Since Thursday's buzzy item will be whether or not the Cowboys pull the trigger to select any of the eight players available in the Supplemental Draft, including Baylor wide receiver Josh Gordon, it's worth noting the team's history in this annual silent auction for talent.
The Supplemental Draft turns 35 this year, having begun in 1977. The Cowboys were silent for the first 12 years of the process - though they did select three players in 1985's Supplemental Draft for USFL talent.
Finally, in 1989, they used a first-round pick to select Miami quarterback Steve Walsh, who had played for Jimmy Johnson in college, this despite having already taken Troy Aikman first overall a few months earlier. Walsh ultimately played in nine games for the Cowboys before being traded to New Orleans in 1990.
Though the team recouped a package of three picks for Walsh, they only used one of them for themselves, selecting offensive tackle Erik Williams in the third round of the 1991 draft. And though Williams was a great player, the Cowboys forfeited what would've been the first overall pick in 1990.
Quarterback Jeff George was the top pick for Indianapolis in 1990. The Cowboys would've also had a choice of Penn State running back Blair Thomas and Miami defensive tackle Cortez Kennedy - perhaps their would-be pick given Johnson's proclivity for taking players he was fond of from the Hurricanes program. The late Junior Seau, who went fifth overall to San Diego after a standout career at USC, was also said to be high on the Cowboys' 1990 draft board.
The 1989 Supplemental Draft also saw the Cowboys picking Coffeville (Kan.) Junior College running back Mike Lowman in the 12th round, but he did not make the team.
In the fifth round of the 1994 Supplemental Draft, the Cowboys selected Emporia State tight end John Davis, who never played a game for the team, but went on to a six-year career with the Buccaneers, Vikings and Bears.
A year later, defensive lineman Darren Benson of Trinity Valley (Texas) Community College was the Cowboys' Supplemental pick in Round 3. He played only 12 games with the team, accumulating five tackles, and is most famous for retiring to go into the roofing business.
Evidently soured by their run of poor luck in the Supplemental Draft, the Cowboys didn't go to that well again until 2010, when Illinois defensive lineman Josh Brent was the pick in Round 7.
He enters 2012 as the favorite to remain Jay Ratliff's backup at nose tackle.
