The Dallas Cowboys went into the 2021 NFL Draft with one focus and that was to improve a defense that set a franchise record for points allowed in a season. Dallas used its first six on picks on defensive players and overall spent eight of their 11 picks on the defensive side of the ball.
While these players should help upgrade the Dallas Cowboys defense the team could have used these picks better when addressing their needs in the 2021 NFL Draft. An example of this is when they took cornerback Nahshon Wright in the third round over corners such as Ifeatu Melifonwu, Elijah Molden and Robert Rochell. On the positive side, Dallas did get two good values at linebacker with their selection of Micah Parsons in the first round and Jabril Cox in the fourth round.
Along with taking a look at the Dallas Cowboy’s NFL Draft this week’s NFL Draft Notebook also covers the following
- A highly productive middle linebacker who enters the 2021 season with a day three grade
- The top prospects in the Big Ten
- A couple of NFL Draft prospects who announced where they will be playing college football next year
- and much more
Reviewing the Dallas Cowboys 2021 NFL Draft
First pick: Micah Parsons
The Dallas Cowboys picked the second-best defensive player in the 2021 NFL Draft when they chose Micah Parsons with the 12th pick. What makes Parsons such a high upside draft pick is his outstanding athletic ability displaying the range to play sideline to sideline vs the run or be a feared pass rusher against the pass. While Parsons does have the natural ability to be an NFL Pro Bowler he is going to need to improve his instincts to live up to this potential.
The Dallas Cowboys are planning on using Parsons in a variety of different roles this season and it would not be a shock to see him getting time at all three linebacker spots this coming season. He also could see time at defensive end in pass-rushing situations.
Best pick: Jabril Cox
One of the better value picks the Dallas Cowboys made in the 2021 NFL Draft is when they took LSU linebacker Jabril Cox in the fourth round. Cox has been an outstanding coverage linebacker during his time at both LSU and North Dakota State. He shows the fluid hips and overall athletic ability to match up vs most tight end or running backs he will be asked to cover.
While Cox might not see the field a ton this year as the Dallas Cowboys already have good depth at outside linebacker, he still should make an impact. The Cowboys will likely use him as a nickel linebacker at times and on several special teams units next season. He will likely develop into a full-time starting linebacker in a year or two.
Worst pick: Nahshon Wright
One of the bigger reaches on the second day of the 2021 NFL Draft is when the Dallas Cowboys took Nahshon Wright in the third round. Wright graded out as a sixth-round pick on my draft board and was ranked even lower by other people including The Athletic who gave him a free agent grade. On the positive side Wright is a taller corner who shows good ball skills, but at this point is more of a developmental prospect and not someone worth a third-round pick.
In terms of where Wright fits in with the Dallas Cowboys, he will likely see very limited action next season as the team refines his technique and adds some weight to his 6-foot-4 183-pound frame. He could also see practice time at both corner and safety to see which position he fits best at in the NFL.
Top undrafted free agent: Nick Eubanks
The Dallas Cowboys were able to get one of the better undrafted free agent tight ends available when they signed Nick Eubanks of Michigan. While Eubanks never had great production in college only catching more than ten passes in a season once, he is an athletic tight end with a high upside.
Eubanks also fills a need for the Dallas Cowboys as their top two tight ends Dalton Schultz and Jeremy Sprinkle will be free agents after this season. It would not be a surprise if Eubanks showed enough this season as a number three tight end to see a much larger role in 2022 if either Schultz or Sprinkle depart after this season.
2022 NFL Draft Sleeper of the Week
This week’s Sleeper of the Week is linebacker Justin Rice. What makes Rice such an interesting prospect is the fact that he will finish his college career playing for three different schools and has already been named an all-conference pick in both the Sun Belt and Mountain West. Rice will likely establish himself as one of the top players in the Mountain West again this season when he will play his one and only season at Utah State.
As a prospect, the trait that really stands out with Rice is his instincts and ability to get to the ball. This past season Rice led Arkansas State in tackles with 76 tackles which was 22 more tackles than any other Red Wolf defender had. In 2019, he finished third in the Mountain West in tackles after recording 112 tackles for Fresno State. He has been a playmaker on defense as well having recorded ten sacks over the last two years and two interceptions in 2019.
While Rice’s production has been outstanding in college he does have some concerns when projecting him to the NFL. One of these issues is that he is not the strongest linebacker and has trouble getting off blocks at times. While Rice is far from a bad athlete he will need to post strong testing numbers, to prove he is the type of athlete who can succeed in the NFL.
Another red flag with Rice will be why did he transfer so much during his college career. While it helps that he followed his former Arkansas State coach Blake Anderson to Utah State and left Fresno State at least partly due to the issues California was having with Covid, a team will have to make sure no other issues were involved in him transferring.
When it comes to projecting Rice to the NFL he will project as someone who can make a contribution on special teams at the very least. If he puts up another strong year this season, adds some strength, and tests well he could be looked at as someone who could turn into a starting linebacker in the NFL down the road.
- Iowa State’s Mike Rose is one of the more versatile linebackers in the 2022 NFL Draft. As a pass defender, he has been outstanding in coverage and last year finished with the second most interceptions from a linebacker in Big 12 history finishing the 2020 season with five. He holds up well vs. the run as well and led the Big 12 in tackles last season with 96 and finished with the highest grade among linebackers vs the run according to Pro Football Focus. If Rose has another strong season this year and puts up good testing numbers he should get serious interest in the second round of the 2022 NFL Draft.
- Pittsburgh tight end Lucas Krull is a tight end to watch this year. Despite only having ten career receptions and missing most of last season with a knee injury he is someone the NFL is well aware of. One of the reasons he is drawing scouts attention is his size coming in at 6-foot-6 and 255 pounds. He also had a strong spring and Pittsburgh coach Pat Narduzzi has commented that he is looking like a first-round pick. One of the main reasons for his lack of production is he started his career off at Florida where he played behind Kyle Pitts.
- A player who had a breakout season last year is Virginia Tech’s Amaré Barno who made the move from linebacker to defensive end. Last season, he recorded 16 tackles for loss and 6.5 sacks after not posting a single tackle for loss or sack in 2019. As a prospect, he is reminiscent of UNI’s Elerson Smith who went to the New York Giants in the fourth round of the 2020 NFL Draft. He is similar to Smith as both players have good length, needed to add weight going into their senior seasons, and made their share of plays in opponents’ backfield as juniors.
- One of the more intriguing players in the 2022 NFL Draft is Utah tight end Brant Kuithe. What makes him such an interesting prospect is the variety of roles he can play in the NFL. He is an outstanding receiver who led the Utes in receptions in both 2020 and 2019. He is also a threat to carry the ball and has rushed for 150 yards over the past two seasons while averaging 11.5 yards per carry. His best position in the NFL will likely be as an H-back due to him lacking the size to be a traditional tight end (6-foot-2, 230-pounds) and the strength to be a fullback in the NFL.
2022 NFL Draft Preseason Big Ten Watch List
A list of the top 2022 NFL Draft prospects to watch from the Big Ten. Please note these players aren’t ranked and this is just a watch list.
Quarterbacks
Noah Vedral, Rutgers
Brandon Peters, Illinois
Michael Penix Jr, Indiana
Tanner Morgan, Minnesota
Adrian Martinez, Nebraska
Running Backs
Mohamed Ibrahim, Minnesota
Master Teague, Ohio State
Tyler Goodsen, Iowa
Fullbacks
Zander Horvath, Purdue
Chigoziem Okonkwo, Maryland
John Chenal, Wisconsin
Wide Receivers
Chris Olave, Ohio State
Ty Fryfogle, Indiana
Jahan Dotson, Penn State
Brian Hightower, Illinois
David Bell, Purdue
Ty Fryfogle, Indiana
Garrett Wilson, Ohio State
Jahan Dotson, Penn State
Aron Cruickshank, Rutgers
D.J. Matthews, Indiana
Dontay Demus Jr., Maryland
Ronnie Bell, Michigan
Chris Autman-Bell, Minnesota
Samori Toure, Nebraska
Omar Manning, Nebraska
Bo Melton, Rutgers
Shameen Jones, Rutgers
Danny Davi, Wisconsin
Tight Ends
Daniel Barker, Illinois
Jake Ferguson, Wisconsin
Peyton Hendershot, Indiana
Sam LaPorta, Iowa
Austin Allen, Nebraska
Offensive Tackles
Thayer Munford, Ohio State
Nicholas Petit-Frere, Ohio State
Blaise Andries, Minnesota
Rasheed Walker, Penn State
Daniel Faalele, Minnesota
Logan Bruss, Wisconsin
Offensive Guards
Eric Wilson, Penn State
Mike Miranda, Penn State
Logan Bruss, Wisconsin
Harry Miller, Ohio State
Kyler Schott, Iowa
Sam Gerak, Northwestern
Grant Long, Purdue
Josh Seltzner, Wisconsin
Logan Bruss, Wisconsin
Andrew Stueber, Michigan
Centers
Tyler Linderbaum, Iowa
Andrew Vastardis, Michigan
Cormac Sampson, Wisconsin
Defensive Ends
Tyreke Smith, Ohio State
Arnold Ebiketie, Penn State
Boye Mafe, Minnesota
Owen Carney Jr., Illinois
Zach VanValkenburg, Iowa
Zach Harrison, Ohio State
George Karlaftis, Purdue
Zach VanValkenburg, Iowa
Aidan Hutchinson, Michigan
Arnold Ebiketie, Penn State
Defensive Tackles
Haskell Garrett, Ohio State
Roderick Perry II, Illinois
Taron Vincent, Ohio State
Antwuan Jackson, Ohio State
Christopher Hinton, Michigan
Outside Linebackers
JoJo Domann, Nebraska
Chris Bergin, Northwestern
Teradja Mitchell, Ohio State
Middle Linebackers
Micah McFadden, Indiana
Jake Hansen, Illinois
Olakunle Fatukasi, Rutgers
Jack Sanborn, Wisconsin
Josh Ross, Michigan
Mariano Sori-Marin, Minnesota
Will Honas, Nebraska
Dallas Gant, Ohio State
Jaylan Alexander, Purdue
Cornerbacks
Tiawan Mullen, Indiana
Tre Avery, Rutgers
Joey Porter, Penn State
Cam Taylor-Britt, Nebraska
Caesar Williams, Wisconsin
Jaylin Williams, Indiana
Reese Taylor, Indiana
Matt Hankins, Iowa
Riley Moss, Iowa
Gemon Green, Michigan
Coney Durr, Minnesota
Sevyn Banks, Ohio State
Tre Avery, Rutgers
Faion Hicks, Wisconsin
Safeties
Marcelino Ball, Indiana
Jaquan Brisker, Penn State
Jack Koerner, Iowa
Devon Matthews, Indiana
Brad Hawkins, Michigan
Xavier Henderson, Michigan State
Deontai Williams, Nebraska
Marquel Dismuke, Nebraska
Josh Proctor, Ohio State
Scott Nelson, Wisconsin
Brandon Joseph, Northwestern
Daxton Hill, Michigan
Marcus Hooker, Ohio State
Kicker
Connor Culp, Nebraska
Punter
Adam Korsak, Rutgers
2022 NFL Draft News and Notes
- Notre Dame defensive lineman Myron Tagovailoa-Amosa switched positions this spring from defensive tackle to defensive end. He could get looks as a 3-4 defensive end in the NFL as he has the size and strength to play that position.
- Former Kansas wide receiver Andrew Parchment has transferred to Florida State. Parchment enters the 2021 season with an undrafted free agent grade, but if he can produce like he did in 2019 when he caught 65 passes for 831 yards and seven touchdowns he could get some looks late in the 2022 NFL Draft.
- Another NFL prospect who picked the school he will be playing for this coming season is defensive tackle Tony Fair. Fair started his career off at UAB where he was named honorable mention All-Conference USA in 2019 and recorded 21 tackles and three tackles for loss last year. He will play his final season at Auburn, where his size and athleticism should allow him to be one of the better defensive tackles in the SEC in 2021.
- One more NFL prospect who transferred last week and like Tony Fair went to Auburn is former Southeast Missouri State safety Bydarrius Knighten. While at Southeast Missouri State Knighten registered 262 tackles, six interceptions and was named an FCS All-American.
- Oklahoma State defensive end Trace Ford missed spring ball due to a knee injury he suffered at the end of the 2020 season. In the ten games he did play in last year he recorded 22 tackles, 4.5 sacks and four pass breakups. If he can stay healthy next season he could be a mid-round pick in the 2022 NFL Draft.
- An interesting stat from last year is that Notre Dame running back Kyren Williams had 313 receiving yards last season which is 95 more receiving yards than his former teammate and current Carolina Panthers tight end Tommy Tremble had. This stat shows teams that Williams has the ability to help out both as a runner and a receiver out of the backfield, which will only help his draft stock.
- The University of Nebraska released their players’ vertical jump numbers and a prospect who posted impressive numbers is outside linebacker JoJo Domann who jumped 36.5 inches.