CN: This gets us to the offensive lineman. You started talking him up this week. You wrote a piece on him. Kid from USC named Tyron Smith. Intriguing but, not a slam dunk looking at the Cowboys lineman templates. Tell us about Mr. Smith.
WB: He's the best athlete playing the offensive line in the country right now. You look at him and you think you're looking at a defensive end. He's 6'5'', 285 lbs. right now, but he plays strong because he can bend and play with leverage. He's a long-armed kid. I'd like to see him to a better job extending those hands, better hand placement. He gets a bit upright on run plays but when you talk about balance and range off the edge, this guy is as good as it gets. He redirects well. He's fluid in the hips.
He's 19 years old right now. He's gonna be 20 at draft time. He came to USC as a five-star recruit at 6'5'', 260, he's put on 25 lbs. of good weight. He's gonna be a really good player, but he might need a little bit of time to develop. He reminds me a little of D'Brickashaw Ferguson.
CN: And he's only 19?
WB: He turns 20 in December.
CN: So it's not hard projecting another 20 lbs. on his frame.
WB: He's not done growing. He could get up to 310 by the time he's 25 and he's got long arms.
CN: Is he system-specific, given that he's 285, or could he play for any team?
WB: D'Brickashaw plays in a power scheme for the Jets and he fits well there. He's [Smith] a big-time blind side pass protector. He plays strong because he plays with leverage now, so as he add weight he'll be able to drive people off the football. But you're paying him the big bucks to protect the blind side.
CN: He's playing right tackle now for USC, correct?
WB: Yes, that's a bit of a concern. He played right tackle last year when USC had Charles Brown on the left, and I really liked him. I think he'll be a good player for the Saints in a couple of year. Brown was a senior last year and Smith was an 18 year old sophomore and they had Matt Kalil, Ryan Kalil's brother who came in, so it made more sense for him to mature at left tackle, so they left them where they were, rather than jumble it up with those two guys.
It's a lot like Baylor's Jason Smith, who the Rams took with the 2nd overall pick. I just think you let this guy play wherever he feels comfortable. He has played left tackle at USC. He backed up Charles Brown as a true freshman and he's a good enough athlete to play there. He's gonna get drafted to play there and I feel whole heartedly that he'll be able to play well there without taking any steps back, but it's one minor concern. It's one thing you'll have to look into.
CN: Is he definitely coming out?
WB: It's still up in the air, but from what I've heard a lot of those USC guys are going to fly the coop. They can't go to a bowl game. I heard Smith, the defensive tackle Jurrell Casey, he's thinking of coming out. Armstead the big defensive end is thinking of coming out. I'm thinking right now that he's coming out.
CN: Where would you put Tyron Smith in your rankings?
WB: He's one of the few blue-chip prospects in the draft. I thought he was that good.
CN: So you're putting this guy in your top dozen players overall.
WB: Definitely. Maybe he makes it into the top five. He was really impressive.
CN: You put him a good level above the Sherrods and Castonzos then?
WB: Yeah. I like Sherrod too, but I think he's a lot better.
CN: So he enters the discussion if you're the Dallas Cowboys.
WB: Yes
CN: He's been late to the discussion because he was an underclassman, and nobody knew if he was coming out?
WB: The reason I haven't talked about him was that I had not seen him. Some people said he was going to come out, but I don't like to work on juniors until they declare. But if you get a guy who could be a blue-chip player, you study. I mean, I know A.J. Green and Julio Jones are blue chippers, even though I haven't written them up yet, so I thought, ''I've got to do some homework on this guy.'' So I put on some tape of him earlier in the year and I was blown away. He's the best player at that spot and I've put on more and more tape and he's done it in every game I've watched.
CN: Playing on the Pac 10, he's faced, say a Cameron Jordan?
WB: Cam lines up usually on the right side [over LTs] so he didn't see much of Cam.
CN: I see OT and I know Cowboys fans will want to talk about him, but I also see 285 lbs. so I want to bring as much data to the table as possible, because this team doesn't usually consider guys that light. Did he have good tape as a sophmore?
WB: Yeah. He's unreal. The guy is a dancing bear.
CN: And he's quality in the run game?
WB: Yes, because he can snap his hips. He's a bit high, but we're talking about a guy who can get to the second level, does a great job of sealing on the second level. He can hold his own. He can create a snap for you. You would like him to get stronger, but that will come.
CN: I want to stay with him, because I want to give people context. When you say he's one of the few blue-chippers, in your grading system, where does he fit?
WB: These are guys who I think have the ability to be Pro Bowl players at the next level.
CN: Not necessarily right away, but eventually develop into Pro Bowl caliber players.
WB: Guys who can help you out early, and who we expect to be Pro Bowl caliber players.
CN: How many guys have that distinction right now on your board?
WB: This year is a little better. Last year I gave my highest grade to four guys. 7.5 was my highest grade. I gave that out to Ndamukong Suh, to Gerald McCoy, to Maurkice Pouncey and to Eric Berry. I'll probably give out more this year. I'd say six or seven.
CN: Do you know who they are?
WB: I'm not sure, because I haven't given the juniors grades, but I'd say A.J. Green, Julio Jones, Fairley, Smith, maybe Peterson and Amukamara. Andrew Luck will probably be there. I don't know if I'll give him a 7.0 or a 7.5 but he'll be up there. It's a nice draft at the top, it's top heavy, I will say that. There's some elite talent up high.
CN: So if you're having a bad year, this isn't a horrible year to have one.
WB: No, absolutely not.
