D+
Dallas Cowboys
Sanders is the Cowboys' new face under center. Grade: D+.
by Boke ·
2025 NFL Draft
· 18 picks
· 7 steals
· 6 reaches
The move everyone will second-guess came early. The Cowboys reached some 88 spots for KJ Jefferson, and value like that does not grow back. The board pushed back all weekend, and the D+ is the result.
Henderson at that cost is the sort of edge that compounds over a roster. Overpaying at the table undid a lot of the good work elsewhere.
Whatever Shedeur Sanders becomes, the front office has tied its fortunes to the answer. For all the activity, cornerback went untouched, which is hard to explain.
Add it up and it is a weekend the front office will hope everyone forgets, cornerback very much included.
Pick-by-Pick
In the Round 1 slot they get the arm they will build around. A clean fit for the roster.
In pick 12 they get a load in the middle at fair value. A real need, handled.
Josh Conerly Jr. at the 33rd pick jumps the queue by a touch more than is comfortable. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
Somehow Nick Emmanwori was still sitting there in the 44th overall pick, and they pounced on premier safety value. A minor itch, scratched.
A swing that ignored the value entirely, Jayden Higgins well ahead of where he belonged. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
A real head-scratcher, Jake Majors in pick No. 67 is miles ahead of his ranking. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
The board screamed and they did not listen, reaching into the next round for Jack Nelson. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
Tez Johnson at pick No. 94 is neither steal nor reach, just the going rate. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
Elic Ayomanor at the Round 4 slot is a sensible buy, a touch better than market for the wide receiver. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
They reached into another round for Vernon Broughton, and the board is nowhere close to agreeing. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
A reasonable price with a little left over, Savion Williams in No. 112. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
A top-tier running back at a bargain, TreVeyon Henderson in the 148th overall pick, plain and simple. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
They robbed the room for Smael Mondon Jr. here, a fall nobody at the table saw coming. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
Taking Kobe King in slot 170 is close to grand larceny; a linebacker that good had no business lasting this long. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
They will replay Cam Skattebo at pick No. 173 for years; that is how good the value is. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
Circle this one: Rod Moore at the 186th pick is a fall that decides a draft. A luxury on a unit that was already in good shape.
KJ Jefferson at Round 6, Pick 34 is an overdraft of the loud, memorable kind. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
A linebacker of that caliber at pick 248 is the definition of value, full stop. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.