Tag: press conference quotes

‘We did have options’: Cowboys trust their board, get their man in Mazi Smith

From @ToddBrock24f7: While some called it a reach, Mazi Smith’s selection at 26 gave the Cowboys the 14th-best prospect on their board, according to Jerry Jones.

The Cowboys brain trust earlier this week preached the importance of sticking to their draft board. No matter how unpredictable the first round would get, they suggested, trusting their evaluation process would guide them toward the best decision with the 26th pick.

When their turn came, they were faced with several prospects the rest of the world had given higher grades to, even a couple that were assumed would be long gone.

But in the end, the Cowboys kept their word. They stuck to their board.

Or so they say.

“We did have options,” team executive vice president Stephen Jones told reporters Thursday night after making Michigan defensive tackle Mazi Smith their first selection of 2023. “And we had two or three guys that were rated the same. We had a really good debate over who was the best guy for us, mainly between big men. Obviously, Mazi brings an element to our run defense that, other than [Johnathan] Hankins, we don’t have. We just felt like it was a great fit for us, and it really makes us a better defense at the end of the day.”

Head coach Mike McCarthy was just as enthusiastic, even though his offense will now have to wait until Day 2 to perhaps find a new playmaker.

“We love everything about Mazi,” the coach told media members. “He was here on the 30 visits. Our personnel guys had high grades on him. He’s a great fit for us.”

The 6-foot-3-inch 337-pounder built a reputation in Ann Arbor of being a physical freak, with athletic testing that was practically off the charts. He’ll be a huge presence in stopping the run, but some outlets openly question whether he’ll bring much to a defensive line on passing downs.

The Cowboys believe they’ll be able to get that out of the 21-year-old. What they can’t coach, though, is the raw ability he already possesses.

“When Mike came in here [in 2020] he talked about building a bigger, stronger, faster football team, and we have continued to do that,” explained Will McClay, the Cowboys vice president of player personnel. “Teams run the football now and you see things change. You look at our division [ed. note: the Giants and Eagles finished in the top 5 leaguewide last season in team rushing yards]. He’s a guy that can stop that, a guy that adds value to our defense as well. I think there is an ability to rush the passer. You watch the Michigan tape; he is playing in a flat stance, doesn’t get after the passer. Well, you change things up, you put him with Dan [Quinn, defensive coordinator] and A.D. [defensive line coach Aden Durde] within our defense- not only can he stop the run, but we feel like there is upside in rushing the passer as well and being a disruptive force.”

But the reality is, sacks and quarterback pressure would be icing on the cake. Mazi Smith was drafted specifically to create havoc at the line of scrimmage on running plays.

“Some of our main strengths [are] taking the ball away and pass rush,” McCarthy added. “We just wanted to get better on earlier downs, and we think this is a great fit for us.”

It is something of a philosophy shift, one that comes from having a deep roster that features both multiskilled players who can line up anywhere and anytime with a handful of specialists who rotate in and out depending on the situation.

That’s been a significant part of the evolution under McCarthy and Quinn.

“This isn’t something we thought of tonight,” team owner and general manager Jerry Jones said. “It’s something that’s been in the making for a couple of years. Because of the structure of this defense and Mike’s philosophy on how we want to handle our complementary football, this pick and the player and the style he plays became more valuable than when I was sitting there 10 years ago for the Cowboys.”

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Jones was reminded that it was it was actually 34 years ago when he made Miami’s Russell Maryland the first overall draft pick in 1991. That was the last time Dallas had used a first-round selection on a defensive tackle.

“At the time,” Jones recalled Thursday, “we got a lot of flack for overpicking him. Russell was undersized at the time, but of course, he had a great career here.”

Maryland went on to be a key ingredient to the franchise’s three Super Bowl wins of the 1990s.

The Cowboys obviously hope Smith follows a similar path, having done enough homework on him to feel he’s headed in the right direction.

“We know everything, everything, everything about his background, and that’s part of the deal,” Jones said. “Everything. And we wanted him.”

Because that’s what their board told them.

But about that… just where was Smith exactly, that the Cowboys passed over so many other prospects ranked higher by others?

“He was on the board at a position for us to pick at 26,” McClay stonewalled.

Jerry, however, caved.

“Okay, 14. I think he was 13 or 14,” he laughed. “Who gives a [expletive]? We got him.”

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Cowboys ‘feel great’ about Josh Ball, Matt Waletzko; will likely still draft OL early

From @ToddBrock24f7: McCarthy says Waletzko is rehabbing nicely from injury and Ball will play both tackle and guard, but offensive linemen are always in demand.

When it comes to offensive linemen, more is always better as far as the Cowboys are concerned.

“I don’t think you can ever have enough of them,” Cowboys chief operating officer Stephen Jones said Monday during the team’s pre-draft press conference, “and Mike [McCarthy, head coach] would agree with that. We should be drafting one, you’d like to hope, in the top three or four rounds every year.”

Dallas made it their No. 1 priority last year, taking Tulsa’s Tyler Smith with the 24th pick. All the rookie did in return was step in for an eight-time Pro Bowler and lead the entire team in snaps for the season.

So forgive the Cowboys brain trust if they lean toward getting right back in that line with the 26th overall pick this weekend.

Even with perennial All-Pro Zack Martin, the impressive Tyler Smith, a returning Tyron Smith, up-and-comer Terence Steele, and a very solid Tyler Biadasz, the Cowboys admit they still have a need up front.

“You look at Cincinnati last year, where they were trying to struggle through the injuries,” Jones added. “You look at Kansas City over the years, trying to get through the injuries. We had our share of injuries last year, of course, with Steele and Tyron missing quite a bit of time. You can’t have enough of those guys. That’s why we do put a premium on drafting them.”

Dallas indeed had to scramble to put together a front five for much of the season. Tyron Smith missed the start of the season with a hamstring tear; he hasn’t played a full campaign since 2015. Matt Farniok and Matt Waletzko were both lost to season-ending injured reserve in October. Steele suffered a major knee injury in December. Josh Ball, who had sat out his 2021 rookie season on IR, came in for Steele and foundered badly.

Connor McGovern, though injured himself, was asked to do a lot at multiple positions- some not even on the offensive line- but he’s in Buffalo now.

The Cowboys signed Chuma Edoga in free agency, but he played just 55 snaps for Atlanta last season; the team may not know yet exactly what they have there.

So yes, plan on Dallas calling a big, beefy lineman at some point this weekend.

But that’s not to say they’re putting all their chips on finding another plug-and-play starter like Tyler Smith.

Despite his disastrous debut versus Houston, third-year man Ball will be expanding his role for the team. McCarthy confirmed that he’d play “guard and both tackles” in 2023.

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He’s not the only young lineman the coach is expecting to see step up this year; McCarthy told reporters he feels “great” about both Ball and Waletzko.

“Matt’s having a great offseason. He obviously had the surgery, so he’s knocking it out of the park there. And Josh, I think, clearly, will work more inside than out. He does a tremendous job in the offseason program, things like that. I’m excited to see those guys play in the preseason. They’re ready. We’ve just got to get them battle-tested. They’re making all the progress you look for in his your second- or third-[year] players. They’re right on schedule.”

So the numbers are coming back around for the Cowboys and new offensive line coach Mike Solari. But the reality is, the line likely won’t be at full strength for long.

“It’s just inherent that you’re going to have injuries in that area,” Jones explained. “So consequently, you like to have, in a perfect world, eight or nine guys that you feel comfortable going in the game. But they’re all protecting big-time assets. We all see what people are paying quarterbacks these days. Those guys up front have the biggest responsibility of keeping them upright.”

Looked at through that lens, it seems like a lock that Dallas will add another lineman or two to help protect their $40 million man, Dak Prescott.

The question is, when will they turn in that card?

Tennessee tackle Darnell Wright may be there late in the first round. The gargantuan Dawand Jones out of Ohio State and Alabama’s Tyler Steen are other possible options in the first two rounds.

As for guards, O’Cyrus Torrence out of Florida and TCU’s Steve Avila look to be early picks, as well as North Dakota State’s Cody Mauch.

“You trust in your process,” McCarthy concluded.

So far, the process for the Cowboys seems to be constantly restocking the shelves at offensive line… maybe sooner rather than later, given the recent roster shuffles there in Dallas.

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Cowboys’ McCarthy definitely has a type at TE. Who fits it in Class of ’23?

From @ToddBrock24f7: Mike McCarthy knows exactly what he’s looking for in a tight end. Several top prospects fit the bill nearly to a T.

Mike McCarthy may be coming around on tight ends, and that could very well influence the decision the Cowboys make in the first round of the draft this Thursday night.

Speaking at the team’s annual pre-draft press conference on Monday, the head coach talked about the growing importance of the position in today’s NFL. His answers- along with how Dallas used its platoon of tight ends last season- strongly suggest that he’ll be looking to take a tight end at some point this weekend.

And the coach has a good idea of what he’s searching for.

“Well, there’s really three primary positions that they play in,” he told reporters at The Star. “[Number One], Some call it the traditional Y position, where they’re playing next to the tackle on the line of scrimmage. [Number Two], Their ability to be a movement player whether it’s moving in the backfield or moving along the line of scrimmage, doing some heavy lifting. And then [Number Three, being] able to play in the third component of being displaced as a receiver.”

The Cowboys, like all the other offenses in the league, ask their tight ends to be multi-skill players: block effectively when needed, serve as a safety-blanket outlet in the passing game, go in motion to cause hesitation for a defense who can’t be sure which job he’s about to do on any given play.

And he has to do all of them at an exceedingly high level for it to work.

“It’s about matchups. You’re always trying to create favorable matchups for your players.”

For tight end prospects to really register in McCarthy’s radar, though, it starts with genetics.

“It’s our responsibility as coaches to make sure our boundaries have the ability to take advantage of any quality player that fits a physical profile of how we want to look as a football team. So that’s no different at any position. So the tight end position, obviously, versatility. As many 6-4, 250 pound men that can play on four downs. I don’t think you can have enough of that body type on your team. Because of the way it gives you the ability to play offensively,” the coach offered. “There’s more versatility there.”

McCarthy’s physical preferences become obvious by lining up his current tight end group.

Jake Ferguson, Peyton Hendershot, Sean McKeon, and Seth Green are all listed as either 6-foot-4 or 6-foot-5. All weigh between 238 and 254 pounds. Dalton Schultz was 6-foot-5, 244 pounds.

Yeah, McCarthy has a type.

Even in Green Bay, the tight ends he drafted (and who stuck) fit the mold. Jermichael Finley: 6-foot-5, 247. Andrew Quarless: 6-foot-4, 252. Richard Rodgers: 6-foot-4, 257.

While most collegiate tight ends entering the league are also roughly that same height and weight, McCarthy’s history and his stated ideal (“6-4, 250 pound men”) would seem to make Notre Dame’s Michael Mayer (6-foot-4, 249 pounds) the prototype and give him the slightest of edges over Utah’s Dalton Kincaid 6-foot-3, 246). Georgia’s Darnell Washington is actually quite a bit bigger at 6-foot-6 and 264. Even Oregon State’s Luke Musgrave is suddenly in the conversation at 6-foot-5 and 253.

Those four just happen to represent the top quartet of tight ends in Dane Brugler’s The Beast draft guide, and all may be in play for Dallas with the 26th overall pick.

But as McCarthy said Monday, “You’ve got to trust your board.”

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While it’s not known where any of those tight ends rank on the Cowboys’ master list relative to other positions, the coach did admit that tight end has been bumped up- at least for him- into the same level of importance as the traditional “Money Five” positions: quarterback, wide receiver, cornerback, left tackle, and edge rusher.

“I understand that most people feel there are primary positions when you’re assessing value,” he explained, “but I think in today’s game, the safety position and the tight end position can start to challenge to being a primary position, in my view of how I look at positions in football.”

McCarthy has something of a reputation for largely ignoring the tight end position while he was with the Packers, but last year’s numbers in Dallas point to an ongoing change in philosophy.

As Cowboys Wire pointed out earlier this offseason, the Cowboys used 12 personnel (one wide receiver, two tight ends) on 31% of their first-down snaps in 2022. That ranked 6th-most often across the league. In McCarthy’s final year in Green Bay, his 12 personnel usage ranked 29th.

Then again, he never had the kind of tight end depth in Green Bay that the Cowboys have given him over the past three seasons

“It was not a philosophy [in Green Bay] that we don’t take a tight end in the first round. That wasn’t the case. I think it really comes down to the board.”

All indications are this year’s board will yield yet another big-bodied weapon for McCarthy to deploy at tight end in Dallas.

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Connor McGovern to start at LG per owner, Cowboys HC McCarthy hopeful for Tyron Smith return

Jerry Jones confirmed a switch at left guard. Mike McCarthy said only, “both Connors will play,” and is hopeful that Tyron Smith will go. | From @ToddBrock24f7

The Cowboys have yet to see their “best five” offensive linemen take the field together in the starting lineup in 2021. With left tackle Tyron Smith trending in the right direction after a two-game absence, it could finally happen in Kansas City on Sunday.

It just may not be the five everyone thought it was going to be.

While head coach Mike McCarthy sounds optimistic that Smith could be back for the Week 11 game versus the Chiefs, another piece on the left side of the offensive line could also be changing as well. It’s a change many within the fanbase have been clamoring for.

Owner Jerry Jones confirmed on Dallas radio that third-year player Connor McGovern will be getting the start at left guard against the Chiefs, replacing Connor Williams. Williams has started at that spot in every game this season for the Cowboys.

“I think he’s basically earned [it],” Jones said, per 105.3 The Fan.

McGovern has seen plenty of snaps in 2021, but at various other positions in the offense, lining up in special formations as a blocking back, a tight end, and even split out as a wide receiver. Now he appears set to step in at left guard, despite playing right guard for most of his career.

“The issue with him is playing left guard,” Jones continued. “He has really sold the staff and sold the team on what he can do at right guard. So he’s doing two things. He’s not only going to have that role, but he’s going to be doing it at left guard.”

McGovern started nine games at right guard last season after Zack Martin suffered a concussion and then returned to the lineup as a fill-in right tackle.

Williams has been plagued by penalties this season, drawing a league-most 13 flags in nine outings. Asked about it earlier in the week, McCarthy hinted that swapping one Connor for another might be an option.

McCarthy said Williams “clearly understands the way he performed. We have a very competitive offensive line room. We’ll see what the future brings.”

It seems the future is now here at left guard. McCarthy wouldn’t confirm a change to the starting lineup, only revealing to 105.3 The Fan that “both Connors will play in the game.”

The coach did, however, express optimism that left tackle Tyron Smith could be making his return to the left side of the line for Sunday’s interconference showdown in Kansas City.

“We’re hopeful he can go on Sunday,” the coach said of Smith at The Star in Frisco on Friday. The 30-year-old was limited in practice on both Wednesday and Thursday, with the team working him back gradually from a bone spur issue in his ankle. Friday is traditionally the team’s mock game day; Smith was scheduled to participate.

That would have him meeting the three-game threshold that McCarthy and the training staff had laid out for Smith’s week and leaves one last hurdle for the Week 11 showdown. If Smith practices Saturday, the plan is for him to take the field on Sunday.

“He looks good,” McCarthy offered. “He felt good about his work.”

And Cowboys fans have cause to feel good, too, with the team’s seven-time Pro Bowler returning to his customary spot at left tackle and a rising star getting a shot next to him in replacing a weak link.

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Ankle injury ‘not of high concern’ for Trevon Diggs, says Cowboys’ Mike McCarthy

Trevon Diggs will be limited in Thursday’s practice, says HC Mike McCarthy, but the team expects him to be ready to play the Pats on Sunday. | From @ToddBrock24f7

Lost somewhat in the strong second-half team showing of the Cowboys’ 44-20 rout over the Giants on Sunday was the minor scare fans had gotten earlier regarding one of its stars. As the first quarter came to close, cornerback Trevon Diggs- the league leader in interceptions, the NFC’s Defensive Player of the Month for September, and the reigning NFC Defensive Player of the Week at the time- was on the sideline getting his ankle taped.

Diggs returned to the game in short order and even continued his remarkable pick streak for a fifth consecutive game. But the ankle was bothering him enough that he sat out practice on Wednesday, showing up on the day’s practice report with the dreaded “DNP” designation.

It served as a stark reminder of just how day-to-day every player really is all the time, and it prompted reporters to make Diggs’s status the first question in head coach Mike McCarthy’s Thursday press conference as the team prepares for a trip to New England to face the Patriots.

“Trevon will be limited today,” McCarthy told media members at The Star. “We’ll see if we can maybe get him into the individual [portion of practice]. That will be the most he’ll probably do today.”

While a management day for Diggs held him out of team drills Wednesday, the second-year phenom did go through resistance training on his own, and the team expects him to play Sunday in Foxborough.

“Not of high concern,” McCarthy said of the ankle injury.

Based on the way Diggs kept himself loose on the sideline bike during last week’s contest and then returned to make a major impact, it’s safe to assume that he and the team are taking the same sort of approach heading into the last game before the bye.

“No one knows their body the way they do,” McCarthy said on Thursday, speaking of athletes in general.

By all accounts, Diggs taking things easy on Wednesday and Thursday shouldn’t have much bearing on seeing him out there on Sunday, roaming through the secondary and looking to intercept yet another of his former Alabama teammates in New England rookie quarterback Mac Jones.

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Mukuamu claims to be ‘best corner coming in;’ Cowboys have other plans

The sixth-round pick hinted that he’s better than coveted teammate Jaycee Horn, but Dallas plans to use him at a different position in 2021.

Israel Mukuamu had a bold proclamation for his new boss in their very first conversation. He wasn’t the South Carolina defensive back that the Cowboys were seemingly lined up to take in Thursday night’s first round, but Mukuamu was quick to toot his own horn after becoming the 227th overall selection.

“Just know you got the best corner coming in,” the 21-year-old bragged to owner Jerry Jones upon getting the call on Saturday afternoon.

Strong words, considering that 33 corners were taken ahead of him. He wasn’t even the first cornerback that Dallas drafted; the Cowboys picked both Kelvin Joseph and Nahshon Wright an entire day before ringing Mukuamu.

But the team likely has something else in mind for the youngster anyway.

“I think we’ve got some safety aspirations for him,” chief operating officer Stephen Jones said in the team’s third post-draft press conference. “Give our scouts credit; they had a vision. This guy’s long, he’s got great ball skills, and he’s a little heavier, of course, than Nahshon [Wright]. I think we’ve got a vision; that’s probably where we’ll start him- over at the safety position and see what he can do. He obviously has a lot of confidence as a corner, if you ask him. But at the same time, I think he’s got the ball skills to play in the post, to cover tight ends, to do the things we need him to do and be physical enough to be a safety.”

Mukuamu certainly fits the prototype of a Dan Quinn DB; he and third-round pick Wright were the tallest corners taken in this year’s draft. He has current Cowboys safety Darian Thompson beat by two inches, and stands a full four inches taller than Donovan Wilson.

The path to a corner job in Dallas may be harder to come by. Trevon Diggs has one spot locked up; there are nine others currently listed as cornerbacks on the official team roster, including Anthony Brown, Jourdan Lewis, the aforementioned Joseph and Wright, and others.

Mukuamu impressed as a freshman in 2018 and earned second-team All-SEC honors in 2019. His 2020 campaign was cut short by a groin injury, and when South Carolina head coach Will Muschamp was fired midseason, Mukuamu opted out of the rest of the slate.

Now that’s making the leap to the pros, he says he’s ready to do whatever the team asks of him. At whatever position.

“I feel more comfortable at corner,” Mukuamu told the Dallas media in his introductory conference call, “but the plan is to get on the field as quick as I can. So if that means playing corner or safety, it really doesn’t matter to me. I am just trying to help the Cowboys win.”

The sixth-rounder’s boast about being the best corner in the class may have been a good-natured dig at his college bookend Jaycee Horn. Horn was widely rumored to be one of the Cowboys’ primary targets in the first round of the draft, but the Panthers took him eighth overall to make him the first cornerback taken.

According to Mukuamu, though, Horn spent a portion of his own celebratory weekend in support of his teammate.

“Yeah, Jaycee was just at my draft party. He is excited for me, and he is ready to get to work.”

While Horn sees cornerback duties in Carolina, Mukuamu may soon be adapting to life as a safety if the Cowboys coaches get their way.

But Jerry Jones, as always, allowed some wiggle room, hedging his bets when it comes to the DB’s big boast.

“We can probably figure out something at safety if he is the best corner we’ve got,” Jones said with a laugh.

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Jerry Jones on Sean Lee’s future with Cowboys: ‘It’s just starting’

The veteran linebacker has hung up his cleats, but Lee’s boss hopes to keep him in the Dallas fold and alluded to his future as a coach.

Wearing a suit coat and sitting at a table alongside his boss after announcing his retirement, Sean Lee spoke with the same passion that oozed from his pores for eleven seasons as a Dallas Cowboys linebacker.

“When you pour gasoline on a fire inside of yourself for twenty-five years,” Lee said, “it’s hard to put it out.”

If team owner Jerry Jones has his way, that fire’s not being doused, per se. Just allowed to let smolder temporarily.

Jones, despite a knack for sometimes talking in confusing circles, made it crystal-clear during the Tuesday press conference that there will always be a place for Lee at the Cowboys’ table.

“My dream would be that,” Jones offered, “relative to our organization, this wouldn’t be the last time- at all- that we’re sitting here in some manner together.”

 

Many expect Lee to transition to coaching, and Jones all but painted a picture of a not-too-distant future press conference announcing the two-time Pro Bowler as an addition to the Cowboys staff.

But first, Lee says, there’s a long beach vacation coming. So any decision to strap on a headset instead of a helmet will have to wait a while.

“Well, it’s hard to get off that beach once you’re out there and relaxing. It’s fun,” Lee laughed. “I know right now, I feel so lucky and blessed. So you take a little bit of a breather and you start to assess things. I know my wife likes being out on the beach more than I do, so I’m going to let her take control of that for a while, and we’ll figure out things as we go. I know that being here, I love this organization, I want to be involved. I want to help any way I can. I know that for sure.”

But Lee also acknowledged the heavy toll that coaching in the NFL demands. And until he can commit to that role with everything he has, Lee says it’s better- albeit more painful in the short-term- to step completely away for now.

“I think there’s a period right now where I’m going to miss playing. Dearly. And I think I need to get over that a little bit for a while, take some time with that, and then maybe make a decision on the back end of that.”

Lee admits, though, that as he vacations in Santa Barbara, he may just take a 45-minute cruise down the California coast to Oxnard, where the Cowboys will be holding camp.

“That’s an easy drive,” Lee joked. “I’ll definitely stop in in and say hello.”

Lee will no doubt be welcome. Jones has always saved a spot in the team’s inner circle for many of the franchise’s larger-than-life players, whether it’s as a coach, a brand ambassador, or a business partner.

“One of the great things about sports is that, especially with players, that fleeting time that they’re players doesn’t necessarily make an end to your relationship, your partnership, where you’re going forward with them,” Jones explained. “The facts are that they’re really just puppies when they leave here. They’re really just getting going when they’re not playing football. And it’s just starting.”

For Lee, the hardest part about walking away is walking away now. He expressed his fervent belief that the Cowboys are on the cusp of finally reaching the level he never quite got to experience as a player.

“This team is going in a direction where they’re going to win, and they’re going to win big soon. And that’s the thing that you always worry about. But you’re happy to watch it as you go out, because you know you were part of it in some way.”

Lee was a huge part of it. And he may be a part of it once again in the very near future.

Jones certainly hopes so.

“This is how you build on it,” Jones said of the team’s relationship with one of its all-time greats. “I’m a big believer that the legacy of the Cowboys and certainly, in this case, [Sean]’s story can be a big part of our future.”

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McCarthy not ready to give up on Aldon Smith’s return to Cowboys

The Dallas coach refuted reports that the team has already decided to move on from the defensive end who made his NFL comeback in 2020.

Former Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett typically played things very close to the vest in his press conferences. He controlled the message tightly, to the point of frequently regurgitating meaningless coachspeak and recycling generic soundbites in lieu of giving actual answers to the questions asked.

Mike McCarthy also prefers to hold back information whenever he can, but every once in a while, he surprises everyone with a moment of unexpected frankness.

Or two.

Despite widely-shared news that defensive end Aldon Smith has been notified by the club that they’ll move on without him this season, McCarthy told a slightly different story that doesn’t close the book on Smith’s return to an evolving Dallas defense.

“First, Aldon Smith: that’s still fluid. I personally haven’t moved on. I was in a conversation yesterday about Aldon, so we’ll see how that works out moving forward,” McCarthy said during his first press conference of the offseason. “In general, you really don’t want players that can do one thing. If a guy is just really good at one component of his game, he’s got to be the best in the business at it. The ability to play a 3-technique, also play a 4-inside shade technique, to come out and play a 5, Aldon can play the 6, he can play the 9. So that’s the flexibility that you’re looking for. The three veteran linemen that we signed [Carlos Watkins, Brent Urban, and Tarell Basham] all also have that capability. When I talk about the growth, talking about 3-4 versus 4-3, the variation of guys being able to play multiple techniques and have the length… Aldon fits that. So we’re still talking there.”

During the same press conference, McCarthy also- somewhat accidentally- blurted out that Tyrone Crawford would be retiring, stealing the thunder from the defensive lineman being able break the news himself.

“Tyrone just came to me right away in the exit interview process, and he’s…” McCarthy stopped himself and looked off-camera to the team’s public relations guru Rich Dalrymple.

“Should I address this now, or…?”

With the cat already out of the bag, McCarthy continued.

“I’m sorry, I guess I did. I’m sorry. He’s going to move on. He’s going to retire. But he’s going to be here in the area; he lives right down the road, and I’ve actually seen him a couple times since.”

The team posted to social media after the press conference, confirming the coach’s possibly-premature reveal.

Cowboys fans intrigued by what they saw from Aldon Smith in his 2020 comeback season can only hope that McCarthy also ends up being prescient about the door still being open for his return in 2021.

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Cowboys brass: DC Dan Quinn represents ‘a major step’ for Dallas defense

The team’s new defensive coordinator earned praise during Dak Prescott’s press conference this week, with optimism in the building high.

The biggest and most important piece may be in place, with Dak Prescott’s signature now dry on a contract that keeps him in Dallas for at least the next four years. But some other areas of the puzzle need a lot of work in order to put together the championship picture that Cowboys fans have been envisioning for so long.

With the stroke of Prescott’s pen on Wednesday, fixing the defense took over the top-priority spot on the team’s to-do list. But Cowboys executive vice president and chief operating officer Stephen Jones took a moment during his quarterback’s press conference to note that the club is further along on that particular project than it may seem.

“We’ve already taken a major step with Dan Quinn,” Jones said of the defensive coordinator hired in January. “I think he’s going to be very special. When we did our diligence, figuring it out with Coach [Mike] McCarthy and Jerry [Jones] and myself, what he would be like as a defensive coordinator, it was nothing but rave reviews. His players want to lay it on the line for him. They want to play hard for him.”

Quinn replaces Mike Nolan, who lasted just one season in Dallas. Under Nolan’s watch, the Cowboys defense attempted to install an entirely new scheme during an offseason program held virtually. They ended up surrendering the most points in franchise history, and the second-most rushing yards and total yards ever by a Dallas defense.

With a total of ten picks in next month’s draft, the Cowboys are expected to look to the college ranks to dramatically beef up the unit for 2021, but Jones believes that Quinn’s cupboard isn’t nearly as bare as the 2020 rankings suggest.

“I think we’ve got a lot of great players on defense,” Jones went on, “whether it’s DeMarcus Lawrence, whether it’s Leighton Vander Esch or Jaylon Smith, whether it’s a Randy Gregory, who is up-and-coming. Young guys like [Neville] Gallimore and Trysten Hill. There’s a lot to work with there, and I think he’s going to get it out of them. I think he’s going to put a system in where they can play hard and fast and confident in what they’re doing. And then if we go do our work in the offseason in terms of improving it, I think we’re going to check that box.”

Quinn has yet to speak directly with the media since taking the Cowboys job. But team owner Jerry Jones says that Quinn’s past performances speak volumes about what he brings to Dallas.

“Quinn, in my view, has some great skins on the wall,” the elder Jones pointed out.

The 50-year-old Quinn was the architect of a Seattle Seahawks defense that finished best in the NFL in points and yards in their back-to-back Super Bowl seasons of 2013 and 2014. Quinn’s defenses in Atlanta from 2015 to 2020 were less impressive, ranking in the top ten just once, but by then he was the team’s head coach. The Falcons employed four different defensive coordinators during Quinn’s five-plus seasons as coach, including Quinn himself in a dual role in 2019.

“He’s got great experience. He is people-skilled. When you’re around him, you’ll see that,” Jones went on. “He’s certainly a dedicated football coach, and he’s covered a lot of ground. We have a lot of tape, so to speak, if you were talking about a player. We’ve got, really, a lot of information to look at to decide how he fits us. He was absolutely perfect for us in this situation to come in here. He’ll be extraordinarily influential in how we put together our personnel on defense. I think he’s got that kind of credibility.”

Jones isn’t the only one. Even the Cowboys’ new $164 million dollar man offered a positive scouting report.

“Coach Quinn; I’ve met him throughout the building,” Prescott told reporters on Wednesday. “He’s a guy who jumps off at you with his demeanor and everything that he carries. But what was most prominent and fulfilling to me was hearing the guys he’s coached, and former teammates of mine, whether it be Keith Smith or other guys, saying, ‘Hey, you’re going to love this guy.'”

If his unit can hold opponents to something well below their awful 2020 average of 29.6 points per game, then it’s a good bet that Prescott, the Dallas offense, and Cowboys fans everywhere will, in fact, love Quinn, too.

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Xavier Woods new add to Cowboys’ injury report, McCarthy ‘optimistic’ on other DBs

As Donovan Wilson, Anthony Brown, and Trevon Diggs look set to return to action, starting safety Xavier Woods now has a groin injury.

Three members of the Cowboys’ banged-up secondary look set to make their return to the field this Sunday versus San Francisco. But another defensive back has popped up on the injury report and is a little less of a sure thing, according to head coach Mike McCarthy.

Of safety Donovan Wilson and cornerbacks Anthony Brown and Trevon Diggs, all of whom have missed multiple games, McCarthy expects them to be ready to go for Week 15.

“I would put all three of them in the same category: I’m optimistic they’ll play on Sunday,” McCarthy said during his Friday press conference. “The work has been good so far, they’ve participated in the mock game that we just had. So far, everything looks good.”

Things look a little murkier, perhaps, for safety Xavier Woods. The fourth-year Louisiana Tech product was added to Thursday’s injury report with a groin issue. He was limited in that day’s practice and was seen working off to the side.

As has become the norm, McCarthy placed heavy importance on Saturday’s work session as a determining factor in whether Woods will suit up.

“I think he’ll be good to go on Sunday,” McCarthy told reporters, “but we’ll see what he gets done in practice tomorrow. Just being smart with him.”

This season has been particularly hard on the Dallas defensive backs, with a rash of injuries creating a revolving door among cornerbacks and safeties. As Rob Phillips pointed out on the team’s official website, “Through 13 games, the Cowboys’ top four corners – Chidobe Awuzie, rookie Trevon Diggs, Anthony Brown and Jourdan Lewis – have yet to be active in the same game together.”

The yearlong secondary shuffle has necessitated the elevation of several practice squad players, too; Saivion Smith and Chris Westry suddenly found themselves on the field this past Sunday against Cincinnati.

Woods has missed just three games out of 61 thus far as a pro. But just because he’s been out there doesn’t mean he’s always been a difference-maker. In a season where many fans and analysts alike have openly criticized the effort and hustle of the Cowboys defense, Woods made himself the poster child for half-hearted play back in early October.

When asked about effort, Woods said, “The effort’s been good. On certain plays, some guys- I mean, me included- there may be a lack. But overall, the effort is there. We’re in the NFL. You don’t expect guys to [go] full speed for 70 plays; that’s not possible.”

According to Pro Football Reference, Woods was allowing the third-highest passer rating before last Sunday’s showdown with the Bengals.

Even still, Dallas would no doubt prefer to have their starter ready to go this week to complement the expected return of Wilson, Brown, and Diggs.

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