Every player taken in the NFL draft has a story, and every draft produces a standout moment or two.
But there was nothing more emotional than what went down in the Cowboys’ war room when they made the second of their two sixth-round selections on Saturday.
That’s when Dallas decided they were going to take Kansas State running back Deuce Vaughn. And then they let his dad Chris, the team’s assistant director of college scouting, be the one to make the phone call.
#CowboysNation, get your tissues ready 🥹🤧
Chris Vaughn of the scouting department made the call to his son, @C_Vaughn22, to tell him he’s officially a member of the #DallasCowboys 📞#CowboysDraft | @ATT pic.twitter.com/MszgQpRmhl
— Dallas Cowboys (@dallascowboys) April 30, 2023
“In 30 years in this league, I’ve never seen that,” head coach Mike McCarthy told media members. “That was a very special moment.”
“I’ve never had an experience like that in the draft room,” owner Jerry Jones said afterward.
“For me, it was one of the coolest things I’ve ever been involved in,” added Will McClay, the team’s vice president of player personnel. “In that moment, it’s about family. You talk about the Cowboys, you talk about football, you talk about family. When you get that opportunity to share that experience with a really good player that’s going to help us, that’s what it’s all about.”
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McCarthy emphasized that the pick wasn’t just a feel-good family moment; it was about picking a quality football player who racked up over 3,600 rushing yards in three seasons as a Wildcat.
“He was the highest one on the board when we drafted him,” the coach revealed. “Number 1. For a while.”
The Cowboys brass even managed to keep Deuce’s selection a secret from Chris right up until it was time for someone to make the call.
“We didn’t want to make him uncomfortable, and we have so much respect for Chris in terms of what he brings to the table,” explained Stephen Jones, Cowboys chief operating officer, “also knowing that he didn’t want to influence this any way, one way or the other. This was a surprise to him as well when we made the decision between Mike, Jerry, Will, and myself [that] this was going to be our selection. It was really neat to see the look on his face.”
The proud papa got choked up again telling reporters about the moment- and his talented son- later at The Star.
Cowboys assistant director of college scouting Chris Vaughn on the call he made to tell his son, Deuce Vaughn, that the Cowboys were drafting him pic.twitter.com/9breppzqqy
— Jon Machota (@jonmachota) April 30, 2023
The 5-foot-5-inch rusher will get plenty of attention at camp this summer as the shortest player ever measured at the NFL scouting combine since such official data was tracked starting in 2003.
But according to Dad, he’ll also quickly make a big reputation for himself as one of the hardest workers on the field, and he’ll set out to show that he earned the honor of being an NFL draft pick all on his own.
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