Hang out with the old, get in with the new: Byron Jones and Trevon Diggs

The Dallas Cowboys secondary has been a thorn in the defense for years, primarily the cornerback position. Injury and lack of depth at the cornerback position, or just a lack of talent with the ability to cover receivers, the secondary was a problem. The Cowboys always seemed to be looking for a starting cornerback and spent a lot of resources drafting players to boost the back end.

Each season seemed to bring a new challenge to the position until the Cowboys coaching staff finally moved Byron Jones from safety to the cornerback. From that point on, the Cowboys themselves had a large physical wedge capable of covering the top receivers on opposing infractions.

The old one: Byron jones

Byron Jones exploded onto the NFL wetsuit scene attracting the attention of the Cowboys and the rest of the NFL with his athleticism. When he was taken in by the Cowboys, the coaching staff weren’t sure where to play him, mixing him between corner and safety until he finally decided to play it safe. While Jones was good at covering slower tight ends, his calling was actually to play the cornerback and the Cowboys ultimately made that move. With the league’s receivers getting bigger and faster, Jones seemed like the perfect person to cover those receivers thanks to his physical style of play and length.

Unfortunately for the Cowboys, Jones played around the corner so well that he played himself out of the Cowboys’ price bracket. This forced the Cowboys to look to the draft to find a production replacement they were losing with Jones leaving in free agency. Luckily for them, this draft class was full of cornerbacks who have the potential to be the next Jones for them. Things got even better as they were able to find one in the second round.

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New: Trevon Diggs

No one could have imagined how the chips would fall in favor of the Cowboys throughout the 2020 Draft. No one expected their second-round pick to be a first-round talent in Trevon Diggs. Considered by many to be a first-round pick, Diggs fits the bill for a replacement for Jones. He’s big enough to cover the tallest of receivers, has the size to be physical and line-of-scrimmage receivers, and has the speed to recover and play on the ball.

He is also a step ahead of many other cornerbacks entering the NFL as his brother Stefon Diggs is one of the league’s top receivers and Trevon has been able to train with him and learn the NFL Receivers Road Tree. You pair that with his affinity for media coverage and you’ve got the makings of a player who can lead the Cowboys in high school for years to come. It will be difficult to replace Jones but Diggs has said all the right things and looks up to the challenge. It will obviously take a little while for Diggs to develop his game; Rookie corners almost always have tough first seasons. But the long-term outlook looks very good.

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Diggs has the potential to be a staple of the Cowboys defense for years to come thanks to his physical abilities and his drive to be the best at his craft. But, until he shows it on the pitch, the Cowboys can only hope he can and that they haven’t made a mistake in letting Jones enter the open market.