D
Dallas Cowboys
The Cowboys bled value on every deal, hence the D.
by grmjr ·
2024 NFL Draft
· 19 picks
· 4 steals
· 9 reaches
Somewhere a scout is still blinking. The Cowboys spent pick 158 on Marcus Harris, a name the board had a full 79 spots lower.
The dealing is the wound this class cannot quite close. For all the activity, linebacker went untouched, which is hard to explain. With linebacker unsolved, spending premium capital on edge rusher is the choice that costs them.
The Morgan pick alone nudges the whole weekend up a notch.
Bottom line, they will need several of these picks to beat their grades just to break even.
Pick-by-Pick
In the 9th pick they get a bendy edge with upside at fair value.
In Round 1, Pick 21 they get a building block for the line. Exactly the need they had to hit.
They paid a round early for Xavier Legette in the 26th overall pick, more than the board wanted. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
Jordan Morgan at No. 53 is daylight robbery; nobody expected him to last. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
A big swing on Cooper Beebe at pick No. 56, well ahead of any board in the building. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
They zigged when the board said zag, taking Brandon Dorlus at edge rusher with linebacker open.
D.J. James at the Round 3 slot is a sensible buy, a touch better than market for the cornerback. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
Value with a capital V on Javon Bullard in Round 3, Pick 11, a genuine coup. Useful depth more than a marquee fix.
A real head-scratcher, Ben Sinnott in pick No. 87 is miles ahead of his ranking. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
A market-rate interior defensive lineman, with the board and the slot shaking hands on Michael Hall Jr.. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
They bypassed pressing needs at linebacker to take Tykee Smith, a safety that was not the priority.
MarShawn Lloyd at the 107th overall pick is the pick scouts circle, and not in a good way. The roster fit checks out.
Dominick Puni in the 110th pick is fine work, a shade of surplus and no downside. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
Jordan Travis in slot 122 is the kind of reach that only looks good if he outplays it. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
A slide stopped in No. 124, with Ainias Smith worth more than the price. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
A reach on Drake Nugent in the 136th pick; the board had better options right there. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
They jumped the gun on Sincere Haynesworth, taking him earlier than his grade liked. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
They went early on Jaylen Wright in slot 148, and the value did not follow. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
Marcus Harris at pick No. 158 is an overdraft of the loud, memorable kind. Insurance at a position that did not really ask for it.