Jerry Jones thought he was housing a Super Bowl team at Valley Ranch last October. To increase his odds of capturing a sixth Lombardi Trophy for the franchise, Jones acquired Pro Bowl wide receiver Roy Williams from the Detroit Lions at the NFL trade deadline.

The cost was steep. The Lions received the first- and third-round picks of the Cowboys in the 2009 draft in the swap. But it was a price Jones was willing to pay if it meant a trip to his first Super Bowl since the 1995 season.

That trip didn't materialize. The Cowboys collapsed down the stretch, losing three of their last four games to finish out of the playoffs with a 9-7 record. Williams caught only 19 passes for the Cowboys in 10 games and scored a single touchdown.

Now comes the real downside. Jones will lead a contingent of Dallas scouts and coaches to the annual NFL scouting combine this week for their first official viewing of the draft class of 2009.

The NFL has invited 332 top college prospects to Indianapolis for a week of testing, timing and interviewing by its teams. The first round appears loaded, having been pumped up by a sterling junior class.

The Cowboys were supposed to have the 20th pick - but the Lions will instead make that selection. A starting-caliber player awaits Detroit at No. 20. The Lions also have the first choice of the draft.

Forty-four underclassmen have been invited to the combine, and a baker's dozen of them project as first-rounders, including two Dallas-area products - wide receiver Michael Crabtree of Carter and Texas Tech, and quarterback Matthew Stafford of Highland Park and Georgia. Both could be in the top 10.

One NFL talent evaluator put his calculator to the combine list last week and provided a guess on the potential numbers at each position in the first round. He said there could be three quarterbacks, four running backs, five wide receivers, one tight end, seven offensive linemen, seven defensive ends, two defensive tackles, five linebackers and three cornerbacks.

Add it up and it comes to 37 players. There are only 32 picks in the first round. So at the top of this draft, the talent runs deep.

Would the Cowboys have been better off with a Percy Harvin (Florida), Jeremy Maclin (Missouri) or Kenny Britt (Rutgers) with the 20th choice than Williams? If so, the Cowboys would still have their third-round pick to add another young blocker or safety to the 2009 roster.