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Cowboys News & Notes: Are Jalen Ramsey, Laremy Tunsil Trade Bait For Cowboys To Move Down?

Latest Cowboys headlines: Rams-Titans trade opens up move-down possibility; why No. 4 pick is now a big bargaining chip; QB model projects Jared Goff as success, Carson Wentz as likely bust.

Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports

Rams-Titans trade opens up move-down possibility - Todd Archer, ESPN
The Cowboys should ponder a small move down in the draft, Archer writes in his latest Twitter mailbag, but only if they're still getting one of the best players on their board in the first round.

Jerry Jones loves to wheel and deal. Maybe not so much when he's this high because there should be a great player available, but what if the Baltimore Ravens want to jump the Jacksonville Jaguars to take Jalen Ramsey? Would you pass on Ramsey, make the deal for an extra third-round pick and still be able to get Joey Bosa or Ezekiel Elliott? I might do that deal.

In 2011, the Cowboys had a chance to trade the ninth pick for the Jaguars first- and second-round picks. Instead, they took Tyron Smith. That's worked out quite well. At the time, I believed the Cowboys should've made the deal. Clearly, I was wrong. If I'm the Cowboys, I'd consider a small move down but I still need to make sure I'm getting one of the best players on my board in the first round.

QB out for Cowboys, but here's why No. 4 pick is now a big bargaining chip - Kevin Sherrington, SportsDay
Sherrington offers some perspective on what the Cowboys should do if Laremy Tunsil is still available at No. 4:

Find out which team most craves a Pro Bowl offensive tackle, get its first and a third rounder and move down a few spots. Tunsil might generate interest from Baltimore, picking sixth, or the 49ers at seven. Let’s say the Cowboys grade Bosa, Ramsey and Elliott roughly equal on their draft board. They could move down to the seventh pick and be guaranteed one of them and pick up another player in the process.

Just the same, it makes me nervous suggesting trades to Jerry. Like he needs any encouragement.

What Rams' trade for top draft pick means for Cowboys - Matt Mosley, SportsDay
Mosley argues that instead of picking Ramsey, the Cowboys should use him as trade bait.

Jerry will talk plenty about trading down in his upcoming media availability. If a team gets hot for Ramsey, the Cowboys could move down a couple spots and pick up an additional second-round pick. That’s why they need to know where Ramsey will fit in the NFL. Some teams see him as more of a safety than a cornerback. The Cowboys grabbed a safety in the first round last year with Byron Jones and don’t need to spend the No. 4 pick on another one.

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So much for this being a weak quarterback class.

FO's 2016 QB model projects Goff as success, Wentz as likely bust, Prescott as best late-round pick - Football Outsiders
FO use Defense-adjusted Yards Above Replacement (DYAR) to rate the QBs in this class. Jared Goff, with a projected 1,211 DYAR, ranks in the top ten of all QBs since 1996, snaswiched between Ben Roethlisberger and Aaron Rodgers. Carson Wentz (274 DYAR), Paxron Lynch (104), Connor Cook (-301), and Christian Hackenberg (-414) don't look good in this projection, but Dak Prescott (421) does.

The projection rates Prescott far ahead of Lynch and Cook, prospects currently expected to go earlier in the draft. Often compared to Tim Tebow earlier in his college career, Prescott did not have as much NFL-caliber talent surrounding him, even with projected 2017 first-round wide receiver Fred Ross. Prescott's projection here accounts for that, as well as his performance against the toughest set of opposing defenses (No. 14 in FBS last season) of any quarterback prospect in this year's draft.

QBASE does not predict Prescott to be a likely NFL success. But his 45 percent chance of being at least an adequate starter gives him enough upside to make him very much worth a Day 2 draft pick.

Brock Osweiler had the worst projection (-860) of all QBs since 1996, and rode that to a comfortable 4 year, $72,000,000 contract with the Houston Texans, so there's always that.

Cowboys working out Jared Goff, with QB still in play at No. 4 - Charean Williams, The Star-Telegram
Does this workout signal real interest in a QB or do the Cowboys simply want to appear interested in a QB? Hard to tell from this article.

The Rams and the Browns are expected to take quarterbacks with the top two choices.

The Cowboys will send a contingent to Berkeley, Calif., this weekend to work out Cal quarterback Jared Goff.

While not ruling out drafting a quarterback with the fourth overall choice, Jones also won’t guarantee the Cowboys will come out of the draft with a quarterback.

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Jalen Ramsey mentions Cowboys first when asked which teams are most interested in him - SportsDay Staff
With the way things are moving right now, there's a good chance Ramsey could end up in Dallas.

When asked which NFL teams have shown the most interest in him during a conference call with ESPN's NFL Nation reporters on Thursday, Cowboys was the first team Ramsey named. He also mentioned the San Diego Chargers, Jacksonville Jaguars and Baltimore Ravens.

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Cowboys got one of the most fortunate schedules - Conor Orr, NFL.com
There are no easy games in the NFL, but certain teams got more fortunate slates for 2016 Conor Orr writes, and picks the Cowboys as one of them.

The Cowboys start the season at home against the New York Giants before traveling to Washington. They then host the Bears at home before a road game against the 49ers. There is a legitimate chance to open the season 4-0 before games against the Bengals and Packers. They also end the season at the Giants, at home against the Bucs and Lions and on the road against the Eagles. Assuming Tampa Bay is still a year away from being an above .500 team, and assuming the Eagles take a year to develop under new coach Doug Pederson, it doesn't break much better to start and end the season than this.

Cowboys players to preview new training facility in June, with the team scheduled to move in July - Charean Williams, The Star-Telegram
The Star, as the Cowboys' new facility is called, includes a 12,000-seat indoor stadium, and will officially open on August 27 for some high school football. The Cowboys will get a sneak preview of the new facility before leaving for Oxnard, and then move in once back from training camp, Charlotte Jones Anderson explained.

"We are on schedule, and that was the biggest question because we will be moving in July and move the team in July," Jones said. "The team will actually get a chance … before they break for the summer, they'll have a chance to look at it. It won't be quite complete. But when we come back from Oxnard, we will move right in, and the team will move right into their locker room, and we'll probably have our last week of camp actually at The Star."

Veteran DE Jason Hatcher to retire after 10 seasons - NFL.com
Jason Hatcher is calling it a career. The veteran defensive lineman is set to retire, his agent announced.

His career will be defined by consistency. Hatcher appeared in 13 or more games per season in every year of his career and seemed to get better with every snap. His Pro Bowl campaign came at the ripe age of 31 after an 11-sack season with the 2013 Dallas Cowboys. A one-time backup, Hatcher broke out of the rotational player mold and managed to earn himself three NFL contracts over the course of his time in the league. In Dallas, he survived a few drastic scheme changes, from a 4-3 to Rob Ryan's multiple defense and back to a 3-4 end in Washington.

Dates and Times Finalized For Cowboys’ 2016 Preseason Schedule | Rob Philips, Dallas Cowboys
Dates and times for all four preseason exhibition games have been set:

Saturday, August 13 (8 p.m. EST): at San Diego
Friday, August 19 (8 p.m. EST): vs Miami at AT&T Stadium
Thursday, August 25 (10 p.m. EST): at Seattle
Thursday, September 1 (8 p.m. EST): vs. Houston at AT&T Stadium

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Eagles will face three straight opponents coming off bye weeks - ProFootballTalk
Boohoohoo.

49ers GM Baalke is already having problems with Chip Kelly - John Breech, CBSSports.com
Chip Kelly, the gift that keeps on giving.

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