Should the Cowboys feel forced to reach for a defender with the 10th pick?

[Malhavoc]

If you draft a a WR or Pitts I definitely think Gallup is probably a goner. Maybe you get a 2nd rounder or likely a 3rd.

 

[Beaker42]

No you should never reach.

If you feel you desperately need defense help then you trade back. If there is no worth trade back offers then take the top talent. Im open to an offensive lineman seeing how we still have yet to find a LG or OC worthy of replacing Fredbeard as well as Tyron Smith long term future is very much in question. Also our tight end depth is average at best. Would not totally be against taking Kyle Pitts. Gives up the option to trade Gallup for defensive help while keeping a high powered receiving lineup.

Biadasz would like a word with you.

 

[Beaker42]

The way the board is looking right now, one of Parsons, Farley or Surtain should be there at #10.There's like 5 teams minimum in front of us that need QBs, and some really monster talents on offense like Sewell, Chase and Pitts that will get teams' attention. I'm feeling optimistic.

I don't want a receiver like Pitts or Chase. Both of them are going to be monsters, but spending our '19, '20, and '21 first rounders all on receivers makes us the Dallas Lions.

Slater, you can definitely talk me into. Sewell, done. I'd take him over any of the 3 defenders. Darrisaw... ehhhh. If we picked him, I'd get it, but there's 5 or 6 other guys I'd rather draft instead.

Slater is a G - plain and simple. He doesn’t have T feet or length. Darrisaw does. He’s gonna be a better OT.

 

[Beaker42]

Well no, because there are none in this draft.

Huh??

 

[Future]

Huh??

There are no defensive players worthy of a top-10 pick in this draft.

 

[RandyOh]

Biadasz would like a word with you.

Tell him!!! Maybe it will light a fire under him and he comes out dominating

 

[cowboyec]

no.
trust your scouts.
trust your board.

 

[75boyz]

I don’t see why, personally I would go OL this year maybe 1 OT and LG. Build in the trenches and you can’t lose.

I strongly endorse this post. Just based off this year's playoff and SB evidence alone. Once Rodgers lost Bakhtiari and Mahommes lost Fisher and others, the starting d linemen dominated the backup olinemen in the trenches and determined the outcomes of the games.

Starting left tackles for the Dallas Cowboys shouldn't be a hard refresher lesson to remember. Chaz Green anyone?

And no, Steele and Knight aren't the answer. Spot starters at best.

The only viable alternative imho would be to entertain Martin kicking out to LT. He is the only current OL capable of performing at a near equal Tyron type level of performance at LT.

Add in Collins's uncertainty as well and yeah, count me in the drafting OTs in the top rounds group.

 

[Proof]

Exactly.
People that dismiss taking Pitts just simply don't understand how elite he is going to be.

or have seen plenty of elite, can't miss players, not translating or being worthy of the hype. and specifically have seen it from tight ends. ebron, njoku, oj howard, etc etc. everyone wants a kelce or kittle (or waller) but it doesn't always workout that way. top ten is a rare occurrence.

 

[AsthmaField]

or have seen plenty of elite, can't miss players, not translating or being worthy of the hype. and specifically have seen it from tight ends. ebron, njoku, oj howard, etc etc. everyone wants a kelce or kittle (or waller) but it doesn't always workout that way. top ten is a rare occurrence.

I’m not saying that we know that Pitts is going to be a pro bowl player for sure, because nobody can say that without at least some doubt. However, Pitts has everything mentally and in his game tape that Ebron, Njoku, and Howard didn’t have.

They were very physically gifted, though not quite as gifted as Pitts, I think.

However, Pitts is a polished player who has done everything at the college level that a receiving TE could possibly do. Mentally, he’s just such a good player. He shows the instincts and nuances of an already great player. His hands are 10 out of 10. He catches everything that even gets close to him. His routes are very good, and his natural feel for high-pointing the ball, boxing out the defender and coming back for the ball are about as good already as any pro TE you’ll find. He is a really, really good football player already. Notice, I’m not talking about his athletic traits and size... which he definitely has in abundance. It is how he plays football that makes him special.

Pitts is already what NFL teams hoped Ebron, Njoku, and Howard might someday approach if they reached their full potential. If their games grew to match their prolific athleticism and size, they might have become a lesser version of what Pitts was at the University of Florida.

I’m not a fan of a highly athletic player without a lot of good tape, that the drafting team has to turn into a good player. I’m even less of a fan of those guys in the first round. I like to see college production for first round picks. Preferably, major college production. Pitts has that in spades... and frankly it is more impressive than his huge physical tools.

The only thing that Pitts has in common with those guys (and those type of prospects) is their immense physical tools. The rest of his game is in a different galaxy from those raw prospects.

So, while we can’t know just how good Pitts will or will not be... I’m pretty sure that he has a better chance than just about anyone else I’ve seen coming out as a TE in a long, long time. Especially guys like Ebron, Njoku, and OJ Howard.

 

[beware_d-ware]

I’m not saying that we know that Pitts is going to be a pro bowl player for sure, because nobody can say that without at least some doubt. However, Pitts has everything mentally and in his game tape that Ebron, Njoku, and Howard didn’t have.

They were very physically gifted, though not quite as gifted as Pitts, I think.

However, Pitts is a polished player who has done everything at the college level that a receiving TE could possibly do. Mentally, he’s just such a good player. He shows the instincts and nuances of an already great player. His hands are 10 out of 10. He catches everything that even gets close to him. His routes are very good, and his natural feel for high-pointing the ball, boxing out the defender and coming back for the ball are about as good already as any pro TE you’ll find. He is a really, really good football player already. Notice, I’m not talking about his athletic traits and size... which he definitely has in abundance. It is how he plays football that makes him special.

Pitts is already what NFL teams hoped Ebron, Njoku, and Howard might someday approach if they reached their full potential. If their games grew to match their prolific athleticism and size, they might have become a lesser version of what Pitts was at the University of Florida.

I’m not a fan of a highly athletic player without a lot of good tape, that the drafting team has to turn into a good player. I’m even less of a fan of those guys in the first round. I like to see college production for first round picks. Preferably, major college production. Pitts has that in spades... and frankly it is more impressive than his huge physical tools.

The only thing that Pitts has in common with those guys (and those type of prospects) is their immense physical tools. The rest of his game is in a different galaxy from those raw prospects.

So, while we can’t know just how good Pitts will or will not be... I’m pretty sure that he has a better chance than just about anyone else I’ve seen coming out as a TE in a long, long time. Especially guys like Ebron, Njoku, and OJ Howard.

Wish I could upvote this 10x.

 

[Proof]

I’m not saying that we know that Pitts is going to be a pro bowl player for sure, because nobody can say that without at least some doubt. However, Pitts has everything mentally and in his game tape that Ebron, Njoku, and Howard didn’t have.

They were very physically gifted, though not quite as gifted as Pitts, I think.

However, Pitts is a polished player who has done everything at the college level that a receiving TE could possibly do. Mentally, he’s just such a good player. He shows the instincts and nuances of an already great player. His hands are 10 out of 10. He catches everything that even gets close to him. His routes are very good, and his natural feel for high-pointing the ball, boxing out the defender and coming back for the ball are about as good already as any pro TE you’ll find. He is a really, really good football player already. Notice, I’m not talking about his athletic traits and size... which he definitely has in abundance. It is how he plays football that makes him special.

Pitts is already what NFL teams hoped Ebron, Njoku, and Howard might someday approach if they reached their full potential. If their games grew to match their prolific athleticism and size, they might have become a lesser version of what Pitts was at the University of Florida.

I’m not a fan of a highly athletic player without a lot of good tape, that the drafting team has to turn into a good player. I’m even less of a fan of those guys in the first round. I like to see college production for first round picks. Preferably, major college production. Pitts has that in spades... and frankly it is more impressive than his huge physical tools.

The only thing that Pitts has in common with those guys (and those type of prospects) is their immense physical tools. The rest of his game is in a different galaxy from those raw prospects.

So, while we can’t know just how good Pitts will or will not be... I’m pretty sure that he has a better chance than just about anyone else I’ve seen coming out as a TE in a long, long time. Especially guys like Ebron, Njoku, and OJ Howard.

mom a big fan of yours, but aside from tds this year (which are a big deal) what exactly has Pitts done that Ebron didn’t also do? Ebrons final year he had 62 catches and nearly 1k yards. Pitts obviously was on pace to eclipse those numbers but he didn’t play a full skate. The yr prior when he did, he still fell considerably short.

my post was in response to someone saying we “don’t understand how elite he will be”. It’s just not a given, and having some skepticism is warranted. Especially given the premium nature of the pick, recent history of highly touted mismatch athletic TE’s, and our current makeup.

 

[AsthmaField]

mom a big fan of yours, but aside from tds this year (which are a big deal) what exactly has Pitts done that Ebron didn’t also do? Ebrons final year he had 62 catches and nearly 1k yards. Pitts obviously was on pace to eclipse those numbers but he didn’t play a full skate. The yr prior when he did, he still fell considerably short.

my post was in response to someone saying we “don’t understand how elite he will be”. It’s just not a given, and having some skepticism is warranted. Especially given the premium nature of the pick, recent history of highly touted mismatch athletic TE’s, and our current makeup.

I understand and you’re right, we can never know for sure about a prospect (although I was pretty sure about Aaron Donald and I curse the Rams for taking him!)

As for Ebron, his hands alone makes him not nearly the prospect that Pitts is IMO. He drops way too many balls. If he caught 62 in college, Lord only knows how many targets he must’ve had. He lacks the nuance that Pitts has in playing his position. Even now, after years in the league, I don’t think he’s as polished as Pitts was this season, and he’ll never be the natural catcher that Pitts is.

I may be too high on his potential in the NFL, but I really don’t think that I am.

Anyway, we’ll just have to see how things unfold and watch Pitts career going forward. I appreciate the civil discussion.

 

[CouchCoach]

The Cowboys must begin to fix the defense but that doesn't mean they have to use the 1st rounder on that. This is not a good D draft by anyone's estimation so taking the BPA isn't a bad strategy picking in the top 10.

Trading down seems like a good idea but they have to have a partner and those first 9 picks have to drop in their favor and they have to be ready to move quickly. They should be working in advance with teams drafting behind them that are in the market for a QB in case those two CB's and Sewell are gone and a QB is falling to 10.

The case for Pitts is a strong one but he is not the complete TE and this is still a team that needs to run the ball. However, he's 6'6", runs like a deer and the Cowboys QB is 6'2", that TE with a good wingspan could make this offense one of the most difficult to handle in the league and actually add value to a QB that might cost 40M.

They needed D help last draft and took a WR. This one could be no different. However, they take Pitts, it's time to acknowledge this is no longer a run team and paying the RB what they did was a bigger mistake than they will make with the 1st pick in this draft.

Look at it this way. Can Pitts make the team more lethal in the red zone than any D pick could help prevent scoring? That's all that matters, scoring more points than they do.

 

[Creeper]

At 10 they should be able to get an impact player at some position. I don't think this team is good enough to argue that some positions are off limits. An upgrade is an upgrade. If there are no defensive players there then take the best offensive player on the board, the one most likely to make a big difference. IMO, that would be Pitts, if he is available. If not then one of the WRs. Then look at trading Gallup or Cooper. Everyone knows by now I am not a Cooper fan. If someone else wants him and his contract, trade him and let the rookie play. Maybe he'll be another Justin Jefferson.

I will be disappointed if they are forced to go offense again because the 2 CBs are gone already. But if they take Pitts, I think we will be happy when the season rolls around.

Then again, if the defense is as bad as it was in 2020 then no offensive player is going to make much of a difference.

 

[JBS]

As we saw last year, this team won't hesitate and reach to fill a need if a better player is available on their board.

Just because they did it last year does not mean they will do so again

 

[Malhavoc]

I never thought that we would consider anything but defense at 10, but I am starting to believe it could be Pitts are one of the WR’s.

 

[Cowboyny]

Just because they did it last year does not mean they will do so again

If there is a blinking light player, I expect the same thing. Say Chase drops to 10, I can't see them passing him up.

 

[AsthmaField]

If there is a blinking light player, I expect the same thing. Say Chase drops to 10, I can't see them passing him up.

And they shouldn’t, unless a wow trade comes along. Chase is a phenomenal player and Dallas could likely get a second for Gallup.

I’m not a trade Gallup guy because I like him a lot but if Dallas took Chase, he’d have to go.

I’d take Chase and a second round player over just Surtain and Gallup. Chase is a certified game changer.

 

[Cowboyny]

And they shouldn’t, unless a wow trade comes along. Chase is a phenomenal player and Dallas could likely get a second for Gallup.

I’m not a trade Gallup guy because I like him a lot but if Dallas took Chase, he’d have to go.

I’d take Chase and a second round player over just Surtain and Gallup. Chase is a certified game changer.

Gallup with one year left on his contract won't get you a 2nd rd pick, but still could get a late day 2, early day 3. Interesting enough, although he is the team's best receiver, team could consider dealing Cooper and his big contract. Chase/Lamb are legitimate #1 receiver talents and you would have them on controllable contracts for the next several years.