One of the slightly forgotten delays caused by the lockout, the NFL Supplemental Draft will be held next Wednesday, August 17th. The supplemental draft allows players whom for specific reasons are no longer eligible to play NCAA football, be selected by teams willing to forfeit draft choices from next year. The Dallas Cowboys have a long history with the exercise, as I wrote in the piece Taking Any Supplements? back in July. If you have any questions about how the rules change from the standard amateur draft in April, jump to that thread for a detailed explanation.
Dallas has dabbled in the supplemental draft throughout Jerry Jones' tenure. The Cowboys famously selected Steve Walsh with a 1st-rounder in 1989. Not as well remembered is that the Cowboys also used a next-year 12th round pick on running back Mike Lowman. The team would select TE John Davis with a fifth-rounder in 1994, and DT Darren Benson with a third-rounder in '95. Last year, the Cowboys selected DT Josh Brent with a seventh-rounder after he was declared academically ineligible from the University of Illinois.
Well, it appears the Cowboys are considering taking a supplement or two, most notably a possible future successor to the Tony Romo era. According to this report by ESPN.com, the Cowboys will be taking a look at former Ohio State quarterback Terrelle Pryor. Pryor's Pro Day will occur this Friday, however there is still debate on whether he will even be eligible for this draft. His departure from Ohio State due to the impending sanctions has caused some confusion over whether he qualifies for inclusion. His agent, Drew Rosenhaus, says they are still waiting to hear from the league.
[UPDATE] Pryor Calls Off Pro Day Until He Gets Word From The League On Eligibility [ESPN] [/UPDATE]
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Now, for those of you like me who feel Romo has a wide window of opportunity remaining, consider this. If Terrell Pryor ends up being a legit NFL quarterback, he could easily become trade bait in the way that Matt Schaub, and most recently Kevin Kolb, became. Schaub was traded for two second round picks when he went from Atlanta to Houston, while the Eagles got a 2nd rounder plus a starting corner from Arizona for Kolb. The Kolb'nSchaub... I think that's what I'll name the act of trading an unproven QB for a bounty. Dallas could use some of that.
Interesting thought from rabble via twitter, maybe the 'Boys are looking to convert Pryor into a 'Slash' type role.
if so, I'd imagine they would be offering a much lower bid for a specialist than they would for a quarterback.
The ESPN article reports both Cleveland and Washington are also sending scouts to watch Pryor in his Underoo Olympics.