Why Pacman and Not Henry?
When asked about the chances of signing Chris Henry, the troubled wide receiver recently cut from the Bengals, Jerry Jones said, “Unlikely, unlikely, just because of what we’re doing at wide receiver. Just the nature of it, but it’s unlikely.”
His answer makes sense if you think about it. At cornerback, we don’t have much standing behind Terence Newman and Anthony Henry. Even if we traded for Pacman, we would still be looking for an additional corner — both as an insurance policy and to fill out the roster.
Wide receiver is another popular position of speculation when people look at who Dallas might draft in the first round. In fact, it is often listed as a position of ‘need’. But Dallas has Terrell Owens, Terry Glenn and Patrick Crayton. The only question mark there is Glenn who much come back from a season of knee injuries, but it is unlikely Dallas will cut him. They also have Sam Hurd. He’s looked very promising, so I don’t see him going anywhere. And there’s also Isaiah Stanback. I think the Cowboys want to devote more than one year to turning him from a quarterback into a wide receiver. And then there is Miles Austin who showed that he could be a solid kick returner and showed a little something as a receiver.
That’s six, folks. Any wide receiver — whether we get them through a trade or the draft — is going to push one of those people off the roster.
So, when you hear the Cowboys having a ‘need’ at WR, take it with a grain of salt. There isn’t any true need. The Cowboys would simply like to (1) take out an insurance policy on Glenn in case he is unable to make it back and (2) start getting younger at the position.
The Cowboys are certainly very interested in a top wide receiver prospect. Hey, just because you are comfortable with a position doesn’t mean you don’t want to upgrade it. But I wouldn’t bump any of those wide receivers to gamble on Chris Henry.
