The NFL Scouting Combine has wrapped up and the Dallas Cowboys coaching staff and scouts seemed to take full advantage of the opportunities to meet with possible draft fits come April. The club had to be strategic, with teams now limited to just 45 18-minute interviews.
One of the players the Cowboys have met with was LSU safety Grant Delpit. Delpit has been shipped to the Cowboys in the first round of many mock drafts, due to the fact Dallas needs help in the secondary.
The Cowboys meeting with Delpit was productive according to USA Today’s Jori Epstein.
Cowboys' meeting with LSU safety Grant Delpit went well, per source. Team needs to upgrade its secondary, likes college football's top DB.
— Jori Epstein (@JoriEpstein) March 1, 2020
During Delpit’s three-year career at LSU he helped bring a National Championship to Baton Rouge, he totaled 120 tackles, eight interceptions and forced two fumbles. But many seem to still be questioning his ability to do what a safety is expected to do and that’s being a consistent tackler.
“That’s definitely a thing I had to improve on from last year. I got it fixed toward the end of the season. It’s all about the approach and not trying to do too much, just getting ’em on the ground. It’s a part of football, and I know I can do it,” Delpit said when speaking to the media on Friday in Indianapolis. “I’ve been doing it my whole life.”
The projected first-round pick did not participate in any of the combine drills due to him recovering from an ankle injury, which he played on during his junior season at LSU. But according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, Delpit is will participate in drills during LSU’s Pro Day on April 3.
#LSU highly regarded S Grant Delpit, who played on an injured ankle this season, is here is Indy for Combine medicals and meetings and he’s close to full-go, source said. He’ll be full throttle for drills at LSU Pro Day on April 3.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) February 25, 2020
The Cowboys need help on the defensive side of the ball, especially in the back end. Delpit has been mocked to Dallas in many of them, but so has Alabama safety Xavier McKinney. Delpit spoke Friday on why he thinks he should be the first safety drafted in April.
“I honestly think I’m the best safety in this draft without a doubt. Most versatile player, put me anywhere in the secondary, and I’m gonna play it. Make plays all over the field. Natural leader on the field,” Delpit said at the combine Friday. “I definitely think I’m the right choice, but it’s a team preference.”
The last time the Cowboys drafted a pure safety in the first-round was all the way back during the 2002 NFL Draft, when they selected Roy Williams.
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