Few things cleanse the football palate like the heady days following the NFL draft — bourbon, prime beef, and shoplifting might also make that list. Some years you’re sure you’ve landed your dreamed-of hero in gleaming armaments, riding in to lead the fold to glory. Others, you’re unaware you’ve been gifted a giant wooden equine full of ineptitude aimed at taking down your kingdom from the inside. Yet for the few months between the draft and Week 1 of the NFL season, if owed only to the truth being presently unknown, you have one thing: hope.
This past weekend, the NFL held its annual three-day player selection extravaganza in former Cowboys’ HC Mike McCarthy’s new (and original) home, Pittsburgh, P-A. Though no one truly knows how these picks will turn out — as not one of these players has yet to field a snap in the league — to hear the “experts” in football media tell it, this year’s Cowboys draft class leans more shining knight than Trojan horse. Our duo of drunken football fan-alysts share whether they agree with the consensus opinion on the Cowboys’ success.
Bo’s Bon Mots
For your Dallas Cowboys, the mission was clear: Fix a defense that ranked 30th overall and dead last against the pass. Now the draft is complete, our Jones-weary noggins are tasked with pumping out so much chemical optimism we convince ourselves a crop of kids in their early 20s with no NFL experience will rescue the franchise from its annual pattern of futility.
No one knows how this slate of lottery tickets packaged as hope will ultimately fare, but here is my best guess.
Round 1, Pick 11
Caleb Downs, safety, Ohio State
The front office traded up a spot to snag a true blue-chipper. I assumed he would be long gone by the time the Jones Cartel was on the clock. Downs checks every imaginable box for a culture-changing game wrecker: He covers, tackles, blitzes, and leads on and off the field. Injured in an auto accident? Call Caleb Downs for a free consultation. Even at Pick 11, Downs is easily the steal of the draft.
Grade: A+
My pick: Caleb Downs
Round 1, Pick 23
Malachi Lawrence, edge, University of Central Florida
After fleecing the Eagles out of two fourth rounders, the ’boys nabbed the freaky-athletic Lawrence from a surprisingly fertile draft incubator, UCF. If you were building a modern edge rusher in a lab, the result would look a lot like the first-team All-Big 12 gladiator. At 6’4, 253 pounds, the Louisville native dashed a 4.5. That’s unfair. At the moment, the Golden Knights’ sack leader is a liability against the run. Still, his one trick comes in pretty handy in a pass-first league. If the kid ever learns to set an edge, this could be the steal of the draft.
Grade: B
My pick: Colton Hood, cornerback, Tennessee
Round 3, Pick 92
Jaishawn Barham, linebacker/edge, Michigan
Barham beats blocks. Whether the Maryland native was playing off-ball linebacker or blitzing from the edge, the Wolverine’s do-it-all defender played with an explosive twitch that should excite Cowboys fans. The potential here is unreal, but that cuts both ways. After being yo-yoed between roles, the guy whose teammates dubbed “Killer” lacks polish at any one position. Still, if defensive coordinator Christian Parker defines a role for him, Barham might be the steal of the draft.
Grade: B
My pick: Caleb Tiernan, offensive tackle, Northwestern
Round 4, Pick 112
Drew Shelton, offensive tackle, Penn State
The first trait that immediately pops on Shelton’s tape is his balance and athleticism. A two-year starter at left tackle for the Nittany Lions, Shelton possesses a basketball background that’s readily apparent, especially in pass protection. He’s nimble and fluid on his kick-outs, and countermoves don’t typically take him out of his gameplan. The knock on the 6’5” Downington, Pennsylvania, native is his play strength against inside runs and a lack of an anchor against the bullrush. The Dallas front office is banking on Shelton gaining functional strength without losing mobility. If he can manage that, you’re looking at the steal of the draft.
Grade: C+
My pick: Elijah Sarratt, wide receiver, Indiana
Round 4, Pick 114
Devin Moore, cornerback, Florida
The first pick from the Eagles trade bounty was spent on the oft-injured though tantalizingly productive Naples, Florida, native. The success of this pick boils down to Moore’s health. When he’s on the field, he is a tall, sticky outside corner who the Gators used to cover their opponents’ best receiving threats. If Moore stays off the training table, there’s no question he’s the steal of the draft.
Grade: B
My pick: Malik Muhammad, cornerback, Texas
Round 4, Pick 137
LT Overton, edge, Alabama
Cowboys fans may think of Marcus Spears, who anchored the run defense back in the Parcells era. Overton offers the same skillset. He’s not going to wow you with a vast array of pass-rush moves, but he is going to push the pocket backward and reset the line of scrimmage against the run. This is the kind of tree stump Parker needs for Dallas’ new-look defense. He will occupy blockers and make life easier for other players. If Overton quietly does what his physical traits suggest he can, he’s a no-doubter steal of the draft.
Grade: B+
My pick: Kyle Louis, linebacker, Pittsburgh
Round 7, Pick 217
Anthony Smith, wide receiver, East Carolina
The big-bodied Pirate wideout carries his 6’2”, 197-pound frame down the field at a 4.4 clip. He’s a contested-catch monster, though his route tree was limited at ECU. With Jalen Tolbert exiting to South Beach, receiver depth is a sneaky need for Dallas. Smith offers immediate special teams upside, and he has a legitimate shot at a roster spot. Though he may take a few seasons to fully develop, we might look back at this pick as the stunning steal of the draft.
Grade: C
My pick: Jack Endries, tight end, Texas
Overall Grade: B
Troy’s Takes
For those armed with the proper decoder and the ample patience to weed through his often-mystifying, mid-century Arkansan musings, Jerry Jones seems to have a new preoccupation in recent years: his own mortality. Over the past few seasons, we’ve seen the 83-year-old — with varying degrees of coherence — allude more and more to the amount of sand remaining in his proverbial hourglass. This context seems relevant when evaluating the team-building process for 2026. By all indications, Jerry is as engaged in a win-now mode as he’s been in decades. Some significant effort seems to finally be exerted behind the now infamous “all-in” declaration he made a couple of years ago. The defense kept Dallas out of contention in 2025, and this year was a full-court press to reverse those fortunes.
Round 1, Pick 11
Caleb Downs, safety, Ohio State
Pre-draft predictions had Dallas trading with Cleveland up to sixth overall to secure the superstar Ohio State defensive back. With many media scouts listing Downs as a Top 3 player in the entire draft, I would have heartily supported the move. Lady luck sprinkled on some rare positive mojo, and Dallas merely needed a one-spot jump to land the potential franchise fortune-changing player. The price of two late fifths to make sure a team behind the Cowboys at 12 didn’t jump ahead and steal their prize was a worthy investment. Jerry seems to hate picking in the fifth round anyway. Downs has the athleticism, coverage ability, and diagnostic smarts to walk on as a would-be Ed Ried and will easily be the best to occupy the safety position in Dallas since Ring of Honor inductee Darren Woodson.
Grade: A++++
My pick: Caleb Downs
Round 1, Pick 23
Malachi Lawrence, edge, University of Central Florida
Somehow Dallas managed to effectively turn the two fifths to move up one spot for Downs into two fourths to drop just three spots in a trade with the Iggles. Many see UCF pass rusher Malachi Lawrence here as a bit of a reach. A hot mic caught an unaware Nick Saban saying as much as the ESPN broadcast was coming back from break before the pick. Admittedly raw as steak tartar, Lawrence has the frame, bend, burst, and toolkit to ultimately be the best rusher in the class. In a world where Dallas did trade to 6 with the Browns, this pick would have moved to 34th overall in the second round, and it would be safe to assume Lawrence would have been available and the Cowboys would have selected him. So, despite the “reach,” those in the know would have predicted the prolific sack machine to don the Star one way or another.
Grade: B-
My pick: Jacob Rodriguez, linebacker, Texas Tech
Round 3, Pick 92
Jaishawn Barham, linebacker/edge, Michigan
It could be argued that there’s value for the Michigan blitzkrieg machine at this point, though I think a true off-ball backer was the more pressing need. Barham is a monster getting after the quarterback, but Dallas is still desperate for a true “green dot.” Though hard hitting and possessing an ever-hot motor, with his troubling play awareness and lack of discipline, I think we already have this player in Marist Liufau.
Grade: B
My pick: Jermod McCoy, cornerback, Tennessee
Round 4, Pick 112
Drew Shelton, offensive tackle, Penn State
With questions at both tackle positions, I was also looking for some O-line help amid the Cowboys’ defensive shopping spree. The big athletic blindside protector lacks some requisite strength coming into the league to be effective in run schemes but has some agility to hang with rushers. An offseason in a pro weight room and 300 grams of protein a day may give him what he needs to replace Terrence Steele or Tyler Guyton someday.
Grade: B
My pick: Travis Burke, offensive tackle, Memphis
Round 4, Pick 114
Devin Moore, cornerback, Florida
Schotty got himself a Gator. At 6’3” and a tick under 200 pounds, Moore is absolutely massive at the corner position: lengthy, athletic, and some sticky coverage ability but has historically suffered the from the same bug that has nagged Dallas’ current top two corners in Daron Bland and Shavon Revel: injuries. The hope is that between the three of them, two can always be available.
Grade: B
My pick: Dani Dennis-Sutton, edge, Penn State
Round 4, Pick 137
LT Overton, edge, Alabama
A third bite at the edge position here seems like a weird distribution of resources, especially considering the holes remaining at inside linebacker. The Cowboys addressed that need to some degree by flipping their last fifth rounder for Dee Winters from San Francisco (again, the Cowboys hate picking in the fifth), but more bodies are still needed in the room. However, with excellent strength and balance, if lacking in agility and athleticism, Overton projects as the 4i D end that new DC Christian Parker has been missing.
Grade: B+
My pick: Kyle Louis, linebacker, Pittsburgh
Round 7, Pick 217
Anthony Smith, wide receiver, East Carolina
It was a looooong wait to get back on the clock after the last selection in the fourth. The Cowboys appeared to do their work early, leaving the seventh round for what it’s normally for: priority undrafted free agents you don’t want to have to fight for. At 6’2”, 197, Anthony Smith could be a potential big target for Dak Prescott in a wide receiver room that talentwise would drop off considerably if George Pickens isn’t extended. Don’t we already have Johnathon Mingo, though?
Grade: C-
My pick: Eli Heidenreich, running back, Navy
Overall Grade: B+
