F
Dallas Cowboys
The Hatten reach set a tone the Cowboys could not shake: F.
by jerrysux ·
2024 NFL Draft
· 41 picks
· 8 steals
· 20 reaches
The Hayden Hatten pick is the one that will follow the Cowboys into the fall. They took him 124 spots ahead of his grade, and the board is not shy about saying so. A weekend to file away and forget, and an F to match.
They handed away value on the phones that the picks cannot earn back. Whatever else happened, they won the night they took Murphy.
They are betting the present roster is worth a lighter draft next spring.
In the end, a class that has to defy its grades just to matter.
Pick-by-Pick
In the 10th overall pick they get a cornerstone up front. It fills the loudest need on the roster.
In the 18th pick they get a building block for the line at fair value. The biggest hole, addressed.
In the Round 1 slot they get a pocket-collapsing interior rusher. A real need, handled.
In No. 30 they get a wrecking ball inside, reach and all. A clean fit for the roster.
A market-rate wide receiver, with the board and the slot shaking hands on Xavier Legette. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
By-the-book stuff, Darius Robinson at pick 36 squarely in line with his ranking. Not urgent, but hardly pointless.
A straight-up fair deal on Cooper Beebe at slot 40, value and slot in agreement. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
A wild overpay on Sedrick Van Pran in pick No. 49, the sort that defines a class for the wrong reasons. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
Steal is underselling it; Ja'Tavion Sanders at Round 2, Pick 24 is a heist with the alarm still ringing. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
A reasonable price with a little left over, Jermaine Burton in pick 62. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
Jeremiah Trotter Jr. in the Round 3 slot is fair value, right on his grade. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
Jaylen Wright in No. 72 is exactly on the number, no argument either way. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
Somehow DJ James was still sitting there in the 78th pick, and they pounced on premier cornerback value. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
They took Brandon Dorlus at par in the 80th overall pick, which is nothing to complain about. A want dressed up as a pick, at a spot they had covered.
A slide stopped in pick No. 81, with Kiran Amegadjie worth more than the price. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
Spencer Rattler at slot 83 is a steep price for a hunch, hard to square with any board. A need, and now a little less of one.
No drama and no debate, Jonah Elliss went about where he belonged in pick 87. It is more luxury than necessity; they were already set here.
A big swing on Javon Solomon at the 89th overall pick, well ahead of any board in the building. This was not a hole anyone had circled.
They talked themselves into Tyler Davis at Round 3, Pick 29, and the board did not agree. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
Mohamed Kamara at No. 94 is the kind of overdraft that needs everything to break right. Stacking talent where they were already deep.
They reached a country mile for Justin Eboigbe at the Round 3 slot, and the board is aghast. Depth on depth, at a spot that was hardly crying out.
The board screamed and they did not listen, reaching into the next round for Jared Wiley. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
They reached into another round for Khristian Boyd, and the board is nowhere close to agreeing. They added to a strength when a need was still open elsewhere.
Isaiah Davis in the Round 5 slot is the kind of reach that only looks good if he outplays it. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
A premium they did not need to pay, Marcus Harris a notch or two before his time. They doubled down on a strength rather than a need.
They paid sticker price for Jalyx Hunt in slot 147, and that is fine. A luxury on a unit that was already in good shape.
A real head-scratcher, Ryan Flournoy in No. 154 is miles ahead of his ranking. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
Nathaniel Watson in the 155th pick is a reach so steep the board needed a second look to believe it. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
They let Mason McCormick come to them and pounced at Round 5, Pick 24. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
Value with a capital V on Brennan Jackson in pick No. 163, a genuine coup. A want more than a need, though you can never have too many.
Nice patience on Dwight McGlothern, who had no business lasting to No. 174. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
Michael Barrett in the 196th overall pick is a bet on their own eyes over everyone else's grade. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
A swing that ignored the value entirely, Hayden Hatten well ahead of where he belonged. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
Jaylen Harrell at the Round 6 slot is neither steal nor reach, just the going rate. Nice player, but the depth chart did not need him here.
Richard Jibunor at slot 209 is the pick scouts circle, and not in a good way. A pick in search of a role on this roster.
Matthew Jones at pick No. 216 is an overdraft of the loud, memorable kind. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
Value said wait; Josiah Ezirim in pick 218 says they were not listening. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
Grayson Murphy in the 219th pick is a gift, value that borders on unfair. Insurance at a position that did not really ask for it.
Steele Chambers at pick No. 233 is the steal of the weekend, a first-round talent at a bargain-bin price. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
They went early on Jalen Coker in pick 244, and the value did not follow. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
They left a pile of value on the table to take Mason Fairchild this early at No. 245. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.