Dallas needs a center as much as any other need this offseason including pass rusher, cornerback, safety or guard. The play of the interior offensive line was poor and Phil Costa showed little signs of significant improvement for this upcoming season. In my opinion, Dallas needs a center capable of holding up versus a bull rush from massive tackles, generate a push in the run game and slide in protection to pick up blitzers.
1. Ben Jones from Georgia
2. Peter Konz from Wisconsin
3. Michael Brewster from Ohio State
4. Phillip Blake from Baylor
5. David Snow from Texas
Most draft experts put Konz in the first round and ahead of Jones in their publications which I agree with if we were talking about a zone blocking scheme team across the league. Dallas is mostly a angle scheme and relies more so on winning the individual battle of the man in front of you. In addition, Dallas desperately needs a guy who can hold up versus massive tackles and generate a consistent push in the run game. Those two alone are what pushed Jones ahead of Konz. I just view the kid from Wisconsin as a zone blocking scheme player or teams that want to focus on pass protection first where he excels. Ben Jones is projected to be a top 40 prospect so could be a second round target.
Those are also the reasons Blake from Baylor broke into 4th on my rankings, a underrated player with lots of raw power and is much better in the run game than pass protection. He is limited athletically for a center, will struggle to hit a moving target and must improve his balance to consistently play with the power he's capable of. I can see Blake coming off the board in the 4th or 5th round area.
The next balanced center after Konz is from The Ohio State University, Mike Brewster is more comfortable in pass protection but shows more even skills in the run game to be able to start quickly in the NFL. He is taller than most centers standing 6-5 and can allow defenders to get behind him off the snap with quickness but also has good hand placement to not let tackles get inside his pad level. Brewster figures into my top 100 prospects overall.
Wrapping up the top 5 is former Longhorn David Snow, a experienced versatile lineman who can do lots of things well but nothing great. He will provide depth and versatility getting the job done but will get exposed in one on one match ups with starting tackles especially on the nose. I expect Snow to be available in the 5th to 6th round range.
All in all, there are 3 centers capable of starting in year 1 in the NFL, Jones fits the Cowboys profile best while Konz and Brewster are projected to be much better than what Phil Costa produced for Tony Romo in 2011.
