Final 2023 mock draft for the Dallas Cowboys — Lessons learned from mock draft series
Round 3 — RB Roschon Johnson (93), Texas
Other available players considered: RB Tyjae Spears (76), Tulane; LB Henry To’oTo’o (89), Alabama; RB Tank Bigsby (95), Auburn; RB Kendre Miller (110), Tulane; CB Cory Trice (122), Purdue; LB/S Marte Mapu (171), Sacramento State
After picking Benton in the second, my hope was for OG Chandler Zavala or OL Tyler Steen to be on the board at 90 — as in round two, the offensive linemen I wanted were gone before my pick.
The drop-off of talent between the offensive linemen available here versus the ones I expect to be on the board in round four wasn’t enough to justify bypassing a more talented player.
After considering a cornerback and linebacker, I decided to go running back.
I had six running backs I loved at this spot and considered waiting to see if one of those six would still be there in the fourth. I went ahead and took a running back to not miss out on that tier of backs.
There may have been better pure runners available, but Roschon Johnson’s fit both now and in the future is easy to forecast.
Brugler describes Johnson as “a quick-footed, physical ball carrier with valuable third-down skills as a pass-catcher and blocker. He should immediately upgrade an NFL team’s running back rotation and be a core special teamer.”
His well-rounded game will allow him to play a lot of snaps as a rookie and have a long career.
Round 4 — OL Braeden Daniels (141), Utah
Other available players considered: LB Noah Sewell (100), Oregon; OL Andrew Vorhees (118), USC; CB Jakorian Bennett (120), Louisville; LB Owen Pappoe (124), Auburn; CB Terrell Smith (132), Minnesota; DE/LB Yasir Abdullah (142), Louisville; LB Ivan Pace Jr (152), Cincinnati
Finally, a round worked out like I hoped. There were multiple offensive linemen, a few linebackers, and some cornerbacks I was targeting still on the board.
In the end, I decided offensive line over linebacker since it’s a more premium position. With corner, it would stretch better into the fifth so offensive line was the pick.
I was very tempted to take USC iOL Andrew Vorhees who was a projected third-round pick until he tore his ACL at the combine in February.
The fact that Braeden Daniels is healthy and provides guard/tackle versatility gave him the edge over Vorhees.
Daniels is my first carryover pick from the mock draft series. I touch on Vorhees and Daniels in round five of this mock more in-depth; check it out to get more thoughts/info on both.
