Criticize the Cowboys Jaylon Smith pick at your own risk

Those who are criticizing the pick of Notre Dame linebacker Jaylon Smith by the Dallas Cowboys may be eating their words soon.

The 2016 NFL Draft is long gone, yet there are still some people who take issue with the Dallas Cowboys drafting Notre Dame linebacker Jaylon Smith in the second round. Instead of moving forward, these naysayers continue to criticize the selection rather than give any sense of optimism.

Tim Cowlishaw of the Dallas Morning News was the latest to hop aboard the negative train by saying, “Well, I certainly wouldn’t have taken Jaylon Smith in the 2nd round. That’s a luxury pick, especially at the top of the round. I just don’t see taking that high risk-high reward type of player when you have the Cowboys’ needs and when you have already used your first pick on offense, not defense.”

The vitriol of the pick is getting nauseating. Smith is an outstanding football player and the entire draft is a gamble, so what’s wrong with taking a chance on possibly the best player, when healthy, in the draft?

The biggest issue with the pick is that Smith is not likely to play in 2016 and the defense needed someone to help out right away. However, the draft isn’t about just getting better for one season, it’s about being good now and into the future. If Smith can come back and play at a high level again in 2017, many people will forget their stance and the team is confident that will happen.

No, he probably won’t suit up this season, but those arguing on this point are the same people who get upset when the Cowboys don’t plan for the future. Yes, we all want the Dallas to win a Super Bowl as soon as possible for quarterback Tony Romo and tight end Jason Witten, but that’s your own selfishness.

The Cowboys need to try and win every year, not just the next few seasons with their Hall of Fame tight end or so you can win an argument that Romo is better than New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning.

Jaylon Smith might not help in 2016, but guess what, it’s highly unlikely any pass rusher drafted at pick 34 will be helping much either. Rookie pass rushers rarely make an impact, especially one’s drafted outside of the top 15.

They take time to develop and it’s possible that Smith makes a difference before any edge players do around the same spot in the draft. Tampa Bay Buccaneers defensive end Noah Spence could be the exception, but the Cowboys were not going to draft him with his past drug issues.

Also, according to reports, the Cowboys were willing to trade away their second and third round picks to get back into the first round for Memphis quarterback Paxton Lynch. Lynch won’t be playing (hopefully) for Dallas in the next few years either, but there didn’t seem to be anyone complaining about that strategy.

If that trade went down the Cowboys would have used only two of their three picks in first three rounds and not drafted a single defensive player. But that didn’t appear to be an issue for people. Smith and Nebraska defensive tackle Maliek Collins are a better option than just Paxton Lynch.

It’s a big help that the Cowboys’ team physician, Dr. Daniel E. Cooper, performed the surgery and knows Smith’s knee better than anyone. That means the Cowboys are confident about the linebacker getting back onto the field, but everyone else seems to know better than the team.

Jaylon Smith is a very good player who should pay big dividends down the road. He’s no different than any other player the Dallas Cowboys could have drafted with the 34th pick.

Criticize at your own risk and watch out for the Twitter bandits who will remind you of it later.

You can chat with or follow Ben on twitter @BenGrimaldi

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