Smiley N. Pool/The Dallas Morning News –
Dallas Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett, owner Jerry Jones and his son, executive vice president Stephen Jones, watch the 2015 NFL draft unfold from the team’s “War Room” at their training facility at Valley Ranch.
Unless you’re an avid follower of the NFL draft (and not just in the hopes of getting a first round pick for your fantasy team), the notion of a war room might be a foreign, but intriguing concept. A war room is essentially a glorified conference room where NFL scouts, respective coaches, managers and CEO’s discuss the top prospects for the upcoming season over copious amounts of caffeine. For this team, the season never ends.
In light of their less than impressive season, the Dallas Cowboys recently unveiled their plans for an updated war room in their new headquarters, The Ford Center at The Star in Frisco. The new room is not only attracting attention for its flashy, state of the art design, but also its accessibility to the public. Fans will be able to access past draft books that contain notes on some of the greats like Troy Aikman and Emmitt Smith. Fans will also be able to view a live draft book containing live video and player evaluations.
Working with AT&T, the Cowboys’ technologically advanced system allows the franchise to effectively and efficiently compare players for the draft. In addition to becoming more organized on player selections, the new war room acts as a liaison between the fan and the draft, creating a personal experience for those outside the room.
The new war room boasts some highly impressive technology in the sleek new 40 by 30 foot room. This includes a 20 by 7 foot interactive video wall with touch-screen capabilities, two 98-inch multi-touch displays for side-by-side comparisons of players, the ability to stream up to 16 different video feeds of players, and six secure phone lines for communication during the draft.
Top executives in the franchise seem to have more on their mind than just discussing the next tight end for their team. The new war room is also a potentially lucrative business endeavor. The Cowboys were the first team to open up a war room in past seasons to cameras and expect interest in this new war room to be high. The room will even be included in tours of The Star.
“Late on a Friday night in August, somebody may be in there having their draft party,” Jerry Jones Jr., Cowboys’ chief sales and marketing officer and executive vice president said to the Dallas Morning news. From draft parties to corporate events, the Cowboy’s war room isn’t limiting itself to solely draft time use.
Whether the new war room will actually help the Cowboys’ game in the future or is just a pricey new showpiece remains to be seen, but the franchise is optimistic about its promise. “We believe with how the NFL draft is covered now that this is really the inside look,” said Jones Jr., “We’ve gone to a lot of effort not only to maximize the technology allowing us to perform more effectively. But it is also about entertainment, it’s about our fans touching and feeling us in a certain way.”
The new war room in Frisco will not be in place for the upcoming draft but will be used for next year’s 2017 draft.
