Dallas Cowboys hint at drafting offensive player at Pick 10

Flying in under the radar during the Dallas Cowboys/Dak Prescott celebratory press conference, were not-so-subtle hints that offense is an option early in the 2021 NFL Draft.

On at least two occasions Stephen Jones spoke of how “You have to be open-minded or you don’t get CeeDee Lamb if he happens to be sitting there” and “You can’t go into a draft saying every player is going to be a defensive player or else you miss out”. He said it fully acknowledging the woes of the defense and the need to significantly upgrade it. He spoke repeatedly of not allowing those defensive needs to cause them to miss out on the next CeeDee Lamb scenario.

As all will remember, the Dallas Cowboys entered the 2020 NFL Draft with significant needs at cornerback and defensive end. They had a pair of players pegged that fit those needs at Pick 17 when the unthinkable happened – the best WR in the draft fell into their laps.

The Dallas Cowboys hinted at the possibility of drafting an offensive player at Pick 10

Being the best player available by a pretty hefty margin, the Dallas Cowboys abandoned their plans and pivoted accordingly. It’s that very situation they prepared us for again here in 2021.

As anyone who’s spent time on this upcoming draft class can attest, it’s offensively rich at the top. A case can be made the top 10-14 prospects are all offensive players and the Dallas Cowboys seemed to just suggest they are ready for it.

Right about now the “fix the damn defense” crowd is clutching their pearls and working themselves into a frenzy. The fervor is understandable. The Dallas Cowboys had one of the worst defenses in franchise history most of last season.  Even before the Dak Prescott injury it was clear their 45-burger defense was going to be tough for their 40-burger offense to overcome.

The Cowboys need to fix their defense and Stephen acknowledges that more than a couple times. But he also clearly suggested they were not married to the idea of defense at Pick 10 and are prepared to pounce on offense if the situation presented itself again.

Stephen implied free agency could be used to help build up the defensive unit:

"“I think we’ve got the resources to do, under the cap, what we need to do, to put a defense out there with Dak and the offense to be a championship team.”"

He implied upgrading the defense in free agency again when he said:

"“Based on how we negotiated this contract with Dak and Todd, it gives us the opportunity to continue to improve on the defensive side of the ball.”"

This should be good news to all.

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The Dallas Cowboys fully acknowledged their defense is weak and needs to be upgraded significantly. They also spoke of their desire to draft the best player available and not reach for need. That’s more good news. Finally they spoke of how the structure of Dak’s deal allows them to sign free agent players. Jerry even chimed in to discuss the optimism he has for the future and how he’s spending money under the impression the cap will bounce back in the near future.

Keep in mind, Dallas just restricted some contracts yesterday that freed up roughly $17M. It’s no coincidence they did it right before free agency opens.

Don’t be surprised if Dallas goes offense with Pick 10 this April.