Four players the Cowboys could draft in the first round 

By Rhys Knott

Jerry Jones’ team have used four of their last 11 first-round picks on offensive linemen. You’ll get short odds on them using their 2025 first round pick on another offensive lineman. But with the addition of Robert Jones during free agency they already have 13 linemen. 

That’s not necessarily going to stop them drafting another one though.

The Cowboys currently have 75 players on their roster. They will have a surplus of players in a few positions if they use all 10 of their picks. That said, you can never invest enough capital in protecting the quarterback, after all.

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Especially when you only have two quarterbacks on the roster. But Jalen Milroe would be the most Jerry Jones draft pick imaginable.

Milroe ran 4.37 second 40-yard dash that’s the same time T.Y. Hilton clocked. Having watched Jayden Daniels twice in 2024 Jerry Jones will be interested in a 21st Century QB. But Brian Schottenheimer isn’t exactly Kliff Kingsbury (even if they both love to run the ball). As a result Milroe could well struggle in what has the makings of an inconsistent Cowboys offense. 

The partial avulsion of Dak Prescott’s hamstring completely derailed the Cowboys’ 2024 season. By the end of 2024, they ranked 24th for net passing yards per attempt and 30th for rushing yards allowed per attempt. 

The defense also struggled. Mike Zimmer’s unit ranked 28th for net passing yards per attempt allowed and 30th for net rushing yards per attempt. It’s no wonder they have new coaches. 

Cooper Rush is a Raven now too, so Dallas will probably have to use a pick on a new backup quarterback. Milroe should still be available in the second round.

All this considered, here are four potential selections they could make in the first round:

Tyler Booker - IOL, Alabama

11 different offensive linemen played offensive snaps in Dallas last year, and three of them had to play two different positions! When your GM played on the offensive line during his University of Arkansas days, you really can’t have enough offensive linemen. 

If Will Campbell does play at tackle in the NFL (because “arm length” is up there with QB “hand size” when it comes to irrelevant measurements), then Booker will be the best rookie guard in 2025. 

Fun fact, if Dallas pick Booker he will be their second consecutive first-round pick named Tyler. He will also be the second SEC lineman drafted in the first-round by the Cowboys in the last two years. 

It’s safe to say the 20-year-old didn’t enjoy his experience at the combine. Booker fell into the 93rd percentile for hand size and the 100th percentile for his span (he’s a really big guy). But he struggled with the tests. He performed best in the vertical jump but still only finished in the 42nd percentile. 

Luckily, three years of excellent game tape prove Booker is a first-round pick. He was also named first-team All-SEC in 2023 and 2024! Booker played over 1,000 snaps at Alabama, only allowing two sacks.   

Even more importantly, he’s been immersed in football for as long as he can remember. He began playing Pop-Warner football as a “mighty mite”. Booker remembers watching the NFL with his dad when he was as young as eight. He even has an uncle who played in NFL Europe and won a Super Bowl ring as a member of the Steelers practice squad. 

While it’s true that the Cowboys have plenty of offensive linemen, Booker’s addition would add some quality to that quantity. PFN ranked the 2024 Cowboys’ offensive line 17th in the league. Since Dak Prescott often suffers injuries when he gets tackled, it would be wise to protect their quarterback. Especially now that he earns $60 million a year!

James Pearce Jr. - EDGE, Tennessee

Pearce Jr. must have been designed in a lab when a mad scientist decided to create an elite athlete, but make them huge. Micah Parsons would love to have someone as explosive as Pearce Jr. at the opposite end of the Cowboys’ defensive line. 

Mike Zimmer’s 2024 Cowboys defense didn’t work. His replacement, Matt Eberflus, doesn’t like to blitz, so he needs the defensive front to create pressure. Pearce Jr. will definitely help with that. 

Unlike Booker, Pearce Jr. absolutely destroyed the testing at the combine. His 4.47 second 40-yard time landed him in the 99th percentile of the EDGE class! Pearce Jr.’s time equals the time Mike Sanristil and George Pickens ran at their combines! Pearce Jr.’s 1.56-second 10-yard split is in the 94th percentile of the class, and his 123-inch broad jump made it into the 89th percentile. 

Unsurprisingly for such an explosive athlete, the 21-year-old spent a lot of time in opposition backfields during his college career. In 39 games, he recorded 30 tackles for a loss and 19.5 sacks; he also forced three fumbles. But he doesn’t just rush the passer, he gets his hands into passing lanes too. The North Carolina native defended two passes during his three years at Tennessee and returned an interception 52 yards for a touchdown! 

The Cowboys re-signed Dante Fowler Jr. during free agency after his impressive 2024 in Washington. But during his previous stint in Dallas, he didn’t start a game and only managed 10 sacks in the 34 games he played. Pearce Jr, would be an upgrade on the inconsistent 30-year-old, and just as importantly, the Cowboys would prevent the Eagles from drafting another dominant defender. That’s where Todd McShay expects him to land, but there’s no way such a freak athlete should fall to the bottom of the first round.

Jahdae Barron - CB, Texas

Barron is a Texas native, but more importantly, the 23-year-old is a very good tackler who recorded two sacks during his five-year college career. Even Matt Eberflus would dial up the occasional blitz for Barron. 

He struggled at the combine but did record a 4.39-second 40-yard dash. At 5-foot-11, he’s only in the 41st percentile of this loaded cornerback class, but it’s his ability to diagnose plays quickly that gives him an advantage over the field. 

During his five years in Austin, Barron made 226 tackles, 21 tackles for a loss, and forced a fumble. He’s an excellent ball player, too. He took eight interceptions in his career and defended a total of 24 passes. 

A cornerback who will improve the run defense is pretty hard to find. The Cowboys have signed Kaiir Elam after he left the Bills, but he figures to be more of a depth guy than a reliable starter, and Trevon Diggs’ preseason may be hampered by injury, so they could use a reliable starter at cornerback.

Nick Emmanwori - Safety, South Carolina

On the subject of defensive backs who can improve a run defense, 21-year-old safety Emmanwori will definitely do that. And he’s huge to boot!  

Standing 6-foot-3 and weighing in at 220 pounds. Emmanwori is in the 91st percentile of the defensive back class for height and the 83rd for weight. But he’s incredibly athletic for a big man, he made the combine testing look like a walk in the park. 

Emmanwori’s 4.38-second 40-yard time is in the 96th percentile! His 10-yard split made it into the 93rd percentile. The 43-inch vertical jump he performed is in the top 99th percentile, and his 138-inch broad jump is the best in this class! He even managed 20 reps in the bench press test. But that only ranked in the 78th percentile. 

There are three excellent safeties in the 2025 draft class, but Emmanwori stands out both literally and figuratively. Quarterbacks will hesitate to throw over the middle when they see him lined up there. Not only because he can stop receivers in their tracks, but also because he can gobble up interceptions. He defended 11 passes and made six interceptions during his college career. 

Both Malik Hooker and Donovan Wilson played all 17 games last season. But they didn’t play well. Hooker missed 6.9% of the tackles he was asked to make and allowed 62.5% of passes to be completed. Wilson missed 8.9% of his tackles while allowing opposing quarterbacks to record a 130.0 passer rating! It’s time to freshen up that backfield.

Emmanwori isn’t projected as a top 20 pick, but he should be. If Matt Eberflus expects his defensive front to create pressure and the defensive backs to clean up the mess they make he needs Emmanwori in the backfield.

RHYS KNOTT

NFL/FANTASY FOOTBALL ANALYST

Rhys has been watching the NFL for 30 something years and still hasn’t managed to pick a team to support. When he’s not fixatED on pass rushers you can find him blithering on about most sports on Twitter @wrhys_writes

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