Even though the Cowboys had a rookie-of-the-year running back named Calvin Hill returning in 1970, Dallas went for another back in the first round of the 1970 draft. The pick was an enigmatic soul named Duane Thomas.The Cowboys have had their share of characters during the team's history, but nobody matches Thomas in terms of bizarre behavior. Nevertheless, Thomas was instrumental in the Cowboys finally climbing the NFL mountain, so his selection was important.
Besides Thomas, the Cowboys picked up long-time starters in Charlie Waters, John Fitzgerald, Mark Washington, and Pat Toomay.
The most interesting pick was perhaps Zenon Andrusyshyn. After the Cowboys drafted him, he spent eight seasons in the Canadian Football League before joining the Kansas City Chiefs in 1978. He returned to the CFL in 1979, then played in the USFL for three seasons. He finished his career after playing in Montreal in 1986. He has his own Wikipedia entry.
Margene Adkins was another CFL player, only he played in Canada prior to the Cowboys selecting him.
Round Name Pos. College Career 1 Duane Thomas RB West Texas A&M Dallas, 1970-71; San Diego, 1972; Washington, 1973-74 2 Bob Asher T Vanderbilt Dallas, 1970; Chicago, 1972-1975 2 Margene Adkins WR Trinity Valley Community College Dallas, 1970-71; New Orleans, 1972; New York Jets, 1973 3 Charlie Waters DB Clemson Dallas 1970-81 3 Steve Kiner LB Tennessee Dallas 1970; New England, 1971, 1973; Houston, 1974-1978 3 Denton Fox DB Texas Tech n/a 4 John Fitzgerald C Boston College Dallas, 1971-1980 6 Pat Toomay DE Vanderbilt Dallas, 1970-74; Buffalo, 1975; Tampa Bay, 1976; Oakland, 1977-79 7 Don Abbey LB Penn State n/a 8 Jerry Dossey G Arkansas n/a 9 Zenon Andrusyshyn P UCLA Kansas City, 1978 10 Pete Athas DB Tennessee New York Giants, 1971-1974; Cleveland, 1975; Minnesota, 1975; New Orleans, 1976 11 Ivan Southerland T Clemson n/a 12 Joe Williams RB Wyoming Dallas, 1971; New Orleans, 1972 13 Mark Washington DB Morgan State Dallas, 1970-1978; New England, 1979 14 Julian Martin WR North Carolina Central n/a 15 Ken DeLong TE Tennessee n/a 16 Seabern Hill HB Arizona State n/a 17 Glenn Peterson C Nebraska n/a
Grade the 1970 Cowboys Draft
My Vote: A-
This was a solid draft. The Cowboys missed out on Mel Blount (3rd round, Pittsburgh) and Jake Scott (7th round, Miami), but Dallas had more hits in the 1970 draft than in several of the previous drafts of the 1960s.
A Big Acquisition
One of the biggest acquisitions of the 1970 offseason was not through the draft. The Cowboys traded center Malcom Walker and DE Clarence Williams for future Hall of Famer Herb Adderley, who improved the Dallas secondary immediately.
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