Grading the Dallas Cowboys’ Draft Class of 2015 (Reid’s Grades)

Feb 23, 2015; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Connecticut Huskies defensive back Byron Jones catches a pass in a workout drill during the 2015 NFL Combine at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports

The Dallas Cowboys sure do know how to make waves at the NFL Draft, don’t they? A few days removed, let’s a step back, and look at how they did…

First of all…a discloser: It is impossible to definitively say how well a team did in the art of player prognostication whether it be 1 day, 1 week, 1 month, or even 1 year down the road. Drafting players, and subsequently grading them) is known in the scientific community, as a crapshoot.

Teams invest millions of dollars in scouting, interviewing, vetting, and selecting players in the NFL’s annual draft. Despite the vast amounts of time, money, and energy spent, it’s still a mystery as to how each player will turn out. The very last thing I want to do, is call a player a “bum”, who I’ve only seen play a couple times, and have no additional research spent.

What I will do is grade the picks on a 1-5 scale (using traditional letter grades A-F) based on player ceiling, floor, value, risk, and wild-card factors (perfect Wonderlic, Team Captain, 4 year starter, etc…). Keep in mind, just because a 7^th rounder gets a higher grade than a 1^st rounder, doesn’t mean he’s expected to outperform the 1^st rounder. Every round has its own expectations, value, risk, etc... With that said, let’s dive into the grades:

Round 1

CB Byron Jones

Given Byron Jones’ amazing athletic ability displayed at his record-breaking combine performance, he scores exceptionally high on potential. Playing at Connecticut, Jones didn’t face off against the best talent college football had to offer, but some of that risk is mitigated by Jones’ versatility to play both CB and FS successfully. His Wonderlic scores and leadership traits are icing on the cake as Jones promises to be an excellent pick for the Cowboys in the first round

Grade: A

Next: What Grade Does Randy Gregory Get?