What would you say was the most questionable draft pick that the Dallas Cowboys made?
By now, most Dallas Cowboys fans should know how the team’s front office operates. Instead of seeking high-priced free agents to build their roster, the team uses the NFL draft to from the backbone of their philosophy for building the roster. Yes, that approach does seem antiquated and bizarre in today’s NFL, but the Cowboys have been known to knock it out of the park during the draft.
This year the Cowboys had their challenges leading up to the draft. They still had holes on the roster. They had a sizable gap between their third-round pick (76th overall) and their next pick in the fifth round at 149th overall. Yet, the Cowboys managed to have a great draft according to many of the post-event grades. It wasn’t a perfect draft, but a very good one. Two particular draft picks stand out and those are the best and worst picks of the Cowboys draft.
Best pick: Donovan Ezeiruaku
The Cowboys made some terrific choices. Among the favorites were selecting Shavon Revel in the third round from East Carolina, who many considered a steal for the Cowboys being taken that late. or Jaydon Blue in the fifth. But Donovan Ezeiruaku stands as the best. The Cowboys’ objective has become apparent, they want to control the line of scrimmage. That much was clear when they drafted Tyler Booker in the first round. When you look at the talent of Ezeiruaku, you come away impressed with his ability to capture the edge with his pass rush and his flexibility to maneuver around offensive tackles.
Ezeiruaku has 34-inch arms and large hands and he can convert his speed to power to stifle offensive linemen. It’s a great pickup for the Cowboys who wanted to beef up their ability to affect the passer. Following the departure of DeMarcus Lawrence to the Seattle Seahawks in free agency there was some uncertainty at edge rusher for the Cowboys. Ezeiruaku is a plug-and-play option because of his repertoire of pass-rush moves and people rave about his character. Ezeiruaku having a significant impact in 2025 is definitely a possibility.
Worst Pick: Shemar James
The pick that seems like the most head-scratching for the Cowboys is taking Shemar James with the 152nd overall pick in the fifth round. Why it’s a striking move is that the Cowboys moved up 22 spots after making a trade with the Arizona Cardinals, giving up their 174th and 211th overall picks in the process.
James is a player that some outlets had falling to as far as the seventh round, so the Cowboys aggressively moving to take him comes as a surprise. As a prospect, James has some warts. Draft analysts say he doesn’t process what he is seeing fast enough in the running game causing him to be at the wrong place at the wrong time. Although his speed on the field looks adequate, James didn’t test well on the 40-yard dash at the combine, running a 4.69.
At 6’1”, 221 lbs., James is a shade undersized. When you look at the depth chart, is there anyone that James can push for playing time? With the Cowboys needing so much on the roster, taking a player you traded up to get who may not see the field as a rookie doesn’t seem like the best move. You hope that Dallas’ defensive coordinator Matt Ebeflus has a plan for James and we’ll curiously await to see that.
If a player struggles with diagnosing plays in college, how well can he do as a rookie at the NFL level? You hope that James finds a way to contribute as a rookie but as of now, he may be one of the least equipped rookies of this Cowboys draft to do so given the circumstances. Yet, despite everything and given the totality of the Cowboys draft class and their excellent selections, the selection of James isn’t all that bad in isolation. It’s that juxtaposed to the rest of the draft class he stands out for a less than ideal reason.