D+
Dallas Cowboys
The Cowboys let Spears-Jennings fall and pounced. Final grade: D+.
by wreeder36 ·
2025 NFL Draft
· 21 picks
· 14 steals
· 2 reaches
The move everyone will second-guess came early. The Cowboys reached some 61 spots for Thor Griffith, and value like that does not grow back.
If one pick saves this weekend, it is Spears-Jennings. Overpaying at the table undid a lot of the good work elsewhere. The Cowboys paired the rookies with proven help, Matthew Stafford leading the way.
In short, the board sent warnings, and they will be hoping it was wrong.
Pick-by-Pick
In the 12th pick they get a workhorse for the backfield at a price that makes it sweeter. A real need, handled.
In pick No. 26 they get a No. 1 receiver. The biggest hole, addressed.
Good things come to war rooms that wait, and Nic Scourton at the 45th overall pick is the proof. Not urgent, but hardly pointless.
They stopped a slide they were happy to see, landing Tre Harris in pick 58. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
By-the-book stuff, Deone Walker at No. 66 squarely in line with his ranking. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
Donovan Jackson in the Round 3 slot is the kind of reach that only looks good if he outplays it. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
A top-tier linebacker at a bargain, Demetrius Knight Jr. in pick No. 89, plain and simple. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
Jalen Milroe at slot 121 is a first-round grade at a bargain-bin price, no notes. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
They will replay Malachi Moore at the 126th overall pick for years; that is how good the value is. Depth more than a fix, but depth they can use.
A slide stopped in the 150th pick, with Dillon Gabriel worth more than the price. It fills a real need, too.
They robbed the room for Jordan James here, a fall nobody at the table saw coming. The roster fit checks out.
Taking Jack Nelson in pick 172 is close to grand larceny; an offensive lineman that good had no business lasting this long. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
Steal is underselling it; Oronde Gadsden II at the Round 5 slot is a heist with the alarm still ringing. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
A reasonable price with a little left over, Cobee Bryant in the 190th pick. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
Jaylen Reed at Round 6, Pick 14 is a sensible buy, a touch better than market for the safety. A want dressed up as a pick, at a spot they had covered.
A tidy bit of business in slot 199, where Antwane Wells Jr. graded well above the range. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
Jack Kiser at No. 203 is right where the board had him, plain and simple. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
The board fumbled Dorian Strong all the way to the 204th overall pick, and they scooped it up. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
Circle this one: Ollie Gordon II at pick 210 is a fall that decides a draft. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
Somehow Robert Spears-Jennings was still sitting there in pick No. 211, and they pounced on premier safety value. Nice player, but the depth chart did not need him here.
They reached into another round for Thor Griffith, and the board is nowhere close to agreeing. A sensible fit that makes the depth chart a little sturdier.