Analyzing the Dallas Cowboys’ Draft: Part I

Tony Gutierrez / AP Photo

After going 6-10 following four years of mediocre drafts, the Dallas Cowboys couldn’t afford to miss on this year’s draft. Good teams become good by drafting good players, not signing expensive free agents. The core of your team must be home-grown talent that fits your philosophy, and that’s exactly what Jason Garrett has done with this draft.

‘The Cowboy Way’ is the moniker for the new philosophy that Garrett demands from his players — to play the game the right way, with the right attitude and with a passion for the game. Every pick in this draft has the profile of Garrett’s ‘Right Kind of Guys.’ Whether they were their collegiate team’s captains or not, no 2011 draftee has any sort of attitude or off-field issues the Cowboys just hope to fix.

That’s a good start.

But they also have to be good players, obviously, and I think the Cowboys did well in that regard. Let’s go through the 2011 draftees and highlight what they bring to Valley Ranch.

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1st Round, 9th pick: OT Tyron Smith, USC
Measurables: 6-5, 310 lbs
2010 9th pick: RB C.J. Spiller, Buffalo
Best 9th pick of last 10 years: DT Kevin Williams, Minnesota (2003)
After getting an offer for Jacksonville’s 1st and 2nd round picks (16 and 49), the Cowboys wisely passed and took the blue-chip tackle, Tyron Smith from USC. My guess here is that the Cowboys wanted to trade down but felt 16 was too far to fall and feared losing out on Smith or BC’s Anthony Castonzo, the other tackle Dallas wanted. This is the pick Dallas needed to make, and they did it without screwing it up. They haven’t drafted an offensive lineman in the 1st round in over 20 years, but Smith is well worth the 9th pick.

Now what about Smith makes him good? The fact that he started at RT for USC as a 280-pound 19-year-old says something about his natural talent. He’s already bulked up to 310 at the NFL Combine, which puts to rest any weight-gain concerns, but it’s his natural ability to get outside that makes him stand out to me. At about 1:20 into the Arizona video below, look how he sprints outside and hurdles a DB and chugs upfield to secure one last block that gives his RB an extra five yards. Now imagine Felix Jones catching a block out in space — it’s wonderful, isn’t it?


Wes Bunting, National Football Post Scouting Report:
A tall, athletic-looking offensive tackle prospect with a long frame, long arms and a lot of growth potential in his lower half. Is only twenty years old and still has a lot of maturing to do with his frame and should be easily able to add additional bulk/weight without much of a problem. Plays right tackle at USC and will likely need to learn to make the move to left tackle at the next level, stunting his growth a bit in playing quickly during his rookie year. However, he’s a gifted athlete off the edge with natural bend in his lower half, is able to sit into his stance, play with leverage into contact and extend his long arms well at the point of attack. Lacks ideal power/strength for the position and at times tries to make up for it by getting a bit more physical into contact and will get overextended and lunge into blocks and lose his man toward the corner. However, for the most part is a patient puncher who uncoils quickly into contact, is heavy handed for his size and has the body control to slide his feet and mirror through contact. Displays good hand placement and is tough to disengage from through the play. Possesses clean footwork on the outside, has a quick power step but at times gets a bit long with his footwork. However, for the most part maintains good balance, stays compact and has the range to consistently reach speed toward the edge and redirect in space.

Is a gifted athlete in space in the run game. Quickly releases to the second level, breaks down on his target and consistently is able to get his hands into contact and seal. Doesn’t always hit what he sees when trying to cut defenders down at the line, but is quickly out of his stance when trying to step and seal and works his legs around defenders well through contact. Plays with good leverage as an in-line guy, extends his arms well into contact, bumps his legs and can create an initial surge because of his pad level and technique. Needs to continue to get stronger in order to do the same at the next level, but he should be able to pretty quickly in his career.

Impression: A gifted athlete for the position who at only 20 years old is far from a finished product. However, the flexibility, athleticism, frame and body control are all there for this guy to develop into a very good starting left or right tackle in the NFL, depending on where he feels comfortable.

What I love
As a tackle, he’s athletic, naturally long and able to get out in space, which is something Dallas hasn’t had in a long time. He’s just rarely seems to get beat on tape and is the top tackle in the draft class. Also, at age 21, the Cowboys could get three contracts out of him.

Possible red flags
He’ll need to get stronger, quick. UCLA linebackers are a bit slower and smaller than Osi Umenyiora and Brian Orakpo. But for being a project, he’s already close to starting right away.

What Jason Garrett Says
“Those first round tackles were all very good players. We liked them all, we studied them all, we felt good about all of them. We obviously felt best about Tyron. He’s a young football player, he played two year starter at USC. All the measurables. We like the way he plays. If you watch him play, he block his guy a lot in the run game, he blocks his guy a lot as a pass protector, he finishes pays. He’s the kind of guy we like. Watch him at the end of a down, watch him finish, watch the passion that he has. We think he’s a great worker, we think he’s a great young man and a great addition to our football team.

He’s the right kind of guy. You know, at the end of it you want to have good football players whi look the part at their position, but you want the right kind of guys in your football team. We feel like he’s that kind of guy for us.” Source: ESPN interview.

What he’ll be in 2011
He should start at RT. If not by the season-opener, he will be by season’s end as the Cowboys ease him into the NFL at an easier side than LT. He’ll open up the Cowboys’ run game by being flexible with different run-blocking schemes.

What he’ll be in 2016
He’s our LT of the future. Doug Free is great, but may move back to RT to make room for Smith, who’s built like a prototypical LT. His career arch will eventually move him over there.

VIDEO: Lock onto No. 70 (Watch the screen pass at 1:20 in Arizona clip)

2nd round, 40th pick: LB Bruce Carter, North Carolina
Measurables: 6-3, 235 lbs
2010 40th pick: DE Koa Misi, Miami
Best 40th pick in last 10 years: CB Tracy Porter, New Orleans (2008)
This is where I really started to see the Cowboys’ draft strategy in action. They took Carter, a top-15 pick if he hadn’t torn his ACL at the end of last season, who fits perfectly into a Ryan-led defense. The first thing I notice when watching tape of Carter is agility — the man can flat-out fly to the flats. He’s aggressive and always seems to find himself in the middle of things.

Carter is just a superb athlete, as exemplified by this comment from his head coach at North Carolina, Butch Davis, to Norm Hitzges:

in high school coming out - this will give you an indication of what kind of athlete - in high school he was a safety and a Quarterback... Bruce is one of those unique rare linebackers that you never have to take out of the game. He can play Sam, he can play Mike, He can play Will and he can play in all of your nickel packages. Because he has great speed and great ability to cover. He can blitz and he can come off the edge.

This sounds perfect for Rob Ryan, who’s defense is built on confusing the offense by having the versatility to bring a blitz from any direction.


Wes Bunting, National Football Post Scouting Report:
One of the more gifted athletes you’re going to see at the position. Possesses a long, athletic-looking frame and is at his best when asked to click and close and make plays in pursuit. Showcases great explosion once he locates the football and quickly is able to get from point A to point B. Exhibits impressive length and range when asked to break down and wrap up on contact. At times will overrun his man, but for the most part is able to wrap up and get the ball carrier to the ground. Possesses above-average natural anchor strength for a guy his size. However, he isn’t real violent into blocks. Doesn’t exhibit a real snap/pop from his lower half, isn’t a real impressive puncher and looks content to simply anchor instead of using his length — which he extends well — in order to shed and try to make a play off his frame.

Exhibits impressive fluidity and balance in his drop, cleanly getting out of his breaks and generating a burst for himself toward the football. Definitely has the ability to turn and run down the seam with NFL-caliber tight ends, as he’s consistently asked to line up over the slot in zone coverage, holding up pretty well vs. college receivers. However, the biggest knock on him is his inability to quickly react to the football. Isn’t real instinctive, doesn’t consistently trust what he sees and rarely gets an early jump on the pass. Puts himself in position to make plays on the football, but is slow to get his head around in the pass game and adjust to the throw.

However, has a real savvy for blocking kicks, is explosive, can cleanly change directions and does a great job dropping his pad level and accelerating after the football. Could have a real impact as a special teams guy early in the career.

Impression: A gifted athlete who has the makings of a starting weakside backer in the NFL. But I do have some questions about his instincts, which could end up holding him back from ever becoming a real impact player at the next level. However, tore his ACL toward the end of the year and is now a major medical risk.

What I love
He does it all and, while some feel is a reach at 40, I find him more versatile than Clemson’s Da'Quan Bowers, who’s getting the media hype as a steal at 51. We’ll see.

Possible red flags
Torn ACL’s have a tendency to linger, and the Cowboys can only hope it isn’t a recurring thing. His profile is also similar to Kevin Burnett’s a few years back, but Burnett wasn’t as productive in college as Carter was.

What Jason Garrett Says
“What we like about him is that he has some versatility. And really, Sean Lee has versatility, and Bradie and Brook have versatility. We like that. We like these guys that are essentially off-the-ball linebackers in our scheme. They’re not on-the-ball, Sam and Will type linebackers. They’re off-the-ball linebackers but they play both spots, and they both have the traits to do each of these things.”

“One of the reason we love Bradie James and Keith Brooking is the kind of people they are. We think Sean Lee is the same kind of guy and we think Bruce Carter is the same kind of guy. They love football, they love to work at it, they’re passionate about it. Putting that group together, it’s hard for the young guys not to learn from those older guys”

“He is an outstanding special teams player. That’s one of the reasons we were attracted to him. We do view him as a starter at some point here with the Cowboys, but in the meantime, he’s somebody who is going to help our football team by being out there on teams. His success and his production at North Carolina has been outstanding.” Source: 2nd day press conference.

What he’ll be in 2011
He’ll fight for playing time at LB with Keith Brooking and Sean Lee and getting his feet wet in the NFL. He won’t come in and be an impact on defense immediately, but he could be a special teams beast. He blocked a lot of kicks at North Carolina and could be useful in kickoff coverage.

What he’ll be in 2016
The Cowboys hope 'Bruce Lee' (Bruce Carter and Sean Lee) can man the middle of the field for the next seven years.

VIDEO: Lock onto No. 54








3rd round, 71st pick: RB DeMarco Murray, Oklahoma
Measurables: 6-1, 207 lbs
2010 71st pick: S Morgan Burnett, Green Bay
Best 71st pick in last 10 years: LB Chris Gocong, Philadelphia (2006)
The pick that frustrated many Cowboys fans who were clamoring for a safety, the Cowboys stuck to their big board and chose to bring the electric Oklahoma RB to Dallas. Instead of reaching for a random safety in a weak safety class, Dallas took the best player on their board in Murray, who gives Jason Garrett a new toy to play with.

Murray comes in as a complete back who can catch out of the backfield (157 catches, 1,571 yards at OU) and can even run routes as a wideout in different packages. He acts as a new versatile weapon that can strike from anywhere, and it never hurts to add an explosive player to your team. As both a big back and a 3rd-down back, he can run between the tackles and then go catch a screen pass the next play. He gives Garrett endless ways to utilize him and help Dallas move the chains.


Wes Bunting, National Football Post Scouting Report
Looks to have put on some weight this season and looks a bit thicker throughout his body. Possesses a good first step when asked to press daylight and gets up to speed quickly. Showcases impressive balance when accelerating around the corner, and when healthy the guy really does have that kind of initial burst to consistently outrun angles in space and create yards by the chunk. Plus, he does have the ability to consistently catch the football out of the backfield and can also create mismatches when split out in the slot. Exhibits some shiftiness to his game once he gets up to full speed and knows how to give a slight shoulder fake to a defender and explode into space. Displays a willingness to block in the pass game and although he isn’t real physical and struggles with leverage, he does possess the body control to stick his head in and chop down defenders on contact.

Exhibits improved instincts in tight areas as a senior and does a better job picking his way through traffic, using his lateral agility to make a man miss and create after his initial move. Now, he still runs too high through the line, but does a better job lowering his pad level into contact to protect himself. But still seems to get tripped up and tackled by the fingertip of a defender too easily inside when trying to accelerate through a hole. Does have some injury concerns, as he has been banged up at times which can be a direct result of running high and exposing his frame to some bigger hits.

Impression: A violent slashing type running back who has improved his bulk and overall feel inside. I still don’t think you want this guy starting for you at the next level. But as an X-factor type who can line up all over an offense and create, I think he can certainly add an element to an NFL offense.

What I love
He’s got size and speed that scouts love with collegiate success to show for it. He accumulated more yards than any other Sooner ever in his career, even with a few injuries. He’s got electrifying possibilities as a potential playmaker for the Cowboys.

Possible red flags
He’s a tad injury-prone and has a bit of wear on his body after being a featured back for four years at Oklahoma. He runs upright sometimes that opens himself up for injuries or fumbles, but a good RB coach can fix that.

What Jason Garrett Says
“We just think he’s an outstanding football player. A guy who had a lot of touches at Oklahoma over the course of his career there, both as a runner and as a receiver. He’s a complete back. He’s a guy who’s big and sturdy. You get a chance to be around him, you see how long he is, how big his hands are - he’s a physical looking halfback. A guy who has versatility as a runner, as a receiver and as a third down blocker.”

“We’re going to create competition on our football team, and we’re going to bring him in there and see where he stacks up against the other guys. We think he’s an outstanding football player for a lot of different reasons, but his versatility is a big plus for him.” Source: 2nd day press conference.

What you want to do at the end of the day is put some good football players together, and we felt like he was an outstanding football player at the University of Oklahoma. A guy who played for four years. His production is off the charts, both as a runner and as a receiver. He’s a mature football player. He knows how to play. He’s a strong guy, he understands the game. He can run, he can catch, he can block and he just has production at really the highest level, so we’re excited to have a chance to get him." Source: ESPN interview.

What he’ll be in 2011
He’ll come in as a new weapon that Garrett can put into different packages, keeping defenders from overlooking him. His presence can make plays, as well as open up opportunities for Miles Austin and Dez Bryant.

What he’ll be in 2016
Has the measurables and playmaking ability to make it as a featured back in the NFL, but that’s if his body can sustain the daily grind of the grueling season for years.

Video: Can't miss No. 7







Check out Part II tomorrow when I analyze the third day of the Cowboys’ draft.