Dallas Cowboys have no regrets over bypassing J.J. Watt
Three years ago, the Dallas Cowboys were in need of fresh talent on its porous offensive line, which led to the selection of Southern California offensive tackle Tyron Smith with the ninth-overall pick. While Smith has developed into a Pro Bowl-caliber performer, the player selected two spots later has developed much differently.
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With the 11th overall pick of the 2011 Draft, the Houston Texans selected Wisconsin defensive end J.J. Watt. Watt has become perhaps the best defender in the game while also becoming one of the league’s most visible faces via his numerous appearances for a variety of advertisers. Still, Cowboys’ coach Jason Garrett has no regrets about his decision, one which has been magnified this week as Dallas welcomes Houston in a Sunday afternoon matchup between surprise 3-1 teams.
“Certainly, that first pick was critical for us,” said Garrett via ESPN Dallas. “We had let three veteran offensive linemen go and we were really young and under-resourced there and we felt like we need to get some cornerstone players. We were fortunate that Tyrone Smith was coming out that year. We felt that he could be a left tackle and a cornerstone player for us for a long time.
“Remember, he was only 20 years old at the time and he was coming out early and we just felt that he had all the traits to be a great, great player for a long time at a really important position.”
Smith’s rise to prominence is a key reason why the Cowboys lead the league in rushing behind the play of running back DeMarco Murray, was was drafted by Dallas in the third round of the same 2011 draft.
Watt was named the AFC Defensive Player of the Month for his play in September, which saw him record more quarterback hits (16) than 13 entire teams. It marked the third time he was chosen as the conference’s best defender. He was named the AFC Defensive Player of the Week on Wednesday after he had a career-best nine quarterback hits and an 80-yard interception return for a touchdown in Houston’s 23-17 win over Buffalo.
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