Would Cowboys draft a QB if one was ‘best player available’ with 1st round pick?

Dallas Cowboys executive vice president Stephen Jones recently joined The K&C Masterpiece on 105.3 The Fan [KRLD-FM] to discuss the team’s depth at the quarterback position and the implications that could have on the Cowboys’ draft strategy.

Here are some of the highlights, edited for clarity.

There’s always talk about “best player available” in every single round of the draft. I’m curious, if the Cowboys got into a scenario where the best player available on your board in the first round was a quarterback, would you pull the trigger on that?

Jones: “Yeah I just think all those are things you look at as you move forward. It’s hard to get out front right now and see what might be there, but certainly we’ll go through all the different possibilities that may happen as we move into next week. Obviously we’ve been hard at work getting our board put up, really getting everything sorted out the right way. Next week’s a big week for us strategically, in terms of the what-ifs and looking at a situation like you just mentioned.

“If a position falls to us, like one we feel great with at with Dak [Prescott], and then of course our acquisition of Trey Lance last year. Trey’s done nothing but excite us even more as he’s worked here all of last season and then in the offseason, in terms of his work ethics and skill levels. We’re very pleased with them.”

Q: Can you tell us any more about the progress you’ve seen with Trey Lance? Not a lot of fans get to see the work ethic and skill you’re talking about.

Jones: “He just exhibits everything you think a top-5 pick would exhibit, which is what he was in the draft and it’s why we gave up a significant draft pick to get him. And you know what you look for in these quarterbacks is certainly the work ethic is a must to be successful in this league. It’s a very demanding position, certainly Dak is I think one of the hardest workers that’s ever come through our building, and that’s certainly why he’s had the success that he’s had.

“Trey exhibits similar type work ethic. And then obviously Trey’s a really good athlete, in terms of being able to move around, his athletic ability. And then finally the most important thing, his arm. He’s got a very live arm, very strong arm. He continues to improve with his footwork and his accuracy which, you know, is what you expect from a young guy coming into the league.

“So we’re certainly very excited about him, and you know all that Cooper Rush did when he got the opportunity to help us out when Dak got hurt a couple years ago is go 5-1. Which as we all know is hard to do in this league. So that’s a very strong position for us right now, in terms of how we feel about the three quarterbacks we have on this team.”

Q: Because of the value of a fourth-round pick, is there like a baseline of production or contribution that you need from Trey Lance to justify not having that pick?

Jones: “Well in a perfect world, that’s the hard part about being a backup quarterback. Usually in order for a guy to get a chance to play, you have to have an injury. Cooper certainly took advantage of his opportunity when Dak got hurt. So no, I don’t think you can necessarily say ‘hey, we needed this kind of productivity.’ We know we have him, and it certainly keeps us from feeling a real need to draft a quarterback.

“And that certainly is why we gave up the pick and it certainly helps us sleep better at night, knowing that we have the depth at quarterback that we have. We all know these quarterbacks in our league get hurt, and when they do you’re glad we’ve got the depth and quality that we have at the quarterback position.”

Q: I understand that depth and quality, none of those players are under contract after this season, though. How does that play into your decision-making process?

Jones: “I think that’s what we’ll be looking at as we move forward. As I mentioned, certainly Dak’s a priority in terms of his contract, certainly we’ll be taking a look at Trey. I know Trey will look at his situation as well, in terms of what his options are. I’m sure a lot of that will depend on how everything works out with Dak. And certainly Cooper’s been a strong backup here for us. But all of those things will just have to play out.”

To listen to the full interview, click or tap here.

Twitter: @dmn_cowboys

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