Showing posts with label Morris Claiborne. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Morris Claiborne. Show all posts

Thursday, September 6, 2012

Cowboys Knee Jerk Reactions VS Giants

By:  Bobby Shores

This here is my "knee jerk" reactions/observations on the Cowboys game against the Giants, I am doing this after ONLY watching the game one time & live. I have not reviewed the film, read any other opinions on it, or listened to any podcasts; I did listen to the radio that talked about it briefly on my way to work, but literally got nothing out of it for this article.

"More Ogletree Please" Kevin Ogletree – [Editor's Note:  I started the "More Ogletree Please" three years ago when Kevin Ogletree was the darling of Cowboys training camp and made an impact early in the season catching wide receiver screens and 5-8 yard outs.] 
Kevin Ogletree

This will be the story of the week, undrafted free agent out of Virginia who looked like a promising talent the first year of his career before laziness and rumors "entitlement" dogged him the last two years. Nearly everybody (myself included) had written him off, it seemed like even the Cowboys had as they didn't find him worth retaining at the end of last year with a $1.26 million restricted free agent tender, opting instead to let him test the market before bringing him back for the minimum of $460,000. 

After a strong showing in the preseason and training camp Ogletree answered the call last night to the tune of 8 catches for 116 yards and 2 touchdowns. The most impressive part of Ogletree’s night was not the touchdowns, it was the clutch catches, being where Tony Romo expected him to be. You could tell that Ogletree will be one of Romo’s favorite targets this year by the way Romo continually looked his way in clutch situations. Ogletree, rather than Romo safety valves Jason Witten and Miles Austin and emerging star Dez Bryant, was the primary target on 3rd and shorts; running hard slants to get the first downs over and over again. He ran crisp and precise routes punctuated by near perfect throws from his quarterback.

Now I may be going out on a limb here, but the third wide receiver position has been in flux for a number of years, and we thought we had it answered until the Jaguars blew away Laurent Robinson with a 5-year $32 million contract in free agency, so I am suggesting that we go ahead and lock-up Kevin Ogletree for a few years. I am not calling for some huge contract, just enough to make him happy while keeping the Cowboys cap flexible for years to come. I am thinking something along the lines of 4-years and $12-14 million (that's $3-3.5 million annual average). While many will say that the "sense of entitlement" will come back once he has some money in his pocket, well I think otherwise, I honestly believe that after trying summer he had that he has matured and this is a whole new Kevin Ogletree.

Running Game – While it started off very slow, mostly due to the ineffectiveness of the offensive line (more on that later), DeMarco Murray and Lawrence Vickers got in their groove and started getting big chunks of yards. Murray’s 20 carries for 129 yards provided a solid balance to the Cowboys offense, making life on the Giants defense very difficult. Look for the running game to get going earlier in the game as the season progresses, particularly if the offensive line can come together.

While Murray did average a solid 7+ yards per carry, to me, he seemed to not have the burst that I saw last year which worries me a little. Also, on the long 48 (I think) yard run he wore out too quick, that should have been a touchdown and leads me to believe that he may not be in the shape he should, or maybe he is nursing some minor injury. Regardless something does not seem right and his 20 yards rushing in the first half is not going to cut it all year, but he obviously finished strong and was more than effective enough.

Play Calling – This was one of my favorite parts of this game, particularly Jason Garrett's offensive play calling. You can argue with the early 4th & 1 fullback dive with Vickers, but I wanted to see that play, unfortunately Jeremy Parnell (playing Tight End basically on that play) missed his block while the rest of the left side of the line did not get lower than the Giants defenders.

Besides that one questionable call (again that I agreed with) the rest of the game was called great. Unlike years past, Garrett didn't get the lead and go super conservative by calling run, run, run, punt. He kept his foot on the accelerator with a solid mix of run/pass and even gave Romo the options of going deep (like that long pass play to Dez). This tells me that Garrett finally realized that he doesn't need to dramatically alter his play calling style just because he has the lead, continue to use what got you the lead in the first place!

Felix Jones – I don't know where to start here, as an Arkansas Razorback alum, two kids attending there right now, and every member of my family owning a Felix Jones jersey.....It pains me to even bring this up....I think it may be time to cut Felix loose, he has looked overweight and generally uninterested, hopefully he is still just trying to get back in shape after his shoulder surgery this offseason. 

On kickoff returns he seemed to run (not sprint) in a straight line with no shakes or wiggles and still struggled to get back to the 20. He didn't even get a chance in the game as he had 0 carries, but he did get 2 passes thrown his way but both of them were uncatchable. It may be time to promote Lance Dunbar to the active roster as he will provide that "spark" in the backfield with Darren Sproles like skills, plus he would be a contributor on all special teams and run kickoffs back harder. I am not ready to make these moves yet, but Felix doesn't have much time, even in my book.....Maybe he just needs a change of scenery to revive a once promising career.....

Jason Garrett & Rob Ryan
Defense, Defense, Defense – WOW! WOW! WOW! This topic deserves an entire article, so I will keep this short. All 4 linebackers were the star of this unit, they set the tone with both DeMarcus Ware and Anthony Spencer providing plenty of pressure on Eli Manning with Spencer looking good dropping back in coverage. Sean Lee and Bruce Carter were unbelievable in the middle, we already know that Lee is one of the most instictive middle 'backers in the NFL and he continued that last night racking up tackles and impact plays. Carter is the biggest surprise here, while he is not as instinctive as Lee, he was always right there with him a half-step behind cleaning up the tackles. Hist athleticism sets him apart, he looks like he can make a wrong read or take a misstep and still go sideline-to-sideline. I can't wait to see him continue to develop!

The defensive line and secondary were also impressive. The D-Line had great hustle and were flying to the ball and Jason Hatcher looks like he is answering the calls of all the people saying this was his "breakout year", and don't forget that Jay Ratliff wasn't even suited up for this game! The secondary was helped out by Victor Cruz's myriad drops and Morris Claiborne showed some promise but you can tell he is raw (particularly in his backpedal and turns, but he will learn that). The Cowboys big free agent CB Brandon Carr made some plays, but it looked like he may have tried to jump some routes or something because guys got behind/around him some and I need to go watch that on film some more...

Rob Ryan - This is the defensive I have been dreaming of for years! Ask my wife, I was wanting Rob Ryan as the Cowboys defensive coordinator when he was still coaching in Cleveland!! The play calling was excellent, he had guys coming from all over the field, and the fact that they stopped the Giants on the 1-yard line 3 times in a row!!! WOW WOW WOW!!!!

Offensive Line – Not much to say here, the play speaks for itself....I think I counted about 8-10 penalties on the offensive line as they were being pushed backwards most of the time. Nobody on the line played very well in any aspect of the game. But let's be honest, these guys have not played or practiced very much together during camp or the preseason, and center Ryan Cook played all but 3 offensive snaps after starting center Phil Costa went out with a back problems.

On the good side, Romo only got sacked twice, and they didn't come from the most dangerous Giants pass rushers, they came from up the middle, Romo had more to do with the only being sacked twice than the offensive line. This offensive line can only get better from here, and I think it will, it's time to see what offensive line coach Bill Callahan can do from here on out, this falls squarely on his shoulders.

One last thing, Tyron Smith struggled mightily playing on the left side of the line for the first time in his college or NFL career, but give him some time and he will get it. Those of you that thought that he was already a "Top 10" tackle in this league and would play on the left side like he did the right (Casey Ryan Mallow, maybe next time you will listen to me), I told you so! If you listened to me then you knew there would be some growing pains here, and without his insane athletic ability and reach, he would've gotten Romo hurt.


Obviously I could and should go on about the amazing game that Romo had, the breakout game for Dez Braynt, the second half for Miles Austin, the safety's, etc. But these are what stood out to me most, I have and will touch on the rest here and on Twitter.

Well there you have it, my week 1 knee jerk reactions, stay tuned as I give you more information as I break down the film. You can get all my immediate thoughts by following me on Twitter. 

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Wednesday, August 8, 2012

Cowboys Camp - Early Observations

By:  Bobby Shores

Safety

As Barry Church showed up to camp with a “re-shaped” body more suited for safety than linebacker and started making plays while Pool ran laps around the field trying to get in good enough shape to be given the password into practice, it didn’t take long for Captain Obvious to show up and let us all know that he would be cut sooner rather than later. When the Cowboys signed him there were a lot of skeptics out there that didn’t think he would make the 53-man roster (myself not included). With the lack of proven guys, and the difficulty of Rob Ryan’s defense, I thought that Pool would be the veteran fallback option during the season at the least. You know, in case somebody gets hurt (like the 20% of the training camp roster currently is), but when a guy comes in that out of shape and gives off a vibe that he just doesn’t care, then let him go, they don’t need that around the team.
Not Signing Montrae Holland

I have been a big Holland fan for a couple of years, I thought he was what held our O-line together last year and when I heard that he actually showed up in good shape and had a very good tryout, I was AMAZED that they didn’t sign him! Instead they went with Derrick Dockery (understandable) and Daniel Loper (what?!?!?!?), I understand Dockery as he was one of the best guards in football a few years ago and can probably still play. Loper on the other hand has bounced around from team-to-team and barely seen any real action. I am afraid they shied away from Holland because they knew he would come in and instantly snatch a starting position away from one of the young guys (Nagy, Kowalski, Costa, Arkin) that they have failed to properly develop, or one of the free agent signings (Livings and Bernadeau), and one thing that NFL people don’t like to do is admit they were wrong or take ANY blow to their ego. Regardless I think that Holland may be brought in at some point soon, because they will not let the interior of the line sink the season before it starts….hopefully.

Cornerback STILL a problem?

All off season we long we raved (or I did) about how the 2011 Cowboys biggest weakness was about to become the 2012 teams biggest strength, cornerback! They went out and signed arguably the best CB on the market in Brandon Carr, drafted not only the best CB in the draft but the best defensive player in the draft Morris Claiborne, coupled with Mike Jenkins and Orlando Scandrick plus a young guy or two and we were gonna be stacked! Well Jenkins is still out with a shoulder injury, Claiborne has missed nearly every practice since the draft with injuries. Now we are looking at possibly starting Carr, Scandrick and “insert name” on September 5 against the Giants! Then they release Isaac Madison from Arkansas who had been making plays according to people that are watching practices, but they keep AOA and some others? I hope that this becomes a non-issue as the CB’s get healthy and do become the strength that I envisioned.


I know that Jenkins had a “complicated” shoulder surgery, and I have had two of those in the past 18 months so I can sympathize with him. What I can’t sympathize with though is that he decided to rehab on his own away from the team because he wanted to get traded. Now his shoulder is STILL not right and it looks like he will be out for the entire preseason! So not only is he of little use to the Cowboys, we can’t even trade him! Looks like he “cut off his nose to spite his face”. I am starting to think that he may end up on the PUP list to start the season which means he will not be able to play until between weeks 7-10. BUT, there is a new wrinkle this year, what is being called the “One Player Exemption”, where if a player is on the roster for week 1, then he can come back and play anytime after week 6 and does not take up a roster spot. Couple that with the extended trade deadline and Jenkins could come back in time to show what he has on the field and then the Cowboys can either keep him for a playoff run, or possibly trade him to a team like the Lions.

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Wednesday, June 6, 2012

Deal or No Deal - Cowboys CB Mike Jenkins

By:  Bobby Shores

One of the biggest story lines so far during this OTA season is what is going to happen with former first round draft pick Mike Jenkins, you know the incumbent starting cornerback that was put on the trade block after the Cowboys picked Morris Claiborne #6 overall, and then once no team offered a high enough pick during the draft Jenkins has now become an important part of the future of the Dallas Cowboys, to paraphrase Jones.

So why is Jenkins staying away from the Cowboys "voluntary" off-season activities? Well for starters they key word is "voluntary", which according to dictionary.com means:

  •  "done, made, brought about, undertaken, etc., of one's own accord or by free choice
In layman's terms that means he is not required to show up. Jenkins's agent Drew Rosenhaus has already informed Jones that he will be there for the mandatory sessions, probably because players can get fined up to $10,000 each day which for a player making "only" about $1 million this year could add up quickly. Which brings me to my next point....

Jenkins is unahppy with his contract and feels slighted that he is still playing on his rookie deal signed when he was drafted in 2008 and that the Cowboys have taken care of Orlando Scandrick by signing him to a 5-year $27 million extension with $10 million guaranteed, and he was taken 4 rounds later (calculator out....yep he was taken in the 5th round) in that same draft. He is also upset because ANOTHER 2007 5th round draft pick, Brandon Carr, just signed a 5-year $50.1 million contract with $25.5 million guaranteed, the richest contract signed by any free agent defensive back in 2012. And what does Jenkins have that NEITHER of these two corners the Cowboys have richly rewarded this past year have? A Pro Bowl to their name, that's right, Mike Jenkins was named to the Pro Bowl back in 2010.

Mo Claiborne(24) & Brandon Carr(39)
Even though Jones says that Jenkins is going to be a part of the Cowboys future, and is saying that nothing a team can offer will be worth what he is worth to the team, the reality of NFL Economics says that this will be the last year Jenkins is a member of the Cowboys, barring an injury and a highly unlikely 2013 franchise tag. Teams can't afford to devote that much money to one position.

While there are plenty of teams out there that could greatly improve with the addition of Jenkins, and a couple of those teams (Lions and Colts) supposedly making offers for him, the fact is he is more valuable to America's Team than most anything they would give for him. Think about it this way, Jenkins played almost the 2011 season injured, from a busted shoulder (that required major surgery), to lingering knee, hamstring and neck injuries and won't be ready to resume practicing until training camp at the earliest. So any team that trades for him will be taking a risk that he won't be ready to go, will play as well as he has at times when healthy and can pick up a new defense on an accelerated schedule. 

So what is that worth, in terms of a draft pick? Probably a 5th round pick that maybe goes up to a 4th round pick depending on playing time. Well guess what happens if the Cowboys let him walk next off-season? They most likely get a 3rd round compensatory pick.

Besides the compensatory pick, what is Jenkins value to the Cowboys? Remember last year, when the Cowboys secondary was regularly torched by opponents due to injury and ineffectiveness? I believe it was the Jets game when Terence Newman was out, Jenkins was out, Scandrick rolled an ankle and the 2 corners were Alan Ball and Bryan McCann with Barry Church coming in on the Nickel package. You forgot about that, didn't you? In my opinion, having 4 corners capable of starting is a luxury, it's a luxury the Cowboys can afford and should take advantage of this year, especially if you can find a way to get them all on the field at once (remember my article a while back about the declining value of NFL Safety's....read it now).

So taking all this into account the starting point for me to even consider trading Jenkins is a 2nd and 5th round pick. Even then I wouldn't talk about it unless another cornerback (my money is on Mario Butler) steps up during training camp while other teams suffer crippling injuries and/or realize that their hopes for a playoff run are unreachable without another starting corner.

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Friday, April 27, 2012

Morris Claiborne & The Effect on Mike Jenkins

By:  Bobby Shores

**Editor's Note:  Sorry this is not all linked up like usual, I was writing on a plane and would have been posted early this morning but the stupid WiFi on American Airlines didn't work, but better late than never!!**


When I saw the Cowboys were trading up to the number 6 overall pick my first thought was confusion, followed immediately by extreme joy as I thought to myself that Jerry Jones had finally listened to me and was selecting Mississippi State DT/DE Fletcher Cox. When I started hearing that they were instead choosing LSU cornerback Morris Claiborne I was filled with more thoughts of confusion……


Let me start by saying I am very high on Claiborne, I feel he is the best all around defensive back in this draft and probably the best DB that the Cowboys could have taken. His physical style is ideal for Rob Ryan’s press man scheme and he is versatile enough to play outside corner or slide in and play the slot. He also has the ability to return punts, which the Cowboys are in desperate need of, after averaging over 26 yards per return at LSU. This is not a bad pick for America’s Team.

Now I know what most of you are saying, “What a flip-flopper, this guy has been banging the Janoris Jenkins drum for months!”. Yes, you are right, I do believe that Janoris is by far the best pure cover guy in this draft, and I had designs of taking him in the 2nd (possibly the 3rd) round where the value would be unbeatable. I think Claiborne has much more versatility than Janoris and never even thought there was a remote chance of landing him, so I never even thought of what would happen if we picked him until late last night.

So what does this mean for the Cowboys defense/secondary now? That is a good question and one that I am currently working on still…..

My initial thought was “Well, you can never have to many cornerbacks”, and then I remembered that the Eagles had three excellent cornerbacks last year and they couldn’t stop Blaine Gabbert from looking like a an actual NFL quarterback if they tried. Still, with the injury history of Mike Jenkins, having four solid cornerbacks is a good problem to have, as a Cowboys fan I know the problems of not having any good ones…..

As I am a fan of putting your best eleven players on the field at all times, and obviously our top four cornerbacks will be part of the “best 11” defensive players no matter what combination you try and use, how do we get them all on the field at once, especially if the offense isn’t running a 4-receiver set? NFL teams use 3-receiver sets for the majority of plays, and many times more, but they don’t run 4-receiver or more sets the majority of the time. So I will be researching this dilemma today, right now I am leaning toward my previous article of eliminating or minimizing the Safety’s on the field, running with either a “single high” or possibly no “true” safety. Ryan has the creativity and now has the personnel to make this a truly unique, one of a kind defense.
My second thought when I heard that the Cowboys were taking Claiborne, was who does this make expendable? Obviously Claiborne and the team’s new $50 million defensive back Brandon Carr are going to be on the field, that leaves Orlando Scandrick and Mike Jenkins.

Scandrick just signed a 5-year $27 million contract this last season, so I don’t expect them to even try and move him, whether by trade or outright release. Scandrick has been our best defensive back against the run, and plays aggressively, not afraid to take a chance and I think that is the kind of player Ryan likes. Yes, he did struggle quite a bit last year, but I believe that was largely due to the ineffectiveness of the rest of the defense, and constantly shuffling him from position-to-position to cover up for other players inefficiencies and injuries. Scandrick is not going anywhere, he is a young cornerback that is still growing and we have him at a good rate for the next few years.

That leaves Mike Jenkins, the former 2008 first round pick who became a full time starter in 2009. While he has basically been the best cover corner that the Cowboys have had for the last few years, the guy is literally always injured. I can’t remember a game he played where he did not have an ankle, knee, shoulder, hamstring, etc injury slowing him down. Also the fact that he is in the final year of his deal and is wanting Carr type money I think it’t time to move him…..and I mean now!!

Mike is recovering from shoulder surgery and will miss the beginning of off-season workouts, but it should not limit him during the season. Since he is owed a VERY reasonable salary of about $1.5 million this year, any team with a corner need who missed on their first round prospects should be calling the Cowboys (I’m talking to you Vikings, Patriots, Lions). I think that Mike is worth a 2nd round pick, especially if more than one team is fighting for him, realistically though we will probably get a 3rd and maybe a 6th.

Regardless, if we want to trade him (and I said last night I thought he would be on the trade block after the Claiborne pick) we need to move him early in the 2nd round so that we can package picks and move back into the 2nd if there is a player we covet (Ronell Lewis)


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Thursday, April 12, 2012

Q & A: First Round Cornerbacks

By:  Bobby Shores
Check out recent Q&A's:

Submit your questions for ReclinerQB to answer here (Twitter) or here (Email), or just leave it in the comments. Recent Articles include:  NFL Draft Quick Hits on - Dontari Poe (Biggest Potential Draft Bust), Andrew Luck, Robert Griffin III, Jake Bequette, My 2012 NFL Draft Player Rankings By Position and the Evolution of NFL Defense's What will happen to the Safety Position?

Question:  What do you think of the potential first round cornerbacks in the draft and will the Cowboys be able to use one?

ReclinerQB Thoughts:  While most fans want to put the failure of the defense this past season on the secondary, I believe the lack of a consistent pass rush made it nearly impossible for our defensive backs to cover and that a good pass rush is a secondary's best friend. I am also not naive enough to think that we don't need to upgrade the secondary, particularly the depth at cornerback and the starters at safety. Of course now that we have signed Brandon Carr CB is not as big a need, but you can never have to many talented corners.

When healthy, Mike Jenkins and Orlando Scandrick are solid starters, but we have next to nothing behind them. Terence Newman has had a good career with the Cowboys, and it't time to thank him and let him go.

When it comes to the first round cornerbacks I believe there are really only three that qualify (In my opinion), and they are Morris Claiborne, Janoris Jenkins and Dre Kirkpatrick.

2012 NFL Draft Hopeful Janoris Jenkins
Janoris Jenkins-North Alabama - Jenkins is my favorite DB in the draft! When I watched him play at Florida he seemed as fluid and natural a DB as I have ever seen. The way he moves in and out of breaks and seems to know the routes before the receiver does shows his understanding of football. The way he backpedals, opens his hips to run and his change of direction skills, makes me think that he is more comfortable playing cornerback on the football field than he is walking. Just an instinctual player who is confident in his ability, and with good reason. One of things that impressed me most on him was that he plays taller than he is, and by that I mean his anticipation on the ball and the way he times his jumps makes him seem taller than 5'10. He is not as big as the other two first round corners and that hinders his ability in the run game, but he does not shy away from making a tackle.

 The one concern that most people have with Jenkins is the off field concerns. He was kicked out of the University of Florida after three years after he was arrested twice in a three month span for possession of marijuana after the year before being arrested for a fight. While that concerns me, I heard him give a couple of interviews at the All-Star games and he never shied away from the questions asked about his character or tried to make excuses. He also seemed to be a model citizen at North Alabama, and I am not one to hold what a kid does when they are younger against him forever. We all make mistakes like that when we are 18-21, difference is we probably didn't get caught or do it in front of the entire country as a high profile college football player.

The one hole I have in scouting Jenkins is that I never got to see a game of his at North Alabama and from what I can tell he continued to play at a high level, but without actually seeing him play those games I cannot comment on them, and I do not use other people's scouting reports in my articles. But from what I did see at Florida I think he could be the most talented player in this entire draft.


Morris Claiborne-LSU - Even though the Cowboys chances of getting him are slim-to-none I still wanted to drop a note on him (and I do not think that the 'Boys will trade up into the Top 5 and grab him like my former colleague Daniel Wolf at National Football Authority does).

2012 NFL Draft Hopeful Morris Claiborne
I think Claiborne compares very favorably to Patrick Peterson (and not because they are both from LSU). And last year I was in love with Patrick Peterson and saw him as by far the safest and best prospect in the draft while also naming him to my "Pre-Draft All-Pro" list.

Main differences I see, is that partially due to size, (Peterson being about an inch taller and 50lbs heavier) he is not as good against the run and in press-man coverage as his predecessor. Don't get me wrong though, Claiborne plays hard/well against the run and does not lack aggression, just sometimes pulls the "dive at the ball carriers feet rather than take him head on and wrap him up" approach that has been getting a lot of DB's hurdled and/or juked in recent years.

On the other hand Claiborne has much better ball skills and great hands (played wide receiver in high school and some in his early years at LSU) and is not afraid to play off a receiver in an attempt to bait a quarterback into thinking he is open. There are also zero off-field or character concerns with Claiborne, and he will be a star in the NFL.

In the 2012 BCS National Championship game I did not have the Tide throwing towards Claiborne one time the entire game, at least according to my game notes. And that was a trend you saw all year long if you watched the SEC. They had a lot of respect for him.



Dre Kirkpatrick-Alabama - Very big and physical DB, and his style of play is the same.. Does not seem to have the greatest ball skills in my opinion and still needs to work on his play recognition and covering smaller quicker receivers (Ryan Mallett picked on him quite a bit in 2010, even though Alabama still beat us). Would have to play on the outside in the NFL as he is lacks some quickness and seems to be tight in the hips and would struggle covering the smaller quicker guys in the slot. Strongest DB against the run in the draft.
2012 NFL Draft Hopeful Dre Kirkpatrick

There is just something about Kirkpatrick that I cannot quite put my hands on, something that makes me uneasy about him. He is very fast and has good recovery speed, is big and physical. Doesn't seem to have the greatest knack for the ball and kinda seems to over rely on his athletic abilities instead of his brain. He also reminds me of some of those players on the 2005 Trojans (Lendale White, Matt Leinart, Reggie Bush, etc), they just looked like great players because of the cast around them.....I kind of get that vibe from Kirkpatrick.

My biggest problem with Kirkpatrick is not the marijuana possession. Seriously, who cares, I bet that 70% of NFL players partake in the magic herb during the year and it probably affects them less than alcohol (but this is not a place for my political views on it), my concern is that during the longest job interview of his life he was stupid enough to get caught with it, that right there makes me wonder if he has his head on straight.

So what is my final opinion on him? I think that he will be a good DB in the right system, but never the true "shutdown" corner that he came across as at Alabama. I also think that Cowboys Defensive Coordinator Rob Ryan will fall in love with Kirkpatrick due to his confidence both on and off the field (his nickname is Swag), his aggressive style of play and his ability to play press-man coverage which is a favorite of Ryan.

Should the Cowboys go ahead and draft one of these corners if they are available at #14? Ask me again after free agency (I know its a cop out), but I like the depth at the cornerback position in the draft and I think the Cowboys should only draft Jenkins of the three and as of right now they should move down to get him. So where do I think they need to upgrade the defensive backfield? I like the corners that they can get in the second or even third round, that is coming soon.

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