Every year, I like to review the Dallas Cowboys draft class and imagine what could have been. The draft is difficult to predict and there are is always a pick or two that I wish they would have made or not made. This year, that simply was not the case. The 2020 Dallas Cowboys draft class at first glance is the finest haul that I can ever remember. Sure, I could pick and choose a few players that I favoured over the players selected, and I am sure that is the same for any fan, but by no stretch of the imagination was their a decision that I could not get on board with. That has not been the case in previous years where the Cowboys picked Taco Charlton ahead of T.J. Watt or Trysten Hill ahead instead of Juan Thornhill. Still, there is at least one scenario I wanted to play out and compare an alternative outcome. That scenario, is a trade back from pick#17.
Jerry Jones and the Cowboys selected WR CeeDee Lamb with pick #17 but Jones also said he received three different trade offers before deciding Lamb was too good to pass up. With three trade offers, I have to imagine that there was at least one very good offer. An offer that is better value than would be indicated according to the trade value chart. Let’s say, either the Eagles or Vikings offer up a 1st and a second round pick in exchange for pick#17. So the Cowboys move back a few spots AND get an extra 2nd round pick (either 53 or 58). How then would the Dallas Cowboys draft play out?
First let’s review the 2020 Dallas Cowboys draft class:
Now, in this proposed scenario where the Dallas Cowboys elect to pass on CeeDee Lamb and trade back later into the first round, the most logical targets are the Philadelphia Eagles and Minnesota Vikings. Based on the trade value chart and the assumption that the Cowboys will get a surplus in value since Jerry confirmed there were at least 3 trade offers. Therefore, the Cowboys trade back to either pick #21 or pick #25 and add an additional second round pick, either pick #53 or pick #58. Here is how the draft then may have played out:
ROUND 1: CB, TREVON DIGGS, ALABAMA
The Cowboys picked Diggs with pick #51 even though he was not the highest rated player on their draft board, that was actually Neville Gallimore. Cornerback is a position of dire need and no one expects Diggs to last until pick 51. The Cowboys get him in the first round and pass on a safety such as Grant Delpit or Xavier McKinney or another position of need like edge rusher, defensive tackle, center, or even linebacker.
ROUND 2: DT, NEVILLE GALLIMORE, OKLAHOMA
In the real draft, the Cowboys had a difficult decision between drafting Diggs or Gallimore with pick#51. Gallimore was higher on their board but it was close and the need at CB was greater. In this alternative scenario, they pick Diggs in round 1 which leaves Gallimore the choice at 51. Just like Diggs at 51, the Cowboys have no way of knowing he would last until pick #82.
ROUND 2: WR, DENZEL MIMS, BAYLOR
With the Cowboys second pick in round 2 acquired from the trade back, they draft the best remaining wide receiver in the draft Denzel Mims. There are some better options to play in the slot such as Devin Duvernay out of Texas but Mims has higher upside as a potential #1. Mike McCarthy values players over scheme fit so with this luxury pick Mims could be the choice. Maybe there is another player higher on their draft board here but most players that I thought would be good value such as edge rushers Curtis Weaver, Jonathan Greenard, or Terrell Lewis or passed up again by the Cowboys in round 3. For me, Mims is a potential first round talent and that is why I believe he could be the pick here.
ROUND 3: CB, REGGIE ROBINSON II, TULSA
The Dallas Cowboys were able to get great value in every round of the draft this year. They drafted players on average at least one round after they were expected to be selected. That changes in this trade down scenario after missing out on both CeeDee Lamb and K’Lavon Chaisson. They really liked Reggie Robinson II out of Tulsa. McCarthy thought he was good enough to be grouped with some of the top corners in the draft and Will McClay identified him as his favorite selection out of all 6 Dallas Cowboys draft picks. Robinson has the potential to be a real difference maker in special teams as well, which the new coaching staff is making a priority. He gets drafted here about 40 spots earlier than he was in the actual draft.
ROUND 4: C, TYLER BIADASZ, WISCONSIN
Sticking with the trend of drafting the players they actually took in the NFL draft but with an earlier selection, here they select Biadasz in the 4th round. They had to trade up to get him in the real draft but would not have to do that in this scenario in order to select him 23 spots earlier.
ROUND 5: DE, BRADLEE ANAE, UTAH
With the Cowboys first of two 5th round picks they would draft the highly productive but not elite athletically defensive end out of Utah, Bradee Anae. This is one of the picks they traded in the actual draft but they will use it to select Anae in the same round but a few spots earlier in this alternative universe.
ROUND 5: WR, JAMES PROCHE, SMU
The Cowboys already drafted a wide receiver and they already have Amari Cooper and Michael Gallup so why double up at the position? Well, the depth behind the top 2 guys is questionable at best and even with Mims, they still have a big hole to fill at slot receiver. Proche provides excellent value here in the late 5th round and is a prototypical slot receiver and he is also able to return punts for the Cowboys.
ROUND 7: QB, BEN DINUCCI, JAMES MADISON
The Dallas Cowboys stick with their 7th round pick here in QB, Ben DiNucci from James Madison. McCarthy likes him, he is a developmental quarterback, and the Dallas Cowboys draft class remains relatively unchanged in this scenario compared to the real thing.
So comparing the 2 draft classes, the actual 2020 Dallas Cowboys draft class and the alternative version that could have been if the Cowboys traded back there not much of a difference. The only difference is that instead of CeeDee Lamb, the Cowboys get two receivers: Denzel Mims, and James Proche. While typically two is better than one, that is not the case when “the one” is a special player. CeeDee Lamb has the potential to be very special and the better scenario here would be to stand pat and draft him with pick #17 rather than trading back for an extra pick. Perhaps, this could play out differently and instead of another wide receiver, the Cowboys could land their safety of the future in Grant Delpit. Maybe an edge rusher like Yetur Grooss-Matos in round one, or a tight end like Devin Asiasi in the third round. Either way, I firmly believe they did the right thing and time will tell if that proves to be true.
*Photo by Brett Elliott https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/