Dallas Cowboys Draft: Connor McGovern Chosen in Round 3

The Dallas Cowboys address the trenches again with Penn State offensive lineman Connor McGovern in the third round of the 2019 NFL Draft.

The Dallas Cowboys may have been void of a first-round selection in the 2019 NFL Draft, but they’re making the absolute most of their selections in their first two rounds of work so far in Nashville.

After taking Central Florida defensive tackle Trysten Hill with the 58th selection in Round 2, Dallas came right back to the trenches in Round 3 with Penn State offensive lineman Connor McGovern, not to be confused with another offensive lineman of the exact same name with the Denver Broncos. In fact, these two met face-to-face during a pre-draft visit in Denver – this threw me for a loop for a minute Friday night.

This is an intriguing selection, especially given the state of a few offensive linemen already on the Dallas Cowboys roster. As McGovern has experience playing both center and guard, some light might be shed now on exactly what the Cowboys think about the future of Travis Frederick. Diagnosed with Guillain-Barre syndrome less than a year ago and missing all of the 2018 season, Frederick seems to be on the path to recovery.

Or is he?

It’s not like Joe Looney was a huge setback filling in for Frederick, although he did struggle some early on.

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McGovern might very well be an insurance policy in the event Frederick needs even more time to return to professional football and Looney needs a backup.

Or could McGovern eventually start at center?

Time will tell.

Perhaps more likely is that this particular Conner is a message sent to another Connor, as in Connor Williams, the 2018 second-round selection from Texas who failed to lock down a starting job at offensive guard last year despite playing offensive tackle for the Longhorns.

McGovern brings versatility to a Dallas Cowboys offensive line that’s loaded with talent when healthy, but also one that’s starting to show some cracks in the foundation. There’s the previously mentioned issue with Frederick, the increasing injuries to all-universe left tackle Tyron Smith and even the uncertaintly surrounding what’s going to happen with La’el Collins over at right tackle.

It may be that the Cowboys are planning ahead in trying to get cheaper along the offensive line sooner than later, and McGovern could very well help that along.

No, it’s not shaping up to be the kind of skill-position-loaded draft that so many younger fans like to see, but if you’re interested in watching the Dallas Cowboys win football games, then you have to be happy with this draft, so far.

For Saturday, I’m expecting the Dallas Cowboys to explore a little further beyond the line of scrimmage, although that will likely be on the defensive side of the ball. There’s just not much in the way of holes on offense, and especially along the offensive line and at wide receiver. One never knows what a given team’s draft board looks like, but the Cowboys could afford to address a couple of other areas in the final rounds.

Next up could be that safety some fans want to see, like Chauncey Gardner-Johnson of Florida. I’m not usually into safeties without immediate starting potential, but I get the special teams need and also the fact that some great safeties need a year or two to develop.

Next. Dallas Cowboys Draft: Trysten Hill Chosen in Round 2. dark

Then again, the Dallas Cowboys currently have no defensive tackles under contract beyond 2019. Adding another interior defender like Renell Wren of Arizona State could be a fantastic addition. Or maybe a smaller, quicker defensive tackle like Demarcus Christmas of Florida State could become one of those ”rush men” of defensive coordinator Rod Marinelli.

Published on 04/27/2019 at 05:18 AM
Last updated at 04/27/2019 at 05:18 AM

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