F
Dallas Cowboys
The Cowboys drew a line under the quarterback search with Penix Jr.: F.
by jerrysux ·
2024 NFL Draft
· 38 picks
· 7 steals
· 17 reaches
The Cowboys went off the board in a big way for Hayden Hatten, 101 picks early. Conviction is one thing; this is another. It bottoms out at a F.
Whatever Michael Penix Jr. becomes, the front office has tied its fortunes to the answer. The trade table is where this weekend went wrong. On value alone, Hunt makes the weekend a net positive.
They are betting the present roster is worth a lighter draft next spring.
The verdict is harsh because the weekend was, and there is little to argue.
Pick-by-Pick
In No. 11 they get a blindside protector. The biggest hole, addressed.
Jackson Powers-Johnson in the Round 1 slot is exactly on the number, no argument either way. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
In the 24th pick they get their quarterback of the future, outstanding value to boot. A real need, handled.
In pick No. 25 they get a disruptive interior force at a price that makes it sweeter. A clean fit for the roster.
Chop Robinson slid further than he should have, and the 33rd overall pick is lovely value for the edge rusher. A minor need, but a need all the same.
A straight-up fair deal on Darius Robinson at pick 34, value and slot in agreement. Nice player, but the depth chart did not need him here.
They paid a round early for Chris Braswell in the 36th pick, more than the board wanted. They added to a strength when a need was still open elsewhere.
A market-rate wide receiver, with the board and the slot shaking hands on Roman Wilson. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
By-the-book stuff, Payton Wilson at No. 40 squarely in line with his ranking. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
No edge and no loss on Junior Colson in the 41st overall pick; it is a wash and a sensible one. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
They paid sticker price for Kiran Amegadjie in Round 2, Pick 24, and that is fine. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
Cooper Beebe in slot 58 is fair value, right on his grade. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
A tidy little value on T'Vondre Sweat in the Round 3 slot, a step better than break-even. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
Jermaine Burton at pick No. 78 is neither steal nor reach, just the going rate. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
The board had cheaper options than Ben Sinnott at the 89th pick, and it noticed. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
A reach on Mekhi Wingo in pick 91; the board had better options right there. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
A big swing on Mohamed Kamara at the 92nd overall pick, well ahead of any board in the building. It is more luxury than necessity; they were already set here.
DJ James at pick No. 94 is right where the board had him, plain and simple. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
They will replay Renardo Green at slot 105 for years; that is how good the value is. Not urgent, but hardly pointless.
Value said wait; Isaac Guerendo in the Round 4 slot says they were not listening. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
The board screamed and they did not listen, reaching into the next round for Isaiah Davis. A sensible fit that makes the depth chart a little sturdier.
They liked Tyler Davis enough to skip the value, taking him in Round 4, Pick 18. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
They took Brennan Jackson at par in the Round 4 slot, which is nothing to complain about. A want more than a need, though you can never have too many.
Trevin Wallace at Round 4, Pick 24 is a steep price for a hunch, hard to square with any board. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
A reasonable price with a little left over, Javon Foster in No. 139. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
They did well to land Jared Wiley in pick 140, just ahead of his grade. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
Dwight McGlothern at the 146th overall pick is the kind of overdraft that needs everything to break right. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
Ryan Flournoy at the 148th pick is an overdraft of the loud, memorable kind. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
A swing that ignored the value entirely, Nathaniel Watson well ahead of where he belonged. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
This one needs a full-page explanation: Jalen Coker in pick No. 178, miles early. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
Jalyx Hunt in pick No. 179 is a gift, value that borders on unfair. Pure best-available; the position was not exactly begging.
Michael Barrett in No. 180 is a reach so steep the board needed a second look to believe it. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
Matthew Jones in Round 6, Pick 7 is a bet on their own eyes over everyone else's grade. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
They reached into another round for Josiah Ezirim, and the board is nowhere close to agreeing. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
They left a pile of value on the table to take Trajan Jeffcoat this early at the 220th pick. A luxury on a unit that was already in good shape.
KT Leveston slipping to slot 233 is the kind of luck good rooms make for themselves. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
Hayden Hatten at the 235th overall pick is the pick scouts circle, and not in a good way. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
A quiet steal in pick 244: Eyabi Okie-Anoma for less than the market said. Stacking talent where they were already deep.