Sources: Cowboys Tried To Trade Up To 6 - But Also Swear Micah Is No. 1

Jerry Jones swore when I asked him specifically about Parsons, the Penn State linebacker, “He was the best defensive player on our board.”

FRISCO - The Dallas Cowboys insist that Micah Parsons was the No. 1 defensive player on the NFL Draft board. But sources insist to me that Dallas examined the idea of a trade-up to the No. 6 spot as they sensed the two coveted cornerbacks were about to become scarce before the Cowboys' pick at No. 10.

Can both these "plans,'' and both these "stories,'' be true?

As Thursday faded into Friday, owner Jerry Jones swore when I asked him specifically about Parsons, the Penn State linebacker - who Dallas landed after trading back to Philly’s spot at No. 12 (netting a third-rounder), “He was the best defensive player on our board.”

“You say that every year,” I countered to Jerry, who then jokingly (unfortunately) offered to walk me into the war room here at The Star to show me the proof.

But I think I can prove, too, that the Cowboys did get a bit itchy when they realized that cornerbacks Jaycee Horn and Patrick Surtain were about to go off the board before Dallas’ spot at No. 10. And I think I can prove the in the scramble to get the cogs turning in the right direction, the name of a Cowboys veteran or two may have come up in trade-minded conversation with Miami (at No. 6).

COO Stephen Jones did concede, when I pressed him on the subject, that Dallas did explore trade-ups, but that he found the price to be exorbitant.

"You can imagine,'' Stephen said, "(given) what we got to move two spots back (in the trade from 10 to 12), what it would have cost us to go from 10 to 6.''

Ah. No. 6.

Dolphins GM Chris Grier, by the way, the holder of pick No. 6, did tell the Miami media late Thursday that he did field calls, but wouldn't divulge those potential partners "out of respect'' for them.

So ... yeah. No. 6.

But wait: If Micah was the goal all along - and that is essentially the Cowboys' story now - why explore a trade-up? (And if I'm right that Horn was a consideration at No. 6 if Dallas jumped up ... isn't that a bit of a cluster?)

Slightly more sensible: Jerry insisted that Dallas had “four (trade) scenarios” had the cornerback(s) and Parsons all been on the board at 10 … suggesting the Cowboys might’ve still made certain to get Parsons, one way or another.

The Cowboys say the Parsons pickup is not indicative of any dissatisfaction with incumbent linebackers Leighton Vander Esch and Jaylon Smith, with Parsons himself citing those two names, and Penn State's old nickname, by pledging that the trio will turn Dallas into "Linebacker U.''

"This,'' Parsons said to Jerry during a congratulatory phone call, "is all I've ever wanted.''

READ MORE: 'This Is All I Ever Wanted!' Micah Parsons To Cowboys In NFL Draft

The Cowboys will put their hands on a Bible ... or at least on a playbook ... to insist they feel the same way.

One truth is undeniable: The Cowboys’ desire to land a defensive player was no secret. But liking Micah Parsons better than Jaycee Horn and Patrick Surtain?

The Cowboys did keep that one a secret. … all the better in the effort to spread the word that all of these somewhat conflicting "stories'' were all part of “the plan.”

READ MORE: Social Media Reacts To Cowboys' Selection Of Micah Parsons