2017 Big Board Thread

[TheFinisher]

I'm composing a top 15 Big Board, and for the purpose of making it as realistic as possible I excluded the top 10 players from CBS Sports' board. I also eliminated all OL, QB, RB, and box (Tim Williams, Carl Lawson) players which totaled an additional 8 players removed from the board. Lastly, I ultimately decided to take Zach Cunningham off the board because I just don't see his fit within our scheme as bringing enough value to justify a 1st Round selection.

Assuming at least 3 of those players are selected before our pick, this guarantees at least one of the following names with a 1st Round grade will fall to us. I will be following up on this post with individual breakdowns for each player and justifications for why I slotted them where I did. Good news is, there should be some very attractive options for us when we're on the clock.

Tier 1
Marshon Lattimore | CB | Ohio State
OJ Howard | TE | Alabama
Jabrill Peppers | S | Michigan
Corey Davis | WR | Western Michigan
Derek Barnett | DE | Tennessee

Tier 2
David Njoku | TE | Miami
Haason Reddick | LB/EDGE | Temple

Tier 3
Taco Charlton | DE | Michigan
John Ross | WR | Washington
Teez Tabor | CB | Florida
Marlon Humphrey | CB | Alabama

Tier 4
Sidney Jones | CB | Washington
Takk McKinley | DE | UCLA
Charles Harris | DE | Missouri
Malik McDowell | DE/DT | Michigan State​

The separation of tiers is an indication of where I see a drop off in talent level, the actual order placement of players within individual tiers is more fluid and not a definitive ranking of BPA. I'm hoping this thread can create some healthy discussions on how you would order your board and begin to give us an idea of what the team may be thinking when it's time to compose their own.

 

[tm1119]

Unless we bring Peppers in for a private workout at some point I'd say he won't be that high on our board. Him working at the combine as a LB kind of alienates him from a defensive scheme like ours. We'd have to workout him out privately to see just how capable he is or isnt as a S at the next level.

 

[reddyuta]

good idea but we should not exclude OL,i hope we dont pass on Bolles if we drops to us.He may very well be the top one left on our board.

 

[TheFinisher]

Unless we bring Peppers in for a private workout at some point I'd say he won't be that high on our board. Him working at the combine as a LB kind of alienates him from a defensive scheme like ours. We'd have to workout him out privately to see just how capable he is or isnt as a S at the next level.

I don't think there's any doubt he's physically capable of playing safety, especially when you consider we've had an average/below average athlete in Barry Church manning that spot for 3-4 years now. He's arguably the best athlete in this class and is extremely physical coming up in run support. I don't think him working out as a LB at the combine will impact how teams view him either way, the line between SS and OLB has become blurred in today's NFL.

 

[Killerinstinct]

I would be happy with any one of the Tier 1 players even if I secretly hope we don't draft a TE with a premium pick yet.

I am higher on Marlon Humphrey than other people. I would have him and NJOKU in tier 1. John Ross I believe is the best Z receiver in the draft and would bring an added dimension to our offense. I think I would include him in tier 1 too.

Lattimore
Barnett
Corey Davis
Jabrill Peppers
Marlon Humphrey
John Ross

These are the 6 I would target and consider Tier 1 for Cowboys purposes

I also think Tim Williams would be much more valuable to us than Reddick but having him on the board would be dependent upon the results of internal investigation.

 

[TheFinisher]

good idea but we should not exclude OL,i hope we dont pass on Bolles if we drops to us.He may very well be the top one left on our board.

It wouldn't shock me to see the team select OL, but with the current status of Doug Free and some of the flashes Chaz Green has shown in relief duty I just believe it more likely the team ignore it in the 1st unless there were a clear difference in BPA, which I don't see happening in what is IMO, a weak OT class.

 

[Killerinstinct]

It wouldn't shock me to see the team select OL, but with the current status of Doug Free and some of the flashes Chaz Green has shown in relief duty I just believe it more likely the team ignore it in the 1st unless there were a clear difference in BPA, which I don't see happening in what is IMO, a weak OT class.

I agree. I don't think this is the year to draft an OT early even if I like the idea in principle. Weak class.

 

[tm1119]

I don't think there's any doubt he's physically capable of playing safety, especially when you consider we've had an average/below average athlete in Barry Church manning that spot for 3-4 years now. He's arguably the best athlete in this class and is extremely physical coming up in run support. I don't think him working out as a LB at the combine will impact how teams view him either way, the line between SS and OLB has become blurred in today's NFL.

There has to be a reason he's working out as an extremely undersized LB that makes him a niche fit for only a few defenses...unless he's just horribly represented. Still, it makes 0 sense. There's more to being a safety than being fast. I keep seeing people make it seem obvious that he can play S, yet he's done it very little in a traditional NFL sense. And now with the combine decision...it just smells fishy. I think he can be a pretty good player, but he needs to be drafted by the right D coordinator that can use him in a hybrid role. That coordinator sure ain't Rod Marinelli.

 

[waving monkey]

If I select one from each tier i go:
[1] Jibrill
[2] Njoku ,I cant believe im saying this
[3] Taco
[4] MMcDowell