F
Dallas Cowboys
Sanders is the Cowboys' new face under center. Grade: F.
by jerrysux ·
2025 NFL Draft
· 48 picks
· 1 steals
· 34 reaches
The Cowboys put a flag in the ground for Kyle McCord, 82 picks before anyone else would have, and the value took the hit.
They handed away value on the phones that the picks cannot earn back. Whatever Shedeur Sanders becomes, the front office has tied its fortunes to the answer. Getting McCullough where they did is the sort of value that quietly makes a class.
It is a win-now wager, and the future is the stake.
There is no soft landing here; this class has to massively overperform just to matter.
Pick-by-Pick
Shedeur Sanders at slot 3 is neither steal nor reach, just the going rate. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
In pick 4 they get a home-run threat at receiver, reach and all. It fills the loudest need on the roster.
In the 8th pick they get a pocket-collapsing interior rusher. A real need, handled.
In pick No. 15 they get a bendy edge with upside at fair value. Need was not the driver here.
Tate Ratledge at Round 2, Pick 3 is the pick scouts circle, and not in a good way. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
They liked TreVeyon Henderson enough to skip the value, taking him in No. 36. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
Ajani Cornelius in No. 68 is fair value, right on his grade. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
They reached a country mile for Noah Thomas at the 70th overall pick, and the board is aghast. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
By-the-book stuff, Blake Miller at Round 3, Pick 7 squarely in line with his ranking. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
They paid sticker price for Shilo Sanders in pick 72, and that is fine. A minor need, but a need all the same.
They talked themselves into Nazir Stackhouse at the 76th pick, and the board did not agree. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
A wild overpay on Antwane Wells Jr. in slot 77, the sort that defines a class for the wrong reasons. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
They paid up for Hunter Wohler at pick No. 78 when waiting would have done the job. It is more luxury than necessity; they were already set here.
A swing that ignored the value entirely, DJ Giddens well ahead of where he belonged. A sensible fit that makes the depth chart a little sturdier.
Gavin Bartholomew in the 101st pick is a bet on their own eyes over everyone else's grade. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
They jumped the gun on Jamaree Caldwell, taking him earlier than his grade liked. A need, and now a little less of one.
Wyatt Milum in No. 103 is early enough to raise a brow, if not a full objection. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
A real head-scratcher, Alfred Collins in pick 114 is miles ahead of his ranking. It fills a real need, too.
Jasheen Davis at the Round 4 slot is an overdraft of the loud, memorable kind. They added to a strength when a need was still open elsewhere.
Thor Griffith at the 121st overall pick is the kind of overdraft that needs everything to break right. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
They left a pile of value on the table to take Akheem Mesidor this early at Round 4, Pick 28. A want more than a need, though you can never have too many.
A premium they did not need to pay, Roman Hemby a notch or two before his time. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
They reached into another round for Tahj Brooks, and the board is nowhere close to agreeing. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
The board screamed and they did not listen, reaching into the next round for Reuben Fatheree II. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
Value said wait; Kyle McCord in pick No. 134 says they were not listening. The roster fit checks out.
A big swing on J.C. Davis at the 136th pick, well ahead of any board in the building. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
This one needs a full-page explanation: Mason Taylor in slot 138, miles early. A sensible fit that makes the depth chart a little sturdier.
Marques Cox in pick 139 is the kind of reach that only looks good if he outplays it. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
You do not let a linebacker like Dasan McCullough reach the 144th overall pick and blink. They did not. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
No drama and no debate, Lathan Ransom went about where he belonged in the Round 5 slot. Stacking talent where they were already deep.
Jaishawn Barham in pick 150 is a reach so steep the board needed a second look to believe it. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
Josaiah Stewart at pick No. 151 is a steep price for a hunch, hard to square with any board. A want dressed up as a pick, at a spot they had covered.
Steve Linton in the 157th pick is a bet on their own eyes over everyone else's grade. Insurance at a position that did not really ask for it.
A reach for Sean Martin in slot 161; a little patience would have been rewarded. A luxury on a unit that was already in good shape.
This one needs a full-page explanation: Antwaun Powell-Ryland in the Round 6 slot, miles early. Pure best-available; the position was not exactly begging.
Jordan James at the 170th overall pick jumps the queue by a touch more than is comfortable. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
A wild overpay on Jake Johnson in No. 171, the sort that defines a class for the wrong reasons. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
Eugene Asante at Round 6, Pick 18 is a clear overpay, with better names still on the board. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
Dorian Strong at the 179th pick is right where the board had him, plain and simple. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
A straight-up fair deal on Dominic Lovett at slot 180, value and slot in agreement. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
Jaylin Noel in No. 194 is fine work, a shade of surplus and no downside. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
A reasonable price with a little left over, Jaylin Noel in Round 7, Pick 3. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
Theo Wease Jr. in the Round 7 slot lands just on the right side of the ledger. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
The board screamed and they did not listen, reaching into the next round for Khris Bogle. Depth on depth, at a spot that was hardly crying out.
They took Jalon Daniels at par in pick No. 207, which is nothing to complain about. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
A big swing on E.J. Smith at the 212th overall pick, well ahead of any board in the building. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
The board had cheaper options than Chris Tyree at the 214th pick, and it noticed. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
They left a pile of value on the table to take Caullin Lacy this early at pick No. 222. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.