prescott valued at the tippy top of the 2016 NFL draft. But still, Chaz Green was a consensus reach across virtually all media outlets.

Searching for more positive answers, I jumped into whatever film I could find of the young man and I was hard-pressed to find many positives (and I was REALLY looking).

Chaz Green, the player

Chaz Green has traditionally been regarded as an athletic pass-protecting tackle with major durability concerns. In college, Green missed multiple games in 2011, multiple games in 2012, the entire 2013 season, and multiple games again in 2014.

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Chaz Green’s weakness in undeniably his run-blocking. Pro Football Focus had this to say about him at Florida:

"“Green missed playing time down the stretch and didn’t have a single game graded above +1.0 as a run blocker. The Gators gained only 3.1 yards per carry on rushes off the right tackle, the gaps to either side of Green.”"

With the Dallas Cowboys he’s struggled in all areas of his game. His run blocking has been poor, his pass protection has been worse, and his propensity to injury has continued.

The state of offensive tackle

The Dallas Cowboys are in bad shape this offseason. The sudden retirement of Doug Free has left them with few options. The Cowboys wisely signed veteran tackle/guard Byron Bell. And while I hailed the move as “huge”, Bell is not the player you want to be your starting right tackle in 2017. He’s a reliable presence with position versatility which should be good for depth and that’s about it.

The fact remains that on Byron’s best day, he’s still worse than Doug Free on his worst day. If that doesn’t send chills up your spine I’m not sure what will. So for better or for worse, all reasonable hope lies in Chaz Green right now.

When Richard Nixon abolished the Bretton Woods system in favor of fiat currency, Milton Friedman once said in disgust, “We are all Keynesians now” Friedman, like many then and many today, was not speaking towards his support of Keynesian economics but rather the fact that we’re all now tied to it.

Next: Are the Cowboys Secretly Planning to Draft a Tackle Early?

Such is the relationship with Chaz Green and Cowboys Nation. Like it or not, he’s our best chance at starting right tackle. Unless the Dallas Cowboys select a ready-now tackle in the draft later this month. Or unless they change their minds on La’el Collins’ position in 2017 (I’ve always supported his move to RT), Chaz Green is the Dallas Cowboys’ best hope.

You see? We’re all Chaz Green fans now.

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