Royal Blue
Trade For This Roy A No-Brainer
by Nick Eatman
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IRVING, Texas - After losing player, after player, after player here in the last few days, the Cowboys finally put an end to that. They went out and got someone.
And not just anyone. And not just any Roy Williams either.
But a wide receiver who can flat-out play. The Cowboys already have one of those. And now they have two.
Just like that, the Cowboys tremendously upgraded the wide receiver position, not just for this season, but for years to come.
In a move that has been rumored to happen for almost a year now, the Cowboys just beat the NFL's 3 p.m. trade deadline and landed Lions receiver Roy Williams, sending Detroit three draft picks in 2009 - a first, third and sixth. In return, the Cowboys not only get a Pro Bowl receiver, but a seventh-round pick. And remember, the Cowboys might have been more willing to part with three picks today, considering they got their fifth-round pick back from Tennessee since Pacman Jones is suspended once again.
Let's take a breath. We all need one on this day.
If you're a Cowboys fan, you have to like this move. You should actually love it.
This makes sense. It just does.
And it made sense in the off-season. It made sense in training camp and it made sense BEFORE this place became Valley Ranch General. This move has nothing to do with the rash of injuries that have taken place. This is not a desperation move.
This isn't a struggling Yankees team that needs to go out and get a third pitcher for the rotation just before the deadline.
This is a move that could be really good for this team right now. And it could be really great for this team down the road, especially since the Cowboys have already extended his contract for five more years after this season.
Apparently, it's a move Jerry Jones has been trying to do for a while. The Cowboys owner said it has nothing to do with Tony Romo's recent finger injury that will sideline him for about a month.
"We've been trying to trade for Roy Williams for two years," Jones said. "Two straight drafts, I tried to make a trade with Detroit and couldn't get it done. At the league owners meetings (last year), I tried to talk to Detroit about trading for him. He's certainly someone we've pursued the last few years."
Now, of course Roy Williams isn't going to just come right in here and be the receiver we're all expecting. Well, maybe we shouldn't be so sure of anything. The way the last few days have gone, the entire world has gone upside down.
So, who knows? Maybe Roy comes in here and lights it up.
Conventional wisdom says it takes a bit for receivers to step into a new offense, especially in mid-season, and make a huge impact right away. Then again, it doesn't take much to run fade routes. That's a play he knows. Whether he's with the Lions, or sporting a new No. 11 jersey with the Cowboys, he's still going to be a mismatch over smaller cornerbacks.
That's why you should expect to see him play right away. This week in St. Louis. Let's go. Get him out there.
The best part of the deal for the Cowboys, other than just getting a great receiver, is getting a receiver who wants to be here.
First words out of Roy Williams' mouth on a conference call with the Dallas media:
"I'm more happy to be a Dallas Cowboy than when I got my first bike," Williams said. "To go from 0-5 to 4-2, you can't get any better than that."
If that's not enough, the first person who called Williams after the trade should be a telling sign of just how the situation is going to work.
Not only did Jerry Jones say that Terrell Owens was "ecstatic" to find out the news, but apparently T.O. was the first to call Roy Williams and congratulate him on the trade.
"He told me that he learned how to play the game from Jerry Rice," Williams said of Owens. "I've never really had that before. I'm just excited to play with him. I think we can be a great combination.
"He's the No. 1 guy. I'll be the No. 2 or No. 3 and wherever I fit in. Defenses won't know what to do."
Now, whether or not Roy Williams steps right in and makes plays, it could take a few weeks for him to get comfortable in the system.
Then again, the next four weeks are going to be anything but normal for this team.
Is it me, or does it seem like this entire franchise has been put on hold for a month?
Romo out about four weeks. Terence Newman out for about a month. Felix Jones out at least two weeks, and possibly as much as four. And now Pacman Jones is suspended for four games.
The team the Redskins play on Nov. 16 in Washington - which is four weeks from now - might look nothing like the team we're going to see here in the next few weeks.
But at least now the Cowboys are doing something to soften the blow. Instead of seeing all of these guys removed from the lineup, credit Jerry Jones and his staff for an attempt to stop the bleeding.
Does Roy Williams do that? You would think so. If not, you wouldn't give up three picks next year, including a first-round pick.
But really, depending on how you look at it, you can argue that the Cowboys aren't giving up that much at all.
Let's break it down. The Cowboys give up a first, third and sixth. And get Roy Williams and a seventh.
Ok, let's start with the first.
To me, the Cowboys win here. I know you hate to lose a first-round draft pick, but you're getting a first-round pick, if not better, in return. If Terrell Owens was 28 years old, and not 35 at the end of the season, maybe it's a different story.
But you know receiver is a position of need at some point. You can't go into next year's draft and not try to land a receiver.
There's no way the Cowboys could dream of getting a receiver anywhere close to the quality of Roy Williams. It doesn't matter if the wheels come off completely on this team and the Cowboys end up in the middle of the pack, meaning the middle of the first-round. In fact, it doesn't matter if you're picking in the top five.
Any receiver coming in here will have question marks. In the draft, you can get a Randy Moss or an Andre Johnson, just like you can end up with a Charles Rogers or a Mike Williams. Wait, Detroit ended up with both of them.
Still, the point is you just never know about the draft. And you may not know what this Roy Williams can do in Dallas. But you like your chances with a guy who has at least made the Pro Bowl.
So you lose a first, and you get a Pro Bowler. Win
You lose a third-round pick. Ok, you already have a third-round pick because of those crazy draft-day trades the Cowboys made last year. They ended up getting Cleveland's third-round pick. And the one that got sent to Detroit was the Cowboys' pick. So you keep the Browns' third-round pick, and trade away your own. It's likely the Cowboys will finish higher than Cleveland, so I call that a win, too.
As for the sixth-round pick, that's one the Cowboys got back from the Titans because Pacman is suspended again. And you've already acquired another sixth-round pick from the Dolphins for Jason Ferguson. Again, the Cowboys are keeping Miami's and sending away their own.
Don't forget, the Cowboys add a seventh from the Lions and pick up a fifth from Tennessee.
So to start the day, the Cowboys had 10 draft picks. Now, they have nine and Roy Williams. And don't forget the club will likely get a couple of compensatory picks at the end of the season for losing free agents Jacques Reeves and Julius Jones.
So flash back to draft day when you kept getting upset at the TV because the Cowboys kept trading down and down and down and wouldn't make a pick.
Well, they got Roy Williams out of the deal.