Dallas Cowboys owner and general manager Jerry Jones has insisted that choosing a quarterback with their first-round pick in the 2014 NFL Draft was never an option.
The Cowboys had been widely linked with a move for Johnny Manziel should the former Texas A&M Aggies star be available with their 16th overall pick, but instead they went for offensive tackle Zack Martin.
Manziel was forced to wait until the 22nd pick to be drafted by the Cleveland Browns, and Jones insisted that he never considered bringing in someone to compete with incumbent quarterback Tony Romo.
"There's no way any quarterback comes in here and beats out Tony Romo. As you well know in here, Romo - by contract as well as by commitment - is going to be the quarterback for the Cowboys for several years to come," Jones told reporters.
"There's no moving around it. I don't care who you draft. The idea of flair, flash, show business, all that kind of thing was never a consideration and we never discussed that type of thing."
Manziel had been tipped to go as high as first overall in the Draft, but that honour went to defensive end Jadeveon Clowney.
Barney Corkhill
