The Dallas Cowboys made probably the best decision of anybody in the draft. They got Caleb Downs from Ohio State after trading down one spot with the Miami Dolphins. A stressed Stephen Jones was in a rush to get the pick in, and that selection has paid off ever since.
It turns out that he didn't have to be in such a rush because the Cowboys had two viable options on the clock. Yes, they did get arguably the best player in the draft in Downs, but former Miami stud pass rusher Rueben Bain Jr. has been one of the best defenders in the preseason.
Top graded defensive rookies this preseason, among first round picks
— PFF (@PFF) August 24, 2026
Rueben Bain Jr 88.8
Arvell Reese 88.2
Akheem Mesidor 81.6 pic.twitter.com/5uB8UA4StN
Cowboys had a win-win with either Rueben Bain Jr. or Caleb Downs in the NFL Draft
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers selected Bain Jr. at No. 15, and the Cowboys traded Downs at No. 11. It would've been a home run pick to get Bain Jr. at No. 11 or No. 12, for that matter.
Bain Jr. recorded 54 total tackles, 15.5 tackles for loss, 9.5 sacks, one interception, one forced fumble, and one blocked field goal and won the ACC Defensive Player of the Year award. The All-ACC player faced legal scrutiny following a car crash in 2024, which may have contributed to his stock dipping, but the Cowboys were in a decent place.
No two players were predicted to go as low as they went, but for Downs, he's a safety, and positional value still matters in the NFL Draft. The New York Giants had two chances to pick Downs, but didn't. It made so much sense for John Harbaugh to favor an elite safety, but he passed on the Ohio State All-American.
The Giants still have a long way to go, but the way the Cowboys coaches and players have been hyping up Downs, the Giants may easily regret passing him up, and twice.
LSU cornerback Mansoor Delane was also in talks to be picked by Dallas, but he was picked sixth overall by the Kansas City Chiefs. The Cowboys seemed to have already solved that with the emergence of Shavon Revel, as he looks to be on the verge of taking over as CB1 one day.
We all knew the Cowboys needed defense, and they would've had every excuse to get Bain Jr. because of their awful pass rush from a season ago, but if they made a pick to change their defense for a generation, Downs was it. It's too early to put him in the same category as Troy Polamalu or Ed Reed, but the Cowboys owner calling him a "pied piper" is all we needed to hear.
The Cowboys had options in the draft, but they still seemed to fall on the right one.
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