The Dallas Cowboys passed on Johnny Manziel with the 16th overall pick. Then they kept passing on signal-callers through all seven rounds of the 2014 NFL Draft.
Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said taking Manziel "wasn't even a thought" despite Manziel's spot atop Dallas' draft board by pick 16. With Tony Romo under contract and still playing at an elite level, the Cowboys simply don't see a quarterback as a wise investment.
"The thing you're concerned about is developing them for somebody else," coach Jason Garrett said Monday, via Todd Archer of ESPN.com. "You develop them for two, three, four years and he goes and plays for another football team. We don't think that's a worthwhile thing.
"When you feel good about your starter and you feel good about your backups, we feel it's better to take a position player, a guy we know can contribute on special teams, instead of trying to develop that guy (quarterback)."
Of course, there's the very real question of who is Romo's backup. Kyle Orton is an ideal fit for the role, but the team still doesn't have confirmation he wants to play in 2014. Brandon Weeden signed with the team last month but is coming off a rocky two-season run with the Cleveland Browns.
"We feel in signing Brandon Weeden, he can be viewed as that developmental guy," Garrett said. " ... We view him as in that role right now, so we wanted to be selective about anybody else we wanted to bring in here."
Are the Cowboys comfortable being one Romo back spasm away from Weeden taking meaningful snaps? It's not as far-fetched as it might seem.
The "Around The League Podcast" wrapped up the draft by picking our winners and losers.
