That team in Texas considering trading down in draft

[1niksder]

Cowboys considering trading down in draft

By Clarence E. Hill Jr.

Star-Telegram Staff Writer


The Cowboys might trade the 11th pick in the upcoming NFL Draft, owner Jerry Jones said Tuesday.

The Cowboys have eight picks in the draft, set for April 23-24, including No. 11 and No. 20 in the first round.

Jones -- who along with his wife, Gene, accepted the prestigious Hope Award by the Lone Star Chapter of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society on Tuesday -- said the team's main focus was adding several cornerstone players.

He compared this year's draft opportunity to that of 1989, when Dallas traded Herschel Walker for a bounty of picks, helping build the foundation of three Super Bowl title teams.

Not only have the Cowboys not been to the Super Bowl since 1995, but they have been to the playoffs only once since 2000. Jones said it's imperative that the Cowboys make the most of their draft picks in 2005, either by standing pat or by trading their first-round selections for more picks.

"You use those picks to build," Jones said. "You can do some things with multiple picks. It creates so many options that it's mind-boggling, from the standpoint of players who might be available at those picks, as well as the opportunity that we might have in trades to move around and gain value."

Jones said no decisions have been made. The Cowboys began intensified draft meetings Monday and are in the process of formulating their strategy.

However, Jones said that, if the Cowboys made a trade, it would be down, not up. His hope would be to turn the two first-round picks into at least three cornerstone players.

Jones said the Cowboys weren't focusing on any particular players or positions. He said they have needs across the board and will seek the best players available.

The players in Dallas' focus could be begin to crystallize in the next seven to 10 days.

The Cowboys will work out several potential draft picks from around the area Thursday and Friday at the team's Valley Ranch headquarters.

Roughly 20 national prospects, including Oklahoma safety Brodney Pool, Maryland linebacker/defensive end Shawne Merriman and Southern California receiver Mike Williams, will visit April 13-14.

Merriman and Williams are potential picks at No. 11. Pool, a potential replacement for Darren Woodson at free safety, is projected to go late in the first round or early in the second.

The Cowboys are not likely to draft a quarterback early, as Jones said the team is very pleased with its quarterback situation with Tony Romo and Drew Henson backing up Bledsoe.

Jones declined to talk about specific players.

Last night, Jones preferred to talk about the Hope Award, the highest honor bestowed by the National MS Society in recognition of civic and community service. Jones' acceptance of the Hope Award recognizes an issue that has touched all members of the Dallas Cowboys family. Bruce Hardy, general manager of Texas Stadium, is one of 400,000 Americans living with MS. Jones and Hardy have worked to increase awareness of multiple sclerosis. Hardy, who has lived with MS for more than 20 years, served as the evening's dinner chair.

"Bruce Hardy has been an inspiration to all of us for how he has dealt with MS," Jones said. "He is very important to the Cowboys. Tonight is particularly special in helping a lot of people with MS because of him and the good it does to Texans with MS."

Briefly

• The Cowboys signed receiver Ahmad Merritt. An undrafted free agent out of Wisconsin in 2000, Merritt spent the past four seasons with the Chicago Bears.

• Former Texas Tech running back Ricky Williams will have a free-agent workout for the Cowboys today. Williams did not play football last season. He played for the Indianapolis Colts in 2003.

http://www.dfw.com/mld/dfw/sports/football/11323582.htm

[welch]

And who wants to trade up?

[washington53]

good question welch....
or lets rephrase it
who wants to deal with the cowpukes?

[welch]

There is another thread, and I'm too sleepy to find it, that says there are so many good players that no one wants the thrill and signing heartburn of taking a top-ofo-the-top pick.

[Primetime42]

good question welch....
or lets rephrase it
who wants to deal with the cowpukes?

Apparently Green Bay..especially if one of those QB's fall.