How Cowboys' draft pick convinced team to take him with a YouTube video
On April 21st, just days before the 2023 NFL Draft, Eric Scott Jr. made an upload to YouTube that quite literally changed his life. The cornerback out of Southern Missouri and recent Dallas Cowboys' sixth-round draft pick had a tough break during his Pro Day as he ran a 4.71 40-yard dash. Such a time […]
On April 21st, just days before the 2023 NFL Draft, Eric Scott Jr. made an upload to YouTube that quite literally changed his life.
The cornerback out of Southern Missouri and recent Dallas Cowboys' sixth-round draft pick had a tough break during his Pro Day as he ran a 4.71 40-yard dash. Such a time would put him in the 0th percentile among league cornerbacks, which probably was enough reason for him to be taken off multiple boards right away. Not for Will McClay, Cowboys VP of player personnel and de-facto general manager during the NFL Draft. Why?
"We go to (Scott's) Pro Day and he jumps a 39" (vertical jump)" explained McClay to reporters post-draft. "He goes and runs the 40 and he pulls his quad like in the first couple of steps and then he finishes it out. So there were concerns about his speed"
That led to questions but with other information about his speed during the evaluation process, the Cowboys understood the situation. As such, they asked Eric Scott Jr. to send them a video running DB drills to get confirmation on their theory about his 40-time not being accurate.
A 2:39-long video that Scott Jr. uploaded to YouTube was enough for the Cowboys to feel comfortable with where Scott Jr.'s speed was at. Not only did they draft him but they traded for the opening pick of the sixth round to be able to secure their guy. The video still has fewer than three thousand views but all that mattered to Scott Jr. when he hit the upload button was that the Cowboys got their eyes on it.
When you think about it, it's a wild story. After months and months of evaluation what made the final difference for the Cowboys to pull the trigger following an odd Pro Day situation on him was a 159-second clip. And the team got it days before making the pick.
The rest is easy to explain: Cowboys' defensive coordinator likes tall, lengthy cornerbacks and Scott Jr. provides exactly that. The only other two cornerbacks in the class with a longer wingspan were Joey Porter Jr. and Julius Brents, both of whom were drafted within the Top 50 selections.
Drafted at No. 178 overall, Scott Jr. will have to work for his length to translate into high-caliber performance. He'll need it to make the cut in what's one of the deepest defensive back rooms in recent Cowboys history.
