D+
Dallas Cowboys
The phones sank the Cowboys this weekend: D+.
by TMC60 ·
2024 NFL Draft
· 17 picks
· 2 steals
· 3 reaches
Somebody took the Cowboys to the cleaners. The deals they made bled real value, and the whole class wears it. Put together, it is a D+.
They will need Cephus to outplay his draft slot in a hurry to justify it. The running back hole is the one line item this class does not answer. The Milton III value carries more weight than any single miss elsewhere.
It is a steep hill from here, and the grade knows it.
Pick-by-Pick
In the 28th overall pick they get a building block for the line. Exactly the need they had to hit.
In the Round 1 slot they get a weapon on the perimeter at fair value. The biggest hole, addressed.
They took Patrick Paul at par in the 46th pick, which is nothing to complain about. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
Jackson Powers-Johnson in pick No. 49 is exactly on the number, no argument either way. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
Fair-plus on Ja'Lynn Polk, a quiet win that adds up over a draft. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
By-the-book stuff, Caelen Carson at pick 64 squarely in line with his ranking. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
They did well to land Mike Sainristil in Round 3, Pick 24, just ahead of his grade. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
A reasonable price with a little left over, Michael Hall Jr. in No. 94. A sensible fit that makes the depth chart a little sturdier.
Tykee Smith in the Round 3 slot is fair value, right on his grade. A minor need, but a need all the same.
No edge and no loss on Marshawn Kneeland in the 99th pick; it is a wash and a sensible one. It adds depth where they could use a little.
A market-rate linebacker, with the board and the slot shaking hands on Tommy Eichenberg. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
Curtis Jacobs at pick 174 is right where the board had him, plain and simple. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
Good things come to war rooms that wait, and Joe Milton III at the 177th overall pick is the proof. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
They paid up for Darius Muasau at Round 6, Pick 35 when waiting would have done the job. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
They talked themselves into Jaden Crumedy at No. 212, and the board did not agree. This was not a hole anyone had circled.
A swing that ignored the value entirely, Joshua Cephus well ahead of where he belonged. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
Jeremy Flax at No. 245 is money in the bank, a offensive lineman taken below his worth. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.