Bryan McCann: Undrafted Free Agent Changing Cowboys' Fortune

Since the football program at Southern Methodist University was handed the “death penalty” in 1987, few players have entered the NFL after playing for the Mustangs.

A program once rich in tradition, bowl game appearances, and different home fields for it’s games in Dallas, SMU is a long, long ways from the “Pony Express” era. Not since Eric Dickerson and Craig James loaded the Mustang’s backfield has there been anybody not named Jerry Ball to make a Pro Bowl in the NFL.

If any team in the NFL would know a thing or two about the talent available at Southern Methodist, it would be the Dallas Cowboys.

Over the past two weeks it has become more and more apparent that they might have really done their homework on a particular undrafted free agent rookie who, in addition to making a name for himself as a pro defensive back, may have changed the course of the Cowboys' 2010 season.

Granted, Dallas will have a very difficult time qualifying for the post season this year. Even the most optimistic of fans or analysts around the country realize that their chances of making the playoffs are razor thin at best. But in just the last two weeks a season of completely wrecked expectations has shown signs of hope.

Just over a week ago in New York the Cowboys found themselves in a similar place to the one they were in about a month ago in their first game against the Giants in Arlington.  They had a small lead fueled by a few big plays but still had not capitalized enough to start pulling away from their NFC East rival.

Instead of unraveling at the seams as they did in Week 7, a strange thing happened. Leading only 9-3 midway through the second quarter despite having outplayed New York, the Giants were poised to take the lead after only one significant drive in the contest on third and goal from the two yard line.

Enter Bryan McCann.

If you watched the game you know what happened. If not, the video included tells the story. For a team that has found a cascade of creative ways to shift momentum to the opposition in recent years, McCann’s 101-yard interception return for a touchdown was literally a shocker.

Only watching this game to see how meaningless interim head coach Jason Garrett’s presence would really be, even my reaction was delayed—if not stifled—because I had too much time to expect something to go wrong.

There had to be a penalty, right? How about a personal foul? And if not one of those, certainly an illegal block in the back.

After finally reacting to the play as McCann scampered into the end zone, I then held back again saying out loud “don’t fall down” and just held my breath as Anthony Spencer came up to McCann from behind hoping to God he wouldn’t leap-frog the little guy.

Instead of 10-7 Giants, the score was 16-3 Dallas. New York never recovered and it’s five game winning streak was snapped. Final score: Dallas 33, New York 20.

Show me once and it’s impressive. Show me twice and we may have a trend.

On Sunday, still winless at home, Dallas played host to Detroit, an equally struggling 2-7 team without it’s starting quarterback.  After a tepid and typically boring offensive showing in the first half, the Cowboys were again flirting with more embarrassment.

A holding penalty in the end zone early in the third quarter had put the Lions up 12-7 with the chance to start pulling away towards their third win. Despite more penalty issues and big momentum changers going the wrong way, another strange thing happened.

After forcing a Detroit punt on the Lion’s ensuing possession, punter Nick Harris dropped what seemed like his fifteenth punt inside the Dallas ten. But instead of batting the ball to a fellow Lions’ team mate forcing horrible field position for the Cowboys yet again, John Wendling batted the ball to McCann at the 3 yard line—97 yards later Dallas was back on top 14-12 and the Cowboys never really looked back. Final score: Dallas 35, Detroit 19.

Now, two monster plays in as many weeks does not a Hall Of Fame career make.

Cowboys’ fans have seen flash in the pan type performances from a number of guys going all the way back to Clint Longley in 1974. But so far McCann has at least two flashes in the pan and he might very well have more than that to offer.

We know this much about McCann: he knows what his job is supposed to be and he is fully aware of the situation.

From a special teams standpoint, we could not say the same about Leon Lett, could we? McCann realized that the ball was a risk free fumble that could do no harm whatsoever, kind of like a quarterback taking a deep shot when the flag has already been thrown for an obvious off sides violation. Even if that pass is picked off or just incomplete, it is coming back with a 5 yard bonus attached.

So who is this Bryan McCann anyway? To start with, it might say something that he is said to have turned down offers to plat at higher profile schools such as Stanford, Texas Tech, and Oklahoma State to name a few. I cannot say why he chose SMU but then again I have never interviewed him. Perhaps education, the primary reason one should go to college in the first place, spoke louder than potential millions on a possible career in the NFL. Assuming this is the case, this speaks volumes about McCann’s priorities and overall intelligence.

McCann was an All-Freshman Conference USA pick after appearing in 11 games in 2006, starting the last four. As we see right now in McCann’s “freshman” year in the NFL, McCann seems to adapt quickly to the next level of competition.

He tallied 38 tackles and four pass breakups as a freshman and thing only went upwards from there. He would total 10 interceptions over his final three years at SMU—this on teams that really were not very good. McCann’s sophomore year saw the Mustangs go just 1-11.

No other team he played on was better than .500 until his senior year when SMU went 8-5. So it’s safe to suggest that McCann knows how to stick with it, especially when things go bad. Do the 2010 Dallas Cowboys need a guy like that or what?

Spending some time at safety in college, McCann had to make tackles and did so, especially on defenses that typically allowed opposing running backs to reach the second level.

In the 2007 season opener he recorded 9 tackles in a 49-9 loss to Texas Tech. This has to take some resolve and determination that not all players possess. Further, it has taught McCann to know how to pursue the ball carrier seeing as he’s had to do it many times. His interceptions may not illustrate “Deion Sanders shutdown ability” but they do show that McCann is smart and knows where he’s supposed to be.

So time will tell what happens with this rookie out of SMU who has literally changed the fortunes for the Dallas Cowboys; even if those fortunes are the difference between 3-7 and 1-9 in 2010 thus far. Maybe he ends up a starter in a season or two, or maybe he simply ends up a situational energizer like Kenneth Gant was back in the early 1990’s.

For a guy who was initially cut by the Cowboys following his first training camp in early September, claimed off waivers by Baltimore, cut again after just one inactive game, and then finally brought back in by the Cowboys, you have to like McCann’s no-quit attitude and playmaking ability.    

Finally, one can point to McCann’s fumbled kick-off return at Green Bay which essentially put that game out of reach for Dallas—as though it wasn’t already. But the combination of both better officiating and a smarter head coach who wouldn't have wasted his challenges too early is why that play happened. Replay clearly showed that McCann was down and should have ruled as such.