Speaker 1: The following. He's a production of Dallas Cowboys dot Com
Speaker 1: and the Dallas Cowboys Football clubs. Are you ready for
Speaker 1: a break? Yes? Are you ready for a break? Absolutely?
Speaker 1: Ready for a break? Yeah, and so much for that.
Speaker 1: It's time for the Break on Dallas Cowboys dot Com
Speaker 1: with Nick Eatman, David Hellman, and bar Garcia and Derek Eagleton. Hello, guys,
Speaker 1: welcome back to Cowboys Break. It's been a while, are
Speaker 1: you guys good? It's been it feels like I was
Speaker 1: literally just thinking, it feels like it's been a month.
Speaker 1: It's been a long two weeks. It's fine, Yeah, feel good.
Speaker 1: How are you good? Derek will be joining us in
Speaker 1: a little bit whenever he feels like it. You know,
Speaker 1: that's his thing. You can do that when you're the
Speaker 1: Boston they're watching TV. I think, yeah, well, let's get
Speaker 1: right into it. I mean, obviously, as of right now,
Speaker 1: it's been kind of a slow week and not many
Speaker 1: things have happened. But one of the things that did
Speaker 1: happen was last night, Jason Witten, he had his help me.
Speaker 1: I would pronouncing this college college, collegiate, collegiate. Wow, definitely
Speaker 1: not how I expected to say that. Words fine Collegiate
Speaker 1: Man of the Year award. Well, aren't it like a
Speaker 1: four point zero I was. I guess they didn't. I
Speaker 1: guess they didn't say that word. They don't give it
Speaker 1: grades unpronouncing words. But Collegiate Man of the Year Jason
Speaker 1: Witten went to Tennessee. Picked a guy from Tennessee. Shocker. Yeah, okay,
Speaker 1: that's I. Actually I didn't know who Tray Smith was
Speaker 1: until I went to this thing last night. And that's
Speaker 1: an impressive dudeum, which actually typically they give that a
Speaker 1: word to a guy who's leaving school, but he's actually
Speaker 1: going back. Um. But yeah, Jason winn gives an award
Speaker 1: to a guy with extremely high on and off field character.
Speaker 1: Tray Smith lost his mother in high school and missed
Speaker 1: an entire year of his college career with blood clots
Speaker 1: and his lungs and battled back to be all SEC
Speaker 1: this past season. He's going back to school. Good for him. Um,
Speaker 1: he did go to Tennessee. So while we're talking about
Speaker 1: last night, he was in the start, he got to
Speaker 1: talk to the media. One of the things that came
Speaker 1: up once again is whether or not he's going to
Speaker 1: play this year, and he once again kind of said
Speaker 1: or confirmed that he does want to continue playing until
Speaker 1: he can and he would prefer it to be with
Speaker 1: the Dallas Cowboys. And he said that he has voiced
Speaker 1: that opinion. He talked with Mike McCarthy prior to him
Speaker 1: kind of gathering his whole coaching staff. He has been
Speaker 1: in communication with Stephen and Jerry Jones and to let
Speaker 1: them know that he wants to be here. Now. Basically
Speaker 1: said that at this point it's just waiting, waiting on
Speaker 1: the Cowboys and see what they decide to do, whether
Speaker 1: to bring him back or not on at least a
Speaker 1: one year contract. So what do you guys think about
Speaker 1: this whole situation? Would you want the Cowboys to bring
Speaker 1: Jason Witten back? It sounds messy to me because he's
Speaker 1: Jason Witten. And if Jason Witten wanted to come back
Speaker 1: and play for the Cowboys, you would think that that'd
Speaker 1: be the end of it. And I mean, okay, well
Speaker 1: you come back, and well we'll make a deal, and
Speaker 1: you know it's not gonna be about the money anyways.
Speaker 1: It's just come back and play and we'll figure out
Speaker 1: the role. But apparently there's there's a sticking point there
Speaker 1: and you know, that's something he's not used to experiencing.
Speaker 1: So do I want him to come back or I mean, yeah,
Speaker 1: I think I think he could because I don't see
Speaker 1: anybody in his way right now that it's like who
Speaker 1: he's taking snaps from. Blake Jarwin will play and play
Speaker 1: a lot, but Dalton Schultz doesn't have to to me,
Speaker 1: so he still can draft one. But I would bring
Speaker 1: him back, But I don't get the sense that's going
Speaker 1: to happen if it's waited this long. I thought it
Speaker 1: was a really interesting thing that Wit said at the
Speaker 1: top of his press conference last night, was that this
Speaker 1: has taken a little bit longer than I wanted it
Speaker 1: to or than I thought it would, which, yeah, I mean,
Speaker 1: you're absolutely right if Jason Witton wants to come back.
Speaker 1: Typically you'd think, Okay, you know, here's the deal, this
Speaker 1: is what it'll be worth, and you're in. And it
Speaker 1: worked that way for him last year when his longtime
Speaker 1: friend and head coach was still calling the shots. Obviously,
Speaker 1: Jason Witten is very very close with the Jones family
Speaker 1: and has those allies, but all of his other allies
Speaker 1: in the building, and that's I mean, you know, his
Speaker 1: teammates like him, and I've never heard a bad word
Speaker 1: about it in that regard, But his allies on the
Speaker 1: coaching staff are gone, like the guys he worked with
Speaker 1: forever that he had all these relationships with, namely Jason Garrett,
Speaker 1: are gone. And yeah, I think, I mean, ultimately, I
Speaker 1: think like whether or not Jason Witten here, I think
Speaker 1: comes down to, like Jerry Jones and Stephen Jones and
Speaker 1: Mike McCarthy, like who wants that more? You know, is
Speaker 1: Mike McCarthy absolutely insistent that he needs a fresh start
Speaker 1: and there's no place for this guy on his roster,
Speaker 1: Or are Jerry and Stephen Jones insistent that you know,
Speaker 1: this is Jason Witten and we're going to find a
Speaker 1: way to keep him around for one more year. Which
Speaker 1: is why the other interesting takeaway that I got out
Speaker 1: of this last night was he expects to have these
Speaker 1: conversations when the Cowboys come back from the combine and
Speaker 1: before free agency, so like, this isn't a typical free agent,
Speaker 1: like like you know you're not doing this isn't a
Speaker 1: guy on his first contract that wants to test the market.
Speaker 1: This is a guy who's just looking for the right
Speaker 1: landing spot. He wants it to be here. So I
Speaker 1: think it's interesting to think that one way or another,
Speaker 1: this will be resolved before a free agency opens in March,
Speaker 1: so you know, ideally within the next two and a
Speaker 1: half to three weeks we would have an answer. Me personally,
Speaker 1: it's nothing against Jason Witten. You change the coaching staff over.
Speaker 1: He was last year. I don't think he was dynamic.
Speaker 1: I don't think he helped you in the red zone.
Speaker 1: He maybe didn't hinder Blake Jarwin as much as I
Speaker 1: thought he would before the season, but he still ate
Speaker 1: up a lot of those snaps. I would rather turn
Speaker 1: the page and start fresh again. Nothing against him, but
Speaker 1: I just think you know you're already changing the coaching
Speaker 1: staff over, you might as well take that final step
Speaker 1: and just move into a new era completely. But I
Speaker 1: will be interested to see who wins out in that
Speaker 1: decision making process. Well, you know you tend to usually
Speaker 1: when you see the group of guys in your roster,
Speaker 1: you tend to pick out the guys that seem better.
Speaker 1: You know, you mentioned out of the group, Jason Witten
Speaker 1: is still better than the rest of them. And yes,
Speaker 1: but at this point when you start analyzing the whole
Speaker 1: free agency. Are there any tight ends out there currently
Speaker 1: that might be better than Jason Witten or not necessarily better,
Speaker 1: but could contribute more on the field than what he
Speaker 1: did last year. Yeah, Well, the thing is, and I
Speaker 1: say this about better, I mean obviously more dynamic down
Speaker 1: the field player is still is on your roster, and
Speaker 1: Blake Jarwin he is better at that? I don't. I mean,
Speaker 1: maybe you know, Jason Witten has forgotten more about tight
Speaker 1: end than like ninety nine percent of people will ever learn.
Speaker 1: I get that, like maybe in the all encompassing duties
Speaker 1: of the position, he might be better than Blake Jarwin,
Speaker 1: But like, can you definitively say he's a better option
Speaker 1: based on what we saw last season in terms of
Speaker 1: like being a dynamic element of the offense. I don't
Speaker 1: think you can say that anymore now. I think Blake
Speaker 1: Jarwin is the better option at this point in their
Speaker 1: respective careers. Right, But I you know, to me, I'm
Speaker 1: looking at tight end like I look at who's the
Speaker 1: best cornerback, second or third corner. Well, they're both going
Speaker 1: to play, So I mean, I don't know if it
Speaker 1: really matters who runs out of the starting lineup now
Speaker 1: to Jason Witten. It does that does matter, and I
Speaker 1: don't know if he's willing to be the backup there.
Speaker 1: But we can see that two tight ends can play.
Speaker 1: But I don't see where Dalton Schultz has to I mean,
Speaker 1: where's a role for him. Now, I'm still drafting a
Speaker 1: guy I know. You know, if Witten comes back, that
Speaker 1: might change where you draft a player. And you said
Speaker 1: on the Draft Show a few times, it's not a
Speaker 1: strong draft class for tight ends. Really no, it's ironic.
Speaker 1: It's not top heavy. It was a fantastic class last year,
Speaker 1: and that is not I mean, there are good players
Speaker 1: in the draft at tight end this year, but it's
Speaker 1: not what it was last year with two to three
Speaker 1: first round caliber talents. You know, guys that were that
Speaker 1: you could have gotten in the third round that might
Speaker 1: have been able to push first starting job. I don't
Speaker 1: think you're going to see that this year. There is
Speaker 1: a tight end. I think that's going to be a
Speaker 1: free agent Eric Ebron. Yeah. Now, now he's a guy
Speaker 1: that is you're he's a guy that Jerry Jones would
Speaker 1: would like to sign because he's a former first round pick.
Speaker 1: I think tenth overall didn't really work out for the Lions,
Speaker 1: went to the Colts pretty good, like twenty six years old.
Speaker 1: That's a guy, which yeah, no, I mean he was.
Speaker 1: He was the twenty fourteen draft class. So he's Zack
Speaker 1: Martin's draft class. He's definitely he's not twenty six then
Speaker 1: he Well, it depends on I mean, all those guys
Speaker 1: come out at different points. I don't know how old
Speaker 1: Eric Ebron is, but I do know he was good
Speaker 1: enough in Indianapolis that I think he would be a
Speaker 1: little more expensive than the Cowboys would want to pay
Speaker 1: for him in free agency. I think he's also like
Speaker 1: the Colts are not in a hurry to resign him.
Speaker 1: Chris Ballard up there like made it pretty clear that
Speaker 1: he was not a priority. So, like you wonder about
Speaker 1: fit in terms of like locker room culture and stuff
Speaker 1: like that. And he's and he is another big Darwin
Speaker 1: type of like pass catcher. Thirteen touchdowns in eighteen last
Speaker 1: year was kind of not great, but I mean he's
Speaker 1: a pass catcher. He's in red zone three. Yeah, for sure,
Speaker 1: that's important too. That's what the position has become anyway.
Speaker 1: I mean, like and that's I mean, that's always been
Speaker 1: the argument about Jason Witton anyway, rights like, there just
Speaker 1: aren't that many guys that can do it all anymore.
Speaker 1: It's become too much of a pass happy sport. And
Speaker 1: I do I wonder about that because like under Jason Garrett,
Speaker 1: that was always going to be the things like, well
Speaker 1: can he block? We don't want him if you can't block?
Speaker 1: Is that going to be the thing under Mike McCarthy,
Speaker 1: I'm not one hundred percent sure what are you going
Speaker 1: to say? Something else? I was going to ask, are
Speaker 1: you what are you doing it? You're bringing them back now?
Speaker 1: And I you know, people attack me when I write
Speaker 1: things down on some almost Cowboys, and I put that
Speaker 1: out because and I get it from as fans perspective.
Speaker 1: You want your guy. You love Jason Witten what he's done,
Speaker 1: but I think that at this point he kind of
Speaker 1: slows you down, and even though he has made some
Speaker 1: good things for you, he made some good things for
Speaker 1: you last year, at this point I think that the
Speaker 1: Cowboys just need someone more dynamic and let Blake Jarwin
Speaker 1: kind of take a bigger role there, but bring somebody
Speaker 1: else that you know, what do you want to be?
Speaker 1: What do you want to be? As a football team,
Speaker 1: you want to be young, fast, and cheap, like honestly
Speaker 1: in the NFL, like, those are three of my biggest things.
Speaker 1: Jason Witten's not any of those things at this point
Speaker 1: in his career. And I mean he's not super expensive.
Speaker 1: Says that. Who says young, fast and keep me? I
Speaker 1: just did, Okay, but ye act like that's the thing,
Speaker 1: like I think it is. That's I mean, you want young, durable.
Speaker 1: If you're just gonna take three things, you're not gonna
Speaker 1: take young, fast, and chieved. Well, I mean, like talented
Speaker 1: is obviously like the number one. Those renegade well you
Speaker 1: know what my problem is now, they're not fast or
Speaker 1: they'd be in the NFL like that's and most of
Speaker 1: them aren't young either because they already had failed NFL career.
Speaker 1: They're still relatively failed. But last year, sorry, I was
Speaker 1: going to say last year, I was excited of him
Speaker 1: coming back because I thought, oh wow, okay, Dad can
Speaker 1: definitely use him in the red zone and he can
Speaker 1: definitely improve that whole area where the Cowboys struggled in
Speaker 1: the previous year. And it wasn't the case like last year.
Speaker 1: The red zone didn't improve that much. They were still struggling.
Speaker 1: So to me, there wasn't much of a difference there of,
Speaker 1: you know, having him and not having him. Yeah, I mean, okay,
Speaker 1: I see that point too. I'm still thinking about this
Speaker 1: one though as well, because the thing is is Dak
Speaker 1: zeke and you wanted to pay these guys. You know,
Speaker 1: you want to keep them. You want to keep Dak, right,
Speaker 1: you know. I mean, so, I mean, he's not going
Speaker 1: to be cheap, and he's not going to be young,
Speaker 1: and you're banking on the fact that his experience is
Speaker 1: going to help back is very young by quarterbacks time.
Speaker 1: But I still think that experience matters. You could convince
Speaker 1: me that Jason Witten doesn't need to be here, maybe
Speaker 1: because of more of a changing of philosophy, changing the guard,
Speaker 1: turn the page, let's get done this way. I can
Speaker 1: maybe see that. But I don't believe that that he
Speaker 1: held him back. I mean, it was number one offense
Speaker 1: in the league. I don't think he was holding them back.
Speaker 1: I don't think he was holding them back. But I
Speaker 1: just don't I'm not convinced that the value he brought
Speaker 1: was was all that much, honestly, So what are you
Speaker 1: trying to say? You want him back or no. I yeah,
Speaker 1: I mean if if, if Jason Witten can can kind
Speaker 1: of loosen the grip a little bit as far as
Speaker 1: how much he plays, which I think that we saw
Speaker 1: that a little bit last year. We'll play see more
Speaker 1: of it then then Yeah, I don't see any reason
Speaker 1: why he couldn't come back. Um, I don't think it's
Speaker 1: gonna be about money. I still want to see Blake Jarwin,
Speaker 1: but I'm not convinced Blake Jarwin's just been, you know,
Speaker 1: sitting there with like shackles on, just ready to bust
Speaker 1: out and go to the Hall of Fame. I mean,
Speaker 1: I'm not ready to see that. But I do think
Speaker 1: he's dynamic and needs to play more. But there's nobody
Speaker 1: else on the roster, and I'm like, well, ah, I mean,
Speaker 1: who's he gonna play in front of him? It's just
Speaker 1: it's so it's like a needlessly complicated problem. Though, is like,
Speaker 1: and You're like, I don't think Blake Jarwin's like a
Speaker 1: pro bowler, but I think he's he's a dynamic player.
Speaker 1: You saw what he could do in the seam, you
Speaker 1: saw what he could do in the red zone, you
Speaker 1: saw what he can do after the catch that's really important.
Speaker 1: That's something that hasn't been part of Jason Witten's came
Speaker 1: in a while. If he would be Antonio Gates and
Speaker 1: do that role and Antonio Gates, the WHO Hall of
Speaker 1: Famer numbers, all that for the Chargers, and then they
Speaker 1: drafted Hunter or Henry Yeah, and you know they they
Speaker 1: basically he I mean, he's been on the team, but
Speaker 1: he hasn't really been like the main guy to be.
Speaker 1: And if that was fine, if he was fine with
Speaker 1: that and he wanted to do it, like I'm not
Speaker 1: gonna raise a stink about it, that's totally fine. But
Speaker 1: at that point, like why though? Like why? And and
Speaker 1: then he's Jason Witten the backup and like he's on
Speaker 1: TV and he's still talking on Thursdays, but he's not
Speaker 1: really playing as much. And it's it's not a distraction,
Speaker 1: but it's just like, but what are you doing it for?
Speaker 1: Like what's the value versus the spotlight? Whereas you could
Speaker 1: roll Blake jar went into the starting role and draft
Speaker 1: a guy and he could serve the same purpose and
Speaker 1: he would just be, oh, yeah, that's the guy we
Speaker 1: drafted in the third round. So what if he is
Speaker 1: a a backup player who can who can contribute, can play,
Speaker 1: and he's gonna help these young guys in there in
Speaker 1: the locker room. Like I said, I'd be fine with that.
Speaker 1: That doesn't bother me. I just I don't think it's
Speaker 1: all that valuable. I just why and and and you
Speaker 1: like that? Well, I knew League getting a pass. Why
Speaker 1: Sean League get to come and do this in well,
Speaker 1: because he's Sean Lee and all that. I mean, why
Speaker 1: not Witten? Because Shaun Lee played such a more vital
Speaker 1: role to this team in my opinion, in all honesty,
Speaker 1: and you're you yeah, absolutely, because he started third. He
Speaker 1: started ten games like the last ten games of the
Speaker 1: year when your first round pick went down, had a
Speaker 1: hundred depending on if you use coaches tape for official
Speaker 1: stats keepers, he had like eighty two one hundred and
Speaker 1: twenty tackles played some of the bet likes, played at
Speaker 1: a really high level, and held your lineback and corp together,
Speaker 1: which maybe wasn't the worst position group on your team,
Speaker 1: but was certainly the most disappointing. Like absolutely, and Blake.
Speaker 1: Like Blake, Jarwin didn't set the world on fire by
Speaker 1: any means, but he showed glimpses of ability when he
Speaker 1: got his chances, and I just, like I said, I
Speaker 1: mean it, Shaun Lee said that he wants to play,
Speaker 1: and I just stop. But why are you trying to
Speaker 1: cost drama where there's no need. I'm just saying, there
Speaker 1: any doubt that Sean Lee says he wants to play.
Speaker 1: I mean, I bet they're going to resign him. I
Speaker 1: think Sean Lee has needed much more on this team
Speaker 1: than Jason Witten is right now at this moment in
Speaker 1: their careers. Okay, I think, so go with you on
Speaker 1: that one, because because Sean Lee is needed. But hey,
Speaker 1: let's let's be honest. Sean Lee can get hurt like
Speaker 1: that and will get hurt. And he didn't this year
Speaker 1: because he didn't play. He played the last ten games
Speaker 1: he started them, he played thirteen. I think I think
Speaker 1: he might have even started thirteen. He started thirteen games.
Speaker 1: I'm sorry. He started three at sam when everybody was healthy,
Speaker 1: and he started like the last nine games of the
Speaker 1: year because Layton's neck was hurt. He played a lot
Speaker 1: this year, and he played well. But it's such a
Speaker 1: different position too. It's like you can't to me, you
Speaker 1: can't really compare the two because of the roles on
Speaker 1: the field. It's just completely different. I don't think so.
Speaker 1: To me, you do way more as a linebacker. You
Speaker 1: can get hurt. That's when you step in and Shawn
Speaker 1: Lee is ready to go and attack with some power.
Speaker 1: He's faster, he moves faster still, he's getting up thirty
Speaker 1: in age. But when starting to slow down, now, I
Speaker 1: don't I wouldn't mind. Lee is slowing down too. He's
Speaker 1: been slowing down. He absolutely is. Okay, yes, I agree.
Speaker 1: Who's more reliable? Jason Winton? All right, yeah, I mean
Speaker 1: it's all I'm saying is and this is why are
Speaker 1: we confining the two? Well, because they're older and they're good,
Speaker 1: and they're veterans, and they're white and all that stuff.
Speaker 1: I mean, they're just easy to do. It's easy to
Speaker 1: say that. I mean, you don't even easy to compare
Speaker 1: these two guys. They are the last They are the
Speaker 1: last holdovers from the older era of the Cowboys, like
Speaker 1: the mid two thousand Cowboys. They're the last guys here
Speaker 1: and they bring a veteran, experienced, tough, gritty type of
Speaker 1: player to the locker room. And I mean, again, I
Speaker 1: love Sean Lee and I love the fact that he's
Speaker 1: coming back. I'm just saying that just yet. Well, I
Speaker 1: think he wants to play. He wants to play. He
Speaker 1: could be in the same boat, and for all we know,
Speaker 1: he could be in the exact same boat. He just
Speaker 1: the award. He hasn't spoken publicly because he's Sean Lee.
Speaker 1: He doesn't really like to do that. Yeah, like he
Speaker 1: could do the exact same thing where free agency rolls
Speaker 1: around and the Cowboys are like, we love you, like
Speaker 1: we would love to have you. If you're willing to
Speaker 1: go into the season as the backup, you get forty
Speaker 1: percent of the snaps. If everything goes well, maybe you
Speaker 1: start if somebody gets hurt. And he could say, screw that, right,
Speaker 1: I got a house on the West Coast and the
Speaker 1: Chargers need a starting linebacker more than you do. So
Speaker 1: here I go, like, we don't know what's going to happen. True,
Speaker 1: he does seem like the type of guy that would
Speaker 1: go play for another team more than Wittenwood. To me,
Speaker 1: I have a hard time imagining either one of them
Speaker 1: doing it, to be honest with you, just because we
Speaker 1: haven't ever seen it, and like they kind of embody
Speaker 1: the whole Cowboys spirit. So well, yeah, all right, I
Speaker 1: don't know. Well, I didn't expect to spend the whole
Speaker 1: segment talking about Thailand. But that's okay. That's interesting. Let's
Speaker 1: go ahead and take our first break, and when we
Speaker 1: come back, let's start discussing once again the quarterback position.
Speaker 1: But all these free agent guys are in the market
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Speaker 1: welcome back, guys. Now, the quarterback position is the position
Speaker 1: that we've been talking about since last year. Obviously, we're
Speaker 1: still waiting on the whole Dak Prescott contract to get resolved.
Speaker 1: And see why. What's going on with that is that?
Speaker 1: Is that like a topic of conversation these days? People
Speaker 1: talking about Daks? Not really, No, I mean that's right one, no,
Speaker 1: good point, not the actual agent and not the cowboy
Speaker 1: that can actually get it done. Maybe they are because
Speaker 1: Steven said it was heating up, and he said things
Speaker 1: are about to heat up and it's like forty degrees outside.
Speaker 1: So I don't think he was talking about that. Please
Speaker 1: do something. I want to talk about weather. No, no,
Speaker 1: I don't know. Okay, let's sorry. No, it's all good.
Speaker 1: It's all good. Okay. We've talked about Dak quite a lot,
Speaker 1: and we're still waiting on that. Assuming that happens. The
Speaker 1: Cowboys signed Dak Prescot to a contract. Blah blah blah. Okay,
Speaker 1: all good. Let's talk about the backup quarterback position and
Speaker 1: what happens there and what the Cowboys should do with
Speaker 1: that given the fact that there are a lot of
Speaker 1: veteran guys out in the market with free agency, and
Speaker 1: this is something that you know, a lot of fans
Speaker 1: start commenting on and asking questions, Oh, is this guy
Speaker 1: coming here or so and so, you know, so what
Speaker 1: are your expectations with the backup quarterback? Should they keep
Speaker 1: Cooper Rush? Who's been here what three four? Three four years? Yeah,
Speaker 1: he just finished his third year I believe third year,
Speaker 1: which yeah, because he's a restricted free agent. So it's
Speaker 1: a really interesting conversation and you keep, I keep copying
Speaker 1: out because you have to change everything you think you
Speaker 1: know about the way they do things because it's a
Speaker 1: completely different coaching staff. Like Cooper Rush was, he was
Speaker 1: Jason Garrett's that he was that staff's guy. They found him,
Speaker 1: they developed him, they loved him. Mike McCarthy doesn't know
Speaker 1: this dude, and he didn't play a role in his development.
Speaker 1: Mike McCarthy has been a quarterback friendly coach for his
Speaker 1: entire career. He might have a completely different idea of
Speaker 1: like what he wants in a backup player like Cowboys
Speaker 1: haven't invested in a veter and back up in a
Speaker 1: long time, not since Kyle Orton. It's hard to believe
Speaker 1: that they would want to do that if they're going
Speaker 1: to drop a bunch of money on Dak Prescott. But
Speaker 1: it might be something Mike McCarthy values. Or again, you know,
Speaker 1: drafting a quarterback is always a good idea in my opinion,
Speaker 1: that could be a you know, an avenue they go down.
Speaker 1: They haven't done it. They did it two years ago
Speaker 1: with Mike White. It didn't work out. But keep trying
Speaker 1: to punch those lottery tickets. Man, I think you should
Speaker 1: do it all the time, honestly, quarterback. Yeah, I mean
Speaker 1: not with a big pick, but this day three hell yeah. Yeah.
Speaker 1: This is this conversation is assuming the dad because because
Speaker 1: to me, it's kind of like walking, you know, like
Speaker 1: walking to your table at a restaurant. You're really hungry
Speaker 1: and you just walk past the dessert menu or a
Speaker 1: dessert train. You're like, okay, well we'll talk about that
Speaker 1: in a little bit. Well let's focus on this. It
Speaker 1: wouldn't we get this down and we'll see Because I
Speaker 1: think what happens with Dak and how much you pay
Speaker 1: them is is kind of will affect what happens with
Speaker 1: it with the backup quarterback. But like you said, let's
Speaker 1: just let's assume that it's fair market and all this. Um.
Speaker 1: I think you do need to get a little bit
Speaker 1: more of experience. There a guy that you feel like,
Speaker 1: if he has to go in and play in the game,
Speaker 1: it's not gonna change a lot. You're not having to worry.
Speaker 1: What's Cooper Rush going to be like, you know, give
Speaker 1: me a guy that's done it, he started some games.
Speaker 1: I'm sure there's some out there. There are actually there
Speaker 1: are quite a few many names I do. I mean,
Speaker 1: the one that jumps off the page to me is
Speaker 1: Colt McCoy. Obviously, yes, Texas guy spent forever in Washington.
Speaker 1: I'd be all all aboard that train me too, because
Speaker 1: he's a guy that's not gonna you know, he's not
Speaker 1: gonna I mean, unless you're the ut guy, you're not
Speaker 1: gonna be like every time Dak goes a pick, you're like,
Speaker 1: let's play McCoy Like, no one's gonna do that. But
Speaker 1: if something were to happen to Dac and nothing ever has,
Speaker 1: but if it's someone you've seen do something you can
Speaker 1: step right in and play. And he's playing. He's beaten
Speaker 1: the Cowboys I think when they were six and one,
Speaker 1: seven and one and they had Tony Romo. Yeah, that
Speaker 1: was That was a game where you know, the Cowboys
Speaker 1: were rolling and the Redskins were struggling and it was
Speaker 1: a Monday night game and he came in and beat him.
Speaker 1: Career backup Chase Daniel is available. I'd love that. AJ
Speaker 1: mccaren is an unrestricted free agent. Drew Stanton chat mccaren.
Speaker 1: Do you like that? I mean, you know he went
Speaker 1: to Alabama, that's his choice. That's finer. Yeah, I mean
Speaker 1: if if the Cowboys were interested, I don't think that's
Speaker 1: a terrible idea. Um case Keenum. It's hard to gauge.
Speaker 1: Matt Moore obviously has a history with the Cowboys. He
Speaker 1: was Mahomes's backup in Casey and played well when he
Speaker 1: needed to this year. Um yeah, I can see that. Shoot.
Speaker 1: Blake Bortles is available. Like and I like, these names
Speaker 1: aren't gonna get you excited, that's not the point, but like,
Speaker 1: these are all guys that have started NFL games. Some
Speaker 1: of those guys are gonna be pricey because they play
Speaker 1: they play quarterback. I don't think he's available. I might
Speaker 1: be wrong. Um, I don't see him on the list. Yeah,
Speaker 1: you know, Cooper Rush isn't isn't a name that gets
Speaker 1: anyone excited either. So but I think, but all the
Speaker 1: guys I just named have started meaningful games in the NFL,
Speaker 1: Like I would go that route. I would, I would,
Speaker 1: I would get a guy in here like that. Some
Speaker 1: experience a little bit. I know this is I mean,
Speaker 1: this is so like the quarterback market is obviously absurd,
Speaker 1: but like, if you get a guy like that, you're
Speaker 1: paying good money for that. It's true, that's not cheap.
Speaker 1: And are you willing to do it that that will
Speaker 1: be more than what they would pay for Jason Witten
Speaker 1: or um Sean Lee to come back? Don't you think?
Speaker 1: Oh year I ten? Yeah, Pam pumped that thing up.
Speaker 1: Depending on how qualified you want your quarterback to be,
Speaker 1: you're probably I mean, which based on what you know,
Speaker 1: So it's not that important to you. No, it isn't
Speaker 1: not a ten million a year. I mean, it depends
Speaker 1: on the quarterback. Like I all right, I don't keep
Speaker 1: talking while I don't. I don't want to pay a
Speaker 1: guy ten million to wear a ball cap, and you
Speaker 1: know what, if it happens, we're dacked out three or
Speaker 1: four games, you know what, that's bad. But it's not
Speaker 1: like these guys are like the Savior, Like you will
Speaker 1: definitely win if Chase Daniel starts for you. I mean,
Speaker 1: you know you still struggle. Colt McCoy was only making
Speaker 1: four million a year on his last deal. That's phenomenal
Speaker 1: for me. I'm on board with that, gay, But again,
Speaker 1: like some, it just depends on how experienced he is.
Speaker 1: Like the Eagles paid Chase Daniel a staggering amount of
Speaker 1: money to not ever play for them a few years ago,
Speaker 1: because you can command that when you're a quarterback. It's
Speaker 1: a lower number than what we talk about with that
Speaker 1: because you're not talking about regular starters. But quarterbacks just
Speaker 1: get paid more money because things go to hell if
Speaker 1: you don't have one, even if it's just a backup.
Speaker 1: It's just like insurance on your house, you know. I
Speaker 1: guess you can make the argument of, Okay, well we
Speaker 1: haven't necessarily seen Cooper Rush playing with all the starters.
Speaker 1: Fair but very fair. I don't know, I don't know
Speaker 1: if that makes me feel any more better. You know,
Speaker 1: he plays pretty well in the preseason games. Remember he
Speaker 1: wasn't playing that well going into Hawaii, he played like
Speaker 1: a legend as a rookie, like he was amazing, and
Speaker 1: then it's just kind of been ever since, which which
Speaker 1: he's not playing with starters, the offensive, backup offensive. Absolutely,
Speaker 1: I mean it is actually pretty good. But even a
Speaker 1: practice though seeing him making not making peak, that's okay,
Speaker 1: But here you expect the growth to happen, and it
Speaker 1: was like it's been backwards. You know, this is an
Speaker 1: interesting This is an interesting wrinkle for me. Cooper Rush
Speaker 1: is a restricted free agent, which means if you want
Speaker 1: to bring him back, you have to tender him, which
Speaker 1: there's three you know, you can tender him as a
Speaker 1: first round pick, second round pick, or the round originally drafted,
Speaker 1: which he was not drafted. So I think that's a
Speaker 1: really interesting dynamic because you can tag him as a
Speaker 1: second round pick, and that scares teams away because then
Speaker 1: you gotta if you want to sign him, you gotta
Speaker 1: give up a second round pick to get him. It
Speaker 1: also means, you know, he's making probably like Cult McCoy money,
Speaker 1: Like I think it's I think it's three three point
Speaker 1: five as a second round pick, and it jumps up
Speaker 1: to like four or five as a first round pick
Speaker 1: if you tender him in the round you originally drafted him.
Speaker 1: That anybody can sign him and they don't know you
Speaker 1: anything because he was not drafted, so he's not technically
Speaker 1: worth a draft pick. So I'm if the Cowboys want
Speaker 1: to keep him, I'm curious what they would do there.
Speaker 1: And there is a fourth option for those restricted guys.
Speaker 1: What I've seen the Cowboys do is they'll they'll they
Speaker 1: say they'll they'll buy the restricted year, so they'll they'll
Speaker 1: give him a deal and you know, like a two
Speaker 1: year deal, and they'll they'll pay him for this one
Speaker 1: and then the next one. So he's not really going
Speaker 1: into his last year. But I think he comes back.
Speaker 1: But I don't think he's the only backup option there
Speaker 1: because you said it way at the start here. It's
Speaker 1: hard to talk about this because you don't know what
Speaker 1: the staff, how the staff values this. I just think Mike,
Speaker 1: like Mike McCarthy's calling card his whole career has been offense.
Speaker 1: Like he's tied at the hip to Aaron Rodgers for
Speaker 1: better and for worse. He's an offensive minded guy, he's
Speaker 1: I don't know if he's a quarterback guru, but like
Speaker 1: that's kind of been his thing, right, And it's hard
Speaker 1: for me to believe, with everything that I know about
Speaker 1: football coaches that he's gonna walk in and be like, oh, yeah,
Speaker 1: this guy's good, like you know, like, yeah, this guy
Speaker 1: that was here with the last like, I like him
Speaker 1: just as much as the last staff did. Yeah, I don't.
Speaker 1: And I based that on nothing other than my experience
Speaker 1: knowing that like football coaches want their guys and they
Speaker 1: want things their way, you know. I just thought about this.
Speaker 1: So Brett Farve was still had a few years left,
Speaker 1: you know when he played. He played three or four
Speaker 1: more years, right, and it was a I mean Brett Farve,
Speaker 1: He's won three MVPs at the time, won a Super
Speaker 1: Bowl and they moved on to Aaron Rodgers and he
Speaker 1: was the head coach for that. So this just kind
Speaker 1: of stems back to the last conversation we had of
Speaker 1: the previous discussion about Witton and Sean Lee. He's had
Speaker 1: to do this before, where true he parted ways with
Speaker 1: Brett Farve, and that was that was tough for the
Speaker 1: fan base still to understand. You know, so, um, he's
Speaker 1: I'm not saying that was his decision all the way. Now,
Speaker 1: there was also Aaron Rodgers there, and you're like, yeah,
Speaker 1: I think Aaron Rodgers are gonna be pretty good and
Speaker 1: not call him Blake Jaron Aaron Rodgers. I'm just saying
Speaker 1: he's had to make these tough calls before that probably
Speaker 1: weren't that popular for fans, And I think this one
Speaker 1: was a little different too, because I think fans would
Speaker 1: probably be okay with it with Witten. I think most
Speaker 1: sense that they're kind of like I think most fans
Speaker 1: just kind of want to move into a completely new era.
Speaker 1: Like they're gonna keep their Jason Witton jerseys, they are gonna,
Speaker 1: you know, the fatheads not coming down, but they're just
Speaker 1: ready for a no era of cowboy football. Well, when
Speaker 1: anyone searches for Michael Jordan highlights, they don't ever say
Speaker 1: Michael Jordan Wizards, right because they don't want to see
Speaker 1: Michael Jordan playing for the Wizards because it wasn't the
Speaker 1: Michael Jordan that they remember. And they don't want Jason
Speaker 1: Witten to come out here and have another year like
Speaker 1: this now if he doesn't have that one handed catch
Speaker 1: against the Rams that that would be a lot easier
Speaker 1: for people to maybe even for himself. Yeah, but I
Speaker 1: mean Jason Witten's best plays of his career top five
Speaker 1: catches ever, one of them is going to be from
Speaker 1: last year because that was amazing. Might actually be hindering
Speaker 1: this and say, but at the same time, he did
Speaker 1: make a lot of errors that you're now used to seeing.
Speaker 1: Hint me, that's what I'm saying. I mean that catch
Speaker 1: might have actually been kind of it's it might be
Speaker 1: that golf shot on number eighteen where you hit it
Speaker 1: right down the middle and you're right, I'm playing next
Speaker 1: week and you're like, you shot at one twelve, Like
Speaker 1: you sucked that. I'm talking about myself. I've done that.
Speaker 1: I've played terrible, hit it all over the yard, but
Speaker 1: the last couple holes that was the shot, and that
Speaker 1: gets you to come back and go, I'm playing. I'm
Speaker 1: playing again, Sign me up. And I guess that's the
Speaker 1: point I was trying to make in the first segment,
Speaker 1: is like, if you're gonna split snaps and just be
Speaker 1: a guy, then why not just get a guy? You know, Like,
Speaker 1: why does it have to be one of the most
Speaker 1: legendary plays in franchise history. Like you can get anybody
Speaker 1: to fill that role, including a draft pick who's going
Speaker 1: to cost you a lot less and can develop into
Speaker 1: something much better in the future. Is then embarrassing if
Speaker 1: that guy is just kind of a guy that does
Speaker 1: also have this Like that's exactly that's no what I
Speaker 1: think Jason Witten knows that too. Like he's got a
Speaker 1: thirty foot mural in the Star of him making his
Speaker 1: helmetless catch, like one of the best moments in recent
Speaker 1: franchise history. You can't go out to practice and not
Speaker 1: see it. And right when you go to practice, you
Speaker 1: know he did. He took fewer snaps, like he was
Speaker 1: a good team player, and like I'm not saying anything
Speaker 1: bad about him, but like, is he gonna he's a
Speaker 1: cool just being a guy who gets forty five percent
Speaker 1: of the snaps, and like he comes in and twelve personnel,
Speaker 1: but Jarwin is playing in eleven personnel a lot more
Speaker 1: than him, Like no way, I don't buy that, which
Speaker 1: is what just you know again, it's nothing against him,
Speaker 1: but like it just sounds easier for everybody if you
Speaker 1: move on, Like Jarwin's this guy you can draft a
Speaker 1: player in the third or fourth round, and you know,
Speaker 1: maybe they won't even be that good. Maybe you'll still
Speaker 1: have to address this position in the future. But it's
Speaker 1: just it just feels like time for turning the page
Speaker 1: to me see what I did. I got it right
Speaker 1: back to right back. Which I feel the same way
Speaker 1: about quarterback as I do with Witten. Like, if they
Speaker 1: want to bring Cooper Rush back, I'm not gonna like
Speaker 1: write an angry column about it. That's fine because I
Speaker 1: don't anticipate him playing. Dak hasn't missed a game yet
Speaker 1: in his career. But I would rather sign a Colt
Speaker 1: McCoy who's been there and done that and honest, and
Speaker 1: if we could draft a guy in the sixth round
Speaker 1: or you know, late, just to kind of like have
Speaker 1: him and you know, look at him in training camp, like,
Speaker 1: that's the way that I would prefer to go about it.
Speaker 1: Brady doesn't miss a lot of games. Oh my god. Okay,
Speaker 1: let's switch up the conversation a little bit. Please switch
Speaker 1: up the conversation a little bit. This question is gonna
Speaker 1: be hard to answer because you know, we still don't
Speaker 1: know what's going to happen in free agency and we
Speaker 1: don't know what's going to happen in the draft, but
Speaker 1: because it is late February, why not when you look
Speaker 1: at the current roster and the guys that the Cowboys
Speaker 1: do have on their list, who would you say is
Speaker 1: a guy that you would expect to have a bigger
Speaker 1: role in this next season? Mmma, already on a team?
Speaker 1: Because again, for example, I'll give you an example, a
Speaker 1: guy that people are bringing up and mentioning a lot.
Speaker 1: Jordan Lewis. Okay, maybe a guy that could step up,
Speaker 1: depending assuming that Baron Jones leaves and all of that,
Speaker 1: and maybe he gets a bigger role. Hi, Derek, how's
Speaker 1: everything going? Hey? Man? Back? Slightly contentious today, honestly, like
Speaker 1: just a little with Amber and Nick and an air
Speaker 1: of contention. Okay, um, So to welcome you back into
Speaker 1: the show, let me ask you this question we talked
Speaker 1: about and yet at all so I'm kidding, don't mention
Speaker 1: who would be a guy this is without think get
Speaker 1: into consideration what's going to happen in free agency and
Speaker 1: the draft. Who would be a guy in the current
Speaker 1: roster that could end up having a bigger role this year?
Speaker 1: I got it, bigger role like anybody who's on the
Speaker 1: team last year that's an ascending player, is what you're saying,
Speaker 1: will be better next year, have more of a role
Speaker 1: next year. I obviously you know for sure it's going
Speaker 1: to be back this year. I just I just want
Speaker 1: to point out that, like half the roster's not under contract.
Speaker 1: There's a lot of I think there's an easy answer here, Okay,
Speaker 1: Tony Pollard, I hope so good. God see, I was
Speaker 1: gonna say, Michael Gallop, Gallup Pollard either one. Jordan Lewis
Speaker 1: maybe if you think you may have to. I don't
Speaker 1: know if they are convinced that he is a starting
Speaker 1: caliber corner, like I mean, I have a lot of
Speaker 1: options though, right, No, I agreed, But I'm just saying,
Speaker 1: where do you stand between him and Cheeto? Uh? I'm
Speaker 1: between those two. I'm the middle linebacker because those two
Speaker 1: are about starters, right and then unless you draft someone,
Speaker 1: I mean, they will bring cornerbacks into this team one
Speaker 1: way or another. They have. We've just put Byron Jones out.
Speaker 1: I don't actually somebody asked me about this on Twitter
Speaker 1: before we came on the show. I don't know how
Speaker 1: how you can't and we're wrong all the time. I
Speaker 1: say it all like, who knows they might make something work.
Speaker 1: Maybe Byron Jones really wants to stay here, but it
Speaker 1: just doesn't feel like it. I cannot your right standpoint.
Speaker 1: I can't come up with a logical argument for how
Speaker 1: he stays. It just doesn't feel like he wants. I
Speaker 1: just think he wants to test the market and he should.
Speaker 1: I think he is. I think the markets willing to
Speaker 1: pay him more than the Cowboys. Yeah. Byron Jones is
Speaker 1: one of the smartest players in that locker room, and
Speaker 1: he has to be aware of what good cornerback play
Speaker 1: is worth in free agency, and Rake quonnerback play even good,
Speaker 1: also has to be aware that he has been in
Speaker 1: a contract year for just as long as Dak and
Speaker 1: Amari and nobody's talking about it art and we are now,
Speaker 1: But like all through the summer and the and the fall,
Speaker 1: it was Dak and him a Dak and Amari throws
Speaker 1: Zeke's contract hold out in there too, and he's just like, Okay,
Speaker 1: I guess my All Pro season didn't mean much to anybody.
Speaker 1: And by the way, when the questions asked to Stephen
Speaker 1: Jones about who their priorities are consistently since last year.
Speaker 1: He's always said Dak, He's always said Amari, yep, I
Speaker 1: have not maybe you guys have. I've never heard him
Speaker 1: mentioned by its part of that, So it speaks volumes
Speaker 1: to me, just that nobody, not just the fans and media.
Speaker 1: It doesn't seem like the people that are making the
Speaker 1: decisions are talking about him as a guy that is
Speaker 1: a priority for me is oh sorry, I hope he
Speaker 1: goes to a team with relatively small market but has
Speaker 1: some good money. You know, you know, we'll have a
Speaker 1: lot of money, like Tampa Bay or some button something
Speaker 1: like that. Because he goes to a big market with
Speaker 1: a lot with a passionate fan base. The first thing
Speaker 1: they're gonna do when he signed this big numbers, They're
Speaker 1: gonna look at the stats. He doesn't have any They're
Speaker 1: gonna have to go to the next Gen stats and
Speaker 1: all that stuff to Pro Football Focus to show all
Speaker 1: that because he doesn't have any picks. And then he
Speaker 1: has an opportunity to be like Brandon Carr was, where
Speaker 1: he better be absolutely perfect because that price tag is
Speaker 1: the stat that people are gonna look at and go,
Speaker 1: Scott doesn't make any plays. We just paid him ninety million,
Speaker 1: and he doesn't make any plays. So I just hope
Speaker 1: that you know, he's gonna go to a place and
Speaker 1: maybe he will make plays, maybe he'll make interceptions, or
Speaker 1: that he's mentally tough enough to deal with the fact
Speaker 1: that everybody's going to be looking at him sideways because
Speaker 1: he's not. And I do think he is and he
Speaker 1: has been because remember his first round pick that was
Speaker 1: ridiculed in his first few years and he kind of
Speaker 1: overcame that. And so I mean, I think everybody really
Speaker 1: likes Byron Jones and wishes him well, but it just
Speaker 1: doesn't seem like he's gonna come back. Is that a mistake?
Speaker 1: And that's like, that's the conversation that is raging on
Speaker 1: Twitter right now. Not for me, you don't think so.
Speaker 1: Not if the Cowboys can get and you wouldn't know
Speaker 1: better than I do. If there are quality cornerbacks coming
Speaker 1: out of the draft that I feel like I can
Speaker 1: go and get that I feel like will be half
Speaker 1: the potential to be better, which I assumed there are
Speaker 1: some that will win the Cowboys pick, then I would
Speaker 1: rather go back to the well on them. Okay, then
Speaker 1: what do you think about this? Scenario. He's not. You
Speaker 1: didn't get him, you didn't bring him back, and you
Speaker 1: you only got a couple of corners in free agency,
Speaker 1: but nothing that you really like Anthony Brown being won,
Speaker 1: and then you got some other fifth year guy. So
Speaker 1: now you're sitting at number seventeen, and then there's a
Speaker 1: corner right there for I don't know who, who's a
Speaker 1: decent corner. Maybe seventeen um C. J. Henderson Christian Fulton
Speaker 1: from LSU in Florida. Those two are okay, those two guys,
Speaker 1: and they're pretty good. They're pretty good player. You asked
Speaker 1: for this, You wanted to go back to the well
Speaker 1: hold on. But now I'm talking about LSU. Right the
Speaker 1: number sixth overall prospect on their board has fallen to seventeen,
Speaker 1: and he's a defensive tackle. Take him. Okay, So that's
Speaker 1: what I'm saying. I just you want to get a corner,
Speaker 1: but you don't want to go into a draft pigeonhole.
Speaker 1: I get all that. My thought is, and I don't
Speaker 1: know again, I need to go and look at all
Speaker 1: the free agents that are out there. If I'm gonna
Speaker 1: pay top dollar, I'm at least looking for a guy
Speaker 1: top dollar that's gonna get me some picks or even
Speaker 1: more importantly, gonna give me some past defenses. Like I
Speaker 1: know that Byron can cover well, but I want to see.
Speaker 1: I want to see dollar for dollar, you can just
Speaker 1: same contract Byron Jones or a Slay that takes Slay. Yeah,
Speaker 1: that's my point, Like, if I'm gonna pay top dollar,
Speaker 1: I want a guy that's done it, and Byron just
Speaker 1: hasn't done that. And again that doesn't corner, do you not?
Speaker 1: Don't you have to trade for Slay? Is he not
Speaker 1: a free agent? I don't believe he is, but to
Speaker 1: t and I need to look at the list of
Speaker 1: free agents. But my point is, if I'm gonna pay
Speaker 1: top dollar, I don't think. I don't think Baron Byron
Speaker 1: is necessarily the top corner out there in the free
Speaker 1: agent mark. I think he's up there among the top.
Speaker 1: I don't think he's necessarily the top. I want to
Speaker 1: see if there are other guys that are commanding that
Speaker 1: kind of salary that at least have some picks on
Speaker 1: the resume. He's got twenty pass breakups the last two seasons.
Speaker 1: How does that rank? I have no idea, But it's
Speaker 1: not like he doesn't get that, but that's my own
Speaker 1: I'm interested to know how that ranks, because that doesn't
Speaker 1: seem like a nordinately large number for two seasons. Yeah,
Speaker 1: that doesn't seem like it's it's not crazy high. Also,
Speaker 1: but teams don't throw at him as much as they're
Speaker 1: he doesn't this this is the debate. He doesn't get picks.
Speaker 1: But there is a lot of value in just handling
Speaker 1: your half of the field. But is that also, and
Speaker 1: I said this on a previous show, is that also
Speaker 1: because they saw such opportunity on the other side, and
Speaker 1: maybe that's your bigger problem, all right, then such opportunity
Speaker 1: Then they were like, well, we don't in that case,
Speaker 1: you have bigger problems in your secondary than just I mean,
Speaker 1: and there is, and I think right now there are
Speaker 1: some bigger problems in your secondary right now than just
Speaker 1: Byron Jones. That's also the reason why I don't know
Speaker 1: if I want to go out and spend as much
Speaker 1: money on Byron Jones, because I think you got to
Speaker 1: fill a lot of it in your theoretical future here
Speaker 1: though you're letting Byron walk And you just said you
Speaker 1: don't like the job that Cheeto is doing. At all,
Speaker 1: and then you're gonna plug not even the best cornerback
Speaker 1: in the draft class and expect him to excel from
Speaker 1: day one. And that's gonna be better either him or
Speaker 1: go out and get a better free agent cornerback. If
Speaker 1: I'm gonna pay top dollar, go find me another free
Speaker 1: agent cornerback that has more picks. I don't think that's realistic.
Speaker 1: Do you think Byron is the top cornerback on the
Speaker 1: free agent market? Probably? Yeah? Probably. I saw lest the
Speaker 1: other day. It had him in three, but I didn't
Speaker 1: go and look at the stats of the other guys.
Speaker 1: Let's dive into that. I kind of It's just it's
Speaker 1: a weird dynamic to just say I'm letting him this
Speaker 1: guy go, and I'm now creating a big need. I
Speaker 1: get that, but guess what, you got a lot of
Speaker 1: You got a lot of things to consider it. If
Speaker 1: Byron was the only free agent you have this year,
Speaker 1: then I'd be like, absolutely signed Byron back. Let's that's
Speaker 1: not the case. Let's go ahead and take our final
Speaker 1: break when we come back. Let's figure out who are
Speaker 1: the top free agent guys at the cornerback position. And
Speaker 1: then this cuss where Byron Jones ranks. I want to
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Speaker 1: September twenty nineteen. Back to the break, all right, we've
Speaker 1: been discussing Barron Jones and whether he should return with
Speaker 1: the whether the Cowboys should try to pay him what
Speaker 1: he would. Yes, we can talk about when, but stop,
Speaker 1: I gotta go back to listen. He had a little
Speaker 1: we got wet after a little bit. Nick Nick wants
Speaker 1: him back, right, Yeah, I figure here we're going. I
Speaker 1: just think, you know, I mean, I know, I know
Speaker 1: you like your guys. You like your guys, Yeah, I
Speaker 1: mean I like win and I just like it's the
Speaker 1: whole Ricky Waters question. Okay, you want to get rid
Speaker 1: of him for who? For what? You know? Like like, yeah,
Speaker 1: I mean I think there's a clear I'm sorry, Yeah
Speaker 1: I did, shouldn't done it, but anyway, y'all go ahead.
Speaker 1: We'll talk about st after the ship. Are you okay?
Speaker 1: We came up with a name that I'm you know, Chris.
Speaker 1: Chris Harris is intriguing to me. He's older than Byron.
Speaker 1: We talk about cornerbacks. Now, guys, how much you know,
Speaker 1: how much longer will he play at a high level?
Speaker 1: But he's he's already one, been a lost whole owner
Speaker 1: at times in his life. He's probably trying to get
Speaker 1: away from Denver. They don't look like they're gonna be
Speaker 1: competing soon. He's the guy that you have to or
Speaker 1: that type of player is who you sign in free
Speaker 1: agency to prevent you from being forced to take a
Speaker 1: corner in the free ground, and if it falls to you,
Speaker 1: you don't take right. That's exactly where you just you
Speaker 1: don't have to because because guess what you got to replace.
Speaker 1: Next year, you're probably going to be looking to replace
Speaker 1: Cheeto as well, Right, so you still want to go
Speaker 1: out and get yourself you're gonna get Even if you
Speaker 1: kept Byron, you still maybe probably want to draft a
Speaker 1: corner high in this draft, right. I think this, I
Speaker 1: think that is an overly optimistic idea of the type
Speaker 1: of player that they signed to ensure themselves. Like that's
Speaker 1: a that's a high end signing. Like that's a guy
Speaker 1: that gets fans excited. That's the guy in one of them,
Speaker 1: and right now they're running low on them as of
Speaker 1: next year. But like, if that's the case, then the
Speaker 1: guy you draft replaces Cheeto, right the guy that the
Speaker 1: guy that you sign, Like just looking at the names,
Speaker 1: like the guy that you signed to ensure yourself is
Speaker 1: like Eli Apple or have y'all paid attention to what
Speaker 1: this team has done in free agency the last like
Speaker 1: six years? What I'm saying, that's the type of guy
Speaker 1: Eli Apple, h Bradley, Robie Um. You could kick the
Speaker 1: tires on what's left of Josh Norman if you wanted to, Like,
Speaker 1: that's the type of stuff this team has done in
Speaker 1: the past is not necessarily Ut does Mike McCarthy have
Speaker 1: during the free agency? Well, hold on, we just talked
Speaker 1: about it before. Jason Witten wants to come back and
Speaker 1: he's not signed yet. He's got a big voice. Yeah,
Speaker 1: that's a great point here, boy, right. But again, it's
Speaker 1: like I don't know when like McCarthy's used to do
Speaker 1: and during free agent, and you know it would be
Speaker 1: it would be a departure from what we've seen for
Speaker 1: the Cowboys to sign a contract that was worth more
Speaker 1: than two years and tens of millions of dollars like
Speaker 1: those are not the types of deals. You know, Randall
Speaker 1: Cobb was their best edition. He was one year what five? Yeah,
Speaker 1: Alan Hearns even was two years eleven or something like
Speaker 1: that like that. It's just try to do it in
Speaker 1: the draft. And that's my point. So the free agent
Speaker 1: signing is going to be a corner Anthony Brown, Right,
Speaker 1: I'd honestly be fine with that. But but and that
Speaker 1: does give you some insurance so that if you want
Speaker 1: to go into draft, you know that at least you
Speaker 1: got a body and an experienced body, and you can
Speaker 1: put him out there and you feel play inside and
Speaker 1: you know decent about it. When that person told me
Speaker 1: that they were gonna sign Anthony Brown, they said, you
Speaker 1: gotta have four, you gotta have four, you do so
Speaker 1: that just means they're gonna draft some body and then
Speaker 1: they're Honestly, I'm if Anthony Brown can be brought back
Speaker 1: on a decent deal, like just not breaking the bank.
Speaker 1: And I don't even want to throw numbers out there,
Speaker 1: but something that's not crazy, that gives you three, gives
Speaker 1: you two guys that can play and inside because Jordan
Speaker 1: and maybe you can both do it. Then you're still
Speaker 1: gonna want to draft a corner, but you don't have
Speaker 1: to do it at seventeen, Right, what are you draft
Speaker 1: finding sign and Anthony Brown too? I don't because you
Speaker 1: know what that does agetting. Nobody's getting excited about this
Speaker 1: at all about Anthony Brown. But what that does is
Speaker 1: that covers you for two years, because next year you're
Speaker 1: gonna take a hit with one of those two guys
Speaker 1: to leave, right George d People think so, then that
Speaker 1: kind of covers you for that year, not to mention
Speaker 1: the guy you've drafted and all that. Barring something crazy,
Speaker 1: I probably would want a double dip at corner of
Speaker 1: this year, just like they did with Cheeto and Jordan,
Speaker 1: Like not maybe not back to back like they did,
Speaker 1: but like second, fifth, first and fifth, second and sixth
Speaker 1: something like. You know, based off what they do. You know,
Speaker 1: one of those guys is going to be a corner
Speaker 1: slash safety played two years year. There, We're forgetting that
Speaker 1: Donovan Wilson is going to be a pro bowler for
Speaker 1: this team. We're forgetting about that. Well, I'll say that
Speaker 1: with my tongue firmly planted in my cheek. I'm sorry,
Speaker 1: get good. Since we started talking about the draft, and
Speaker 1: since a lot of people around the NFL have started
Speaker 1: creating mock drafts and all of that, I wanted to
Speaker 1: ask each in one of you, what position will you
Speaker 1: prefer to draft in the first round when the Cowboys
Speaker 1: come up? Dave, since you've been talking about the draft
Speaker 1: for weeks, now, let's start with you. I mean, the
Speaker 1: obvious choice, if it makes sense, is honestly cornerback. I
Speaker 1: just I just don't think Byron will be here. And
Speaker 1: if you could get a Christian Fulton, who is a
Speaker 1: really good player, by the way, it's not just because
Speaker 1: he went to LSU, but I mean, there's a bunch
Speaker 1: of other guys um or it might well or the
Speaker 1: other logical one is like it might line up that
Speaker 1: edge rusher is a really good value there. Aj Epinessa
Speaker 1: is one of the best ones in this class. He
Speaker 1: could be there another LSU guy. I swear at Claven Chason.
Speaker 1: It's not because I went to LU exactly. No, they've
Speaker 1: got They've got twenty five freaking players in this draft.
Speaker 1: Those are two guys. But then you guys know, I
Speaker 1: want to draft a wide receiver, like I just I mean,
Speaker 1: if we're sitting here saying, well, we feel all right
Speaker 1: about this cornerback, but maybe the value is a little
Speaker 1: a little strong, or you could take an insane wide
Speaker 1: receiver at seventeen and turn this offense into an even
Speaker 1: bigger jug or not like it's not responsible, but man,
Speaker 1: it sounds fun. Like Henry Ruggs or Ceedee Lamb on
Speaker 1: this team. Let slams either he could be really seventeen.
Speaker 1: It's I doubt it, but it's yeah he's there, and
Speaker 1: they don't run up there to get him. Put his
Speaker 1: name in. It would be so Lamb. It would be surprising.
Speaker 1: You're just saying that because he towards it. No, he
Speaker 1: didn't just touch everybody ever was toting somebody. That guy's good.
Speaker 1: This receiver class disgust. But the one you didn't name
Speaker 1: him that I think they really need his defensive tackle.
Speaker 1: That's another one. Draft me a defensive tackle, one of
Speaker 1: those big guys in there. You don't know about him yet,
Speaker 1: but you're gonna fall in love with Javon Kenny Law. Yeah,
Speaker 1: I've heard about him. Yeah, I've seen a little bit
Speaker 1: of tape. Six six six six three ten can play all.
Speaker 1: I mean, he could play three, he could play end
Speaker 1: in a three four, he could play nose tackle, he
Speaker 1: can play three techniqueless. Yeah, he was one that was Yeah,
Speaker 1: he grew up. I think his mom is still struggle.
Speaker 1: He's got a really cool story, knows how to knows
Speaker 1: how to struggle, knows how to overcome adversity. He might
Speaker 1: not be there either. It's possible, is everybody to fall
Speaker 1: in love with that guy. It's very there's gonna be
Speaker 1: a really good player there for him. I just don't
Speaker 1: know what the value will be. Can I just do
Speaker 1: my Stephen Jones impression? We're sho gonna take best player available.
Speaker 1: We're gonna look the board. We're gonna study the board,
Speaker 1: and you know whatever it is. Honestly, that's how I
Speaker 1: would say. Like when you first asked that question, my
Speaker 1: thought was, I'm the wrong person to ask that because
Speaker 1: I'm a big believer in I understand Justin Herbert. I
Speaker 1: understand you get the position you want, But I also
Speaker 1: believe opportunities present themselves based upon thinking about it from
Speaker 1: the best player available. If a guy drops to you
Speaker 1: and he is an outstanding player, and it's at a position,
Speaker 1: by the way, I don't think there's a position on
Speaker 1: this team where you're like, well, we can't use him, Okay,
Speaker 1: Justin Herbert Oregan he fell. If you feel great about
Speaker 1: Justin Herbert and you think he's better, like I've heard
Speaker 1: some people throw around the option of do you maybe
Speaker 1: look at trading Dak and going back to the well,
Speaker 1: I don't believe that, but but I do think that
Speaker 1: you look, you look across this, across the landscape with
Speaker 1: this team, I don't think there's a position right now,
Speaker 1: in my opinion, I can't use a player like That
Speaker 1: doesn't mean it's a player position of need, but there's
Speaker 1: not a position where if I have a great player
Speaker 1: available available to me. I can't figure out how. Okay,
Speaker 1: let's say that there are good options out of each position,
Speaker 1: what would be the position that you they're all equal.
Speaker 1: If they're all equal, give me a big time safety.
Speaker 1: I just think they've been waiting, and I think that
Speaker 1: makes everything else better. I think your cornerbacks get better.
Speaker 1: I think your pass rush has a little more time.
Speaker 1: I think everything gets better if you give me. Like
Speaker 1: I'm very interested in a guy like Delpit because he's
Speaker 1: a guy that, to me, you might be able to
Speaker 1: get a lot of value out of somebody like him
Speaker 1: because this last year wasn't as good as the year before,
Speaker 1: and maybe the ankle injury really was the issue, and
Speaker 1: maybe he really is a great player. But because of
Speaker 1: last year, he can drop a little farther in the
Speaker 1: first round and you can get him. Maybe you can
Speaker 1: trade down and even get a guy like Delpit. But
Speaker 1: if you can come up with that kind of like,
Speaker 1: if you come up with a safety who is a
Speaker 1: game changing type safety, I'm all in on that. I
Speaker 1: think that's the position of need that the Cowboys haven't
Speaker 1: had forever. Here's the thing I agree with you. I
Speaker 1: came to this bummer of a conclusion the other day.
Speaker 1: Grant Delpitt and Xavier McKinney, those are the two names
Speaker 1: you're gonna hear LSU and Alabama. They're are widely considered
Speaker 1: the two best safeties. I don't think either one of
Speaker 1: them is as good as Derwin James really, and the
Speaker 1: Cowboys were not interested in Derwin James at nineteen. But
Speaker 1: that's also different because you're talking about a different coaching staff,
Speaker 1: and we know that coaching staff had very Yeah, you're
Speaker 1: not interesting ideas on player acquisition. I still think I don't.
Speaker 1: I mean, the front office is largely in place. You're right,
Speaker 1: and Mike McCarthy and his staff are going to have
Speaker 1: an input on this, But I think some of those
Speaker 1: philosophies go higher than the coaching staff. If you think
Speaker 1: Delpitt's two thousand eighteen season was an aberration, no, I
Speaker 1: think he's a hell of a player. He's a really,
Speaker 1: really good player, and it should be a first round pick.
Speaker 1: I don't think he's as good as Derwin James was
Speaker 1: coming out. Okay, maybe we don't get Derwin James, but
Speaker 1: if we get a really, really, really good safety, does
Speaker 1: that not help this team? Yeah, but will the Cowboys
Speaker 1: be willing to draft him with that high of a yeah?
Speaker 1: But the thing is, asset is twenty three? Would you
Speaker 1: trade back to maybe a twenty three twenty four range?
Speaker 1: But Derwin James, Derwin James isn't slip into seventeen based
Speaker 1: off of what how he played, And maybe that'll help
Speaker 1: the Cowboys, I mean, because no one expect I mean,
Speaker 1: he there's other teams that would have drafted him if
Speaker 1: they thought he would translate the way he did into
Speaker 1: the NFL. And he was a really really good player,
Speaker 1: dynamic player. So I think that the Cowboys might look
Speaker 1: at that and go, you know what, we were wrong
Speaker 1: on that this guy was better than we thought. It's possible, man,
Speaker 1: Grant Delpit could do so much for you. And there
Speaker 1: are people with concerns about his tackling ability, but I'll
Speaker 1: take his coverage ability all day, like I got other
Speaker 1: I mean, I'm paying a bowload of money to two
Speaker 1: linebackers that are supposed to handle the tackling. Well, those
Speaker 1: tackling issues a problem in two thousand eighteen. Boys, it
Speaker 1: just last year. They were better in eighteen. But he,
Speaker 1: I mean, he's got documented issues well that's gonna that's
Speaker 1: gonna be last year a lot. Yeah, tackling, Yeah, absolute,
Speaker 1: So get He's got eight picks the last two years.
Speaker 1: He can play Who's I want that center fielder? He
Speaker 1: can play center field, he can play nickel, he can
Speaker 1: do all that stuff. Who's your band aid at safety?
Speaker 1: In March? You gotta get somebody Jeff Heath. Jeff he
Speaker 1: said that a month ago, and y'all got mad. I
Speaker 1: get mad. You could sign Jeff Heath for pennies on
Speaker 1: the dollar by NFL standards, like three year deal. I
Speaker 1: don't know. I've said the six million dollars? Is that crazy?
Speaker 1: Eight million? Guys, you're so mad right now? Cared. He'll
Speaker 1: just be careful about that because remember, where's what's Jeff
Speaker 1: Heath's best position? Special teams? Okay, Rich Bisaccia sitting in Oakland,
Speaker 1: he's the coach there, Jason Garrett, that staff, Jerome Henderson,
Speaker 1: don't say this. There was the Giants. I'm just saying,
Speaker 1: but I think he's gonna have a better free agent
Speaker 1: market than you think he's got. He's got a house here,
Speaker 1: he just had a kid. He'll have a house forever
Speaker 1: because he doesn't pay state taxes just him and had
Speaker 1: a house here when he went to Arizona. Like it happens.
Speaker 1: You can pick up a kid and move him. I
Speaker 1: can turn me like they don't have to see in
Speaker 1: the same I don't care who gets mad at me
Speaker 1: for sorry Dad's Dad's going to Jacksonville. I'm just saying,
Speaker 1: come on, kid, the commute, the ten minute commute down
Speaker 1: the Dallas North Tollway is better than you're moving to
Speaker 1: New York. Money football, same, Yeah, it'll be, but it
Speaker 1: also will be about opportunity too. I mean, you got
Speaker 1: to remember this is a football player, and he may
Speaker 1: say I got more opportunities in Oakland or more opportunity
Speaker 1: in New York than I'm going to have in Dallas.
Speaker 1: I'm seas guy m Yeah, for sure he does. With
Speaker 1: the team goes with the super duper duper interested in
Speaker 1: upgrading the safety position. I'd love to have Delpitt or
Speaker 1: McKinney on this team, but I would still make Jeff
Speaker 1: Heath a high priority in March, just as a band aid. Yep,
Speaker 1: that's all right. Well I'm not I'm not totally against that.
Speaker 1: I'm just saying I don't want I really don't want
Speaker 1: to go into next season with him as your pencil starter. Hopefully.
Speaker 1: I think they should. I need, I think they need
Speaker 1: to upgrade that position. Antoine Winfield is another name I
Speaker 1: want to throw on y'all's radarter junior because he is
Speaker 1: that guy's son that I was about to say. That
Speaker 1: name sounds anything like him. His dad was a really
Speaker 1: good play His son hits like an s ob and
Speaker 1: has really good coverage skills. Okay, take him. I mean,
Speaker 1: where's where's he projected? Right now? Where do you go
Speaker 1: to school? Minnesota? Okay? I would hope. I would hope
Speaker 1: to get him at pick fifty one in the second round.
Speaker 1: But it's it's hard to nail down all those evaluations
Speaker 1: because I remember Darnell Savage actually the kid that green
Speaker 1: Bay drafted. He would like some people were saying he
Speaker 1: was like a third round pick, and green Bay took
Speaker 1: him in the first round, so I would when Fields
Speaker 1: probably like a second round pick though. Okay, all right,
Speaker 1: well I get that kind of gotten second round him in.
Speaker 1: There are all kinds of possibilities here, so we shall
Speaker 1: see when the time comes. Let's see what happens, all right, Well,
Speaker 1: anything else you guys want to add we're done. Hi,
Speaker 1: they we're good. We're good. Is there gonna be a
Speaker 1: show next week? I don't know. I won't be here,
Speaker 1: We'll be at the No combine, Yeah, so combine. So
Speaker 1: we're looking for the show Draft Picks. We actually will
Speaker 1: be doing the Draft show. I think throughout next week, right,
Speaker 1: will be multiple episodes of that, so I don't know
Speaker 1: if we'll have a break episode. We will have multiple episodes.
Speaker 1: I can't wait to join it. The Draft Show. Now, Colin,
Speaker 1: you're welcome, I don't think so. No. Yeah, we're gonna
Speaker 1: to just evaluate the drills and they're like black guy,
Speaker 1: We'll give you half a segment on give us the
Speaker 1: latest Cowboys news and drill. All right, guys, well, make
Speaker 1: sure just to visit the website just to know when
Speaker 1: those shows are going to be happening. And that's it
Speaker 1: for today. Thank you so much for tuning in. For
Speaker 1: Derek Hilton, Nicki Men, David Hellman, a member GARCIA. This
Speaker 1: has been the break on Dallas Cowboys dot Com Radio.
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Speaker 1: and the Dallas Cowboys Football Club. M