2023 Draft: Things I got right/Things I got wrong

[DanA]

Sewell’s grit and toughness aren’t the issue - he’s slow as hell.

No questions about his toughness, he hits hard. I felt watching him that he was a good athlete carrying 10-15 lbs of bad weight. If that got dialed in you'd have a much faster player.

 

[CowboyRoy]

Now that the 2023 Draft is over, I thought it would be interesting to review and look back at some of my pre-draft hunches to see how they actually played out. Keep in mind, my list doesn't speak to whether I believe the noted player will be a bust or star, but rather where I thought they'd be slotted with the other prospects in the draft.

Things I Got Right

• I posted about Joey Porter being a bit overrated heading into the draft. I felt the delta between he and Gonzalez (in my opinion the best CB prospect) was big. I thought/think Porter is a raw prospect that struggles with clean technique and ball skills. Porter ended up dropping to the top of R2.
• There was early talk of Siaki Ika being a potential late first rounder. I never believed it. Ika ended up being taken 98th overall in R3.
• I always felt the Cowboys were interested in adding a TE with some juice. If you're to believe Todd Archer's report, the Cowboys had Sam LaPorta and Dalton Kincaid ranked #1 and #2 respectively on their board, which I believe supports my contention.
• I felt folks were way too high on Roschon Johnson around here, with some even thinking he could go as early as the 2nd round. I said he was a Day 3 prospect. Johnson was taken 115th overall in R4.
• I did not see Darnell Washington as a 1st round prospect. Some believed he was the top TE available. He ended up being selected in R3 with seven other TEs taken in front of him.
• Said all pre-Draft that Steve Avila > O'Cyrus Torrence. Avila was the first IOL taken off the board and Torrence was the fourth.

Things I Got Wrong

• Did not believe Mazi Smith was going to go in R1. Low and behold the Cowboys end up taking him in the first round.
• Felt there was a good chance Calijah Kancey wouldn't go in R1, let alone #19 overall.
• Wasn't surprised Drew Sanders didn't get selected in R1, but didn't envision him dropping to R3.

List yours....

I would argue you were wrong on the TE thing. Cowboys clearly wanted an all around te that can block well. Laporta and kincaid arent that. Some report doesnt prove anything definitively.

 

[John813]

Right:
The NFL for the most part still doesn't value TE's in the first.
Dallas wouldn't take one in the first
LaPorta being higher up in the board than the big 3-4 that were being talked about for most of the offseason
Washington was overrated, red flag or not

Wrong:
Sanders falling that far
Gibbs and Campbell going that high
Never thought Dallas would take a big DT in the first
Thought Miami would of taken a TE higher up and not roll with Durham Smythe as their only real TE

 

[Risen Star]

Right:
The NFL for the most part still doesn't value TE's in the first.
Dallas wouldn't take one in the first
LaPorta being higher up in the board than the big 3-4 that were being talked about for most of the offseason
Washington was overrated, red flag or not

Wrong:
Sanders falling that far
Gibbs and Campbell going that high
Never thought Dallas would take a big DT in the first
Thought Miami would of taken a TE higher up and not roll with Durham Smythe as their only real TE

Learn from it, John. We expect better next year.