D
Dallas Cowboys
The Cowboys lost the trade table, and the D tells the story.
by CMS ·
2025 NFL Draft
· 24 picks
· 9 steals
· 10 reaches
The Cowboys spent real capital to be 126 picks early on Thor Griffith, and the board is going to hold them to it.
The Brooks value carries more weight than any single miss elsewhere. The dealing is the wound this class cannot quite close.
The cornerback hole is the one line item this class does not answer. The Grover Stewart deal gives the class an established piece to lean on.
Bottom line, they will need several of these picks to beat their grades just to break even, and cornerback is still a hole.
Pick-by-Pick
In No. 3 they get a lead back with juice. A real need, handled.
In pick No. 14 they get a load in the middle at fair value. A clean fit for the roster.
In the Round 1 slot they get juice off the edge. Need was not the driver here.
Isaiah Bond in slot 33 is fair value, right on his grade. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
Tate Ratledge at Round 2, Pick 12 is the sort of value that quietly wins a weekend. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
A tight end of that caliber at the 65th pick is the definition of value, full stop. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
Jihaad Campbell in Round 3, Pick 3 is the kind of fall that makes a whole class. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
The board screamed and they did not listen, reaching into the next round for Rylie Mills. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
A slide stopped in the 81st pick, with Deone Walker worth more than the price. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
A big swing on Howard Cross III at No. 93, well ahead of any board in the building. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
A real head-scratcher, Ozzy Trapilo in pick No. 103 is miles ahead of his ranking. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
A tidy little value on Cam Skattebo in the 116th overall pick, a step better than break-even. It fills a real need, too.
Gunnar Helm at pick 118 is a first-round grade at a bargain-bin price, no notes. A need, and now a little less of one.
They went early on Michael Taaffe in slot 134, and the value did not follow. Useful depth more than a marquee fix.
Value said wait; Thor Griffith in the 148th pick says they were not listening. The roster fit checks out.
Kevin Jennings at No. 167 is a steep price for a hunch, hard to square with any board. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
This one needs a full-page explanation: Joey Slackman in pick 168, miles early. A sensible fit that makes the depth chart a little sturdier.
Steal is underselling it; Carson Schwesinger at the 170th overall pick is a heist with the alarm still ringing. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
They talked themselves into Jack Kiser at pick No. 171, and the board did not agree. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
The board fumbled Tahj Brooks all the way to slot 187, and they scooped it up. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
You do not let a linebacker like Jay Higgins reach the Round 6 slot and blink. They did not. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
Somehow Eli Stowers was still sitting there in Round 6, Pick 28, and they pounced on premier tight end value. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
Brady Cook at the Round 6 slot is the kind of overdraft that needs everything to break right. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
They reached a country mile for Nick Nash at Round 6, Pick 39, and the board is aghast. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.