B
Dallas Cowboys
The Cowboys robbed the room for McAlister. Final grade: B.
by Wilduno66 ·
2026 NFL Draft
· 8 picks
· 2 steals
· 1 reaches
The best pick of the weekend was also the simplest. The Cowboys watched Eric McAlister slide 20 picks past his grade and did not hesitate. More right than wrong, and a B to match.
A whole weekend of picks and quarterback is somehow still a want. The Payne pick is the one the value grade keeps tripping over.
Good work on the whole, with quarterback the one box left unchecked.
Pick-by-Pick
In No. 12 they get the heartbeat of the defense at fair value. It fills the loudest need on the roster.
In the Round 1 slot they get a downhill thumper at linebacker. The biggest hole, addressed.
Treydan Stukes in slot 92 is fair value, right on his grade. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
Jalon Kilgore at the 112th overall pick is the sort of value that quietly wins a weekend. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
Skyler Gill-Howard at Round 5, Pick 12 is right where the board had him, plain and simple. It fills a real need, too.
A straight-up fair deal on Keagen Trost at pick No. 177, value and slot in agreement. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
A reach on VJ Payne in the 180th pick; the board had better options right there. A minor itch, scratched.
Eric McAlister in pick 218 is a gift, value that borders on unfair. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.