Have the Dallas Cowboys boiled down their first-round choices at No. 26 in the upcoming NFL Draft to a Fab Five?
It is obviously too early to set names into stone. Indeed, it's still a bit too early to lock down even intentions, as the Cowboys have done a good job either a) staying open-minded about how they might add to their roster on Draft weekend or b) throwing up smokescreens to hide their true intentions.
But maybe, just maybe, those true intentions have been identified by two of the best Cowboys media sleuths in the business. And maybe, just maybe, the Fab Five targets of the Cowboys on Thursday night inside The Star are ...
Bijan Robinson, the Texas running back; Michael Mayer, the Notre Dame tight end; Darnell Wright, the Tennessee offensive lineman; Steve Avila, the TCU guard; and Drew Sanders, the Arkansas linebacker.
Those are the names offered up by 105.3 The Fan personalities Bryan Broaddus and Bobby Belt in a recent "Love of The Star'' podcast, and given the hosts' reputations, these five names - while obviously not being the be-all/end-all to what Dallas might do - are worthy of scrutiny. So let's scrunize ...
Bijan Robinson, the Texas running back - Our scout pals say he's "a top-five talent'' and "a top-five player in this draft. Does the devaluation of the running back cause him to slide out of the top tier and down toward Dallas?
Michael Mayer, the Notre Dame tight end - An old-school star at the position in all the best ways. Witten-like or Gronk-like, depending on who you ask.
Darnell Wright, the Tennessee offensive lineman - He's 6-5 and 333 pounds and most teams think of him as a tackle. But maybe Dallas is thinking a bit out of the box here and could see him as a guard.
Steve Avila, the TCU guard - Cowboys owner Jerry Jones told us in Arizona that Dallas could solve its O-line questions by drafting a starting left guard. The plug-and-play Avila is the guy he was talking about.
Drew Sanders, the Arkansas linebacker - A Dallas kid who demonstrated an ability to rush the passer as an edge or play off-ball. In the Cowboys' parlance, his upside would have him do some Micah Parsons-like things and some Leighton Vander Esch-like things - high double-praise indeed.
In addition to all of this, the Cowboys have talked so openly about other desires that other names should be penciled in here as well. Other tight ends like Dalton Kincaid and Darnell Washington, another O-lineman like O'Cyrus Torrence, receivers like TCU's Quentin Johnston, Ohio State's Jaxon Smith-Njigba and Boston College's Zay Flowers ... and more? Let's not cross them off the list. But for now, let's put gold stars next to the names of the aforementioned Fab Five.
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