Cowboys: 2021 NFL Draft picks who could replace top free agents

Dallas Cowboys 2021 NFL Draft prospects to replace top free agents

2. CB Patrick Surtain for Chidobe Awuzie

The Cowboys used a late second-round pick in the 2017 NFL Draft on a high-upside player in Colorado cornerback Chidobe Awuzie, and he has had some mixed results so far in his professional career.

Awuzie has shown off that high upside at times, breaking up 25 passes from 2018-19 and racking up 150 tackles over those two seasons. Unfortunately, this past season, he was limited to eight games and he hasn’t quite established himself as a CB1 in Dallas.

That distinction could go to 2020 second-round pick Trevon Diggs, but he could also give way to a former Alabama teammate in Patrick Surtain II.

Surtain II has been as close to “shutdown” as you will find at the cornerback position the past three seasons for the Crimson Tide. While he doesn’t have the same type of size and athleticism combination as Virginia Tech cornerback Caleb Farley, Surtain plays with outstanding technique and aggressiveness.

The son of a fantastic NFL cornerback, Surtain undoubtedly knows what kind of work it’s going to take to excel early on at the NFL level.

Joining his former teammate Diggs as outside cornerbacks in Dallas, this could make a lot of sense for the Cowboys with their 10th overall pick in the first round if Surtain is still available.