Inside the Cowboys roster moves: Are Paxton Lynch, Connor Cook options at backup QB?
Here is a look at five roster decisions made by the Dallas Cowboys:
1. The Cowboys went with Cooper Rush and Mike White behind starting quarterback Dak Prescott. Neither had good training camps or preseason performances. And there were questions about whether the Cowboys would try to upgrade the position after final cuts via the waiver wire. The situation became even more intriguing when Denver cut Paxton Lynch and Oakland cut Connor Cook, previous Cowboys draft crushes before both flamed out with their respective teams.
Remember, Dallas coveted Lynch in the first round of the 2016 NFL Draft, so much so that they tried to trade up with Seattle to get him the first round but was beaten by a better deal from the Broncos. Owner Jerry Jones expressed immediate regret that the Cowboys didn’t do more to get him. Lynch was the third quarterback taken in the draft.
They also had it bad for Cook that same year and would have taken him in the fourth round if the Raiders hadn’t traded up to get him. So the Cowboys had to settle for Prescott as the consolation prize with the 37th pick of the fourth round. He was the seventh quarterback taken in that draft.
And the rest is history. Prescott went on to become the rookie of the year and take the starting job away from Cowboys’ all-time leading passer Tony Romo.
Lynch and Cook both flamed out with Denver and Oakland.
But with Rush and White struggling, did the Cowboys consider looking at Cook or Lynch as Prescott’s backup?
“We feel good about what the young backup quarterbacks have done for us,” Garrett said. “Obviously, we can all get better. Cooper Rush has done some good things for us. Mike White has done some good things for us. We feel good about where they are and where their development can be. There are some other guys who got released who are available. So you have discussions about that. That is not unique to the quarterback position. You see who is on the waiver wire. You see who is available by trade. And you say, okay what is the best thing for us to do right now? So we will have those discussions. They are ongoing about that position and about every position as we go forward.”
Jones doubled down on his radio show on 105.3 The Fan Tuesday morning, saying the Cowboys were going to stick with Rush and White, at this time. He said they were not going to pursue Lynch or Cook.
2. The Cowboys were setback slightly at running back when Darius Jackson was signed off the practice squad to the roster of the Green Bay Packers. The Cowboys understood that was a possibility when they cut Jackson, Jordan Chunn and Bo Scarbrough and cut kept just two running backs and a fullback on the final roster. Ezekiel Elliott and Rod Smith are secure in their spots as the top two options in the backfield. The question becomes who would handle the position if bother were hurt in a game. Coach Jason Garrett said fullback Jamize Olawale is capable as a short-term answer.
“An area where we’re short on the 53, relative to what we’ve done in the past, is at running back,” Garrett said. “We have two halfbacks and a fullback on the active roster. We feel good about what Jamize can do for us as a protector on third down and what he might be able to do for us running the football if something were to happen to the other two guys. So his versatility was a big factor in being able to only keep three running backs on our roster.”
The Cowboys signed Chunn and Scarbrough to the practice squad. Chunn was an initial signee. Scarbrough replaced Jackson after he went to Green Bay.
3. Parker Ehinger, who the Cowboys acquired in a trade with Kansas city for cornerback Charvarius Ward, will back up at guard and tackle. He only played guard in Kansas City, who drafted him in the fourth round in 2016, 20 picks ahead of Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott. But he played tackle in college. His ability to do both knocked Chaz Green and Kadeem Edwards off the Cowboys roster.
4. The Cowboys went heavy at linebacker with seven including rookie Chris Covington behind Sean Lee, Jaylon Smith, Leighton Vander Esch, Damien Wilson, Joe Woods and Justin March-Lillard. The others were looks. The Cowboys kept Covington on the active roster than try to sign him the practice squad because they didn’t want to put him on waivers and chance him being picked up by another team. They like his long-term potential at the position.
Vander Esch, who has been out for the past month with a hamstring rain, should return to practice this week. No decision has been made if he will be active for the season opener.
5. There is still no movement with a possible Earl Thomas trade from Seattle. So the Cowboys claimed safety Ibraheim Campbell after he was released from Houston. He will have to get up to speed fast as the Cowboys have just two healthy safeties in Jeff Heath and Tyree Robinson. Xavier Woods is out for the season opener with a strained hamstring and Kavon Woods is questionable with a separated shoulder.
The Cowboys got to see Campbell up close and personal in the preseason finale.
“We liked how he played,” Garrett said of Campbell. “He was very active, both around the line of scrimmage and on the back end. He is a very active special teams player. We needed another. The safety depth we were thin. We needed to get a guy. We saw him on tape. We had a chance to evaluate him once the waiver wire came out. We felt like he was someone we wanted to bring in here. We will get him in here and get him up to snuff as quick as we can and get him to work.”
The Cowboys also added a safety to the practice squad in Treston DeCloud.
Decoud was cut by the Texans on Saturday
A fifth-round draft pick in 2017 from Oregon State, Decoud shifted to safety from cornerback this offseason. At 6-foot-3, 210 pounds he has the size to play safety. And as a former cornerback, he has the speed and necessary ball skills to develop as an intriguing prospect at the position.
This story was originally published September 4, 2018 at 10:38 AM.