Well, at least we know that the Cowboys are more fond of Tyrone Novikoff than they are of Taylor Dever. dallas made a eyebrow-raising move late last week, releasing UDFA OT Dever to resign castoff Pat McQuistan. McQuistan was with the team during the Bill Parcells era but never amounted to much. In fact, he didn't perform all that greatly during stops in Miami or New Orleans over the past two seasons so one could look at his return as an endictment on the young pups that are currently competing for spots along the line. In the case of Novikoff, at least he wasn't the low man on the totem pole.
Standing almost 6'7" and weighing 316 lbs, Novikoff comes from the University of Idaho. He started 25 consecutive games and played in 46 over his four-year career with the Vandals. He was invited to play in the Players All-Star Classic after the 2011 season he spent as a team captain; a trait that the Cowboys have come to appreciate over the Jason Garrett era.
There haven't been many reports of his performance in either the rookie minicamps or the OTAs, as linemen rarely get the chance to show their abilities until the full contact of training camp. For now, at least he knows that the brass saw more in him than one of his competitors as he wasn't the first man on the chopping block. Novikoff also has the ability to play at the guard position; which won't hurt him considering the problems the interior of the line had for Dallas last season. With only three known quantities at the tackle position (refusing to count McQuistan) in Tyron Smith, Doug Free and Jeremy Parnell, Tyrone Novikoff has the opportunity in front of him. What will he make of it?