NFL Mock Draft 2014: Jerry Jones, Dallas Cowboys Should Trade Up for Johnny Manziel
Where will Johnny Manziel end up? That's the big question everybody wants to know about the upcoming NFL Draft, this May. The Houston Texans need a quarterback and hold the rights to the No. 1 overall selection, but it doesn't appear they will select a quarterback. Most draft analysts have the Texans drafting defensive end Jadeveon Clowney, out of South Carolina.
The Texans selected Mario Williams No. 1 overall in the 2006 draft, however they would only win one playoff game with Williams. It appears history will repeat itself.
But there is another team in Texas: the Dallas Cowboys. The Cowboys usually rank near the top in offense and have had Tony Romo quarterbacking the team since 2006 and has broken numerous franchise records for the club. Romo is easily the most prolific passer in Cowboys history as far as the numbers are concerned. Romo has multiple 30 touchdown seasons and 4,000 passing yard seasons. His passer rating for the Cowboys is 95.8 a,nd he has shown he can be mobile when pressured by defenses.
With all that being said, the Cowboys need a new quarterback.
Romo has been a true NFL success story as an undrafted free agent, who nobody gave a chance, but his best days are behind him. Romo is coming off back surgery and is 34 years old. The Cowboys aren't ready to win now, and it's time to rebuild. It's not all Romo's fault; it's just time to go in a different direction. Romo has not guided the Cowboys to a winning record since 2009. Romo is 25-28 over the last four seasons as the Cowboys starter with zero playoff appearances. Which brings up the question: Why keep Romo when you can't win with him anyway? The Cowboys should get value now before the draft while they still can.
Even in Romo's prime, he has disappointed in big games. Romo is 1-6 in 7 "win or go home" games, including 1-3 in the playoffs. December and January haven't treated Romo very kindly. Even more disturbing is Romo has yet to correctly learn the Cowboys routes and plays and still has trouble with the snap count. He is a great thrower but well below average at the line of scrimmage.
So who should the Cowboys turn to, to be the future franchise quarterback? The Cowboys haven't drafted a quarterback in the first round since 1990 when they drafted Troy Aikman No. 1 overall and won three Super Bowls with him. This draft, Jerry Jones (who is the team's general manager) should trade up and draft Johnny Manziel.
Manziel is everything the Cowboys need and everything owner/general manager Jerry Jones loves. He's a great player, he's box office and he's from the area.
In his two seasons at Texas A&M, Manziel proved doubters wrong by dominating the best conference in college football, the SEC. Collectively Manziel threw for 63 touchdowns, 22 interceptions and 164.1 passer rating. Manziel also ran for over 2,000 yards and another 30 touchdowns. A scoring machine who would win the 2012 Heisman Trophy.
What makes Manziel's college career so impressive is that he did it against the best teams in the country. Unlike Teddy Bridgewater, Manziel constantly faced teams such as Alabama, LSU, Auburn, and more SEC teams. Manziel can run, but he's not a running quarterback. He's a duel threat quarterback who draws similarities to Vikings great Fran Tarkenton. Like Tarkenton, Manziel is 6 foot and doesn't let his short height prohibit him from making throws.
Not only is Manziel a big-time talent who can make all the throws in big games; he's everything Jerry loves. He's a box office must see player that fans will love to watch. The Cowboys only have one playoff win since 1996, and Manziel would change that. The only problem for the Cowboys is Romo's enormous contract of $55 million guaranteed. It would be hard to trade a player that isn't worth that amount, but a team may want Romo's services who holds a top 10 draft selection.
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