Monday morning general manager: Looking back at the Cowboys draft

Well, that was probably one of the more exciting NFL Draft weekends I’ve ever seen. A record number of trades were finalized. A goodly amount of quarterbacks were drafted. And a nice feel-good story late on Saturday to top it off.

But now that enough time has passed since the Rams selected good old “What’s-His-Name?” with the final pick, lets take a look back at how the Cowboys fared. I’m leaning toward an overall grade of B-. Mostly because I think they panicked in the second round.

Their UDFA signings immediately following their final pick though kept this grade from a C+. We’ll take a look at those players as well. First, the Drafted Eight.

A Solid Start

The Cowboys’ run defense was the fatal flaw in 2022. They addressed that in the first round by picking Michigan defensive tackle Mazi Smith. This was a solid pick, despite the wailing and gnashing of teeth of not drafting Michael Mayer at tight end after Dalton Kincaid was sniped the pick before.

Dallas did not need a tight end. They needed to address the lines on both sides of the ball and did so here. So far so good.

The Big Reach

If the front office just had to get a tight end, they could have waited. A total of six tight ends were selected after the fourth round. Taking Luke Schoonmaker, who is already three years older than an average rookie, seems like a reach the more I look at it.