C-
Dallas Cowboys
The Cowboys bled value on every deal, hence the C-.
by wgarrison ·
2026 NFL Draft
· 23 picks
· 7 steals
· 9 reaches
The Cowboys looked at the value chart, folded it up, and took Marvin Jones Jr. at the Round 7 slot regardless, 85 picks early.
However the rest shakes out, Taaffe at that price is a win they earned. Overpaying at the table undid a lot of the good work elsewhere.
The quarterback spot stays a question, and it was the one they most needed an answer at. With quarterback and running back unsolved, spending premium capital on safety is the choice that costs them.
So much rides on Sonny Styles that the real verdict is a season or two away.
Pick-by-Pick
In pick No. 20 they get a double-digit-sack hope. More want than need.
Nothing to complain about; Kayden McDonald went a shade earlier than his grade, which is fine. The roster fit checks out.
In the 29th overall pick they get a downhill thumper at linebacker, outstanding value to boot. Exactly the need they had to hit.
A clean, defensible pick in Round 2, Pick 6 with a little surplus value in Dillon Thieneman. It adds depth where they could use a little.
A swing that ignored the value entirely, Jack Endries well ahead of where he belonged. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
Domonique Orange at pick 92 is money in the bank, a interior defensive lineman taken below his worth. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
Hard to square with the roster. With positions of obvious need still on the board, Michael Taaffe adds a safety and leaves quarterback and running back untouched.
They talked themselves into J.C. Davis at the Round 4 slot, and the board did not agree. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
Dametrious Crownover in the 112th overall pick is a bet on their own eyes over everyone else's grade. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
This one needs a full-page explanation: Beau Stephens in No. 127, miles early. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
The eyebrow-raiser of the weekend. They went edge rusher with Nadame Tucker while clear needs at quarterback and running back sat open.
CJ Daniels at the 138th pick is neither steal nor reach, just the going rate. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
Malik Benson at slot 139 is right where the board had him, plain and simple. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
Joe Royer in Round 5, Pick 8 is the kind of fall that makes a whole class. A sensible fit that makes the depth chart a little sturdier.
Matt Gulbin in the 152nd overall pick 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.
A big swing on Bobby Jamison-Travis at the 169th pick, well ahead of any board in the building. A need, and now a little less of one.
A market-rate interior defensive lineman, with the board and the slot shaking hands on Zane Durant. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
Bryce Boettcher in pick 180 is a bargain the rest of the room will envy. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
Ephesians Prysock slipping to Round 6, Pick 18 is the kind of luck good rooms make for themselves. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
Steal is underselling it; Eric McAlister at pick No. 210 is a heist with the alarm still ringing. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
No edge and no loss on Zavion Thomas in the Round 7 slot; it is a wash and a sensible one. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
They reached into another round for Karson Sharar, 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 Marvin Jones Jr. this early at Round 7, Pick 36. Insurance at a position that did not really ask for it.