FanHouse Isaiah Stanback

One of the most intriguing prospects in this weekend's NFL draft is West Virginia quarterback Pat White. A sensational athlete, White dominated the Big East during his college career and enters this weekend as a man without a position. Can he overcome his lack of size and succeed as a quarterback in the NFL? Will he became the latest quarterback-to-wide receiver project and follow in the footsteps of players like Antwaan Randle-El? Or will he bring back the "Slash" position, combined with the recent fad that is the wildcat offense, and become a unique weapon that gives opposing defensive coordinators fits?

Tonight, the Cowboys and Texans will battle for the all-mighty and magical Governor's Cup. It's the big silver trophy awarded to the Texas team that wins their yearly matchup. I'm pictured with it and a large gentlemen who works for the Texans.

Though tonight's game is just a preseason game, the third pretend game is one that knowledgeable fans watch closely because the starters are left in the game longer.

Three Things to Watch From the Cowboy Perspective: (From my semi-reasonable Cowboy fan friend, Michael Whitehead, founder of sofantasyfootball.com, a terrific site to find thoughtful fantasy football information).

1. The Secondary. The biggest problem Dallas has had in recent history is the secondary. What has looked like sure wins has turned into disappointing losses in the second half of too many games. Pay particularly close attention to Adam "Pacman" Jones, as he will get the start, and will have a true test against Andre Johnson. Rookie Mike Jenkins, who started the previous two games will be used in nickel situations, an area that Dallas has truly struggled in for the past two seasons.

Terry Glenn ain't happy about the idea of missing the season because of a knee injury. In fact, he's weighing two options: having season-ending surgery, or cleaning up his knee in the hopes of returning in four weeks. Door No. 2 seems like the obvious choice, but there's a caveat:

"I want play this year, and I really feel I have chance so I'm really leaning toward taking the [damaged] piece out and trying to play this year even though I'm risking the rest of my career by doing that ... My Super Bowl chances are running out, so that's what I will probably do. But I know there's a great percentage risk that I could do that, ruin my knee, never play again and have to limp the rest of my life."

In one sense, it's kinda refreshing to read about a professional athlete actually wanting to, you know, win ... at almost any price; then there's the whole conversation that starts, "Man, Glenn could have a limp for the rest of his life -- is it worth it?"

It's easy to forget that these guys have lives after football. Glenn is 33; is the 2007 season -- a season where the Cowboys aren't thought to be a Super Bowl contender -- worth possibly hobbling around for the next 40 or so years?

Whatever, this is a big loss for Dallas. The upside, I guess, is that the team can get a good long look at Patrick Crayton, And who knows, maybe we'll see more of Isaiah Stanback "Slashing" it up too.

Hat tip: Blogging the Boys

After the draft was all said and done, and the Cowboys traded out of, and then back into the first round ... and took defensive end/linebacker Anthony Spencer, much of the talk was about how Dallas didn't take a wide receiver to replace the aging Terry Glenn and Terrell Owens.

Well, the club didn't get one of the first-day talents, but they may have found something better in Round 4: quarterback Isaiah Stanback. Yep, that's right, quarterback ... except Stanback has a chance to be a bigger, stronger, faster -- and potentially more versatile version of Antwaan Randle El.

The Cowboys will convert the former University of Washington quarterback to wide receiver, and also hope to try him as a punt returner too. Except he's never returned a punt ... not even in high school:

Nevertheless, the Cowboys believe he has the tools to make the transition. Patrick Crayton, the Cowboys' seventh-round pick in 2004, moved from quarterback to wide receiver, and he's No. 3 on the depth chart.

If the NFL has taught us anything, it's that a new idea isn't new for very long. The Steelers made the slash-type players popular when they drafted Kordell Stewart. And now other teams are following suit. Crayton's primarily a pass receiver -- and he's had a relatively smooth transition to the NFL -- but the Cowboys sound like they have bigger plans for Stanback.

NFL scouts think they know him, but they're wrong ...

Isaiah Stanback: senior quarterback, Washington

WHAT NFL SCOUTS ARE SAYING

Pro Football Weekly: Is a truly outstanding athlete. Very fast with the ball in his hands. Better than expected throwing mechanics. Studies the game. Was very inconsistent throwing the ball with many streaks of inaccuracy. Has a great deal of innate ability buy may not be a quarterback at the professional level. As a passer he is far from a lost cause but will require a great deal of individual coaching, refinement and patience.

Street and Smith's: Instinctive. Strong arm; able to make all the throws, including the deep outs and go routes. Able to create if the play breaks down. Shows the ability to lead and manage an offense. Will need to improve footwork and mechanics. Needs to avoid locking on to a primary receiver. Is a special athlete. Improved in accuracy throughout his career.

PROBABLY GETTING DRAFTED ...

Well, the template of on-again/off-again passer athletes has been the fourth round (Michael Robinson, Brad Smith). I'm gonna be bold and say he's a fourth rounder.

GUY WHO WATCHED HIM FOR FOUR YEARS IS SAYING

I like Stanbeck's NFL potential. He's a productive athlete with good size and is a late bloomer as a quarterback. For whatever reason projects like Stanbeck keep making it in the NFL and I think he'll work his way into a solid career.

The question will be whether it's at quarterback or as a returnman/receiver/special teamer. Most teams will probably give him a shot at quarterback but if they're impatient and/or lack many quality athletes by necessity he may end up doing other things. I'd like to think he can stick it as a quarterback after some third string, practice squad or NFL Europe work, but I'm not a coach with a job on the line so I hunch he won't be a quarterback for long. Humbug.

University of Washington quarterback Isaiah Stanback is known for his scrambling ability--drawing comparisons to Ell Roberson and Vince Young--but it's easy to forget that the Husky can throw a mean pass, too. Given the state of the USC Trojans' secondary, the Men of Troy had better watch out for the long ball come Saturday!