The true value of Isaac Alarcon continues to be misunderstood.
Alarcon has represented a "project'' on the Dallas Cowboys roster since coming to The Star after having played for the Mexican National Team as well as in college in his native Monterrey, Mexico.
And now his "move'' to Frisco is being followed by a "move'' of another sort, as he is switching from being an offensive lineman to being a defensive lineman.
The club announced the change on Monday, saying that the 24-year-old did some impressive work on that side of the ball while helping out on the scout team last season.
Said Cowboys personnel boss Will McClay via DallasCowboys.com: "Issac is a big, strong and athletic player and has physical skill set to play offensive line or defensive line. He did some things on scout team defense toward the end of the season that opened defensive coaches eyes to give him a serious look on defense. His time working with (the O-line) will also give him an understanding about what they are trying to do to him on defense."
Much of that is true. But Alarcon has a deeper presence here. He was allocated to the Cowboys in 2020 as part of the NFL’s International Player Pathway Program, certainly a program fueled in part by a search for talent ... but more, fueled by the NFL's desire to grow its world-wide fan base.
Simply said: Put a Mexican-born player in a Cowboys uniform and watch the marketing and sales benefits roll in.
It is no insult to Alarcon for us to note that even at 6-6 and 316, his chances of actually developing to the point of becoming a 53-man-roster rotational player in regular-season games are slim. (It's actually a compliment to his ability to represent with class and distinction something even bigger than that.) As proof of that, we remind Cowboys Nation that under the International Player Pathway program, the foreign-born athlete is only allowed to be with a team for two years.
Going into 2022, the Cowboys were granted a one-year roster exemption; the NFL broke its own rule just for Issac - something that the other NFL teams would've protested, except for ...
The aforementioned marketing and sales benefits.
We've had this conversation with Alarcon. He is well-aware of his dual purpose here, to be both a symbol (and maybe eventually a leader) in Mexico and now, to chance a dream from the other side of the line of scrimmage. ... going from helping Tyron Smith and Tyler Smith block the likes of Micah Parsons to helping Parsons put the scout-team rush on Dak Prescott.
More must-reads: