Cowboys draft buzz: Dane Brugler on possibilities for Dallas’ biggest positions of need
By
Jon Machota and
Dane Brugler
Mar 14, 2024
27
As expected, the
Dallas Cowboys haven’t been very active in free agency. The draft will be critical to improving their 2024 roster. To get a better idea of what could be available for Dallas at various positions of need in next month’s
NFL Draft, we recently caught up with
The Athletic’s draft expert,
Dane Brugler. Here is our conversation.
The most likely first-round scenario for the Cowboys is that they draft an offensive lineman. Who could be there who makes sense at Pick 24?
That’s going to be the question because we’re going to see a lot of tackles go in the first round. It’ll be a question of who will be left for them. How many tackles go in the first 23 picks? There’s a scenario where we could have six or seven tackles drafted ahead of where the Cowboys pick. It’s possible. Figuring out who will be available there. Troy Fautanu from Washington, if he’s there, I think that’s the pick. If a guy like JC Latham (Alabama) or Amarius Mims (Georgia) is there, I think that’s the pick. But do they last that far? I think it’s probably a long shot that they do. Tyler Guyton (Oklahoma) is really interesting. There have been some comparisons drawn to
Tyron Smith, just being kind of a raw, athletic right tackle in college who can really blossom at the
NFL level. Guyton has a lot of ingredients that you want. He’s big, he’s long, he’s athletic. I think at the Senior Bowl he showed that he is not as raw as maybe some people think in terms of countering what pass rushers throw at him, being able to settle his feet and really sit down versus power. But there are some areas of his game where there are going to be some speed bumps. It’s a matter of trying to weather that throughout his rookie year.
What if the tackles are gone?
If all the tackles are off the board, would they think about going center there? It feels like they want to keep
Tyler Smith at left guard, but does it work out where you kick him out to left tackle and move
T.J. Bass to left guard? And then you draft one of these centers with that first-round pick? I’m sure they have their preferences obviously with what they want to do, but I don’t think anything is set in stone at this point in terms of how they’re going to shape that offensive line next year.
Cowboys fans seem to like the idea of Dallas drafting Oregon center Jackson Powers-Johnson at Pick 24. What do you think of him and if he’s not there at 24, who are some centers to keep an eye on in the second or third rounds?
I’m a big fan of Powers-Johnson. He’s my top center. He plays light on his feet in pass protection. You see natural movement skills as a run blocker. He has stability at contact so he can torque-off defenders, he’s balanced. He rarely feels like he’s overwhelmed. He returns to his balance very, very well. Obviously what he sees on the defensive lines in the NFL is going to be a big jump compared to the defensive lines he faced in the Pac-12. Some of the inexperience shows on tape. He’s not the most technically sound at this point. That’s something that will come with experience. But I just love his blend of size, athleticism, toughness. He always feels like he has an answer, whether it’s that lateral quickness, really fierce hands, he can stay centered, he can turn or wall off defenders in the run game, he’s very alert to what kind of games that defensive fronts are playing — his response is very, very quick. And there’s just something to the mentality that he plays with, I think that really helps him. He has the mentality that a center needs. I think that would make a ton of sense if the Cowboys drafted him there.
I think one of the reasons they might not be all in on a player like this is because it’s a really good center class. You don’t have to draft one in the first round if you want to go in another direction. Because you can even say Graham Barton from Duke is worthy of that spot at 24. I think Zach Frazier (West Virginia) is more of a second-round guy, but I don’t know that he’s going to make it to the Cowboys’ second-round pick. Is that where you have to maybe trade back a little bit and take Frazier if that’s a player you’re targeting? But you could wait until probably the third round and still get a quality center you think is going to come in and compete for starting reps, whether that’s Tanor Bortolini from Wisconsin. Obviously this is a team that’s had a pretty good track record of centers from Wisconsin. Beaux Limmer from Arkansas, Sedrick Van Pran from Georgia, Hunter Nourzad from Penn State, these are guys that will probably be off the board somewhere between the mid-third round to the fourth round. This is a class where if you need a center, you can find somebody. You don’t necessarily have to take one in the first round. But it would be tough to pass on a guy like Powers-Johnson because he is that good.
Running back and off-the-ball linebacker are areas the Cowboys will probably need to address in this year’s draft. It doesn’t look like there are prospects in this class worthy of the 24th overall pick. Who are some possibilities in the second or third rounds?
At both of those positions, I don’t know that we’re going to see one go in the top 50. It’s more likely that we’re going to see a run once we get to that late second and all the way through the third round. I think that matches up well if the Cowboys did go offensive line in the first round and then second and third round, linebacker/running back in whatever order. At running back, there are probably seven to nine guys who are going to be drafted in the top 120 picks. And then it’s just a matter of what order they come off the board. Every team is going to look at each of these guys a little differently because of what they offer. Jonathon Brooks from Texas coming off the ACL injury. A guy like Braelon Allen (Wisconsin), his playing weight is around 240 pounds. He’s a lot different than a Bucky Irving (Oregon), who is 192 pounds and more of a change-of-pace guy. What are their medicals like on Trey Benson from Florida State? All these guys are just a little bit different. It’ll be interesting to see what order they come off the board.
With the linebackers, I’m a fan of Junior Colson from Michigan. He’s a true junior. He’s played a lot of football. I think he’s still getting better and better. The toughness that he plays with, he’s a three-down guy. I think he should be on their radar in the second round. If they wait until the third round, Tommy Eichenberg from Ohio State I think makes a ton of sense. He’s all football all the time and a better athlete than I think people give him credit for. Payton Wilson from NC State, there’s a lot to like about him. It’s just the medicals. It’s going to be tough to (evaluate). The surgeries in his past — how are teams going to respond to that? Every doctor is going to look at it a little differently. Some will say they feel he’s healthy right now, he was healthy last year, and they feel good about it. Other teams will be a little more wary. So, Wilson is kind of a wild card. Jeremiah Trotter Jr. from Clemson might be in that late third round. Maybe Trevin Wallace from Kentucky, Cedric Gray from North Carolina. If they wanted to go running back, linebacker they definitely have some options in that Day 2 range.
The Cowboys have quality starting cornerbacks in Trevon Diggs and DaRon Bland, but they could be looking for another in the draft. If they do that in the second or third rounds, it would likely be a long corner who can play on the outside. Any players that fit that description?
If they are targeting a Day 2 pick, T.J. Tampa from Iowa State would make some sense. He didn’t work out at the combine because he has a hamstring injury, but he is long, over 32-inch arms, he’s 6-1, speed, explosiveness in his lower half, a former basketball player. He’s a very alert player, instinctive ball skills, he has toughness, so he’ll reroute receivers at the line of scrimmage. He doesn’t lose much separation because he has size and range. He has disruptive ball skills. The tools are there for him to be a starting perimeter corner. If they waited until more like the fourth round, guys like Decamerion Richardson from Mississippi State, size and speed athlete. Cam Hart from Notre Dame, another guy who is big and long. Khyree Jackson from Oregon. He’s one of the tallest corners I’ve ever seen. He’s 6-4 but he plays light on his feet. He’s really competitive. It’s a position if they did wait until early Day 3, they’d have options.
Defensive tackle is a position of need. Who are some run-stuffing tackles you like outside of the first round?
Maason Smith from LSU. Teams want guys who are 6-5, over 300 pounds, and there are only so many of those guys in this draft. Smith is one of them. He’s a little bit raw with where he is in his development but he has the traits that teams are going to bet on. Jaden Crumedy from Mississippi State is another one who could be a possible fit on Day 3, early fourth, fifth round. He’s got some movement skills. He’s tough at the point of attack. He has experience playing over the A-gap. He can kick out and be a little bit of an interchangeable guy. He would make sense. Jordan Jefferson from LSU. I think defensive tackle is a position where I don’t know that they’re going to love their starting options, but if you’re looking for depth, I think there will be guys in that fourth, fifth, sixth round who can come in and give you some of those reps that they’re looking for.
Speaking of defensive tackle, Mazi Smith didn’t have a very impactful rookie year. What were your thoughts on him during the draft process last year? What kind of player do you think he can become in the NFL?
I liked Mazi. I had an early second-round grade on him. He was my 40th overall player in that draft. He has a lot of ingredients. Really long arms, plays with power, physicality. You love how he plays low, plays with leverage. Heavy hands. There’s a lot to like about the tools that he offers. It’s just a matter of he was never a highly productive guy in college. The tackles for loss, the sacks, those were never big numbers for him. That was always kind of a concern, that he’s never going to be a playmaker, more of a solid run-stuffing type of player. But there’s obviously value in that. You project him as an above average NFL run defender and then you see if you can develop the pass-rush potential along the way. It’s just a matter of him really getting up to speed with NFL speed, NFL strength, point of attack. He has the ability to be a really, really reliable run defender. Is he more of a nose for the Cowboys? Do they play him at the three-technique? Obviously with a new defensive coordinator coming in there are some changes on defense coming. It’ll be interesting to see how the Cowboys want to use him. What type of role do they envision for him? Where do they see him best? Regardless, it’s about what he can do in the run game. They need more of that this year.