2014 NFL Draft results: Dallas Cowboys sign Ronald Patrick as free agent

The Dallas Cowboys have picked up South Carolina guard Ronald Patrick via undrafted free agency. The Cowboys get a consistent performer in Patrick, a player who represents South Carolina's success in developing talent in recent years.

Patrick was not considered an elite prospect coming out of Florida in high school, but he worked his way into starting all but a single game at right guard over the past two years, with the game he missed being due to injury. He distinguished himself as a reliable run blocker after moving into the starting lineup, culminating in a 2013 season in which Patrick played a major role in an impressively productive Gamecocks ground attack. He has consistently shown the ability to create holes against interior defenders, and he can also regularly be seen making blocks on the run when the ball carrier gets to the second level. This scout was quite impressed by Patrick's performance in the Central Florida game, when the Gamecocks relied heavily on the ground game in the second half en route to churning out the win.

The Cowboys have invested heavily in building a stronger offensive line over the past couple of seasons, and they continued to do so in this draft by tacking Notre Dame's Zack Martin in the first round. Signing Patrick represents an attempt by the Cowboys to further shore up their line by hopefully finding a diamond in the rough in an underrecognized Gamecocks guard.