00:00You have been asking and asking and asking about this guy, and we're going to talk about him finally here
00:06in Below the Belt, which is sponsored by Window Nation.
00:10What's the biggest need remaining for the Dallas Cowboys?
00:13The thing where they don't have a player to even fill the position right now if they had to play
00:17football.
00:18I assume linebacker, but...
00:19I mean, they literally don't have one.
00:21They don't.
00:22And we consider DeMarvin Overshawn as one of them.
00:25Much as I like DeMarvin Overshawn, he's got to show he can stay healthy.
00:28Because right now, the idea is he's not going to be available at some point.
00:32Because that's just typically what's been the case with him.
00:35And you and Broadus just want to trade everything away and go up and get your guy.
00:38Go and get your guy at three or six.
00:40Hey, listen, I'm not really worried about the linebacker, okay?
00:42At least you've got defensive guys.
00:43The Lady Vols don't have a single player on their team right now.
00:46My girls.
00:47What?
00:48Everyone transferred.
00:50Tennessee.
00:50Like right now this morning?
00:52Yesterday.
00:53They all transferred.
00:53They're all gone.
00:54They all put wet in the portal.
00:55We don't have a single player.
00:57Not a single...
00:58In what sport?
00:58Lady Vols basketball, baby.
01:00You don't have a single player.
01:01That's why he got that read.
01:03That sponsor.
01:03Right.
01:04Unrivaled.
01:05Because they're going to play with three players just like that.
01:07They might have to.
01:08All right.
01:09So, no, the guy that I think pretty comfortably right now, if they had to play a game,
01:14I can find people on their roster right now to like, yeah, they can go out there.
01:18They can play the game today.
01:20Like, Bullard can play the extra edge spot in the 3-4 look.
01:24You've got Gary.
01:25I mean, assuming Azaraku healthy.
01:28Azaraku ready to go.
01:29You've got the corners now.
01:30You've got bodies out there at least.
01:32And you've got the different safety groups.
01:33So, you can go out there and play.
01:34You would run out there tomorrow.
01:36And I think you're probably starting DeMarvy and Overshawn.
01:42And the other linebackers, probably Justin Barron.
01:46Did you know Justin Barron played for this football team?
01:50No.
01:50No.
01:50It's not a name you hear.
01:51He was an undrafted free agent.
01:53Didn't do much in training camp.
01:54But was good enough to kind of stick around and be on the practice squad.
01:58And they ended up signing him to a futures deal after the season ended.
02:03And so, he's somebody that's like, alright, that's somebody they like a little bit.
02:08But the other linebacker on the roster is Shamar James.
02:10A lot of people would default to him being the guy that's starting the linebacker.
02:13I don't think he would.
02:14If they had to play football tomorrow in a pinch, I think they like Barron.
02:17And they feel like Barron does more of what Christian Parker's looking for.
02:20So, because of that, it's become very popular to throw out the name.
02:25Because they're just like, man, what a great Texas story.
02:29What a great connection.
02:30Oh, this almost started a little debate at my house.
02:32Live between you and Texas Tech Brent.
02:35He's a fun, exciting player.
02:37And that is one Jacob Rodriguez.
02:39The Texas Tech linebacker.
02:43And the reason why, I'll be honest about something.
02:46You start talking about different players.
02:49You start talking to people.
02:51And you'll get a sense of like, okay, maybe the Cowboys wouldn't go this way.
02:55Maybe the Cowboys would go this way.
02:56Maybe this would happen.
02:57This would happen.
02:58I don't have a great beat on what they think about Jacob Rodriguez.
03:02And so, it's more just kind of, now they've taken him to dinner.
03:06They went to his pro day.
03:07They had a private dinner with him.
03:08That's not unusual, though.
03:09They'll have private dinners with a lot of guys that they don't end up taking.
03:13But they clearly have done an evaluation process with him.
03:17And I think there's a lot to like, really like about him.
03:20So, let's start with what there is to like.
03:23So, Texas guy.
03:25I mean, just right off the bat.
03:26If you just want to talk about like a connection.
03:28Clearly, Texas guy who then going to Texas Tech and became such a huge star there for the Red Raiders.
03:34And with somebody that people were talking about as like, at one point in the season.
03:37Like, hey, this is a legitimate Heisman candidate on the defensive side of the ball.
03:41Yeah.
03:42And all of that was really impressive.
03:44And if you talk about the play style, it's really fun.
03:46It's an easy match to throw a star on his helmet.
03:49And it's not the short type of player.
03:51But it's very much to me, I think, going to be a similar connection to like when they drafted Datwin
03:55out of Texas A&M.
03:56And everybody just loved him.
03:58And there was never anybody who disliked watching Datwin play for the Cowboys.
04:01So, Jacob Rodriguez brings that element to it.
04:04He's a 6'1", 231 linebacker who is a really strong athlete.
04:104'5", 7'40".
04:12He had a 38-inch vertical, 10'1", broad jump.
04:15The three-cone drill was under seven seconds.
04:17All of that is pretty good athleticism for his size and for the position.
04:21You feel pretty good about all of that combination when you're going out there.
04:24You don't see a lot of 231 linebackers anymore in the NFL.
04:28Like, a lot of the guys who they have running out there now are more like 220.
04:31Like, they look a little more like DeMarvin Overshown.
04:33So, well-built guy.
04:35That's a big positive right there that he's a thick, well-built linebacker.
04:40He has an ability to read and react in the run game in a way that is really special at
04:45times.
04:46He is, when he's playing forward and he's attacking the run, it's really, really good.
04:52And he has, I mean, just foundational instincts that you need for the position.
04:58That's all really good.
04:59Good.
04:59There's no issues here yet.
05:01So, you've got size.
05:02You've got athleticism.
05:04You've got elite run defender.
05:06So, what's the problem?
05:08Why wouldn't he be talked about in the top 15?
05:10Why wouldn't he be talked about like Sonny Stiles?
05:13So, here are the issues for me.
05:16I very specifically said the way he plays moving forward.
05:19When he is going forward, when he is playing in the attack and, you know, basically trying to slip the
05:26line of scrimmage and make a play against the run,
05:28he is so, so good.
05:30The problem is that when he has to drop, and I think when he has to drop, and if he
05:36has to do, he could probably handle some coverage stuff with some tight ends.
05:40But if you're talking about being able to really turn and run and do different things in these coverage zones
05:48that Christian Parker is probably going to ask about,
05:50do some of the different things in terms of his awareness in coverage, his awareness in passing off route concepts
05:55and different things like that,
05:57I don't always see that as being strong.
06:01What round pick do you think he is?
06:04On the Bobby Bell board, I would put him in the second.
06:07Like, high second, early third.
06:09The problem is you don't have a second.
06:11And there's a lot of people, I think, who would, Zach Olchuk's done this, who have, like, argued for, we
06:15should take him at 20.
06:16You should go for him at 20.
06:18Oh.
06:19And that's where I'm like, I can't get with you there.
06:22And you don't have a second round pick.
06:24So, if you don't take him at 20, you're probably not getting him.
06:27So, that's kind of the issue of what you're looking at here.
06:30And I know a lot of people say, who cares?
06:31We need somebody to stop the run.
06:32Yeah.
06:33We've got somebody here to coach the secondary.
06:35They can cover, you know, in the passing game.
06:37I just need a linebacker to stand in a zone or run.
06:41The problem is that, think of the linebacker who went to Philadelphia and became an automatic stud doing everything.
06:48Zach Bond.
06:50Bond's a big guy.
06:51Bond can play in coverage.
06:52Bond made that opening game play where Dak puts that throw on the money to Luke Schoonmaker in two defenders.
07:00And the ball gets just swiped out of Schoonmaker's hands.
07:03That was Bond making a ridiculous play.
07:05It was Bond and Blankenship playing ridiculous in coverage.
07:09All of that going together and playing together.
07:10I just don't think that Jacob Rodriguez is going to check the boxes for them in coverage.
07:16The other issue, even though he's a well-built linebacker, I think this is going to be a group that's
07:22really particular.
07:23As much as they said, just bring us good players, this group might be on defense more particular about what
07:29they want in players than the Eberflue scheme was or the Quinn or the Zimmer scheme.
07:34Everybody's got their own measurables.
07:36Everybody's got their own things.
07:37I think they're going to be really particular about linebacker measurables, traits, all these different things.
07:42And one of the things that I think is important to them, because of the coverage concepts they ask them
07:47to play, is I think they do want guys with length.
07:49And so, if you take a look at some of the linebackers that they've been involved with this offseason, the
07:55ones that they showed interest in.
07:57Quay Walker has 32 and 5 eighth inch arms.
08:02Jordan Brooks, almost 33 inch arms.
08:05Aziz Alshair, 32 and a half inch arms.
08:08Even some of the maybe tacit interest in Devin Lloyd.
08:12Tacit.
08:1333 inch arms.
08:14Okay?
08:15That's the whole list right there.
08:16They like Sonny Stiles a lot in the draft.
08:18Sonny Stiles is almost 33 inch arms.
08:20Jacob Rodriguez checks in at 30 and 7 eighths.
08:24Wow.
08:25Ruben Payne.
08:26He is significantly shorter than most NFL linebackers.
08:32In fact, if you look at his numbers, there's only, I believe, of the guys that tested at the Combine,
08:38there's one linebacker in the entire class of Combine linebackers that has a smaller wingspan than Jacob Rodriguez at 6
08:47'1".
08:47Oh.
08:48So, now again, I know a lot of people, I'm going to anger some people.
08:52Let's get Bane and Rodriguez and just making the dinos.
08:55I haven't even looked on here yet to see it.
08:58But I'm sure there's people screaming at me right now.
09:03Red Raider fans.
09:03I like him.
09:04I'm not saying I dislike him.
09:06I'm not saying he's going to be a bad player.
09:07I think he's going to play well in the NFL.
09:09I don't know if it's a hand-meat-glove kind of match here in Dallas.
09:14Well, sounds like hand-meat-mitten.
09:16Yeah, that's what it'd be.
09:17This one, maybe the one guy that has same size hands as you that we could do this game with
09:21at training camp.
09:22Although I didn't get his hand size, so maybe it'd be, he just couldn't reach up to put his hand
09:25up there with you.
09:27But, no, this is actually what I think is ultimately going to kill C.J. Allen, too.
09:31Who I like.
09:32But Allen's got some questions about his injuries.
09:36Allen, I think, for some people, has some questions about his ability to play in coverage.
09:40And then C.J. Allen is a half an inch longer in the arms than Jacob Rodriguez is.
09:45And I think that's the hardest thing for a lot of fans to get over.
09:48But I think it's something that they should think back to when Will McClay talked with us at Combine.
09:52He said, what do we misunderstand?
09:53He goes, you guys misunderstand true fit, like what somebody needs.
09:57That is the biggest thing you all miss when we're setting stuff up.
10:01And so it's hard, I think, for fans to just think he has two inch shorter arms.
10:05So you're telling me he can't do what I saw him do at Texas Tech?
10:08There's a guy in the hall doing some work.
10:11Should I go get his tape measure for a while?
10:14See how long our arms are compared to these guys?
10:16Yeah.
10:17You just got to measure it correctly.
10:18That's how you get some inconsistency sometimes.
10:21So you're supposed to start.
10:22No, it's supposed to be, it's the joint right here on your shoulder blade.
10:27And then it's down to, I think it's the middle finger.
10:30Pepe, you being a drive-by Texas Tech fan, did you fall in love with this linebacker?
10:35I have no idea who you're talking about because I'm a Texas fan.
10:37Oh, my bad.
10:38My bad.
10:38Jacob Ray then.
10:39We should get him.
10:39That's right.
10:39What are the Red Raider Tolos saying on the fan text?
10:42940 says hell no to Jacob at 2443.
10:46J-Rod is a first rounder all day.
10:49901, trade some future picks or whatever and get back into the second round.
10:52806, Red Raider alum here, Jacob Rodriguez-Stan, but he's 100% undersized.
10:56940.
10:57One of the few times I agree with Bobby.
10:58There we go, 940.
10:59We figured it out.
11:00But I think that is going to be something that...
11:02You get the most questions about him?
11:05He's the one that most consistently people are wondering, like, hey, what about him?
11:08What about him?
11:08Really?
11:08Because I just think everybody's looking around and going, like, where are we getting a linebacker?
11:11And Stiles is probably not going to be there, so what are we going to do?
11:14Be low.
11:15Be built.
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