Cowboys DQ Connection: Sign ‘Tackling Machine’ Deion Jones?
FRISCO - The Dallas Cowboys’ clarification of Micah Parsons’ role in Dan Quinn’s defense - “He’s a pass-rushing linebacker,” the coordinator said - suddenly makes that linebackers room look all the more stout.
Parsons as an All-Pro and Leighton Vander Esch as a standout, with Damone Clark, Jabril Cox and DeMarvion Overshown all recent draftees.
But is there room for another “DQ disciple”?
We don’t get the sense that Dallas is presently searching for more depth at linebacker. Yet there former Pro Bowler Deion Jones sits … and a check on the Cowboys’ annual calendar on this sort of idea is merited.
First to Jones: He played five seasons for Quinn while DQ was the head coach of the Atlanta Falcons. He has generally been a perennial “tackling machine,” a 100-tackles-per-year guy. He played last year with the Cleveland Browns, appearing in 11 games and starting five. Jones - not a huge body at 6-1, 222 - played about 60 percent of the snaps to total 44 tackles, 2.5 sacks and an interception.
His 4.4 speed has make him a playmaker in addition to being a tackler.
Jones, 28, has pedigree; he was a second-round pick from LSU in the 2016 NFL Draft. (That was the year Dallas took Jaylon Smith 18 spots ahead of the speedy Jones, who the Cowboys also liked.) And while his talent is surely fading, he obviously has a mastery of Quinn’s system.
Now to the timetable. Last year, CowboysSI.com addressed rumors of a Jones to Dallas trade, a source telling us Jones’ contract rendered the idea “untenable.” He’d been a $13 million APY linebacker; Quinn’s fondness for him was never going to overcome that.
So he was salary-dumped to Cleveland.
But now he’s at a vet’s-minimum level, we bet, in what he could command in salary. And how have those sort of deals for front-seven/edge helpers worked at The Star in recent years?
Keanu Neal (a Quinn guy in Atlanta) joined the Cowboys in April 2022 (“tier-3” free agency) on a cheap one-year deal. Neal’s pedigree? He was the No. 17 overall pick in that same 2016 NFL Draft.
Anthony Barr (a favorite of ex-Cowboys aide George Edwards from Minnesota) joined Dallas in August 2022 on a cheap one-year deal. Barr’s pedigree? He was the No. 9 overall pick in the 2014 NFL Draft.
Dante Fowler (a DQ Falcon) joined Dallas in late March 2022 (“tier-2” free agency) on a cheap one-year deal. Fowler’s pedigree? He was the No. 3 overall pick in the 2015 NFL Draft. (Dallas re-upped him this spring.)
Takk McKinley (a DQ Falcon) joined Dallas in November 2022 on a practice-squad flier. McKinley’s pedigree? He was the No. 26 overall pick in the 2017 NFL Draft.
See a pattern here? Look at the connections and look at the trends. These are emergency-plan reclamation-project plug-in’s - always with with pedigree - but never urgent priorities.
The Cowboys defense on the verge of being a playmaking powerhouse under Quinn. Dallas led the league in turnovers for a second consecutive season - an almost unheard-of accomplishment - and last year held opponents to 19.7 points per game — good for sixth-best in the NFL.
The search to add players who can help is never-ending. Maybe Deion Jones, as we move down "tiers,'' will eventually be considered. But the DQ involvement, the pedigree, the pattern, the priorities … as you can see, they tell a real Cowboys truth here.
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