Mick Shots: Football Cornucopia

at Ford Center at the Star in Frisco. Everson can't be here this week, he will be back next week. And Mickey, I will tell you right off the top. I have spent a busy morning. Let me get it, Let me get it out of my briefcase here inside my big green NFL Draft scouting notebook, and I am getting into this stuff now. I sment this morning on linebackers, outside linebackers, inside linebackers, and I've got some opinions to share, and I know you do also, and I want to

hear your thoughts and all that stuff. But first off, how you doing on this fine Tuesday morning, the day after the Baylor Bears went a national champion. How about those Baylor Bears. That was pretty surgical last night, wasn't it, the way they were able to play? And boy, you know, after I saw Saturday's games and kind of in the back of my mind, I was going, no, Gonzaga could be in trouble because I don't know how well they're gonna match up if Baylor plays as well as they can,

and they played better than I thought they could. That was unbelievable offense defense. I guess I don't know that their special teams in basketball, but that was pretty darn impressive the way their guards were able to play, and then their big guys inside kind of dominated the board. So yeah, surprising a little bit, but you know what, they were pretty darn good. If they hadn't had that their little pause there, they may have been the team

that went undefeated this entire season, that's right. I mean, they had the COVID issue that set them out for a few weeks in the middle of the season, and they were unbeaten going into that and weren't obviously weren't as sharp and lost a couple of games and then but they got over it soon enough to make their

run and get back on track. You know the thing with when watching Gonzaga throughout the tournament, I felt like I was watching in most of their games up until the Final four, and UCLA just played a fun nominal game on Saturday night, But it was like I was watching the varsity against the jv when Gonzaga was playing.

In fact, you know, they played Oklahoma in the second round, and Oklahoma they were missing their second best player of the point guard, but they probably played as well as they could play in that game against Gonzaga and still lost by sixteen points. But that's the way Gonzaga had played all season. It was at twenty seven straight games

where they had won by double figures. But then when you get to the Final four and that Saturday night game, Ucla shot fifty eight percent and Gonzaga shot fifty nine percent in that game and Jalen sugs Switching it back to football here, Mickey, Yes, when I find so interesting not only about when I start digging into the Big Green NFL draft scouting notebook, but then even in March madness,

when you start learning about the players. I hadn't followed college basketball very closely throughout the season outside of the one kid from from Dallas drew Timmy from Richardson Pearce. I didn't know much about their team. Then I started

digging into Jalen Suggs. You know, Suggs was mister football and mister basketball at Minni Haha Academy in Minneapolis, and he was going to go to Clemson and he was gonna be Trevor Lawrence's or he would follow Trevor Lawrence at quarterback at Clemson if he had gone that route. And so when he becomes draft eligible, I'm going to have him inside my big green notebook here in a

year or so. And I'm already proposing right now that the Cowboys select Jalen Suggs in the seventh round as a quarterback, even though he will be starring in the NBA at that point. Yeah, he's a boy, just a polished individual as a freshman. By the way, the way he can play, the way he can move, and you could imagine if the moves he had as when he's driving with the ball in basketball, what he would do if the football was in his hands. Um, yeah, pretty impressive.

I don't know that. Uh, we'll see another shot like that to win a game and overtime the way he did in the semi final game against UCLA. And you know, the I thought the best part about it is after he let it go, he knew it was going in because he started running sideways like, okay, this is going even though it banked it right, even though it banked

did he was he was running. I know it hadn't gone through the basket yet, and he was he was running to go celebrate, h But he just knew that he had the right arc on it and it was it was going in. Um. I mean, don't you don't you remember? Don't you remember practicing basketball and and and goofing around before practice started and taking half chord shots. You knew when it's going in? You know, you you could tell after I don't know if your hands, I don't know if I knew that if it was gonna

bake in. I'm not sure right I knew, But you know, but what set Baylor apart not only their three point shooting. Okay, so you had offense there, and I'm getting it back to football here, mickey. Okay, they've got they had firepower on offense. But what the difference in that national championship game was defense. Yes, And Gonzaga is known to be able to shoot threes also, and Baylor was ten for twenty one on threes at one point in that game,

so shooting basically fifty percent. But they were closing out on the Gonzaga three point shooters. And that's what That's what Baylor did all season long, is they did it with defense, which gets us back to the Cowboys and doing it with some defense. You have to be able to play defense to win some championships too, Yeah, or

at least halfway decent defense. It's unlike last year. It was a total collapse and you basically we're needing to score thirty to forty points a game to be able to win, and that's no way to do business in the NFL. So you're right, this whole thing this year going forward. You figure, as as soon as the offensive line gets back together the way it was supposed to be last year, this offense will be fine. The question mark will be can Dan Quinn make a huge difference

on what goes on defensively? All right, So we had there's so much to talk about the draft where the Cowboys set after basically what has been the second tier

of free agency. Now the quarterback carousel in this league which continues on Monday as Sam Darnold is dealt to the Carolina Panthers, and it's obvious that Zack Wilson is going to be the guy, looks like for the Jets at number two, and that we're gonna have at least three or three quarterbacks taken in the first three picks, if not four in the first four, maybe even five in the top seven or eight. We'll see. But what's on your mind as we kick things off here on

mix shot? You know when you when you mentioned the trade with Donald and what's lined up in the NFL, and you said that, you know you could have three quarterbacks go off the board immediately, could be the first four. So I was like, has that ever happened before? The first four picks in the draft were ended up being quarterbacks? And I went back and looked real quickly, and the

best I could find. In nineteen ninety nine, the first three picks were quarterbacks Tim Couch, Donovan McNabb, and Achille Smith uh And there was also five taken in the first round with Culpepper and and uh McNown and then in nineteen seventy one before. I guess we knew that quarterbacks were so valuable. The first three picks in the

draft were Jim Plunkett, Archie Manning, and Dan Pastorini. Uh so it's been three in a row, but I'd never found four in a row in the in the first first four picks of an NFL draft, And that very well could happen this year. Uh if were if we assume that San Francisco is gonna take Mac Jones, and then there's you know, possibility that Atlanta goes with Trey Lance. So uh and who knows that the fifth else right exactly?

And you know, and and there's other teams that, uh maybe trading picks, you might get five quarterbacks in the top ten for the Cowboys or the top nine before the Cowboys ever picked. So the way this thing's break, and that's with with uh, you know, a couple of wide receivers, a couple offensive linemen. If all these quarterbacks go, the Cowboys are going to have their choice of the best defensive player in the draft. And I didn't mention

the tight end too. Uh, there's a chance that they'll have the opportunity to pick the best defensive player in this draft, if they indeed decide to go defense. Yeah, I mean with the with the with the receivers that are up there as well. Um, you know there's about three receivers that are that are kind of lumped together, kind of like in last year's draft, but they were

in the teams. Uh. And I don't know if it's because there's such an emphasis on offense in the league, or if it's just there's some question marks about some of the defensive players or they or they play because you don't have the edge rusher h Miles Garrett or Boss or Chase Young in this class that would normally be a top five, you know, or even number one pick, And so maybe that is what's pushing down the defensive

class a little bit. But there are some really good defensive players in this draft, and the Cowboys are gonna be sitting pretty I mean, even if you know there's

such a debate on the quarterbacks. And how about the fact you you'd mentioned Mac Jones to San Francisco and a week ago or nine days ago when the trade was made where San Francisco moved up and then people started talking about Mac Jones, Well, well, nine days ago, Mac Jones was considered like a top fifteen pick, and now all of a sudden, he's a top three pick.

And it's just funny how things change as we lead up and get closer and closer to draft Day and people find out more information about who teams are interested in. But it's not unusual to have a quarterback climb like that. Uh as far as the uh we in the media or the fans are concerned, you know, the teams know who they're interested in or are really high on early on in the process. But once things start leaking out, um, here Mac Jones is. He's he's the number three pick

in the draft, and we don't even blink at it now. Yeah, and if you look at him, you know, I can understand it. They're looking for a quarterback that has played a lot in college, a heady guy doesn't make a lot of mistakes. It's very accurate. You know, everybody gets all enamored with arm strength, right or size, and just watch this kid play quarterback. He knows how to play quarterback.

And you're right about the evaluation process, because I'm sure when Carolina traded for Darnold, everybody's like, what do they want with him well, Matt Rule and in their offensive

court Nader Brady. They know a little bit about quarterbacks, and so maybe they saw something in him that's like, hmm, we could work with this, get him in the right environment, get him around some other good players with a good coaching staff, and maybe we can get something out of a guy that what did he go like number three in the draft when the Jets took him? Um, I mean people were two. Yeah, people were high on him.

And then he gets to the Jets, and I don't know if the Jets should be the litmus test test for the quality of a quarterback since they seemed to struggle with the quarterback position since Joe Namath. It seems like, and I believe I heard this, uh right, Um, someone said he's young. He's actually younger than Trevor Lawrence. I don't know if that's true. I think he's I think I think I was ready he was twenty four. Yeah,

he's older than Trevor Lawrence. Lawrence's turns twenty two October six. Yeah, I think he's twenty four, I think, but it's still a similar age. I mean, or he'll be twenty four when the season gets going, and you know, and think about talk about the school of hard knocks being the Jets quarterback. You know, he's he's you would think if he is going to make it eventually in this league.

You know, the schooling that he has gotten the last couple of years with the Jets puts in a position where you feel like you can do more with a guy that's already has had as many NFL snaps as Sam Darnold has had than a rookie coming in. And so I think Caroline, I can understand why Caroline is doing it. And you know, they'll pick up his fifth year option, so they'll have him for two years and

then they'll be able to make an adjustment. And the beautiful thing for Matt Rule at Carolina is that he signed a seven year contract and so yeah, they want to win as as soon as possible. But he's got some job security there too. Yeah, absolutely, And and and you know in this and he he comes relatively cheaply, right, I mean I understand it was three picks in a second in and four next year, but only a sixth this year. Yeah, sixth rounder. Yeah, and his and his

his base salary. He's still on his rookie his rookie contract. So they're from a financial standpoint, all they got to do is deal with the base salary. So I think it's just a little over four million. That's that's nothing. Now they've got to decide if they want to pick up the fifth year option, which will be eighteen million.

But you could also you know, when a guy gets traded like that and he understands basically his football mortality, you know, he restructure that if they like what they see once he gets there, and restructure the next year. And this is why you know, and we've talked about this bill about what took the Cowboys so long to sign Dak Prescott. Right, Well, these quarterback contracts, boy, they will they will put your hands around the neck, right because if you don't get it right. And just look

at what Carolina did with Teddy Bridgewater. They signed him to a three year, sixty three million dollar contract with a fifteen million dollars signing bonus in thirty three million dollars guaranteed. Now, if they just cut them outright, get rid of them, it's a twenty million dollars of dead money. They need to trade them if they don't want him to count an enormous amount against the cap. If they

trade him, it's down to twenty million. But can they keep the guy at what he's costing up seventeen million this year as a backup? Be interesting to see how they treat that. But I'm just saying, this is why the quarterback contracts are so significant in your salary cap and how you dole out the money. Well, but to your point on that's the big thing about Darnald as

opposed to say the Lions or the Colts. Colts picking up WinCE, the Lions picking up Golf, who are They're already on their second contract and already making upwards of twenty million up to thirty million um. That's where the beauty of picking up Darnald with two years of two years left on his deal. Uh, you know they can, They don't. They don't have to get rid of Bridgewater.

Obviously they will, but from a salary cap standpoint, they're they're in the same boat as everybody else as far as there the amount of money that they are paying the quarterback position. Even if Darnald making so much less than Bridgewater is the starter, but he's But to your point, I mean, Bridgewater is not going to stay there and they and trading him is the way they can manage its salary cap wise where it doesn't have as big

of an effect. Yeah, and so basically, you look at what Carolina did, you get a free It's almost like a free look right for one year. And even if you decide, well, let's just roll the dice and see how he does and not pick up the fifty year option, if you indeed want to do that, well, you can also negotiate with him. You get, you know, into the season and he's playing well, and it's like, oh, okay,

let's sign him to a long term deal. But it's almost like for that little bit of money and draft picks, you know, you get a free look at the guy and see if coaching makes a difference indeed how he plays and the players you have around him. And of course they'll have to make that decision on the fifth year option right after the draft, by May third or whenever that day. Yeah, Hey, of course the Cowboys have a decision to make on Layton Vanderish as far as

his fifth year option. What are your thoughts on that, Vicky? Yeah, and his isn't quite like a quarterback, right His fifth year is nine it's just a little bit of I think it's nine point three million. H I would think that they would pick it up just looking at the quarterback situation they have and everybody's like, wow, he's injury prone. Well, okay, the next thing you fixed it, you can't deal It's like, oh, did he have a weak collar bone? Is that why

he broke it? You know that that's silly. So to me, once they got the next thing taken care of and he didn't seem to allow that to affect him once he got back on the field and was playing, I think you get you got to pick that up. Because you don't pick that up and you don't fortify the linebacker position this year in the draft, you're gonna you're gonna have some significant problems the following year. And nine million for a starting quarterback, I mean a linebacker is

not outrageous. You you should be able to handle that, and you've already factored that in at the time that you drafted him or anybody in the first round. You're factoring in as far as your budget goes going forward, that you're picking up the fifth year option on that guy in the in the fifth year of his contract. So I think unless there was an injury or poor play that that told you that we were not picking

it up. From day one, when you draft the guy, you're expecting it to be a picking up the fifth year option. Now, you do have some some people that you're you're out on early, and twenty seventeen was one in Taco Charlton. But you know, Layton has played at a high level and the only thing that is setting back has been the injury issue, which is a significant concern. But as long as you've got that resolved in your own mind, and apparently they do after the surgery, um,

you know that, I think it's a no brainer. You you pick it up because, as you say, it's not that big of a financial burden for one year next year, Hey Bill, before we go, just one last thing on Darnold. Unfortunately the Cowboys got to face him again, right Yeah, I thought of that about that. That's right. Well, what a second they played Carolina. Yeah, that's that's right, that's right, yeah, and he he kind of did it was that was his first game back. It was his first game back

after Mono, right about was it Mono? Yes? Yeah, yeah, yeah, that's right, And what did he throw? A did he throw one hundred and five yard touchdown pass? I was like, what ninety something touchdown? Yeah? I see, it was like ninety six, ninety five, ninety four something like that, and that's all he needed to do to win? Yeah game? Yeah, so yeah, I'm sure that would be on the Cowboys mind when they have And he actually played the rest of the game pretty well too, by the way, All right,

linebacker position. How important is the linebacker position in this draft? How high do you take a linebacker in this draft? Let's look at some of the linebackers and who Mickey might still be high on when we come back here on Mick shots in just a moment, Honey, big news, Gary? Are you okay? Oh? I'm not Gary anymore. I'm Jackie Flash. What see? I want the latest smartphone, But the best deals are only for new customers. So to get a

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that's autterbox dot Com. Just like all of you, we at Sky can't wait until we're back in the stands at full strength, cheering on the Cowboys and singing along to our favorite songs again. We're using this time to make discovering, buying, and selling tickets to events in Dallas easier. Plus, every ticket purchased on Sea Geek is protected by our buyer guarantee, which means you get your money back or

better if your event is canceled guaranteed. Download the Seek gap today and when the time is right, let's go see Geek. Back back to Mick Shots, The Star District is the perfect place for the whole family to enjoy. Support local Frisco businesses by visiting us to dine, shop, and explore the Dallas Cowboys themed campus. For information on all the Star has to offer, visit the Star District dot com. You know, Mickey since the season has been over, and during the season as well, making my way to

the Star in Frisco after the pandemic last offseason. And you know, it's just amazing how things have been built up around the Star District in Frisco. I mean even you know, I you go out there on a more daily basis even now, and I'm I go out there usually once a week, once every two weeks, and even from week to week, I see new things that have

been built out there. It's pretty amazing. Yeah, And I was here on Friday working and I went out to grab something for lunch and there was people all over the place on Friday was a beautiful day and there were so many choices for people to make. So, yeah, the Star District is open. Let me tell you that. You know what, Globe Life Field was opened yesterday? Did you go there opening day for the Rangers. I was there. Yes, I was there, and an announced paid crowd of thirty

eight thousand, two hundred thirty eight was there too. The new ballpark seats around forty thousand. I think it's forty thousand, five hundred and so with the cop tickets as well, it was it was close to a sell out. You know, there's a lot of areas like AT and T Stadium where people can mill around. Uh. There's a great area in a left field where you can basically socialize out there and still see the game, much like the different levels like in the end zone at AT and T Stadium.

And so when you look at the stands, there are empty seats all around. But I think that it was legitimate. Uh, you know, they consider it a capacity crowd to sell out, even though they didn't reach the paid attendance of forty thousand, five hundred. But it was interesting to see the attitudes of people getting out and about and um, and there's a sense of a returned to some sort of normalcy

going on now. And the you know, they they built up the area, the entertainment district there in Arlington where people can go to restaurants and bars prior to and after the game and during the game. Uh, those seemed to be full yesterday too. So and I'm sure we are and I'm sure everybody wore a mask for nine innings, right, Yeah, I didn't see anyone without a mask on. You know. It's it's it's I did see one guy. He was

working on the same hot dog the entire game. I heard about that he nursed a hot dog to so that when the usher came by and said, can you put your mask, I'm eating my hot dog. It was a nine inning hot dog. And it wasn't it wasn't the three footer or whatever, that big old dog they sell out there is by the cheapest hot dog, which is still you know, probably eight dollars, and uh, and work on that, you know, And and I caught a couple interviews, and it might have been on your station.

They interviewed some guy about being out there and he goes, yeah, it's great to be outdoors at the game, and you don't have to wear a mask anymore. And I'm going where where this guy's missing out on something? Mirror? But he that's what that was the cut. Yeah, you don't have to wear a mask anymore. It's like, Okay, you know, there's a lot Bicky. There's a lot of people in this world, including I've got three daughters and three son in laws. They don't watch the news very all. No,

people don't. That's why when I see stuff on the news or these or these type of news shows on television, and I hear people preaching and I said, oh, it's finding Dandy j. You're saying all this, But the people that need to hear this, I'm sorry they're not watching. Having said that, I will say this, my youngest daughter is she has a mask on more than anybody in the family. Um, and I mean she's uh and so, and I don't know, I don't know that she knows

what channel I'm on. That shows how little she has watched the news in her life. In fact, let me this is this is a when she was in college. She called me one Friday night and said, Dad, what is it again that you do for a living? She was with friends out and I exaggerate. She didn't know what I do for a living, but she didn't know exactly what I do for a living anyway. All right, after I throw her under the bush, let's throw the Dallas.

Let's throw this Cowboys defense under the bus from last year. Um, all right, we's been told and retold most points given up in Cowboys history. Y'all want to ask you specifically though, about the front seven. We talk a lot about cornerback, and obviously there's a need there. There's a need at safety as well, but let's talk front seven, and what do you think the biggest need is for the Cowboys right now as they set three weeks away from the draft,

in the front seven on their defense. I still think it's linebacker. I think with what they have up front that they could play tomorrow with Lawrence and Randy Gregor defensive end. And you know they let me rephrase that. Let me rephrase that not only this year but in the coming years too. Okay, right when we're talking about the draft. We're not just talking needs this year, but we're talking needs when you look at contracts and so

forth going forward, what is the biggest needs? Yeah, and if you're looking at the biggest need meeting first round, right, because you can get, by the way, a starter in the second round Sean Lee. You can get a starter in the third round if you look at what they found with MALIEK. Collins. And I think MALIEK. Collins and

Neville Gallimore are pretty comparable type players. But if you're looking to get the best defensive player in the first round, to me, there's a couple of linebackers there that are going to go in the first round. I think Micah Parsons is good enough to go at number ten, but there's other linebackers. The Cowboys were at the Ohio State workout, and you know, they saw a couple really good linebackers

that could go in the first round. Maybe not as high as ten, but again, there's always trade down to get to somebody you want to get. Ce Travis Frederick. I just think that linebacker cord needs to be, you know, restructured. We mentioned Layton Vanderish, and you can have him for another year or two Jalen Smith, if you get him in the right spot. But to me, this and you know, we talked about it in the break. From what I saw of Michael Parsons. You know, boy Lawrence Taylor comes

to mind. And I know the comparisons and people that compare the draft, it's more Luke Keikley and guys like that, the guys in in Seattle, but the guys do and that probably didn't see Lawrence Taylor play. But that's what this guy reminds me of because I also see some pass rush capability out of him from the linebacker spot. He doesn't need to be on the line of scrimmage. He's got instincts that you can't teach. So to me,

I think it's worth their consideration. While everybody's just assuming they're gonna take a corner, well take a look at this guy and see if he can come in and be one of your I mean, he instantly would be one of your top three linebackers. And I got no problems taking a linebacker that high, you know. And the thing on Michael Parsons when he was in high school, he was a hand in the dirt. My understanding is he was a hand in the dirt rush defensive end.

I was listening to Ross Tucker, former cowboy Ross Tucker, who does a really good job with his podcast and so forth, and he is. Michael Parsons went to high school not far from where Ross Tucker apparently lives, so he saw him play in high school. And so he has made the adjustment to be a stand up linebacker

at Penn State. And of course he did not play he opted out this past season, but it was played at an All American level, and so there are some things as a linebacker in coverage where he obviously has the athletic ability to do it. He just hasn't as far as being able to read things and so forth. He hasn't played the position as long as some others

and doesn't have the reps as some others have. But when I mean, when you're talking about a guy who runs a four three nine, which is what he timed with a cone drill under seven, and just he looks like when he sniffs out a play, the play is sniffed out mickey right when when you look at his highlight tape, you know, but I do think that you need to and I haven't been able to do this

yet with him. I think you have to look at full games to see exactly, you know, light not highlights, right, yeah, right, exactly. I mean you can you can see things on a highlight tape, how is closing speed, and it's impressive stuff. But there is any number of these linebackers or any position where you can put a resume tape together and look really, really good. And so so I'm still in the process of st dying Parsons as far as is you know, snap in, snap out what he has done.

For instance, there's another guy out of Notre Dame, Jeremiah wos Karamara. Yeah, we don't want that. We don't want that. And you know what, And I do think it's funny you say that. I do you know I did that. At first, I was like, Okay, I'm looking at my list. I'm looking at Parsons. I got Zavin Collins here, I got Nick Bolton out of Missouri. And then I get to the fourth guy on my list, Jeremiah Oosu what and I'm like, I left him off. I said, ah,

I'm not gonna mess with him. Hopefully they hopefully the Cowboys don't draft him. I don't want to have to learn that name, and so I just kind of put him out of my mind. Well, Mickey, I started looking at him this morning. Jeremiah oh Woosu Koramoa from Notre Dame six one, two twenty one pounds. Apparently he didn't run the forty yet his pro day, but he had a six eighty cone drill and thirty seven vertical. But

the biggest thing on him. Go look at him, and I'm making an animized guy as a second rate pro football focus as him as a second rted to play as a Buckas Award winner. The thing, he's a different tight player than Michael Parsons though where I talk about Michael Parsons was an edge rusher handing the dirt high school player and then became a linebacker at the college level.

Ousu Coamoa came from the other way. He's a safety who has become a linebacker, which is when you look at what the NFL has has become over the course of the last ten years or so, those hybrid safeties who become linebackers, and you know, seventy five percent of the time you're in a nickel package his sub packages. This guy there's a lot of times where I'm looking at his tape, I'm going, where is number six on the field. Well, he's lined up, he's covering the slot.

He's way out on the on the perimeter, and he comes up and makes place. I mean, he's got some brutal hits that he has laid on guys Um. And but I am really impressed with Ousa Cooramoa. And uh. But it's but again, it's a he's got some of the same elements qualities that that Parsons has, but he's got some other stuff too where you can use him, you know, or as Parsons, you can use him maybe as an edge rusher at times whatever. Ousa Cormoa has that ability too, but he can also cover and uh.

And so I suggest you take a closer look at Ousa Cooramoa and get past the name and dive in on him. And and he's a he's a very intelligent guy too. I was listening to his interview, but a very versatile player has a lot of intelligence instincts. I mean he is a I mean people people throw around them the word great a lot. He's got a lot of potential to be a really good player in this league. Yeah.

His his highlights. They're playing right now. Pretty impressive. UM and yeah, and you know and he so what is he? Is he a junior out or has he been there four years? Do you have that he's been there four years? He red shirted? He you know, it's interesting on that too. He red shirted his uh fresh true freshman year and at Notre Dame. Uh. I believe he got hurt his second year. Okay, and only he only played in two games.

But he is the last two years, he has started twenty five games with twenty four and a half tackles for loss, UH seven sacks, UM, five forced fumbles, and UH seven pass breakups. UH. And I mean he is UH. There are some really good things that I've I've seen from him in coverage where he looks like he's got no problem at all, even covering a guy in a

slot or a running back coming out of the backfield. UH. And again, I mean there are some there are some uh formations where he is way out on the perimeter in coverage where I mean I'm looking for him in a linebacker spot and he's like covering a wide slot on the on the wide side of the field. See and when you said it, I'm saying, well, he's a little under size, but I guarantee you in a year or so after he gets into the NFL, he'll be playing at two thirty two thirty something, which is fine,

and that's the beauty of it. A week side line, that's right, and in the sub packages. I mean, I mean that's that's what they're doing with Keyan O'Neil. I mean Keyan O'Neill when they when they say they're working him with the linebackers to start off with. I mean, what's going to be very interesting is how the decisions they make on vander Esh and Jalen Smith and the nickel and who comes off the field or who finds

a different role. If they're going to have Kean O'Neil as one of those nickel linebackers, which I assume that they're looking at, it won't just be as a dime linebacker. I think it'll be as a nickel where he's he's alongside vander Esh. And then what do you do with

Jalen Smith? Do you sometimes use him as a edge rusher or at times as he standing by Dan Quinn on the sideline yeah, and to me, the best spot for him, meaning Jalen Smith is a strong side linebacker if you're going to have three on the field, and so there's room for another linebacker. I like Layton vander esh in the middle. I think he has good command of the game, he sees things. And so now what are you going to do on the week side, because I just don't think I think that is a that

is not Jalen Smith's position. I just think if he's not in the middle, then he's got to be on the strong side. Uh. Okay, And you know the way I the way I interpreted what he said about Neil uh, he said he would start off at linebacker. I think he said it in the vein that he knows the safety position. You know, he doesn't need to train there. We need to see what he can do at the linebacker spot, right and U and tell yeah, it remains to be seen how he is uh employed Uh once

the season gets going. I mean it may just be right during the offseason, uh and learning the linebacker spot, uh and see what he can do there. Okay. So along those lines, then all right, if let's say they just they decide, like you that Jalen Smith's best position is as a SAM linebacker. What about in the nickel?

Then for Jalen Smith, what are they do with him? Yeah, what I'm saying is if they if they draft a Parsons or on Nousu Koramoa or someone who can be the will and you got Layton as a as a MIC linebacker, where is Jalen Smith on the field or

is he on the field in the nickel? He's next to Dan Quinn and unless he can show you know, you mentioned his ability to maybe rush from a defensive end spot, but if you go back and look at when he is uh kind of rushed the quarterback, you know, when he's standing on the line of scrimmage, he didn't

get there. He did a better job of blitzing from a linebacker spot than he did I think from a stand up defensive lineman spot or the other thing I thought where he was effective is when they would they would mess around with the defensive alignment on definite passing downs and you had an extra linebacker on and you didn't know who was coming and who wasn't, and he would he would blitz. I thought he did a better job with a running start than he did playing off

a three hundred and thirty pound offensive tackle. Head up God, and that's where he's Jeeves your walk around uh Blitzer. And that way, he takes this spot of one of those four down linemen where you got your two your two linebacker I'm talking in the nickel, where you got your two linebackers, and then he takes one of the spots of a d tackle where he's a walk around guy and kind of like the way Clowney's been used in his career. Yeah, exactly, and work because because you can't.

You cannot, even though he may have the traits to be an edge rusher, unless you train him as an edge rusher meeting snaps in practice where he's working against an offensive tackle as an edge rusher, you can't expect

him to be successful doing it. And so you have to make the decision from day one of the dan Quinn era as the defensive coordinator that Jalen, we think you're going to be most effectively used in this role, and so we are going to work you there are times you're going to be working against an offensive tackle and pass rush drills. Yeah, absolutely, and you know, and we've talked about guys in the first round, but second,

third round. Dig into that green book and give me some names that it might be available in the second or third if you don't do it in the first. But you still need to address that linebacker position, all right, And I've got a couple of other names I want to throw at you and mix shots continues in a moment, we got about fifteen minutes left to discuss more about what the Cowboys should do in the NFL Draft, which is now just three weeks and three day or two

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com Slash United for details. And by the way, bill, they're it's not the big Green notebook, but it's the Star Draft Guide that is now available, So you can go on Dallas Cowboys dot com to be able to find it, and the print issue you can get it off of email. You can also find it on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and the web. So the link for the digital issue

should be on the Cowboys website. And uh it's the official Cowboys Star Magazine Draft Guide and there's over three hundred and fifty guys analyzed in it, and there's other mock drafts along with other stories about previous drafts and how this draft will be the preparation for It's just a little bit different, So to go to Dallas Cowboys dot com and make sure you get your star Dallas

Cowboys Draft Guide. All right, and I should have mentioned this towards the beginning of the show, but here in the last ten minutes or so, if you've got any questions you want to ask a tweet at me at CBS eleven Bill Jones, and I will pose that question for Mickey Spagnola. Very good if it's a good one, of course, yes, yeah, all right. A couple of other linebackers that I want to ask you about. I've got

one that I really like who I'm gonna save. But first I want to ask you about Nick Bolton, a Missouri Tiger out of Frisco, Texas lone star high school, right there in the Cowboys backyard. A linebacker, Nick Bolton. What can you tell me you, Missouri Tiger. I can tell you that he probably will be a late first round pick. But he's one of those guys that sort of remind me, and this used to be a term for guys that are really scrappy, tough linebackers back in

the day. He's like a junkyard dog. The guy reads plays awfully well. He's not the biggest guy. He's pretty quick, and he's pretty darned strong, and when he hits you, you'll know you've been hip. So I think that's a guy that if somebody gets him in the twenties, it's gonna be a steal. He was the Missouri defense this year, and a couple of times when he was out, if he had an injury or he got had to sit for a hit or something, they were lost without him on the field field, and he is a team leader.

Whoever ends up with him, it's gonna fall in love with Nick Bolton. Yeah. Well, he's another one that I was watching this morning. I said, WHOA, I gotta ask Mickey about Nick Bolton. I like that kid, I mean, and he ran a four or five nine at his Pro day twenty four bench reps, and that that strength and assertiveness shows on tape and his high football IQ shows up too. Uh. You know where you can just see on tape where his read and react uh is up there amongst the best in this class and against

high quality competition. I mean, this is a two time first team All SEC linebacker. When you're the best linebacker in the SEC, that says a lot about you right there. Uh and uh. He is a he seems like a workmanlike type player, not flashy, and he gets from point A to point B in a hurry because he knows what he's doing. He's read he in fact, I was reading some stories on him even as he was selected. This shows what kind of work ethic, what kind of

study habits he has where he's gonna. You know, Sean Lee is the ultimate as far as a guy who studies tape. But I think especially for a linebacker, you have to live in that room where on your iPad or whatever, studying your opponent. And here's an example of it. As he was choosing his college. You know, he'd get a letter from a school or a call from a school, and he immediately is googling exactly what that school had on their depth chart at linebacker and you know, and

finding out about their coaches and everything. I mean, he's got those study habit. It's that you want in a linebacker. I mean, because you can look at and I've run across even at just at the linebacker position, and I'm just scratching the surface of some of these guys talent wise, you can see that they've got the ability that they can they can play. But what's going to set them apart at the NFL and what's gonna make him successful

at the NFL is right up here. And as far as being able to to study and be able to like quarterback on offense, the ability to process quickly as a linebacker on defense is huge, Mickey. And I'll tell you what. It will take him one year, no more than two to end up being a team captain. I'll guarantee you that. All right, love it, love Nick Bolton right and right in the backyard of the Cowboys Frisco lone Star High School. And he's a young guy too.

I mean he's three years and out his true freshman year, played in thirteen games at Missouri, then was a starter his sophomore in junior years. All right, and now here's the guy that I have fallen in love with. Zaven Collins, number twenty three for the Tulsa Golden Hurricane, six five, two hundred and fifty nine pounds. He ran anywhere between you know these these pro day times, Yeah or Jay fluctuate anywhere between a four or five four or five seven and a four to six seven. He is a playmaker.

On What intrigues me the most about him though, I mean, you talk about the Missouri defense not having anything when Nick Bolton wasn't on the field. How about the Tulsa defense when Zaven Collins wasn't on the field. He won outside of the Buttkas Award, which was won by a Wusu Coromoa, he won the Nagurski Trophy, He won the Betneric Award. He won the Lombardi Award, which says a lot about his production. Eight games, four sacks, four interceptions,

eleven and a half tackles for a loss. He had Tulsa plan in the Tulsa played in the conference championship game and lost, I believe in overtime on the last second field goal. This guy what intrigues me the most about him though, is when you talk about a guy like a Jalen Smith, you know we're wishing that if Jalen could just be able to rush the passer and

use that athletic ability. Zavan has done it at Tulsa, and amongst those four sacks, it wasn't There were some instinctual sacks timing a blitz from a linebacker spot, but there are a couple where he's been in his shoulder coming around the edge as an edge rusher. And I mean he is six foot four and seven eights, so six five, two hundred and fifty nine pounds, And I mean you look at his testing numbers and compare it

to Marcus Ware very similar. And so I would I would consider if Zaven Collins can prove and if the Cowboys scouts look at him and say we can make an edge rusher out of him, I got no problem taking him as high as you want to take him. Because this guy from a little school and from a little town in Harmony, Oklahoma, graduating class of forty seven, Mickey, he was valedictorian of his class, wants to be a doctor someday. So he's got the smarts too well, you know,

class of forty seven, but he was valedictorian. Until you told me about wanting to be a doctor, I thought you were describing Rolando McClean for me. You know what yell size wise and everything, McClean go to fifty. I mean this guy was too sixty. Yeah, he was probably round two. He was too sixty after it was he was a few pancakes away from being two six sixty. Yeah, McClain was probably two five, two fifty, but he was tall and rangy, uh and and just athletic the way

you're explained. So I think we've come to a conclusion that somewhere in those first couple of rounds, if not the first, that linebacker needs to be addressed. Um, you know, and it all depends on what you're saying. Okay, so this guy versus another defensive tackle or a defensive end, um, you know, or an offensive tackle. So it all depends on what's there. But you know, you kind of name the position, and the Cowboys need one, uh you know,

short of a high pick on a quarterback. Um, maybe not a running back, but other than that, yeah, why not. So I think the you know, the pictures wide open for him in this draft. And I think the other thing about it is, you know, Beck, when Parcels coached, even when you coach the Cowboys, the NFL was a

defensively it was a I'm running a three four. I've got my prototype, guys, and you're not coming off a three four and three four as your base and in a nickel, I've got my four man front, two linebackers whatever. Throw all that stuff out Now in the NFL, everything is hybrid, and the more versatile players that you can have,

the better you can. You can find ways to employ these highly athletic players that we've mentioned here now the ones we've mentioned today, Michael Parsons, Jeremiah Usu, Kormoa, Zaven Collins. Nick Bolton is the one that I think he is. He's probably you plug him in he's a linebacker and

not take nothing away from him. I don't see as much versatility from Nick Bolton as what I can see the how you can use Parsons of Woosa, Cormoa, and Collins, which means those other three they intrigue me even as first round draft picks. I think from the Cowboys sake, you talked about Bolton being a late first round and I think as an inside linebacker, unless you're Luke Keekley, you're probably late mid to late first round or later.

You can find really good inside linebackers in the third round. But with guys that have position flexibility like these other linebackers, I think that even with your existing linebacking corps that you have, you can find ways where they can make a huge impact even in their rookie year, if you've got a creative defensive coordinator. Yeah, I think you're You're

absolutely right. And the one thing I was going to ask you, Bill, and I don't know if you've gotten to the offensive lineman, but there's a lot of people looking at the problems that Cowboys had on offensive line last year without the knowledge of who they had missing and who it will be back. A lot of people saying, well, you got to take an offensive tackle, these guys are too good. Well, my opinion on that, I want to see what you have to say is how many first

round picks do you need on your offensive line? At some point you have a glutton of of you know, precious resources in the same spot. To me, the Cowboys would not have restructured the contracts of those offensive linemen had they worried about Tyrant Smith and Lell Collins being recovered from their surgeries and ready to play football still in the draft. If they had worries about their physical condition,

they would not have extended their contracts. So to me, taking a offense tackle at number ten, I think that you're it's it's just too high. But somewhere in the top four rounds, I think you've got to bring in a young guy and start grooming them, uh for the future. Yeah, and uh, I agree with you. I think you know that's where the Cowboys have the medical knowledge. Uh. They

they've got the information that we don't have. But but if you just follow the money, you follow what they are have done, like what you're saying with Collins, with Collins and Tyren Smith, Uh, it tips you off how they the medical reports that they have on those players. Uh. And as you've said, they do have a fallback where Zach Martin can play right tackle if Lyle Collins doesn't

come back or has a setback. Uh. You know. The other thing is even with the tackles that they had, you know, the undrafted guys they had last year, at least they've got, you know, a season of NFL snaps under their belt, you know, Terrence Steele and Brandon Knight of where they could fill in maybe for a game or two if if something happens with Tyring for a

couple of games. And so Yeah, and I think that the beauty of this offensive line classes with those guys that are projected higher, those offensive tackles, and with the quarterbacks going early, those guys are going to get pushed down, and so you might even I think you can get a quality offensive tackle who can also play guard, and you might be able to plug in at left guard to start in his career, and he can be your swing tackle in case there's an injury at tackle or

you have Zach Martin go out and play tackle. So because the guy's a rookie and you don't want to over train him at too many different positions to over taxes his brain, but I think that they're to your point. I think there are offensive linemen that can uh start immediately in the second or third round at an inside at a guard position. And think about what the Cowboys did previously with some of their offensive tackles. They started at guard, right the guys in the second third round did,

yeah Collins did. If you go back to um guys like flows Al Adams, I think started, I want to say, started inside and then moved out. So did Solomon Page, and we're going way back. But you know, now, Larry Allen did it the other way. He was inside and they moved him outside and necessity and then moved him back in. But yeah, I think I just think doing that in the first round as an embarrassment of riches.

Uh to to have another first round pick as an offensive tackle when you need help defensively, Uh, you can get And it's not like these guys are going to be the last first round offensive tackles in the history of the NFL. Right, there's always next year. Uh. So I just think that you know what happens when you

do that, Mickey, what's that? You know what happens when you do that when you ves so many first rounders in offensive lineman that eventually you're going to have a season in which your defense gives up the most points of franchising. No, you're yeah, and you don't have those guys on the field. So when you mentioned le Collins, I've got the ability that at times to see him working out and he's moving awfully, awfully well and h and another guy moving awfully well is is Dak Prescott.

He can do you a for for cone drill right now and moving awfully well too. So they I don't think they have any reservations about him being ready. Uh, you know, for some stuff in the offseason, if there is some stuff in the off season, but for sure for the start of training him. Okay, Mickey, do we wrap this up? What position group would you like for me to study for next week's edition. We'll just be two weeks away from the draft. Where do you want

to explore next week? Well, you've done a good job. Do your own research too. How about how about um inside like defensive guys, defensive tackles, not not first round guys, maybe second, third, fourth, somewhere in there. Because you know, if you look at the guys they signed in free agency, these guys are all on one year deals. They're they're just kind of like putty right now, and they are cheap one year deal. Yes, right, So there's nothing that

says they're making so much money. They gotta they gotta be on the field or they you know, they get the first chance. You know that there's going to be some competition, So give me some competition at the defensive tackle spot along with Tristan Hill, who is moving awfully well too, by the way, coming back for him his torn acl All right, Uh, we got Hiah, We're already over Triston Hill. Can you can you see can you see Dan Quinn playing Tristan Hill at the one technique?

I think he I don't know that he has the style in gallabor on the field. At the same time, Yeah, I don't know if he's got the size to depending on a guess on how you're playing that one technique, right, are you playing a true one technique nose tackle or do you want a guy uh sort of the way Marinelli liked and you know, even though you had a nose tackle or a one technique, this guy was getting up the field. He wanted guys getting up the field

and being disruptive. I think Hill can do that, but I don't know how well he would hold up, uh, play after play against the run in that spot if he's getting double team. But what we're looking for, we're looking for the Dallas d defence up front of the nineties, where you're rotating guys in there and and so what I'm gonna find for you next week is Dan Quinn's fifth round three technique Grady Jarrett that he found in twenty fifteen. That's what I'm going to be looking for.

And I'll tell you some possibilities for later in the draft defensive tackle. Next week, we might, Mickey, we might have to do a draft show yew that's right, kind of did one today? Yes, absolutely talk at you next week. Thanks, thanks for joining us on mix shots. This has been a production of Dallas Cowboys dot Com and the Dallas Cowboys Football Club.