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NFL 2026 NFL Draft Mansoor Delane intercepted eight passes in four college seasons, including two last season while playing for LSU. Stephen Lew / Imagn Images The biggest goal of free agency is to add enough options at areas of need to prevent being forced to draft a position early in April. The Dallas Cowboys have publicly spoken about this strategy for several years. However, they still have a glaring hole at a major position of need. Coming up short in their attempts to sign a veteran starting inside linebacker, the Cowboys have put themselves in a position where they probably need to draft one in the first round. Advertisement Dallas has two first-round picks, Nos. 12 and 20. The offense should again be one of the league’s best. With all of that in mind, we are not including top quarterback prospects, such as Fernando Mendoza, or top receiving prospects, such as Carnell Tate, Jordyn Tyson and Makai Lemon. “I think we did a really good job of setting ourselves up to be able to draft natural and draft pure, which is what you want to do, ” Cowboys coach Brian Schottenheimer told the team’s website from Texas’ pro day on Tuesday. “You don’t want to have to be forced to reach for a player, that’s when you make mistakes. “We’ve added some really good pieces, we’ve got some good depth. There’s still a few positions that we need to address, that’s all part of the process. … (Player acquisition) is 24/7, 365 and it never stops. We’re never stopping to look, we’re always open for business. ” The Cowboys should be able to land two of the following players off our latest big board. Reese gets the top spot because he could help the Cowboys in many ways. Similar to when Micah Parsons was drafted, Reese could rush the passer and be an off-the-ball linebacker. The Cowboys have signed veteran safeties Jalen Thompson and P. J. Locke, but that shouldn’t affect their interest in Downs, if he is available. The do-everything safety could help at both safety spots and at nickel. He would seem to be the perfect backend piece to add to Christian Parker’s new defense. He’s widely considered the best pass rusher in this class. Dallas traded for Rashan Gary but pass rush is still a need. Bailey will likely be long gone before Pick 12, so this would likely have to be a trade-up situation. He’s another great option to fill the need at off-the-ball linebacker. Styles previously played safety, so he’d be another player Parker could use in a variety of ways to cause problems for opponents. Advertisement His arm length could be an issue for some teams, leaving the possibility that he could fall to the Cowboys. It would be difficult to see the Cowboys going in another direction if Bain is still available at 12. Cowboys coach Brian Schottenheimer and vice president of player personnel Will Mc Clay attended Miami’s pro day on Monday. The Cowboys signed veteran Cobie Durant to help at the position. Dallas could enter the season with Durant, Shavon Revel and Da Ron Bland as its starting corners. But another top young corner makes a lot of sense, especially with Bland’s foot injury history and Durant only being under contract for one season. The inside linebacker spot is so thin on Dallas’ roster that Allen has to be in play early. Pick 12 might be a little too high, but Pick 20 would have to be in consideration. Allen is the type of player and leader who could immediately step in to direct the defense pre-snap. He’d likely be a good fit next to De Marvion Overshown. The Cowboys’ only other inside linebackers are Shemar James and Justin Barron. He’s coming off missing all of last season with a torn ACL, so that could be a concern early in the first round. But if Delane is off the board and Mc Coy’s medical exams check out, adding another starting cornerback is a good idea. Many consider Mc Coy to be the second-best cornerback in this class. Javonte Williams signed a three-year contract extension last month. The Cowboys have their starter. But Love is such a special talent that completely ruling him out seems like a mistake. It’s highly unlikely that Dallas will draft an offensive skill-position player in the first round. The experts’ projections are all over the place with Faulk. Some believe he has great potential. If Parker feels that way, it’s not difficult to see how the Cowboys could use him in a variety of ways up front. Advertisement The consensus No. 2 safety in this class, Thieneman could help in many ways on the back end. It would just be somewhat surprising to see the Cowboys use a premium pick on the position after spending on safety in free agency and not having invested much for a long time. Trading Osa Odighizuwa and Solomon Thomas means another interior defensive lineman could be a first-round option. Quinnen Williams and Kenny Clark are two starters, but adding a young, talented option up front wouldn’t be a bad idea. Same thought process as with Mc Donald. Woods or Florida’s Caleb Banks could be possibilities even if there are bigger positions of need remaining when Dallas is on the clock This would seem like a possibility at Pick 20 if they don’t take a cornerback at Pick 12. The Cowboys had interest in his brother, A. J. , in the 2020 draft, but he went the pick before Dallas selected Cee Dee Lamb. His age is the biggest issue here. Mesidor turns 25 next month. But if the Cowboys want an immediate impact edge rusher at Pick 20, this could be an option. He had 12. 5 sacks and 17. 5 tackles for loss for Miami last season. The consensus No. 3 safety in this class. Mc Neil-Warren could be an option at 20 or if the Cowboys decide to trade back a handful of spots to gain another pick in the process. If cornerback, inside linebacker or interior defensive line are targeted with Dallas’ first pick, edge rusher could make the most sense at Pick 20. All 32 teams will not grade these edge rushers the same. Depending on how the Cowboys stack their board, they could see good value at 20 or in a trade-back situation. Parker’s production dropped off last season after a monster 2024. Advertisement He had 16. 5 tackles for loss last season. Another example of a player who could fit at 20 or if Dallas decides to trade back and gain an additional third-round pick. Parker’s specialty is the defensive backfield. If a player like Hood is what he’s looking for at 20 or later, it would make sense to give the new defensive coordinator what he wants. Parker was a defensive analyst at Texas A&M in 2018. He was on Notre Dame’s staff in 2017. He obviously knows Texas A&M coach Mike Elko very well. Parker will know if Howell is the right fit if he’s in the conversation when the Cowboys are on the clock. If the Cowboys ended up taking an offensive player in the first round, it would likely be an offensive tackle. Tyler Guyton is expected to be Dallas’ starting left tackle, with some competition from Nate Thomas, and Terence Steele is expected to continue starting on the right side. Could the group be upgraded? Sure. But there is just too much work left to do on defense to think that will happen. If it does, these are the five offensive tackles to know. All five are considered first-round talents. • Monroe Freeling, Georgia. He was the Bulldogs’ starting left tackle in 2025 after mostly being a reserve in previous seasons. • Caleb Lomu, Utah: He was the Utes’ starting left tackle the last two seasons. • Spencer Fano, Utah: He has experience starting at both tackle spots but was on the right side the last two seasons. • Francis Mauigoa, Miami: He had 42 career starts in college at right tackle. • Kadyn Proctor, Alabama: He was a three-year starter at left tackle. Spot the pattern. Connect the terms Find the hidden link between sports terms Play today's puzzle Jon Machota is a staff writer covering the Dallas Cowboys for The Athletic. He previously covered the Cowboys for The Dallas Morning News. He's a Detroit native and graduate of Wayne State University. Follow Jon on Twitter @jonmachota