D
Dallas Cowboys
The Cowboys bet the future on Daniels. The board says D.
by GRUMPY ·
2024 NFL Draft
· 23 picks
· 5 steals
· 10 reaches
The Cowboys put a flag in the ground for Ben Sinnott, 39 picks before anyone else would have, and the value took the hit.
The trades bled value they could not afford to lose. So much rides on Jayden Daniels that the rest of the class almost grades on a curve behind him.
The James pick alone nudges the whole weekend up a notch. Stockpiling next year's capital is patient, if unglamorous, asset work.
Bottom line, they will need several of these picks to beat their grades just to break even.
Pick-by-Pick
In the 8th pick they get a long-term answer under center at fair value. A real need, handled.
They let Dallas Turner come to them and pounced at Round 1, Pick 24. A minor need, but a need all the same.
Jackson Powers-Johnson at the Round 1 slot is a steep price for a hunch, hard to square with any board. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
They reached into another round for T'Vondre Sweat, and the board is nowhere close to agreeing. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
Edgerrin Cooper in pick No. 43 is the kind of reach that only looks good if he outplays it. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
They jumped the gun on Ricky Pearsall, taking him earlier than his grade liked. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
Good things come to war rooms that wait, and Kingsley Suamataia at the 66th overall pick is the proof. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
Cooper Beebe in Round 3, Pick 6 is fair value, right on his grade. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
The board had Jonathon Brooks higher than pick No. 71, and the running back fell to them anyway. It fills a real need, too.
No edge and no loss on Maason Smith in slot 87; it is a wash and a sensible one. Need-wise, a curious use of the pick.
A big swing on Leonard Taylor III at No. 90, well ahead of any board in the building. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
A reach for Darius Robinson in the Round 4 slot; a little patience would have been rewarded. A luxury on a unit that was already in good shape.
They talked themselves into Ben Sinnott at the 106th pick, and the board did not agree. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
Tommy Eichenberg in pick 125 is exactly on the number, no argument either way. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
Circle this one: DJ James at the 140th pick is a fall that decides a draft. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
No drama and no debate, Jaylen Wright went about where he belonged in No. 155. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
By-the-book stuff, Michael Barrett at the Round 6 slot squarely in line with his ranking. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
A premium they did not need to pay, Christian Jones a notch or two before his time. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
They robbed the room for Josh Proctor here, a fall nobody at the table saw coming. It thickens a room that could stand to be thicker.
They paid sticker price for Jase McClellan in slot 223, and that is fine. A sensible fit that makes the depth chart a little sturdier.
Marcus Harris in the 224th overall pick is a bet on their own eyes over everyone else's grade. They doubled down on a strength rather than a need.
They took Nathaniel Watson at par in pick No. 242, which is nothing to complain about. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
Dwight McGlothern at pick No. 256 jumps the queue by a touch more than is comfortable. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.