Dallas Cowboys 7-Round Mock Draft (Final): A Key Trade Up

Dallas Cowboys 3rd Round, Pick 75

Payton Turner, EDGE/IDL, Houston

As you will see later in this draft, I want all the tweeners. Turner stands at 6-foot-5, 270 pounds, but his most defining traits are his 35 inch arms. What made Aldon Smith so effective early in his career was his ability to inititate at the point of attack early so he could use his speed or explosiveness to collapse the pocket. That isn’t Turner’s comparison, by a mile, it’s just an example.

Turner displays a developing speed pass rush plan with a stab-swipe and good bend and ankle flexion to corner the QB. He displays the ability to convert speed to power with his good upfield burst aided by his good motor and explosiveness. His long arms allow him to engage and drive opposing OTs off their anchor and collapse the pocket. He had five sacks and 10.5 tackles for loss in 2020. He only played five games.

Turner would be an interesting piece in the Quinn defense because his size provides positional versatility for the team. If he get stronger in his legs, he could leverage the C and D gaps in run fits and likely be more balanced to rush from the outside with counter moves. On passing situations, he can rush from the inside on NASCAR packages allow the team to generate interior pressure; soemthing they so badly need.

Turner is a work in progress but he gives a decently deep EDGE group something to work with. A skill set they currently do not possess.

Dallas Cowboys 3rd Round, Pick 99

Tylan Wallace, WR, Oklahoma State

At this point the best offensive player was a wide receiver. The Cowboys did mention they would look to add offensive line depth at some point in the draft, but it felt late at this point to burn a draft pick without reaching on a Day 3 prospect.

Instead we gift wrap the Cowboys a wide receiver who can fill in as a Z and in the slot when Michael Gallup’s contract is over. Wallace made his money as an outside receiver with good short area quickness but proved to be an incredibly valuable contested catch threat in his three years in Stillwater.

With 200 receptions, 3000 receiving yards, and 26 touchdowns to his name, it is kind of easy to gloss over his 2019 ACL injury. The elementary offense Oklahoma State installs requires their WRs to be incredibly consistent in how they attack routes to generate separation quickness in all areas of the field.

For that reason, Wallace’s game seems incredibly translatable to the next level. Wallace would be next in line to James Washington as smaller OSU wide receivers to get drafted before Day 3. Washington has a set route tree that works for him, but shows a consistent ability to separate because of his competitive toughness, physical toughness, and play strength. Same is applicable to the The 5-foot-11, 194 pound wide receiver from Fort Worth.

He looks like a regular joe among the longer cornerbacks of the Big 12 but his good athletic ability and competitive toughness allow him to consistently outplay his opposition especially in jump ball situations. He wouldn’t fit Mike McCarthy’s traditional frame for wide receivers, but the way he plays could force the staff into a rewatch.

He uses his good change of direction, good agility, and good instincts to win releases with foot and hip fakes at the line of scrimmage against zone coverage.

Against free releases, he displays solid acceleration but his good instincts to manipulate the DBs hips in phase is what allows him to generate separation quickness in the intermediate and deep areas of the field.

His rocker and break steps wide his stem and gives his QB windows to throw passes. He then has good body control to complete contested catches and other passes above his frame with his good competitive toughness and solid explosiveness.

He displays solid ability to generate yards after the catch, good at generating separation quickness on slants but solid on other short routes, and is solid in run blocking showing good aggression against his matchup but adequate upper body strength to leverage the alley and prevent the defender from disengaging his block.

Wallace is a good receiver in a class with potentially great players but he provides Dallas a great change of pace option so they’re not reaching for the next defensive prospect at this point int he draft.