Cowboys News & Notes: Carson Wentz Is The Senior Bowl's Darling QB

Dallas Cowboys: Carson Wentz talks Dallas Cowboys, hunting and the QB he tries to emulate - Jon Machota, SportsDay
With one day of Senior Bowl practices in the books, no player is drawing more attention than North Dakota State quarterback Carson Wentz.

"To be honest, it was actually pretty similar, the way it's up-tempo and you go from one drill to the next drill," Wentz said. "That's how we do things at North Dakota State, so it was really nothing new for me."

Jerry Jones arrives at Senior Bowl to see Wentz practice, talk backup QB plans - Drew Davison, The Star-Telegram
Jerry Jones spent the majority of his day talking quarterbacks. He even talked to Carson Wentz, the quarterback he'll get a good look at over the next five days.

"No, not at all," Jones said. "This [high draft pick] gives us a good opportunity. That’s really why that, and the fact that we felt that last year we were really, fell not victim, but had part of our stumble, was because of not being where we wanted to be at backup. But other than those two things we don’t have to take a quarterback and have a draft pick as our backup and improve how we handle that. I say that very carefully, I’m choosing my words, because I don’t want to point to any player after Romo got hurt, but it’s how we do it. It’s how we basically prepare the supporting cast and everybody around him to be ready to step in when we lose Romo."

Jerry Jones says no quarterback plan is a 'have to,' cites 'the luxury of having' Tony Romo - Todd Archer, ESPN
Jerry Jones said the Cowboys have many options for securing a long-term quarterback, but no immediate plan represents a "have to," and that "we have the luxury" of Tony Romo for years to come.

"There are many options," Jones said. "There's free agency. The question you [asked], and I'm taking it literally, is, Do you have to? Have to do what? Do we have to [draft a quarterback] to compete for a Super Bowl next year? Do we have to to compete for a Super Bowl in the future? Do you have to have it in place after you have this draft? There's no 'have to' here, in my mind, because we have the luxury of having [Tony] Romo for a minimum three, four, five years here. So we're going to play football and hopefully play it well with a healthy Romo."

Cowboys Not Shying Away From Need For QB As Draft Process Begins - David Helman, Dallas Cowboys
The Cowboys have a great opportunity to take a quarterback in this year's draft. Time will tell if they actually do take a one to groom for the future.

"I think the thing we still keep going back to is we’ve got to have a better solution and a better answer, if something happens to Tony, that’ll give us a chance to win football games and be more competitive than we were," Jones said on Tuesday evening.

Cowboys 2016 Draft: Is Kevin Hogan An Option At Quarterback? - Jim Scott, Blogging The Boys
The Dallas Cowboys staff has more than Carson Wentz to look at during the Senior Bowl practices. One currently late-round quarterback prospect might turn some heads and make some money with his performances.

I had seen his name come up in the comments section a few times, so I thought I'd turn my eyes to him and, frankly, I like what I see. At 6'3-1/4", 217 lbs (according to the official weigh-in), Hogan is not imposing, but he's not pint-sized, either. His 10-1/8" hands are slightly bigger than Wentz's so that shouldn't be an issue. What is an issue is an unorthodox delivery and poor productivity. His career high 2,867 yards and 27 touchdowns in 2015 looks absolutely mediocre next to the 4,719 yards and record 43 touchdowns of conference-mate Jared Goff, and when you consider that Hogan had 8 interceptions next to Goff's 13, you might wonder what it is people see in him. I did.

The Other Side Of The Cowboys Taking A Quarterback At Four - Tom Ryle, Blogging The Boys
No matter how much the Cowboys may need a quarterback, or how badly the fans want them to take one in the first round of the draft, it may just not happen because that how draft go.

If you have been paying attention, you may have noticed that in the several arguments stated here at BTB in favor of using the fourth pick to get that franchise QB, there are always some qualifiers. Big ifs, if you will.

Jerry Jones: Cowboys have gone from 'outhouse to the penthouse' before - Jon Machota, SportsDay
Tomorrow will mark the 20-year anniversary of the last time the Dallas Cowboys played in the Super Bowl.

"Well, I saw how we got there for the first three that I was involved with," Jones said Wednesday afternoon while attending Senior Bowl practice. "I'm the most surprised person in Mobile, or the country, that we haven't been back to and competed in a Super Bowl. But I know firsthand that you can go from the outhouse to the penthouse, and I've experienced it. Consequently, that fact has always driven me to know that it's just around the corner. There's a pony in here somewhere."

DeMarcus Ware’s Super Bowl debut has Jason Garrett, Stephen Jones excited - Drew Davison, The Star-Telegram
Count Dallas Cowboys’ executive vice president Stephen Jones and coach Jason Garrett among the most pleased to see veteran defensive end DeMarcus Ware reach the Super Bowl.

"He’s one of my favorite players who ever played here," Jones said. "He just did everything the right way – on the field, off the field, great with kids, the ultimate competitor. I think he’s a shoo-in Hall of Famer and just really made us feel good to get to see him go play in a Super Bowl. And, of course, he played lights out [in the AFC Championship Game]. That really made us feel good to see him get after it like that and having a chance to play for a championship."

Dallas Cowboys are closing the books on an ugly 2015 season - Todd Archer, ESPN
Not much went right in a disappointing season for Dallas -- injuries, turnovers, you name it. But the Cowboys are eager to get matters corrected.

"Obviously the turnover ratio, from a practical standpoint, wasn’t what we want," Garrett said. "It was one of the best things we had done the year before – take the ball away, protect the ball. We didn’t do that. So there are a number of different things that we can point to that we’re going to address and we have to get better at."

Improving The Cowboys' Pass Rush Remains As A Familiar Concern - Dave Helman, Dallas Cowboys
The Cowboys certainly tried, but they didn’t manage to fix their lackluster pass rush in 2015. As much as discussion has centered on the quarterback position this offseason, just as large was the focus on sacks at this time last year.

"I was hopeful that the combination of the group we put together, Crawford, Hardy -- certainly Lawrence did do well for us," Jones said. "I thought all of that would give us more of what Rod was trying to accomplish there. Close, but close doesn’t count."