The Dallas Cowboys enter the 2024 NFL Draft with four defined needs: left tackle, center, running back and linebacker.
Now, those needs are not in any order of importance. But if the season started today, those would easily be the four weakest spots on the roster. Dallas hopes they can fill at least three of them during the draft, but that will be challenging, considering they only have three picks inside the top 170 selections.
So, what might Round 1 look like for the Cowboys? Here is our seven-round mock draft for the Cowboys with less than a week to go:
It wouldn’t be surprising if the Cowboys traded down in Round 1 to acquire more picks. With only three picks inside the top 170, it will be tricky to address all of their needs. But if the Cowboys get “stuck” at No. 24, a center is the most likely selection.
As we stand right now, the Cowboys' No. 1 target is most likely Duke’s Graham Barton. But his stock is hot right now, and there is no guarantee that he will be available at No. 24. That leads us to Jackson Powers-Johnson, who might be the second-best center in the class.
Powers-Johnson is inexperienced (only 13 starts), but he is big and powerful and was dominant during the 2023 season. Dallas loves having big centers to keep the middle of the pocket clean for Dak Prescott.
Dallas also loves investing in its offensive line, and "JPJ" is one of this class's top interior offensive linemen. If Dallas is comfortable with his medical history, Powers-Johnson could be their top selection.
In an ideal world, the Cowboys would LOVE to select Texas RB Jonathon Brooks at No. 56. He is everything they want in a feature running back, and his style of play fits perfectly with the rest of the offense.
However, it's unrealistic to think the first running back will come off the board this late in the second round. In fact, it would be the latest the first running back has been selected in draft history, surpassing the 2014 draft when Bishop Sankey went 54th.
In this mock draft, we will assume Brooks is off the board when the Cowboys pick. That means Dallas turns its attention to linebackers, another area in need.
Edgerrin Cooper, Trevin Wallace and Junior Colson could be options in Round 2. But the Cowboys swing for the fences with Payton Wilson, an oft-injured linebacker who has superstar upside.
Wilson is an excellent fit in Mike Zimmer’s defense. He excels in coverage and has the size to be a force in the middle of the field. Wilson’s injury history is concerning, but the Cowboys are historically willing to gamble on injured players in Round 2.
This fit makes too much sense for both parties.
After missing out on Brooks at No. 56, the Cowboys have almost no choice but to select a running back in Round 3. At this stage of the draft, we can confidently expect Trey Benson, Blake Corum and Jaylen Wright to be off the board.
That leaves Dallas with the choice of Braelon Allen or Audric Estime, both of whom were 30 visits for the Cowboys. Dallas goes with Allen, betting on his age and athleticism.
Allen is a tank at 6-foot-1, 235 pounds, but he doesn’t always play to that size. However, he is a high-character player with a ton of college production.
His vision is good, and he has home-run speed, something Dallas covets at running back. At pick No. 87, he is worth a gamble.
After the top three selections, it is anyone’s guess what the Cowboys might do on Day 3.
But the defensive line needs depth, especially after Neville Gallimore and Johnathan Hankins left in free agency. Gabe Hall could help fill the void left by those players.
Hall was outstanding at the Senior Bowl, giving all of the interior offensive linemen fits in the 1-on-1 drills. He is long (6-foot-6 with an 83.5-inch wingspan) but needs to put on weight to hold up against the run.
He has the upside of being a rotational player immediately at multiple spots in Zimmer's defense.
Due to the limited number of selections, the Cowboys couldn’t address their left tackle need earlier in the draft. That means they will likely ask Chuma Edoga to start, replacing Tyron Smith.
North Dakota State’s Jalen Sundell could be a late-round option at tackle. From 2020 to 2022, Sundell was the Bison’s starting center, but he transitioned to left tackle this year and had a ton of success.
He was a first-team All-American and significantly improved his draft status. Although his overall traits are only average, he has 40 career starts and appeared in 57 games. At this stage of the draft, he is worth the risk.
This late in the draft, teams usually just gamble on traits or special teams players.
With the selection of Bub Means in Round 7, the Cowboys are taking a chance on a 6-foot-1, 212-pound wide receiver who ran a 4.43 at the NFL Combine.
Means doesn't have much college production, but he does have kick-return experience. He could use a year or two on the practice squad before being trusted as a No. 4 wide receiver.
Demani Richardson is a local kid playing high school football just south of Dallas. He has 55 career starts as an in-the-box safety.
The Cowboys are drafting him because of his special teams experience and size. He could be a core special teams player right away and could develop into a sub-package player.
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Few know how to spend money like an NFL front office. This offseason, teams handed out over $4 billion in extensions alone, not to mention the several other billions spent in free agency. But which were the shrewdest investments? Below, we examine the best value signings at five positions on offense: quarterback, running back, wide receiver, tight end and offensive line. Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Geno Smith Contract: Two years, $75 million ($65.5M guaranteed) Shortly after acquiring Smith in a trade from the Seattle Seahawks, the Raiders extended the 2022 Associated Press Comeback Player of the Year to a contract that raises the Raiders' floor while maintaining flexibility. Smith has a manageable $26.5M cap hit in 2026, when Over The Cap projects Las Vegas to have the third-most cap space ($78.7M) based on an estimated 5.8 percent cap increase. Since 2022, Smith has the third-highest completion percentage (68.5 percent) among 32 quarterbacks with at least 20 starts during that span. He's also tied with Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes for the second-most fourth-quarter comebacks (10) and trails only Mahomes in game-winning drives. Buffalo Bills running back James Cook Contract: Four years, $48M ($30M guaranteed) Los Angeles Rams running back Kyren Williams pierced Cook's bubble when he signed a three-year, $33M extension on Aug. 5. The Bills running back sought $15M per year, making his $12M in annual average value (AAV) a huge win for Buffalo. Over Cook's first three seasons, he's averaged 4.9 yards per carry. In 2024, he led the NFL with 16 rushing touchdowns. With just 533 career tackles, Cook doesn't have the wear-and-tear of other backs who've made splashes early in their careers, raising hopes that he can withstand the workload that comes with being Buffalo's featured back. Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins Contract: Four years, $115M ($40.9M guaranteed) The Bengals retained Higgins at a remarkable price, keeping him in Cincinnati at less than $30M per year, the going rate for the league's top wideouts. Per Spotrac, while Higgins is No. 10 in AAV among wide receivers, he ranks just outside the top 20 in guaranteed money. Last season, Higgins averaged 75.9 receiving yards per game, his most since 2021, and scored a career-high 10 touchdowns despite missing five games due to injury. Arizona Cardinals tight end Trey McBride Contract: Four years, $76M ($43M guaranteed) The 2024 first-team All-Pro ranks No. 1 among tight ends in guaranteed salary. However, if he continues producing numbers more akin to WR1s — last season, he had 111 receptions, 1,146 receiving yards and two touchdowns — his contract will be one of the league's better bargains. Baltimore Ravens offensive tackle Ronnie Stanley Contract: Three years, $60M ($44M guaranteed) Stanley's journey back from a devastating 2020 lower leg injury culminated in the 2019 first-team All-Pro being named a Pro Bowler for the second time in his first nine seasons last year. The No. 6 overall pick in the 2016 NFL Draft was rewarded with a contract that will keep him in Baltimore through his age-33 season. In terms of average annual value, his extension ranks below other left tackles who signed contracts this offseason, and not just younger players such as Rashawn Slater (Los Angeles Chargers), who was recently lost for the season, and Bernhard Raimann (Indianapolis Colts). Atlanta Falcons tackle Jake Matthews, 33, is averaging $22.5M on his current deal, while Las Vegas Raiders tackle Kolton Miller, 29, is set to earn $22M per year through 2028.
Oregon wide receiver Jurrion Dickey has struggled to live up to expectations in his first two seasons with the Ducks, and he is now in a terrible position heading into 2025 as well. Dickey has been suspended indefinitely by Oregon, head coach Dan Lanning announced on Tuesday. Lanning also suggested that Dickey may not play for the Ducks again. "We have two team rules; that’s respectful, be on time,” Lanning said, via James Crepea of The Oregonian. “There’s some pieces of that where I felt like he needed a break from us and we needed a break from that so we could focus on what’s in front of us right now. "Wishing him nothing but the best, as far as success and want to see him get back to where he can be a contributor somewhere; that might be here that might be somewhere else.” Dickey was a five-star recruit and rated as one of the top wide receivers in the country when he came out of Menlo-Atherton High School in Atherton, California, in 2023. He suffered an injury in his senior year in high school and redshirted as a freshman at Oregon. Dickey has two catches for 14 years during his time with the Ducks. Oregon went 13-1 in Lanning's third season with the program last season. The Ducks lost to eventual national champion Ohio State in the College Football Playoff quarterfinals.
The New York Mets appeared to be on their way to earning a much-needed win by the third inning of Wednesday night's game when they enjoyed a 6-0 lead on the Atlanta Braves. Following a disastrous fourth inning in which the Mets surrendered nine runs, the offense completely collapsed, and New York lost its 12th game in 14 tries in an 11-6 loss in front of 38,647 fans at Citi Field. Following the game, Mets manager Carlos Mendoza told reporters that he didn't think Wednesday night's loss was the worst of the season, but said it "sucks" to blow a lead like they had early in the game. "We’ve had some tough ones, but I wouldn’t say worst loss of the season," Mendoza said, via the Mets. "They all count the same, but it sucks to lose a game when you’re up six right away." The Mets scored three runs in each of the first two innings. Starting pitcher David Peterson allowed six earned runs in the fourth inning before he was pulled for right-handed reliever Reed Garrett. Garrett allowed three earned runs before getting out of the disastrous inning. Mendoza then put in Paul Blackburn to complete the game, not even batting an eye when the right-handed reliever surrendered two more runs in the sixth inning. By that point, Mendoza said he was concerned with saving the bullpen for another day. The admission from Mendoza was odd, as he seemed to punt on the Mets' chances for a comeback with three more chances at the plate. He doesn't trust his offense, and he especially doesn't believe in his rotation. Mendoza said the coaching staff will try to figure out how to get more out of the talent that had the Mets playing quality baseball in the first half of the season. "They’re tough losses, but we gotta keep going," Mendoza said. "We have got coaches right now looking at pretty much everything--trying to figure out how we can continue to help these guys, especially the guys from the rotation because we know the talent is there. But we just haven’t been able to get much from them, especially the last time through." Forget the NL East, where they trail the Philadelphia Phillies by five games; the Mets are barely trying to hold onto a wild-card spot. They have a one-game lead on the Cincinnati Reds.
For Minnesota Vikings fans, the wait to see JJ McCarthy in live action must have felt like an eternity. After missing his entire rookie year with a meniscus injury, the 2024 10th overall pick finally took the field for the Vikings in Saturday’s preseason matchup against the Houston Texans. And the return was as emotional as it was promising. JJ McCarthy, who admitted he had “a little tear drop” during the national anthem, led a composed 13-play opening drive that ended with points on the board. He went 4-of-7 for 30 yards and added an 8-yard rush. Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell praised the 22-year-old for his “composure and poise,” and his ability to run the show as the staff had hoped. But while JJ McCarthy’s debut was brief, the expectations for him were not. With Sam Darnold out of the picture and O’Connell committing fully to the Michigan alum as QB1, the pressure to deliver is immense. It’s one thing to look steady in August and another to win games when the NFC North and playoff hopes are on the line. McCarthy’s much-anticipated debut took center stage on the latest episode of Dudes on Dudes. Rob Gronkowski and Julian Edelman pulled out their ‘crystal ball’ to predict whether the Vikings would win more than 8 games this season. Gronk was full of optimism by praising O’Connell’s leadership and the roster’s talent. Edelman, however, hesitated. “It’s one of those ones where… they have a rookie quarterback that we have no clue how he’s going to do,” Edelman said, noting that McCarthy didn’t throw much in college and will start the season without Jordan Addison, who’s suspended for the first three games. “We’re just going to assume that the kid’s going to come in and win a lot of games like that? This is really his rookie year,” he added. Gronkowski, however, called it a “rookie plus” year, likening JJ McCarthy’s situation to NBA star Ben Simmons, who sat out his first year before becoming Rookie of the Year. That’s when the former Patriots WR jumped in with a warning: “But I hope he doesn’t become Ben Simmons.” Why did Edelman show caution? While Simmons entered the league with high expectations and early accolades, his career trajectory stalled, marred by injuries and lost confidence, and he didn’t produce as much as he should have. In Julian’s view, the Vikings can’t afford their franchise QB’s development to follow a similar arc. For now, JJ McCarthy has shown early signs of the maturity and skill set Minnesota hoped for when they drafted him. But as Edelman’s comments underline, one promising preseason drive is only the beginning; sustaining that composure over a full NFL campaign will be the real test. Safe to say, a lot of eyes will be on the young QB this year!