After comments from Stephen Jones regarding the Dallas Cowboys being open for business in terms of moving back in the 2025 NFL Draft, Dallas elected to stand pat at No. 12 and made a selection they hope helps the major investment they made in Dak Prescott.
Despite being linked to players at a number of other positions, Jerry Jones and the rest of the Cowboys brain trust elected to make former University of Alabama offensive guard Tyler Booker the team's first round pick and, well, the reception to the move was anything but positive.
While he will have ample opportunity to prove them wrong, the selection of Booker was met with tepid optimism and a smattering of boos at the team's official draft party. Not exactly the type of vibe Dallas fans were hoping for to kick off their draft weekend, to say the least.
Cowboys fans react to Dallas drafting Tyler Booker pic.twitter.com/fajUZcU06M
— Jon Machota (@jonmachota) April 25, 2025
Let's get this out of the way: Booker is a quality prospect who should have an impact on the offensive line for the Cowboys during his tenure in Dallas. With that being said, the immediate reaction from some pundits seems to be that Dallas selecting Booker where they did was a bit of a stretch.
Most mock drafts had Booker going later on in the draft than he ultimately did, which makes the selection even worse, as Dallas passed on more highly regarded prospects in favor of someone they could've landed later on.
There were hopes the franchise would land a game-changer on offense to help Prescott out, and big-name prospects like Penn State TE Tyler Warren, Texas WR Matthew Golden, Ohio State WR Emeka Egbuka and North Carolina RB Omarion Hampton were still on the board at 12. Instead, the team opted to spend its best pick in years on a guard, where the team wasn't in as dire need as it was at other positions.
Booker enters the NFL with a Next Gen Prospect Grade of 6.38, which considers him to eventually be a plus starter in the league. But the Cowboys could've gotten a much bigger impact from an offensive playmaker, or even a trade down, instead of burning the No. 12 pick on a luxury.