Like Neo in "The Matrix," the Dallas Cowboys have a crucial choice before them that will have long-reaching implications (though it likely won't instigate a war between man and machines). With the No. 4 overall pick in the 2016 NFL Draft, the Cowboys can either take a quarterback (if one they like is still available; not a given) that will be groomed behind Tony Romo for a few years, or they can take a player who can help out immediately. There is sound reasoning for both options.
The Cowboys tanked without a healthy Romo last year, so investing in a quality backup and/or heir apparent for the 35-year-old QB makes sense. On the other hand, the NFC East is one of the weaker divisions in football, and acquiring a player who can make a difference from Day 1 would help the team's playoff chances. With the draft still one month away, the Cowboys appear to be doing their due diligence on both courses of action, starting with quarterbacks.
Once the annual owners meetings conclude later today, Cowboys brass will be headed to Orlando, Fla., to workout Memphis passer Paxton Lynch. Dallas will be represented by owner and general manager Jerry Jones, executive vice president Stephen Jones, head coach Jason Garrett, senior director of college and pro personnel Will McClay and new senior personnel executive Lional Vital. Whew, that's a laundry list of important people.
The Cowboys will be present at Ohio State on Friday to work out its draft-eligible players, most notably defensive end Joey Bosa.
Garrett revealed that he will be involved in the private workouts of some of the top prospects on the board over the next few weeks. In that time, the Cowboys are expected to work out likely first-round QBs such as Lynch, Carson Wentz and Jared Goff. The team has already met with Dak Prescott.
Whichever route the Cowboys decide to take won't be arrived at lightly. Garrett spoke of the importance of these private workouts and how they help teams get a feel for each player.
"You're trying to find out who they are and certainly you want to find out who they are as players," he said. "There's a lot of different ways to do that. You see them in a combine setting. You watch their tape. But if you get a chance to go be closer to them and get your hands on them to do some specific things you would ask a player to do, I think that gives you a better chance to evaluate the guy. You always want to find out who the guy is as a person. That's a really important thing to us, their personal character, their football character. I think the more exposure you have to him, I think the better chances you have to make the proper evaluation of the guy. So when you're picking at four, you can target the pool maybe a little bit more than if you're picking at 26, 27, 28 or wherever we picked last year."
Follow Brandon Katz on Twitter at @Great_Katzby
