The draft is a month away, and word is coming out now on who the Cowboys have visited and who they intend to visit with. In the past, the Cowboys have drafted players they have met with and worked out leading up to the draft. With this latest mock draft, I took this into account and with some names still on the board I was able to get some of these players snatched up. With my first pick Donald was gone before our pick at #16, so with that I went with option 2.
Let’s take a look at my 7-round mock 4.0:
Let’s talk about my selections.
1st round (#16): Anthony Barr, OLB, UCLA
I think there are a few players that could fall here and the Cowboys would be ok staying and making the selection. In this mock, Donald and Evans were gone, as was Manziel. But with Barr still out there I made the selection which automatically boosts the Cowboys pass rush. Barr has been making some moves up a lot of draft boards, so its totally conceivable that he’ll be gone by #16; if this is the case, then I see the Cowboys bolting down the draft to accumulate some extra picks.
2nd round (#47): Billy Turner, OT, North Dakota State
Another player that the Cowboys are showing some serious interest in. It was rumored that Turner would be visiting the Cowboys and Gil Brandt has attached some dates to the visit. Turner is projected as a 2nd-3rd round pick. Drafting Turner with the 2nd round pick would give us some safety across the offensive line and franchise RT moving forward. You never know exactly how the Cowboys actually grade out Turner, so he could be a surprise late 1st round pick by their evaluations, keep an eye out for this as a possible late pick if the Cowboys move down the draft.
3rd round (#78): Bishop Sankey, RB, Washington
The Cowboys will likely take another running back somewhere in this draft, and they’ll be serviceable, but the Cowboys have short changed the position and missed on several picks. Whether is be a flat out bust like Felix Jones or drafting DeMarco Murray who has some ongoing durability issues. I slotted Sankey here as he can be the weapon the Cowboys have been missing. He would be our Shady McCoy in essence, that’s how good this player is. Sankey catches the ball extremely well out of the backfield, he can pick up the blitz, and he’s an elusive runner. The Cowboys need a replacement, the running back position has killed us in recent years, especially for our push at the end of the season. If we can’t run the ball, we lose, and its been like that for the past three seasons. With question marks around the defense, it would be wise for the Cowboys to bring in a guy they can help run and kill the clock.
4th round (#119): Caraun Reid, DT, Princeton
Rod Marinelli wants bodies to keep attacking the QB up the middle and Reid would be a perfect fit in Dallas. Drafting Reid here in the 4th was my steal pick all the way. I think this player has a lot of potential, nastiness, and mauling type presence we need on the defensive line. Reid needs to come to Dallas and start making plays for us. Reid can play at DE, but he’ll probably be a beast at DT for us.
5th round (#158): Walk Aikens, CB, Liberty
Aikens is on the Cowboys radar, and his size could be the reason, at 6-1, 203, he would bolster up the secondary and protect us from injuries. Aikens could battle it out for some legitimate playing time on the field. I’m not sold on BW Webb, and we have our questions on Claiborne being the guy we thought we drafted coming out of LSU two years ago. Cornerback will be addressed, you can tell by all the visits and workouts the Cowboys have set up. They know its a paper thin group, and we need more help back there to combat the NFC East passing attacks.
7th round (#229): Howard Jones, OLB, Shepherd
The Cowboys have met with Jones and you have to wonder where the Cowboys would like to play Jones if he were to join the Cowboys, he’s your classic tweener type LB/DE. The Cowboys would probably like to put him at DE, and be in the rotation to get after the QB.
7th round (#231): Tom Savage, QB, Pittsburgh
I’ll be shocked if Savage falls through the cracks as a late round pick, but in this mock draft he was still on the board. Adding Savage would make Weeden expendable, and he could be groomed to challenge for the backup position and more in the coming years. I’ve seen Savage play and he is legit, very poised in the pocket and doesn’t get rattled. I saw an article recently that compared him to a Troy Aikman. Now, I know that’s a huge leap in comparisons, but from what I saw in Savage he does have that pocket presence and moxie. He could be someone’s draft gem, and I wouldn’t mind using a pick on him somewhere in this draft.
7th round (#238): Ik Enemkpali, DE, Louisiana Tech
Listed as a DE, but I would see Enemkpali as a potential 1-technique or 3-tech. The Cowboys would like his versatility on the defensive line. The Cowboys need quality depth, and adding a player like IK could go a long way in helping bolster the line.
7th round comp picks:
#248: Jeff Janis, WR, Saginaw Valley – the Cowboys like to add wide receivers into the mix with late rounders and UDFAs, Janis could get a look.
#251: Marcel Jensen, TE, Fresnso State – more of a blocking tight end, but could get a look for a potential practice squad slot.
#254: Kadeem Edwards, OG, Tennessee State – could be another late round sleeper for the Cowboys offensive line.
Previous Mock Drafts: Mock 3.0, Mock 2.0, Mock 1.0
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