Cowboys Draft Chat: To QB or not QB?
By Reid Hanson
Should the Cowboys draft a QB? When and who should they draft? How important is QB this draft? All of that and more in this draft chat discussion
Reid Hanson took part in a live chat discussing all things Dallas Sports. As one could expect, much of the discussion revolved around the upcoming 2016 NFL Draft.
In case you missed it, here is the discussion regrading the quarterback position…
If the Cowboys don’t find a QB in the draft to take over for Romo, everything else is moot.
Reid: No rookie QB is going to be able to step in and lead the 2016 Dallas Cowboys into the playoffs. The team isn’t good enough and Jason Garrett’s Air Coryell offense places enormous pressure on the QB to perform. So really, a rookie QB has virtually no impact on the 2016 season.
If Romo is lost for an extended stretch, the season is lost. It’s as simple as that.
Long-term, the Cowboys do indeed need a QB to develop. Romo is not long for this league and his career is now being played on a game-by-game basis. He could last a game, a season, or even four seasons. We really don’t know and that’s why the Cowboys should be drafting and grooming QB every year.
But to call everything else “moot” is a massive overstatement if you believe the window is still open for this team. Now, if you believe the window is not open, then the Cowboys should probably just trade/cut/dump all of their players who don’t figure into the long-term future and just focus on rebuilding.
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Who is your favorite QB in this draft?
Reid: I don’t really have a favorite. Picking QBs is such a crapshoot, you need to know the players on a personal level to be able to assess NFL success.
Look, 1st round QB draft picks don’t bust because everyone failed to properly assess their talent. They fail because someone failed to assess their personality, intelligence, work ethic, decision making, etc…
Ryan Leaf, to this day, is still one of the most talented prospects to be drafted in the first round; the problem was his personality, the team around him, and a multitude of other things that made him a bust. I can’t say I know any of the QBs this year well enough to assess them personally and that’s why we all must trust the Cowboys decision makers in this process.
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But is there someone you like more than the others?
Reid: Like most people, I like Dak Prescott. I also like Arkansas QB, Brandon Allen, as late round developmental QB. Both have great value at their current draft spots.
What do you think about the top three guys?
Reid: As for the big three, I prefer Carson Wentz because he is well-built, has all the skills, and seems to mentally solid. He has an extremely high ceiling.
Jared Goff looks to have the highest floor but I’m not sure of his ceiling. His college system didn’t ask much from him in pre-snap reads and it historically has produced inflated numbers. Goff is also slightly-built so he may not be able to withstand the punishment of a system like the Cowboys’ which keeps the QB in the pocket longer than most.
Paxton Lynch is intriguing but he is really, really, really raw. I’m not confident in his ability to read the defense, make adjustments, go through progressions on the fly, and generally adapt to the speed of the game. Jason Garrett’s offense exposes QBs and Lynch is a dangerous pick with so many question marks.
In other words, I’d rather have a smaller, slower, weaker-armed QB that I KNEW could work through progressions, read coverages (both pre-snap and post-snap) and make good decisions than a physical beast who couldn’t do those things.
I’ve seen too many physically dominating people fail to get excited about Lynch.
Next: Understanding the Defensive Techniques of the Cowboys
Tomorrow we’ll release the second portion of the chat where we discuss the running game among other things. If you missed the live chat, feel free to email me at permaximum@hotmail.com to be included on the next mailbag.