With the 28th selection in the 2017 NFL Draft, the Dallas Cowboys decided to take Taco Charlton, a defensive end out of Michigan. It wasn’t a huge surprise that the Cowboys took a pass rusher at that spot, but who they decided to take was.
Despite having all of the measurables and athleticism to play either the left or right defensive end spot in a 4-3 defense, Charlton was viewed by many draft analysts as a second round talent. It wasn’t a huge stretch for the Cowboys to draft Charlton 28th overall, but nearly everybody agreed that it would take time for him to develop.
Through the first four weeks of the 2017 season, Taco Charlton has been active every game, but has yet to make much of an impact. In fact, he has been virtually invisible. That is why I think it might just be time for the Dallas Cowboys coaching staff to switch things up and reverse the roles of Taco Charlton and Charles Tapper.
Charles Tapper has been inactive these last two games against the Los Angeles Rams and Arizona Cardinals, but it’s time for that to change. Taco Charlton simply isn’t ready yet and hopefully just needs more time to develop. Of course, there is always the possibility that he is a bust, which means the Cowboys wasted their 2017 first-round draft pick.
Unfortunately, Taco Charlton hasn’t been effective so far this season. He has played a total of 101 defensive snaps and just 1 snap on special teams. He has only been able to register 3 total tackles in that time and hasn’t been able to put hardly any pressure on opposing QBs. That’s not the kind of productivity the Cowboys thought they were getting by drafting him 28th overall.
Charles Tapper on the other hand seems to have been much more effective in the short amount of time he has been on the field. He has just 37 defensive snaps in two games, but has just as many tackles as Charlton (3) and a quarterback sack. He can also play special teams and already has more special teams snaps than Charlton (9). To me, that indicates that Tapper is much more productive at this point in his career than the Cowboys rookie DE.
Based on their pre-draft workouts, Tapper is clearly the more athletic/explosive player. Tapper and Charlton both weighed in around 270 pounds, but Tapper ran a 4.59 40 yard dash compared to Charlton’s 4.92. The rest of their measurables/workout numbers are similar, except Charlton has a 3 inch height advantage over Tapper.
The height advantage doesn’t really mean much though. Sometimes being the taller player can be a disadvantage. It’s all about keeping offensive lineman from getting into their bodies, so arm length is usually the more important attribute. In that regard, both Charlton (34 1/4) and Tapper (34 3/8) are very similar.
If you keep all of that in mind, Charles Tapper seems to be the better of the two defensive ends. He has been in the strength and conditioning program for a year and was able to drop his weight to around the 255 range, making him much more explosive. But, for some reason the coaching staff continued to stick with an ineffective Taco Charlton, likely due to his draft pedigree.
Maybe this is the week we see a change. The Dallas Cowboys certainly need all the help they can get with their pass rush, especially considering the Green Bay Packers are up next on the schedule. If nothing else, it would be good to get more tape on Charles Tapper so that they can evaluate him more during the bye week.
Yes it is time to see what Charles Tapper can do. Hopefully Charlton just needs time to improve and doesn’t turn out to be a bust. They already have a wasted high pick in DE Randy Gregory. I read that he has failed yet another drug test and doesn’t seem to be to concerned about ever playing football again. I said when he got suspended for a year that it was time to cut Gregory loose and move on, now maybe they will quit wasting their time on this loser and do just that
Don’t get me started Randy Gregory pick ha ha. I was extremely disappointed in that selection. I really wanted Frank Clark with that pick and every time I see him making plays with the Seahawks, I just relive that disappointment. But yes, I’m ready to see what Charles Tapper can do. He’s arguably the most athletic DE the Cowboys have on the roster.
He is basically a rookie this year got see what Tapper can do at this point.
Especially this week. That way there is more game film of Tapper so the coaching staff can better evaluate him during the bye week.
It’s been time to play Tapper.we need the best players on the field regardless of draft position.
I completely agree. Unfortunately I just saw that Tapper is on crutches and could miss an extended period of time. Could be a player the Cowboys put on IR and designate him to return in a few weeks. That would free up a spot for David Irving.
Just think we passed on Watt for Taco. When the League goes Zig the Cowboys love going Zag. We always go against the popular vote.We never should have drafted Taco
The ceiling for Charlton is much higher than Watt. The Cowboys drafted Charlton for the long-term. Watt has been better so far, but there’s no way of telling who will be the better of the two when all is said and done. We’re just going have to be patient with Taco while he continues to develop.
Poorly written article. No editor to catch the multiple errors? And just like that, this is no longer an option with Tapper on IR
I appreciate you critiquing the article. Even with proofreading errors sometimes slip through the cracks unfortunately. Hopefully they are all corrected now to your satisfaction. And yes, it looks as if I jinxed Charles Tapper by complementing him. But, I still believe he is better than Taco Charlton at this point in their careers.
I promise I’m not a troll. I just have an expectation that a published article is properly edited (I teach English). And I agree. I wanted to see Tapper out there. Play time should be decided by performance.
No worries. These things happen sometimes. I use a voice activated program (Dragon NaturallySpeaking) to type because of my disability and it a lot of times it has a mind of its own. I try to correct my mistakes though. I don’t mind being called out LOL.
Unfortunately, it looks as if my article jinxed Charles Tapper. He is now headed to IR with what looks to be a broken fifth metacarpal bone in his foot.
Metatarsal* I believe. Metacarpals are in the hand. Blame that one on Dragon NS, Brian haha