The Dallas Cowboys were in position to fill an important need, but got it soiled at the last second by an unlikely team.
The Dallas Cowboys did not have a particularly lovely first night of the NFL Draft. Really, most teams in the NFC East not named the Philadelphia Eagles had a somewhat anguishing experience on Thursday as Philly added Jalen Carter and Nolan Smith to their defense.
A year after they won the NFC Championship, Philly added two of the best pass rushers available. Howie Roseman is in his bag.
Dallas added Mazi Smith at 26 to fortify its own defense, but there might have been a more optimal pick.
Buffalo Bills snagged likely Cowboys pick right before their chance
Ever since Dalton Schultz walked in free agency to the Houston Texans, Dallas has had a hole at tight end that they’d love to fill. The ideal scenario would have been grabbing Dalton Kincaid out of Utah, who was widely viewed as the best available at the position.
Instead, the Cowboys lost him at the last second, with the Bills using their 26th pick to grab Kincaid.
Brandon Beane, general manager of the Bills, said that if Kincaid were off the board, the Bills would have traded back. Dallas, if they wanted him bad enough, definitely should have traded up. Buffalo felt them breathing down their necks and stood pat to take him there, in part because they knew Dallas would want him.
While the fury of the night logically goes toward the Eagles as a divisional rival, the Bills were the more direct aggravator to Dallas’s likely draft-night plans. Not exactly an aggravator for Dallas you would have guessed coming into the first night of draft weekend.
Round two kicks off on Friday night, with the draft finishing up on Saturday. Lots of time left for the Cowboys to get themselves in gear and come out of this one winners.
