Cowboys selecting early DT would be draft-day shocker
The Cowboys did an admirable job plugging holes and upgrading their roster this offseason. They upgraded their passing game by trading for Brandin Cooks. They upgraded their pass defense by trading for Stephon Gilmore. And they preserved their run defense retaining Johnathan Hankins, Leighton Vander Esch and Donovan Wilson.
They did the things they needed to do so they could be opportunists in the draft come April 27. If a great player falls into their laps, they’ll be nimble enough to take advantage and not be forced to pick a specific need. They have a need to upgrade talent across the board, but no dire circumstances.
One position the Cowboys could certainly use an upgrade at is defensive tackle.
The interior of their defensive line was exposed in 2022 when Hankins was lost to injury. They lacked the girth in their interior to clog up rushing lanes and they struggled to keep blockers off of the linebackers trying to make plays from the second level.
They could use more interior pressure players as well. Osa Odighizuwa did a nice job rushing the passer from inside but besides him, the cupboards look pretty bare.
As discussed in the positional assessment, the Cowboys could use talent inside and if the right inside player falls to them at some point in the draft, they’d be well served to select said player.
The question is – when will they?
Dallas isn’t exactly known for valuing interior defensive linemen early in the draft. They’ve passed over highly-rated players before and often fill the interior roles with bargain free agents or late round rookie options.
Historically, how soon is too soon and when do they typically target DT? The best way to predict the future is to look at the past so what exactly is the past saying?
The Dallas Cowboys haven't been overly eager to use high draft capital on the interior defensive line over the years… pic.twitter.com/QoVKc1owaN
— Reid D Hanson (@ReidDHanson) April 18, 2023
Over the past 10 seasons, the Cowboys have drafted eight DTs (as listed on PFR). The earliest DT drafted was Trysten Hill at 58. Five of the nine were picked outside the top-100 with the average draft slot coming in at 153.
This is probably seen as bad news to anyone hoping Dallas will draft players like Mazi Smith, Bryan Brecee or Calijah Kancey, who are all expected off the board well before the Cowboys pick in the second round (per Dane Brugler’s Top-100).
But that doesn’t suggest total disregard for the position since four of the nine DTs the Cowboys selected were on Day 2 (rounds 2-3).
Defensive coordinator Dan Quinn also seems to have extra pull in the war room so it’s possible he could influence the situation. But looking at his time in Atlanta, the average draft slot the Falcons picked a DT was at 113. That’s 40 spots higher than Dallas but not exactly a declaration of love from the mighty Quinn.
Is it possible the Cowboys will select a defensive tackle in the first round of the 2023 draft? Sure, but history suggests they will not and history is a pretty good indicator of what the future holds.
