Was Rolando McClain worth the gamble for Dallas Cowboys?
If Rolando McClain makes the Dallas Cowboys’ roster, they owe the Baltimore Ravens a sixth-round pick. McClain is a former eighth-overall selection. He has the Brett Favre approach to being a journeyman, retiring three times from the league. His waffling retirement is the only similarity to Farve’s career, however. At 25, McClain has yet prove he can be productive on the field. He’s been arrested three times.
More from Dallas Cowboys
- 3 Cowboys who won’t be on the roster after training camp
- Stephen Jones poorly tried to justify Cowboys’ negotiations with Tony Pollard
- Cowboys: Jerry Jones puts the pressure on Dak Prescott
- Cowboys give a masterclass in defense construction with Trevon Diggs extension
- Ranking the Cowboys top training camp priorities after Zack Martin mess
Jason Garrett remembers the young linebacker when he was sophomore at Alabama, and as per ESPN Dallas, he spoke with Nick Saban who said McClain “might be one of the best players I ever coached.”
Garrett’s likely objective is to bring McClain out of retirement to be that player again.
“When a guy like that says that, who’s been around for as long as he has and has so many good players, it kind of gets your attention,” Garrett said, via Tim MacMahon of ESPN Dallas. “So I can remember watching him in college and certainly we evaluated him very closely coming out. He was a top-10 pick by the Raiders when he came out of school and someone who has an immense amount of ability and, more than that, production. He was a really, really good college player and I think people have a lot of hopes for him as a pro player.”
McClain’s past will have an immediate impact on his role with the team. He’ll miss Friday’s practice for to attend his trial in Alabama and face charges of resisting arrest and disorderly conduct from April 2013. However, he return to camp over the weekend, as per Tim MacMahon. Dallas hopes to refine his talent and use him in ways that might help fill the void of Sean Lee, who suffered a season-ending injury at OTA’s in May.