F
Dallas Cowboys
The Cowboys jumped the board for Hatten and paid for it: F.
by jerrysux ·
2024 NFL Draft
· 41 picks
· 8 steals
· 23 reaches
Call it belief, call it a gut call, but Hayden Hatten at pick No. 257 is 79 spots clear of consensus, and that is the headline.
The trades bled value they could not afford to lose. The Green pick is the one they will point to when this weekend is judged.
They are betting the present roster is worth a lighter draft next spring.
In short, a weekend the front office will want to forget in a hurry.
Pick-by-Pick
Joe Alt at pick 3 is right where the board had him, plain and simple. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
A conviction pick on JC Latham at the 4th overall pick that the board grades a round light. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
In the Round 1 slot they get a building block for the line at fair value. It fills the loudest need on the roster.
No drama and no debate, Darius Robinson went about where he belonged in Round 2, Pick 1. A minor itch, scratched.
They paid sticker price for Payton Wilson in No. 34, and that is fine. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
Junior Colson in the 36th pick is the kind of reach that only looks good if he outplays it. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
A reach for Chris Braswell in the 39th pick; a little patience would have been rewarded. A want dressed up as a pick, at a spot they had covered.
Somehow Michael Penix Jr. was still sitting there in No. 40, and they pounced on premier quarterback value. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
Fair-plus on Kris Jenkins, a quiet win that adds up over a draft. They doubled down on a strength rather than a need.
Cooper Beebe in pick No. 67 is exactly on the number, no argument either way. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
Jermaine Burton slipping to slot 87 is the kind of luck good rooms make for themselves. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
Ben Sinnott in Round 3, Pick 25 is early enough to raise a brow, if not a full objection. A sensible fit that makes the depth chart a little sturdier.
They jumped the gun on Mekhi Wingo, taking him earlier than his grade liked. A need, and now a little less of one.
A market-rate cornerback, with the board and the slot shaking hands on Kris Abrams-Draine. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
A big swing on Mohamed Kamara at Round 3, Pick 29, well ahead of any board in the building. Pure best-available; the position was not exactly begging.
Isaac Guerendo at the 93rd overall pick is a steep price for a hunch, hard to square with any board. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
Value said wait; Brenden Rice in slot 97 says they were not listening. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
The board screamed and they did not listen, reaching into the next round for Tyler Davis. It fills a real need, too.
Ainias Smith at the 113th pick is an overdraft of the loud, memorable kind. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
DJ James in the Round 4 slot is a gift, value that borders on unfair. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
This one needs a full-page explanation: Isaiah Davis in pick 118, miles early. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
They reached into another round for Mason McCormick, and the board is nowhere close to agreeing. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
They will replay Renardo Green at the Round 4 slot for years; that is how good the value is. A minor need, but a need all the same.
Good price on Brennan Jackson in pick 128, a hair ahead of his grade with no real quibbles. A luxury on a unit that was already in good shape.
Brandon Coleman in the 132nd pick should not have been possible, and that is the whole point. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
They robbed the room for Javon Solomon here, a fall nobody at the table saw coming. It fits a board better than it fits this team.
They talked themselves into McKinnley Jackson at slot 134, and the board did not agree. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
Jalyx Hunt slid further than he should have, and the 141st overall pick is lovely value for the edge rusher. Insurance at a position that did not really ask for it.
A cornerback of that caliber at No. 142 is the definition of value, full stop. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
Khristian Boyd in Round 5, Pick 13 is a reach so steep the board needed a second look to believe it. A want more than a need, though you can never have too many.
A wild overpay on Jaylen Harrell in pick 154, the sort that defines a class for the wrong reasons. They added to a strength when a need was still open elsewhere.
They reached a country mile for Tahj Washington at No. 155, and the board is aghast. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
Ryan Flournoy in Round 6, Pick 18 is fair value, right on his grade. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
A straight-up fair deal on Jalen Coker at slot 204, value and slot in agreement. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
A swing that ignored the value entirely, Michael Barrett well ahead of where he belonged. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
Matthew Jones at the 240th pick is the kind of overdraft that needs everything to break right. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
Trajan Jeffcoat at the 244th overall pick is the pick scouts circle, and not in a good way. Stacking talent where they were already deep.
A real head-scratcher, Josiah Ezirim in the Round 7 slot is miles ahead of his ranking. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
They left a pile of value on the table to take Omar Speights this early at pick 255. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
Richard Jibunor in No. 256 is a bet on their own eyes over everyone else's grade. It does not line up with the team's obvious holes.
They talked themselves into Hayden Hatten at the 257th pick, and the board did not agree. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.