How the Cowboys will draft. Where the Cowboys should draft. Zack Baun is no Clay Matthews. Jalen Reagor, Grant Delpit or AJ Terrell?
The Dallas Cowboys have a particular set of skills. Skills that would make them a nightmare… Oh wait, wrong script. The Cowboys haven’t been a nightmare for opponents in a long time, but they have taken up a perch of being one of the better drafting teams over the last decade. The problem is, the haven’t augmented the draft hauls with talent from the outside and have constantly had to plug holes on incomplete rosters.
For better or worse, trends and tells have developed into how the club does their business come draft time. Will these hold true now that Mike McCarthy has taken the coaching reigns from Jason Garrett? Elsewhere a look at projecting edge rushers, candidates for No. 17 that aren’t named Kinlaw or Henderson and a redo of the famous 2011 draft class features five players who have made their way through Dallas.
If the Dallas front office retains control of the draft process with Mike McCarthy in his first year and most teams having to rely on process during the national shutdown, here’s the tried and true bible of how the Cowboys have operated the last decade. The 10 rules they follow in sizing up prospects.
Patrik Walker goes on a deep dive into the makeup of the Cowboys roster and free agent decisions, showing how the additions of Dontari Poe, Gerald McCoy, Greg Zeurlein and Ha Ha Clinton-Dix address the biggest issues with Jason Garrett’s team-building philosophy.
Walker also identifies how the Cowboys can come out of draft weekend smelling like roses with a five-point checklist of what they need to accomplish. Get a corner, get a DE, get a WR, get a safety, get a LB; anything else is gravy.
One of the most revealing metrics in the draft world, SackSeer takes into account a prospects projected round, explosion index, production ratio, passed batted down and medical history. It agrees, this is a weak DE class beyond Chase Young, likes Curtis Weaver in the middle rounds and warns against those who think Zack Baun is the next Clay Matthews.
Reagor is an intriguing speed demon with route-running prowess who may surprise how high he goes in the draft, and lets on that the Cowboys have been in contact. A lot. A look at what he brings to the table.
It’s a slideshow, but here you go. #28 Aldon Smith, #26 Randall Cobb, #11 Robert Quinn, #5 Tyron Smith.
This article is info from a Dane Brugler podcast where he gets into the team’s wants and desires.
“Dallas at No. 17 is really interesting, because they want [LSU pass rusher] K’Lavon Chaisson, but I don’t think he’s going to be there” Brugler said. “They want [Florida cornerback] CJ Henderson. I don’t think he’s going to be there. The next few options you’re looking at — I know they’ve got a pretty good grade on [Trevon] Diggs, and I know they like AJ Terrell. So, which one’s going to be available for them? “
A composite big board that combines the Top 100 of six major big boards into one, giving an overview on how the draft community sees this year’s class. Keep in hand for draft weekend.
Cowboys get a safety.
17. DALLAS COWBOYS — S GRANT DELPIT, LSU
This is an example of not drafting for just this season, as the Cowboys have four-fifths of their projecting starting secondary in the last year of their respective contracts. Delpit is rangy when lined up as a deep safety, and he can cover tight ends in man — something that is extremely useful when going up against the Eagles and Giants in the NFC East. His 36 missed tackles over the past two years are an obvious concern, but few safeties in the draft can make an impact on the back end like Delpit.
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