Year in and year out, the Cowboys take great pride in their ability to bring in high-upside undrafted free agents, citing Tony Romo, Miles Austin and Stephen Bowen as recent examples.
This spring, the rookie free agent who has garnered the most interest is Memphis guard Ronald Leary, a guy the Cowboys had a third-round grade on, but would've only taken in the sixth round or later because of concerns about his knee.
Most seasons, though, the Cowboys wind up keeping multiple undrafted rookies. In 2011 alone there were seven such players who spent time on the roster, some playing key roles - kicker Dan Bailey, punter Chris Jones, receiver Andre Holmes, safety Mana Silva, linebacker Alex Albright, offensive lineman Kevin Kowalski and running back Phillip Tanner.
In other words, it would be wrong to ignore the entirety of this year's crop of undrafted talent.
Over on Audibles, the SI.com NFL blog, there's a rundown of each team's undrafted players to watch. Leary isn't mentioned for the Cowboys, but another offensive lineman is: tackle Jeff Adams of Columbia.
With only one reserve tackle seemingly entrenched, Jermey Parnell, the Cowboys could certainly be on the lookout for another edge blocker. Adams will compete with Oklahoma State's Levy Adcock and Taylor Dever of Notre Dame to be that guy. Here's what the blog had to say about the Cowboys' new Ivy-Leaguer:
*"Adams stands 6-foot-6 and 300 pounds, so with a little bulking up, he could be an ideal left tackle candidate. He had a solid week at the East-West Shrine Game, too. The change in competition level will be one of his biggest challenges."
*Audibles also names pass-rusher Adrian Hamilton of Prarie View A&M and running back Darrell Scott of South Florida as players to watch.
A few more guys to keep an eye on, from a closer perspective: wide receivers Cole Beasley of SMU and Saalim Hakim of Tarleton State, running back Lance Dunbar of North Texas, cornerback Lionel Smith of Texas A&M and free safety Eddie Whitley of Virginia Tech.
