When the Dallas Cowboys came on the clock at pick No. 18 overall in the 2013 NFL Draft, we expected them to draft Florida defensive tackle Sharrif Floyd. The Cowboys needed a 3-technique tackle, and Floyd was a great value.
Instead, the Cowboys traded down to pick No. 31, where they wound up taking arm-breaking Wisconsin center Travis Frederick. The way Cowboys executive vice president Stephen Jones tells it, the Cowboys were looking for a defensive tackle at No. 18. The right one just wasn't available.
"We are getting a little long in the tooth there at some of the spots, maybe," Jones said about his defensive line, according to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. "Would you have liked the right 3-technique if he would have been there? Would we maybe have used that pick on one, if one was there? But he wasn't there. The 3-technique wasn't there at 18."
The Cowboys clearly weren't impressed with Floyd, who went No. 23 overall to the Minnesota Vikings. That means Jones either was talking about Sheldon Richardson or Star Lotulelei, who were drafted at No. 13 (New York Jets) and No. 14 (Carolina Panthers) overall, respectively. The Cowboys wound up taking offensive players with their first three picks. Jones said the focus on offense was overdue.
"We haven't put those kinds of resources over there (on offense)," he said. "So if you really look at the balance of our team, I don't think it was really unwarranted that we look at the offensive side of the ball."
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