After Jimmy Johnson left for the Miami Dolphins head coaching position, Jerry Jones tried to continue the high profile trading of picks and movement in and out of the first round that was a trademark of Johnson drafts. In this effort, Jones failed miserably as he lacks an eye for talent, cool, and patience. As you read this, keep an eye on the number of late-round draft picks that Jones seems to throw away in trades like toilet paper.
Jones traded a first and second-round pick in 1994 for DE Shante Carver and a seventh-round pick. Carver never developed into the pass rusher deserved of top picks, and the seventh-round pick eventually turned into DL Toddrick McIntosh after being involved in another botched trade with the Oakland Raiders. When Carver's contract expired with the Cowboys, he announced he was through with football and had no desire to play. Of the 1994 draftees, the only player still with the team is Larry Allen-- who was a second-round compensatory pick. Gone are: Carver, OT George Hegamin, CB Willie Jackson, LB Dewayne Dotson, DB Darren Studstill, DT Toddrick McIntosh. Also, because of various trades, the Cowboys didn't have a second, third, fifth, sixth, and seventh round draft picks in 1994.
In 1995, Jones traded his first-round pick to Tampa Bay for two second-round picks. This left the Cowboys with three second-round picks which could best be remember as nothing short of a referendum on the drafting ability of Jerry Jones. The bounty included RB Sherman Williams, TE Kendell Watkins, and a player who simply said that he didn't have the desire to play football-- OG Shane Hannah. Williams had trouble with fumbles-- and the attitude that he was too good for special teams. Watkins was labeled a troublemaker by Jones, and released because he frequented a club designated as off-limits. Also in this draft was Eric Bjornson, a player too fragile to be a starter, and too expensive to be a reserve player. He also had a strange habit of catching a pass two inches short of a first down. The only player from this draft that is still playing is one who should have been released his rookie season-- early in training camp! This player is none other than Charlie Williams who plays well on special teams, but is a constant liability in the secondary. He is toasted every game-- often. He never has learned to turn his head back toward the ball, and thus is simply a bad play or penalty waiting to happen. Gone forever, too, from the 1995 draft is Alundis Brice who made Charlie Williams look like Deion Sanders. Also, the likes of LB Linc Harden, WR Edward Hervey, LB Dana Howard, and DE Oscar Sturgis are just memories. Traded away were fourth, fifth, and sixth round draft selection for nothing and nobody that has helped the team.
Needing a pass rusher in the 1996 draft, the Dallas Cowboys passed on University of Texas DE Tony Brackens when they traded out of the first-round for the Washington Redskins' second and third-round selections. The second-round selection was DE Kavika Pittman, a player who never ever made a play unless it was a busted play that he had eight or nine seconds to chase down from behind. He never bulked-up, and was a true liability against the run. Their third-round selection was C Clay Shiver, a man who was on the Cowboys five-man Cleveland Browns expansion draft list, and one who was constantly thrown back into Aikman's lap. The only solid player in this draft is another one who is no longer with the team-- Randall Godfrey. He was a very good player, but a linebacker. They don't rate with Dallas. How many players from the 1996 draft are still with the team-- zero! Gone are studs like: WR Stepfret Williams, DE Mike Ulufale, G Kenneth McDaniels, LB Alan Campos, CB Wendell Davis, and FB Ryan Woods. Gone too are a third-round draft pick used in the supplemental Draft for DT Darren Benson, fourth and fifth round draft picks for S Roger Harper, and a sixth-round pick for Jim Schwantz. Amazingly, they passed on Pro Bowl DE Tony Brackens, and there are no players from that draft on the current roster.
In 1997, after trading out of the first round for two consecutive years with poor results, Jerry Jones traded the Cowboys first-round, fifth-round, and 1998 third-round selection to division rival Philadelphia for its first-round pick which the Cowboys used to select LSU TE David LaFleur. While he remains with the club in a spare role, I believe the Cowboys wasted the extra draft picks used to land LaFleur as he would have been available at their original draft selection. And if they were to move up in the draft, it should have been for Tony Gonzalez, whom the Kansas City Chiefs selected when they too traded up in the draft. The true great player selected in this draft by the Cowboys was Dexter Coakley. However, he will be a free agent linebacker next year, and history says he will leave. Another spare player from this draft was third-round CB/S Kenny Wheaton who did nothing except hobble off the field constantly. Gone too from this draft are C/G Steve Scifres, DT Antonio Anderson, WR Macey Brooks, FB Nicky Salula, CB Lee Vaughn, and CB Omar Stoutmire.
Lost years in the draft. And sadly, the worse thing about it is the reality that the same group of talent evaluators are still making the personnel decisions with the NFL Draft upon the horizon.
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