Cowboys Shouldn’t Back Themselves Into A Corner

The Dallas Cowboys need to plan their future at quarterback, but some feel that a thin cornerback position is a bigger priority come the draft in April.

Make no mistake: Great football teams are built from the inside out, not the other way around.

During an offseason in which it appears more likely than ever before that the era of Tony Romo as starting quarterback for the Dallas Cowboys is either over or close to it, some will clamor for yet more resources to be allocated for cornerbacks.

That’s right, a defense that can’t get pressure on the quarterback and, subsequently, cannot stop the opposing running game very well should draft or spend free agent dollars on the one position that often makes the least impact in football.

Yes, cornerbacks are a necessity, however, in today’s NFL wide receivers are too big, too strong and sometimes too fast for most cornerbacks to make a big difference, at least without lots of pressure on opposing passers.

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There’s not much need to rehash the disastrous offseason of 2012. Everyone recalls the grossly overpriced acquisition of cornerback Brandon Carr from the Kansas City Chiefs. After that, owner and general manager Jerry Jones traded up to the sixth selection in the NFL draft to select cornerback Morris Claiborne – the Cowboys lost a second-round draft pick as that fiasco unfolded.

Brandon George of the Dallas Morning News tries to make the case that Dallas’ ‘win now’ mentality demands that the franchise pass on a future quarterback early in the draft. Apparently, George thinks that taking a premium quarterback early in the 2016 NFL Draft would be – wait for this – a luxury.

"But if the Cowboys are in a win-now mode – and that certainly is the reality for a team led on offense by an aging quarterback and tight end – they have to consider waiting another year to add Tony Romo’s potential successor. With Romo signed through 2019, adding a quarterback with a high draft pick now would be a luxury. More of a necessity for the Cowboys in April will be looking for their next cornerback."

Huh?

I think that George might be missing the fact that the Cowboys probably won’t be in position to select a soon-to-be-ready NFL starter following the 2016 season. I’m not even certain that he’s calculating the importance of addressing the defensive side of the ball.

What’s that? You say that corners do play defense?

Yeah, they do, but as I mentioned earlier, great teams are built from the inside out, not the outside in.

In other words, if you want to argue that the Cowboys could take a quarterback after the first round, or maybe later in the first round following a trade down, I’d say fine. There’s a few good candidates in the ’16 draft class that might fit the Dallas profile while Romo tries to keep his starting gig for the next couple of seasons.

In this case, we should be talking about defensive linemen or linebackers, and that’s the end of that discussion, at least where early selections are concerned.

But a cornerback as early as the fourth pick?

Ridiculous.

The definition of insanity includes the dynamic of doing something repeatedly while expecting a different result. It’s the precursor to natural selection as I see it.

The last thing Dallas needs to do is draft a defensive back in the first round for the second-straight year.

The panic surrounding the Cowboys secondary stems not just from the lack of plays made by starters Claiborne and Carr, but also by the fact that both are likely to not be playing in Dallas next season – hallelujah, as far as I’m concerned.

Also overlooked is the fact that only two interceptions were recorded by Cowboys cornerbacks last season, both coming down the stretch against the New York Jets and the Buffalo Bills.

Terrance Mitchell had just been elevated to the active roster following the release of Tyler Patmon, another young defensive back that it was probably a mistake to release in the first place. Mitchell picked of Jets quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick deep inside Dallas territory while playing simple zone coverage – exactly the way most pics happen in the NFL.

The very next week, Bills quarterback Tyrod Taylor tossed an interception to rookie Deji Olatoye who was playing man coverage in the end zone. Like Mitchell, Olatoye is another rookie who arguably did more in limited time with the Cowboys than veterans like Claiborne and Carr.

Sterling Moore played quite well for the Cowboys down the stretch during the 2014 regular season, but wasn’t retained for the disastrous ’15 season that just unfolded. Moore, in his sixth season last year with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, had one interception and six passes defended.

The point here is that it might be a better idea to start developing some of the defensive back talent already within reach before deciding to draft rookies who will not come into their first year shutting down the NFL’s elite receivers.

The physique of today’s flankers along with modern day rules which promote as much passing as possible make it a silly idea to prioritize outside players before making sure that the front seven is as volatile for opposing offenses as possible.

Having established the fact that drafting a quarterback in the fourth position would very likely be a huge bonus, the priorities from there need to go towards guys closest to the football on every play – this is where defenses win.

Veteran Orlando Scandrick will be returning  next season and it’s my guess that Claiborne probably stays with the Cowboys at a reasonable price – there’s just no use for Carr at this point. Free agency and later rounds of the draft can be used for the cornerback position, which is certainly one that needs at least a couple more bodies during the offseason.

Next: Cowboys On The Chalkboard: One-Gap Vs. Two-Gap Defense

In conclusion, the fourth selection in the NFL draft is far too important to draft a cornerback not named Deion Sanders. Further, given Dallas’ current situation with Romo, who’s going under the knife again this offseason, there’s really no other position to place a higher priority on than quarterback with that fourth-overall selection in the 2016 NFL Draft next April.