What recent Cowboys Premium draft picks can tell us

[Bobhaze]

Let me start by defining “premium draft picks” as those picks made in rounds 1,2 and 3. Essentially it’s your “Day One” and “Day Two” picks. They are considered premium because history show that 50% or more of any team’s multi-year starters come from premium draft picks. Those premium picks are also the guys most likely to stay on your roster for more than a rookie contract deal.

Premium picks are also good indicators of what positions an organization values most. If over a 5-10 year period, a team has 10-20 premium picks, and only 1 is a DL, it may say a lot about what a team does or doesn’t value.

So looking at the Cowboys current roster, including this year’s 2019 draft, there are 20 Cowboys players on the roster (if you include Amari Cooper as our#1 pick this year) that the team drafted as premium picks and remain with the team today. Below are the players by position and what year they were drafted.

• 2010- Sean Lee, LB, 2nd round
• 2011- Tyron Smith, LT, 1st round
• 2012-Tyrone Crawford, DT, 3rd round
• 2013- Travis Frederick, C, 1st round
• 2014- Zack Martin, G, 1st round, DeMarcus Law, DE, 2nd round
• 2015- Byron Jones, CB/S- 1st round, Randy Gregory, DE, 2nd round
• 2016- Ezekiel Elliott, RB, 1st round, Jaylon Smith, LB, 2nd round, Maliek Collins, DT, 3rd round
• 2017- Taco Charleton, DE, 1st round, Chodobie Awuzie, CB, 2nd round, Jourdan Lewis, CB, 3rd round
• 2018- Leighton Vander Esch, LB, 1st round, Connor Williams, OL, 2nd round, Michael Gallup, WR, 3rd round
• 2019- (Amari Cooper, WR, counted as 2019 1st round pick) Trysten Hill, DT, 2nd round, Connor McGovern, G/C, 3rd round

Now, let’s look at (of the players we have drafted and kept so far) what positions the team seems to value most with their premium picks. Here are the 20 players listed above by position groups:

• DL (DE and DT)- 6 (4 DE’s)
• OL (T, G, C)- 5
• DB (CB, S)- 3 (Byron Jones drafted as a S/CB but has remained at CB- he’s the only “premium pick” that could be remotely considered a S)
• LB- 3
• WR- 2 (including Cooper)
• RB- 1

So of the 20 premium picks we have that are remaining on this roster, only 1 was drafted as a Safety- Byron Jones. But he did not remain there. Pretty clear the Cowboys are reluctant to use premium picks on a S. It’s also clear they value defensive linemen, (especially DEs) and offensive linemen, because 11 of their 20 premium picks on their roster are DL/OL.

Interesting look at how this organization has used their primary draft capital. I find it encouraging overall that since Will McClay has stepped in, most of our premium picks have done well.

 

[Hawkeye0202]

Excellent post!
Was going to do a similar thread couple days ago but got side-tracked. Maybe this will help some poster better understand their draft strategy. It appears the only way they'd consider a premium pick on safety if they are 100% confident he has what it takes to an elite player ( Earl Thomas ).

 

[817Gill]

Excellent post!
Was going to do a similar thread couple days ago but got side-tracked. Maybe this will help some poster better understand their draft strategy. It appears the only way they'd consider a premium pick on safety if they are 100% confident he has what it takes to an elite player ( Earl Thomas ).

Exactly, the team wants a real difference makes at S, not just a solid player. Rotating Heath and Iloka should make for a solid SS tandem, it will take someone with elite traits and potential to make the team spend premium resources on the position. Agree or don’t but that’s the strategy

 

[Bullflop]

Despite the failure of the Cowboys' staff to welcome priority safeties into the fold, I'm hoping to have a high quality SS next year. It seems Donovan Wilson was a last ditch effort to fulfill a need made obvious by faulty tackling at that spot last year. In any case, I hope this year will, be one to determine if that need is still wanting. If so, let's hope the staff makes a belated effort in 2020 to change the strong safety position into a team strength.

 

[CouchCoach]

Great post, Bullet, and I have been critical of the blueprint in the past but as I can see they have been addressing the trenches, although not the middle as much.

The draft strategy, like all teams, is based on the system used by the DC and Marinelli's does not put much emphasis in the premium area on the Safety and I believe Byron was put at S out of necessity and they planned on using him as a CB. In fact, if you ranked them, I bet S is dead last. The 3rd CB is a higher priority. Booger ain't taking no S in the 1st.

I think what threw people off so much was all of the pre-draft talk and perceived pursuit of Thomas. They said after the pick that it was between Hill and a S, Thornhill, so that doesn't jive with McClay's comments about Marinelli's D not emphasizing a S. They agreed that the S position needed to be addressed and then didn't until late on the 3rd day.

What they should have done, and I am dreaming here, is kept their mouths shut like most FO's and when they made the Hill pick just say he was on our radar all along, has a relationship with Marinelli and is addressing what we deem is the vulnerable part of the defense, as witnessed by anyone that saw that game in LA.

With their own mouths, they create their own problems and controversies that necessitate further explanation. Run the team, not their mouths. They're doing a much better job of that.

 

[TwentyOne]

Let me start by defining “premium draft picks” as those picks made in rounds 1,2 and 3. Essentially it’s your “Day One” and “Day Two” picks. They are considered premium because history show that 50% or more of any team’s multi-year starters come from premium draft picks. Those premium picks are also the guys most likely to stay on your roster for more than a rookie contract deal.

Premium picks are also good indicators of what positions an organization values most. If over a 5-10 year period, a team has 10-20 premium picks, and only 1 is a DL, it may say a lot about what a team does or doesn’t value.

So looking at the Cowboys current roster, including this year’s 2019 draft, there are 20 Cowboys players on the roster (if you include Amari Cooper as our#1 pick this year) that the team drafted as premium picks and remain with the team today. Below are the players by position and what year they were drafted.

• 2010- Sean Lee, LB, 2nd round
• 2011- Tyron Smith, LT, 1st round
• 2012-Tyrone Crawford, DT, 3rd round
• 2013- Travis Frederick, C, 1st round
• 2014- Zack Martin, G, 1st round, DeMarcus Law, DE, 2nd round
• 2015- Byron Jones, CB/S- 1st round, Randy Gregory, DE, 2nd round
• 2016- Ezekiel Elliott, RB, 1st round, Jaylon Smith, LB, 2nd round, Maliek Collins, DT, 3rd round
• 2017- Taco Charleton, DE, 1st round, Chodobie Awuzie, CB, 2nd round, Jourdan Lewis, CB, 3rd round
• 2018- Leighton Vander Esch, LB, 1st round, Connor Williams, OL, 2nd round, Michael Gallup, WR, 3rd round
• 2019- (Amari Cooper, WR, counted as 2019 1st round pick) Trysten Hill, DT, 2nd round, Connor McGovern, G/C, 3rd round

Now, let’s look at (of the players we have drafted and kept so far) what positions the team seems to value most with their premium picks. Here are the 20 players listed above by position groups:

• DL (DE and DT)- 6 (4 DE’s)
• OL (T, G, C)- 5
• DB (CB, S)- 3 (Byron Jones drafted as a S/CB but has remained at CB- he’s the only “premium pick” that could be remotely considered a S)
• LB- 3
• WR- 2 (including Cooper)
• RB- 1

So of the 20 premium picks we have that are remaining on this roster, only 1 was drafted as a Safety- Byron Jones. But he did not remain there. Pretty clear the Cowboys are reluctant to use premium picks on a S. It’s also clear they value defensive linemen, (especially DEs) and offensive linemen, because 11 of their 20 premium picks on their roster are DL/OL.

Interesting look at how this organization has used their primary draft capital. I find it encouraging overall that since Will McClay has stepped in, most of our premium picks have done well.

I dont understand why you only list the players that are still on the team.

To find out what kind of positions we value with premium picks you have to take into account all of those who were picked.

 

[northerncowboynation]

Let me start by defining “premium draft picks” as those picks made in rounds 1,2 and 3. Essentially it’s your “Day One” and “Day Two” picks. They are considered premium because history show that 50% or more of any team’s multi-year starters come from premium draft picks. Those premium picks are also the guys most likely to stay on your roster for more than a rookie contract deal.

Premium picks are also good indicators of what positions an organization values most. If over a 5-10 year period, a team has 10-20 premium picks, and only 1 is a DL, it may say a lot about what a team does or doesn’t value.

So looking at the Cowboys current roster, including this year’s 2019 draft, there are 20 Cowboys players on the roster (if you include Amari Cooper as our#1 pick this year) that the team drafted as premium picks and remain with the team today. Below are the players by position and what year they were drafted.

• 2010- Sean Lee, LB, 2nd round
• 2011- Tyron Smith, LT, 1st round
• 2012-Tyrone Crawford, DT, 3rd round
• 2013- Travis Frederick, C, 1st round
• 2014- Zack Martin, G, 1st round, DeMarcus Law, DE, 2nd round
• 2015- Byron Jones, CB/S- 1st round, Randy Gregory, DE, 2nd round
• 2016- Ezekiel Elliott, RB, 1st round, Jaylon Smith, LB, 2nd round, Maliek Collins, DT, 3rd round
• 2017- Taco Charleton, DE, 1st round, Chodobie Awuzie, CB, 2nd round, Jourdan Lewis, CB, 3rd round
• 2018- Leighton Vander Esch, LB, 1st round, Connor Williams, OL, 2nd round, Michael Gallup, WR, 3rd round
• 2019- (Amari Cooper, WR, counted as 2019 1st round pick) Trysten Hill, DT, 2nd round, Connor McGovern, G/C, 3rd round

Now, let’s look at (of the players we have drafted and kept so far) what positions the team seems to value most with their premium picks. Here are the 20 players listed above by position groups:

• DL (DE and DT)- 6 (4 DE’s)
• OL (T, G, C)- 5
• DB (CB, S)- 3 (Byron Jones drafted as a S/CB but has remained at CB- he’s the only “premium pick” that could be remotely considered a S)
• LB- 3
• WR- 2 (including Cooper)
• RB- 1

So of the 20 premium picks we have that are remaining on this roster, only 1 was drafted as a Safety- Byron Jones. But he did not remain there. Pretty clear the Cowboys are reluctant to use premium picks on a S. It’s also clear they value defensive linemen, (especially DEs) and offensive linemen, because 11 of their 20 premium picks on their roster are DL/OL.

Interesting look at how this organization has used their primary draft capital. I find it encouraging overall that since Will McClay has stepped in, most of our premium picks have done well.

In truth, Lional Vital, the Director of Scouting hired in 2016 and his scouts have had a large hand in the drafts since and including 2016. Notice the uptick. Now MCClay had a hand in the hiring and it looks like they work well together with the uptick. Oh and if S is the valve and make a ton of tackles guess what, some D-lineman or CB didn't do their job. S is not a premium position for most teams.

 

[northerncowboynation]

I dont understand why you only list the players that are still on the team.

To find out what kind of positions we value with premium picks you have to take into account all of those who were picked.

It's easier to prove a point when things are skewed

 

[Jumbo075]

Let me start by defining “premium draft picks” as those picks made in rounds 1,2 and 3. Essentially it’s your “Day One” and “Day Two” picks. They are considered premium because history show that 50% or more of any team’s multi-year starters come from premium draft picks. Those premium picks are also the guys most likely to stay on your roster for more than a rookie contract deal.

Premium picks are also good indicators of what positions an organization values most. If over a 5-10 year period, a team has 10-20 premium picks, and only 1 is a DL, it may say a lot about what a team does or doesn’t value.

So looking at the Cowboys current roster, including this year’s 2019 draft, there are 20 Cowboys players on the roster (if you include Amari Cooper as our#1 pick this year) that the team drafted as premium picks and remain with the team today. Below are the players by position and what year they were drafted.

• 2010- Sean Lee, LB, 2nd round
• 2011- Tyron Smith, LT, 1st round
• 2012-Tyrone Crawford, DT, 3rd round
• 2013- Travis Frederick, C, 1st round
• 2014- Zack Martin, G, 1st round, DeMarcus Law, DE, 2nd round
• 2015- Byron Jones, CB/S- 1st round, Randy Gregory, DE, 2nd round
• 2016- Ezekiel Elliott, RB, 1st round, Jaylon Smith, LB, 2nd round, Maliek Collins, DT, 3rd round
• 2017- Taco Charleton, DE, 1st round, Chodobie Awuzie, CB, 2nd round, Jourdan Lewis, CB, 3rd round
• 2018- Leighton Vander Esch, LB, 1st round, Connor Williams, OL, 2nd round, Michael Gallup, WR, 3rd round
• 2019- (Amari Cooper, WR, counted as 2019 1st round pick) Trysten Hill, DT, 2nd round, Connor McGovern, G/C, 3rd round

Now, let’s look at (of the players we have drafted and kept so far) what positions the team seems to value most with their premium picks. Here are the 20 players listed above by position groups:

• DL (DE and DT)- 6 (4 DE’s)
• OL (T, G, C)- 5
• DB (CB, S)- 3 (Byron Jones drafted as a S/CB but has remained at CB- he’s the only “premium pick” that could be remotely considered a S)
• LB- 3
• WR- 2 (including Cooper)
• RB- 1

So of the 20 premium picks we have that are remaining on this roster, only 1 was drafted as a Safety- Byron Jones. But he did not remain there. Pretty clear the Cowboys are reluctant to use premium picks on a S. It’s also clear they value defensive linemen, (especially DEs) and offensive linemen, because 11 of their 20 premium picks on their roster are DL/OL.

Interesting look at how this organization has used their primary draft capital. I find it encouraging overall that since Will McClay has stepped in, most of our premium picks have done well.

I know you only looked at those currently on the roster, so there's nothing wrong with your count. I prefer to look at all premium picks in in the last 10 drafts to see the priorities in their decision making.

• 2010- Dez Bryant, WR (1&3) Sean Lee, LB (2)
• 2011- Tyron Smith, LT (1), Bruce Carter, LB (2), DeMarco Murray, RB (3)
• 2012- Morris Claiborne, CB (1&2) Tyrone Crawford, DT (3)
• 2013- Travis Frederick, C (1), Gavin Escobar, TE (2), Terrance Williams, WR (3), J.J. Wilcox, S (3)
• 2014- Zack Martin, G, 1st round, DeMarcus Lawrence, DE (2&3)
• 2015- Byron Jones, DB (1), Randy Gregory, DE (2), Chaz Green, OT (3)
• 2016- Ezekiel Elliott, RB (1), Jaylon Smith, LB (2), Maliek Collins, DT (3)
• 2017- Taco Charlton, DE (1), Chodobie Awuzie, CB (2), Jourdan Lewis, CB (3)
• 2018- Leighton Vander Esch, LB (1), Connor Williams, OL (2), Michael Gallup, WR (3)
• 2019- Amari Cooper, WR (1), Trysten Hill, DT (2), Connor McGovern, G/C (3)

31 total Premium picks by position - 17 picks used for defense (for 15 players); 14 picks used for offense (for 13 players) - 8 players representing 10 picks are no longer with the team.

• 7 DL picks (for 6 players) - Crawford (3), Lawrence (2,3), Gregory (2), Collins (3), Charlton (1), Hill (2)
• 6 OL picks - Smith (1), Frederick (1), Martin (1), Green (3), Williams (2), McGovern (3)
• 6 DB picks (for 5 players) - Claiborne (1,2), Wilcox (3), Jones (1), Awuzie (2), Lewis (3)
• 5 WR picks (for 4 players) - Bryant (1,3), Williams (3), Gallup (3), Cooper (1)
• 4 LB picks - Lee (2), Carter (2), Smith (2), Vander Esch (1)
• 2 RB picks - Murray (3), Elliott (1)
• 1 TE pick - Escobar (2)

The glaring ommission is the QB position. Based on your logic, I guess the Cowboys don't value quarterbacks.

Of the 18 picks used on 17 players in the last 6 drafts, only one (OG Chaz Green) is no longer on the team. He's currently listed as a backup left guard for the Raiders.

 

[J12B]

A Major Trend In The Cowboys’ Recent Drafts

This was already posted on dc.com today.....

https://www.dallascowboys.com/news/a-major-trend-in-the-cowboys-recent-drafts

 

[northerncowboynation]

Great post, Bullet, and I have been critical of the blueprint in the past but as I can see they have been addressing the trenches, although not the middle as much.

The draft strategy, like all teams, is based on the system used by the DC and Marinelli's does not put much emphasis in the premium area on the Safety and I believe Byron was put at S out of necessity and they planned on using him as a CB. In fact, if you ranked them, I bet S is dead last. The 3rd CB is a higher priority. Booger ain't taking no S in the 1st.

I think what threw people off so much was all of the pre-draft talk and perceived pursuit of Thomas. They said after the pick that it was between Hill and a S, Thornhill, so that doesn't jive with McClay's comments about Marinelli's D not emphasizing a S. They agreed that the S position needed to be addressed and then didn't until late on the 3rd day.

What they should have done, and I am dreaming here, is kept their mouths shut like most FO's and when they made the Hill pick just say he was on our radar all along, has a relationship with Marinelli and is addressing what we deem is the vulnerable part of the defense, as witnessed by anyone that saw that game in LA.

With their own mouths, they create their own problems and controversies that necessitate further explanation. Run the team, not their mouths. They're doing a much better job of that.

We bought the cheese on ET or some did. Perceived indeed coach. S isn't a premium position for most teams. If the S is the star of the D, the D isn't doing their job. Woodson was our last great and you'll notice at some point he became the star of the defense. At that point the defense was done! Not to take anything away from Woody

 

[Diehardblues]

I know you only looked at those currently on the roster, so there's nothing wrong with your count. I prefer to look at all premium picks in in the last 10 drafts to see the priorities in their decision making.

• 2010- Dez Bryant, WR (1&3) Sean Lee, LB (2)
• 2011- Tyron Smith, LT (1), Bruce Carter, LB (2), DeMarco Murray, RB (3)
• 2012- Morris Claiborne, CB (1&2) Tyrone Crawford, DT (3)
• 2013- Travis Frederick, C (1), Gavin Escobar, TE (2), Terrance Williams, WR (3), J.J. Wilcox, S (3)
• 2014- Zack Martin, G, 1st round, DeMarcus Lawrence, DE (2&3)
• 2015- Byron Jones, DB (1), Randy Gregory, DE (2), Chaz Green, OT (3)
• 2016- Ezekiel Elliott, RB (1), Jaylon Smith, LB (2), Maliek Collins, DT (3)
• 2017- Taco Charlton, DE (1), Chodobie Awuzie, CB (2), Jourdan Lewis, CB (3)
• 2018- Leighton Vander Esch, LB (1), Connor Williams, OL (2), Michael Gallup, WR (3)
• 2019- Amari Cooper, WR (1), Trysten Hill, DT (2), Connor McGovern, G/C (3)

31 total Premium picks by position - 17 picks used for defense (for 15 players); 14 picks used for offense (for 13 players) - 8 players representing 10 picks are no longer with the team.

• 7 DL picks (for 6 players) - Crawford (3), Lawrence (2,3), Gregory (2), Collins (3), Charlton (1), Hill (2)
• 6 OL picks - Smith (1), Frederick (1), Martin (1), Green (3), Williams (2), McGovern (3)
• 6 DB picks (for 5 players) - Claiborne (1,2), Wilcox (3), Jones (1), Awuzie (2), Lewis (3)
• 5 WR picks (for 4 players) - Bryant (1,3), Williams (3), Gallup (3), Cooper (1)
• 4 LB picks - Lee (2), Carter (2), Smith (2), Vander Esch (1)
• 2 RB picks - Murray (3), Elliott (1)
• 1 TE pick - Escobar (2)

The glaring ommission is the QB position. Based on your logic, I guess the Cowboys don't value quarterbacks.

Of the 18 picks used on 17 players in the last 6 drafts, only one (OG Chaz Green) is no longer on the team. He's currently listed as a backup left guard for the Raiders.

That’s what I was thinking about the QB. Well done!

 

[Diehardblues]

Great post, Bullet, and I have been critical of the blueprint in the past but as I can see they have been addressing the trenches, although not the middle as much.

The draft strategy, like all teams, is based on the system used by the DC and Marinelli's does not put much emphasis in the premium area on the Safety and I believe Byron was put at S out of necessity and they planned on using him as a CB. In fact, if you ranked them, I bet S is dead last. The 3rd CB is a higher priority. Booger ain't taking no S in the 1st.

I think what threw people off so much was all of the pre-draft talk and perceived pursuit of Thomas. They said after the pick that it was between Hill and a S, Thornhill, so that doesn't jive with McClay's comments about Marinelli's D not emphasizing a S. They agreed that the S position needed to be addressed and then didn't until late on the 3rd day.

What they should have done, and I am dreaming here, is kept their mouths shut like most FO's and when they made the Hill pick just say he was on our radar all along, has a relationship with Marinelli and is addressing what we deem is the vulnerable part of the defense, as witnessed by anyone that saw that game in LA.

With their own mouths, they create their own problems and controversies that necessitate further explanation. Run the team, not their mouths. They're doing a much better job of that.

Coach is spot on.

If we weren’t so busy promoting ourselves blabbing our mouths we wouldn’t need to explain so much after the fact.

 

[Diehardblues]

Let me start by defining “premium draft picks” as those picks made in rounds 1,2 and 3. Essentially it’s your “Day One” and “Day Two” picks. They are considered premium because history show that 50% or more of any team’s multi-year starters come from premium draft picks. Those premium picks are also the guys most likely to stay on your roster for more than a rookie contract deal.

Premium picks are also good indicators of what positions an organization values most. If over a 5-10 year period, a team has 10-20 premium picks, and only 1 is a DL, it may say a lot about what a team does or doesn’t value.

So looking at the Cowboys current roster, including this year’s 2019 draft, there are 20 Cowboys players on the roster (if you include Amari Cooper as our#1 pick this year) that the team drafted as premium picks and remain with the team today. Below are the players by position and what year they were drafted.

• 2010- Sean Lee, LB, 2nd round
• 2011- Tyron Smith, LT, 1st round
• 2012-Tyrone Crawford, DT, 3rd round
• 2013- Travis Frederick, C, 1st round
• 2014- Zack Martin, G, 1st round, DeMarcus Law, DE, 2nd round
• 2015- Byron Jones, CB/S- 1st round, Randy Gregory, DE, 2nd round
• 2016- Ezekiel Elliott, RB, 1st round, Jaylon Smith, LB, 2nd round, Maliek Collins, DT, 3rd round
• 2017- Taco Charleton, DE, 1st round, Chodobie Awuzie, CB, 2nd round, Jourdan Lewis, CB, 3rd round
• 2018- Leighton Vander Esch, LB, 1st round, Connor Williams, OL, 2nd round, Michael Gallup, WR, 3rd round
• 2019- (Amari Cooper, WR, counted as 2019 1st round pick) Trysten Hill, DT, 2nd round, Connor McGovern, G/C, 3rd round

Now, let’s look at (of the players we have drafted and kept so far) what positions the team seems to value most with their premium picks. Here are the 20 players listed above by position groups:

• DL (DE and DT)- 6 (4 DE’s)
• OL (T, G, C)- 5
• DB (CB, S)- 3 (Byron Jones drafted as a S/CB but has remained at CB- he’s the only “premium pick” that could be remotely considered a S)
• LB- 3
• WR- 2 (including Cooper)
• RB- 1

So of the 20 premium picks we have that are remaining on this roster, only 1 was drafted as a Safety- Byron Jones. But he did not remain there. Pretty clear the Cowboys are reluctant to use premium picks on a S. It’s also clear they value defensive linemen, (especially DEs) and offensive linemen, because 11 of their 20 premium picks on their roster are DL/OL.

Interesting look at how this organization has used their primary draft capital. I find it encouraging overall that since Will McClay has stepped in, most of our premium picks have done well.

Good information although I’m not sure I’d agree with final narrative. As Jumbo exposed. But I enjoy the data. Must have taken some time.

And Jason deserves some credit along with Will which is when the drafts begin following his vision which Will has done a good job trying to fill.

 

[speedkilz88]

If Trysten Hill wasn't there they would have drafted Juan Thornhill. They like to swing for homeruns in the second round and Trysten Hill has freakish athletic ability at the 3T.

 

[Beaker42]

Let me start by defining “premium draft picks” as those picks made in rounds 1,2 and 3. Essentially it’s your “Day One” and “Day Two” picks. They are considered premium because history show that 50% or more of any team’s multi-year starters come from premium draft picks. Those premium picks are also the guys most likely to stay on your roster for more than a rookie contract deal.

Premium picks are also good indicators of what positions an organization values most. If over a 5-10 year period, a team has 10-20 premium picks, and only 1 is a DL, it may say a lot about what a team does or doesn’t value.

So looking at the Cowboys current roster, including this year’s 2019 draft, there are 20 Cowboys players on the roster (if you include Amari Cooper as our#1 pick this year) that the team drafted as premium picks and remain with the team today. Below are the players by position and what year they were drafted.

• 2010- Sean Lee, LB, 2nd round
• 2011- Tyron Smith, LT, 1st round
• 2012-Tyrone Crawford, DT, 3rd round
• 2013- Travis Frederick, C, 1st round
• 2014- Zack Martin, G, 1st round, DeMarcus Law, DE, 2nd round
• 2015- Byron Jones, CB/S- 1st round, Randy Gregory, DE, 2nd round
• 2016- Ezekiel Elliott, RB, 1st round, Jaylon Smith, LB, 2nd round, Maliek Collins, DT, 3rd round
• 2017- Taco Charleton, DE, 1st round, Chodobie Awuzie, CB, 2nd round, Jourdan Lewis, CB, 3rd round
• 2018- Leighton Vander Esch, LB, 1st round, Connor Williams, OL, 2nd round, Michael Gallup, WR, 3rd round
• 2019- (Amari Cooper, WR, counted as 2019 1st round pick) Trysten Hill, DT, 2nd round, Connor McGovern, G/C, 3rd round

Now, let’s look at (of the players we have drafted and kept so far) what positions the team seems to value most with their premium picks. Here are the 20 players listed above by position groups:

• DL (DE and DT)- 6 (4 DE’s)
• OL (T, G, C)- 5
• DB (CB, S)- 3 (Byron Jones drafted as a S/CB but has remained at CB- he’s the only “premium pick” that could be remotely considered a S)
• LB- 3
• WR- 2 (including Cooper)
• RB- 1

So of the 20 premium picks we have that are remaining on this roster, only 1 was drafted as a Safety- Byron Jones. But he did not remain there. Pretty clear the Cowboys are reluctant to use premium picks on a S. It’s also clear they value defensive linemen, (especially DEs) and offensive linemen, because 11 of their 20 premium picks on their roster are DL/OL.

Interesting look at how this organization has used their primary draft capital. I find it encouraging overall that since Will McClay has stepped in, most of our premium picks have done well.

Great post. We’re going to continue to suffer subpar S play as a result. Please, someone cue up the Goff keeper that pulled the wool right over Heath’s eyes.

 

[Bobhaze]

It's easier to prove a point when things are skewed

Well actually, the reason I did not count all the premium draft picks we drafted is that it’s hard to include them as valued pieces if they aren't here now. I was just showing where the Cowboys have put their value by the guys they have drafted then kept with long term deals.

 

[buybuydandavis]

So of the 20 premium picks we have that are remaining on this roster, only 1 was drafted as a Safety- Byron Jones. But he did not remain there. Pretty clear the Cowboys are reluctant to use premium picks on a S.

I think they view Safeties as not impact players unless you get yourself a freak. They tried with Byron. Kind of tried with Thomas.

Berry still a possibility. Maybe an upgrade at SS over Heath/Frazier/Iloka too.

 

[northerncowboynation]

Well actually, the reason I did not count all the premium draft picks we drafted is that it’s hard to include them as valued pieces if they aren't here now. I was just showing where the Cowboys have put their value by the guys they have drafted then kept with long term deals.

I know man but any player drafted that goes on to sign a second or third contract, no matter where they sign, should considered a hit. Even Wilcox lol

 

[Bobhaze]

Great post, Bullet, and I have been critical of the blueprint in the past but as I can see they have been addressing the trenches, although not the middle as much.

The draft strategy, like all teams, is based on the system used by the DC and Marinelli's does not put much emphasis in the premium area on the Safety and I believe Byron was put at S out of necessity and they planned on using him as a CB. In fact, if you ranked them, I bet S is dead last. The 3rd CB is a higher priority. Booger ain't taking no S in the 1st.

I think what threw people off so much was all of the pre-draft talk and perceived pursuit of Thomas. They said after the pick that it was between Hill and a S, Thornhill, so that doesn't jive with McClay's comments about Marinelli's D not emphasizing a S. They agreed that the S position needed to be addressed and then didn't until late on the 3rd day.

What they should have done, and I am dreaming here, is kept their mouths shut like most FO's and when they made the Hill pick just say he was on our radar all along, has a relationship with Marinelli and is addressing what we deem is the vulnerable part of the defense, as witnessed by anyone that saw that game in LA.

With their own mouths, they create their own problems and controversies that necessitate further explanation. Run the team, not their mouths. They're doing a much better job of that.

As you said Coach, “With their own mouths, they (Jerry and Stephen) create their own problems and controversies...”
Maybe in year 31 of Jerry’s tenure as an owner/GM he will learn that less talk= better for team, but I won’t be holding my breath. This is the chirpiest FO in pro football. They act like they’re at at a frat house fantasy football draft night.