F
Dallas Cowboys
The Hatten reach set the tone, and the Cowboys never recovered: F.
by jerrysux ·
2024 NFL Draft
· 30 picks
· 8 steals
· 11 reaches
The Cowboys put a flag in the ground for Hayden Hatten, 92 picks before anyone else would have, and the value took the hit.
They lost the exchange badly enough to drag the whole class down. Wallace at that cost is the sort of edge that compounds over a roster.
They are betting the present roster is worth a lighter draft next spring.
In the end, a class that has to defy its grades just to matter.
Pick-by-Pick
In the 11th overall pick they get a mismatch in the passing game at fair value. A real need, handled.
In Round 1, Pick 23 they get a cornerstone up front. Exactly the need they had to hit.
In the Round 1 slot they get a pocket-collapsing interior rusher, and a steal at that. A clean fit for the roster.
In No. 25 they get a bendy edge with upside. Need was not the driver here.
They paid up for Kris Jenkins at pick No. 33 when waiting would have done the job. Nice player, but the depth chart did not need him here.
You do not let a quarterback like Michael Penix Jr. reach slot 34 and blink. They did not. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
No drama and no debate, Jordan Morgan went about where he belonged in pick 36. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
Fair-plus on Troy Franklin, a quiet win that adds up over a draft. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
They paid a round early for Chris Braswell in the Round 2 slot, more than the board wanted. Pure best-available; the position was not exactly begging.
T'Vondre Sweat at Round 2, Pick 9 is a steep price for a hunch, hard to square with any board. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
Kiran Amegadjie at slot 58 is neither steal nor reach, just the going rate. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
Junior Colson in the 67th pick should not have been possible, and that is the whole point. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
They did well to land Cooper Beebe in No. 68, just ahead of his grade. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
A reach for Cade Stover in the 69th overall pick; a little patience would have been rewarded. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
They talked themselves into Mohamed Kamara at pick No. 91, and the board did not agree. A want more than a need, though you can never have too many.
Isaac Guerendo at Round 4, Pick 23 is a clear overpay, with better names still on the board. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
They left a pile of value on the table to take Isaiah Davis this early at pick 124. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
By-the-book stuff, Tyler Davis at No. 127 squarely in line with his ranking. A need, and now a little less of one.
A tidy little value on Jarrian Jones in the 128th overall pick, a step better than break-even. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
Javon Solomon in the 129th pick is the kind of fall that makes a whole class. Where it fits the depth chart is the real question.
Good things come to war rooms that wait, and Brennan Jackson at the Round 4 slot is the proof. It is more luxury than necessity; they were already set here.
Quietly one of the better values of the day, Jalyx Hunt at slot 142. They added to a strength when a need was still open elsewhere.
Jordan Jefferson at the 157th overall pick is a conviction pick that outran the value. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
Jaylin Simpson at pick 162 is a sensible buy, a touch better than market for the cornerback. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
Caedan Wallace at No. 180 is the steal of the weekend, a first-round talent at a bargain-bin price. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
Nathaniel Watson at slot 188 is the pick scouts circle, and not in a good way. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
A reasonable price with a little left over, Jalen Coker in the 215th pick. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
They barely believed it either: Dwight McGlothern still on the board at pick No. 216. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
Matthew Jones in Round 7, Pick 13 is a bet on their own eyes over everyone else's grade. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
Value said wait; Hayden Hatten in the Round 7 slot says they were not listening. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.