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The NFL draft is big business, and the event has created a whole industry of people dedicated to analyzing it year-round. One of the best in the bunch is Dane Brugler, who works for The Athletic, and the expert annually puts out ‘The Beast,’ which is the most anticipated and comprehensive draft guide available each offseason.
Brugler’s masterpiece just dropped and it gives Dallas Cowboys fans a breakdown on the ability of players linked to the team. It also can be a guide to where Brugler believes each prospect should be drafted; ranking the players overall, by position and round where he feels they might be selected.
This offers insight into the Cowboys’ potential picks being considered reaches or if they are getting a steal with some of the players consistently mocked to the team. Here are a few interesting nuggets from Brugler’s beast and the players linked to the Cowboys.
Reese is listed as Brugler’s top player in the draft, which also makes him the top edge in the class, with Bailey coming in as the second best pass rusher. With the recent reports that the Cowboys are willing to trade with the Arizona Cardinals to move up to the third pick overall and possibly select Bailey means the team might consider the Texas Tech prospect to be a top two defensive player in the draft.
If the Cowboys made this trade, it’s a move that might signal how the team feels there’s a drop-off after Reese and Bailey at edge rusher and they want to ensure they draft one. Bailey being the seventh best player on Brugler’s board means it would also be a slight overdraft.
Another pair of Ohio St. players round out Brugler’s top 5 overall prospects. Styles is the top linebacker in the draft, Downs the top safety.
The Cowboys have been linked to both players throughout the draft process and while the prevailing thought has been Styles getting to pick 12 is a pipedream, one recent mock draft did have him falling to Dallas.
Downs has been a very popular prospect mocked to the Cowboys with the 12th pick overall. Despite being highly regarded as a top player, safeties rarely get drafted inside the top 10, which gives Dallas a shot at Downs.
Getting either player at 12 would be a steal for the Cowboys, according to Brugler.
Another player who seems to be falling a little in the draft community, which could lead to the Cowboys getting lucky. Bain is third in the edge rushing rankings and is the ninth best player overall on the analyst’s board.
Drafting Bain at 12 would be another win for the Cowboys.
With the team continuing to look for CB help this offseason, Delane and McCoy have been two prospects routinely mocked to the Cowboys. Delane is the top CB in Brugler’s rankings, while McCoy is the second rated option.
If Delane made it to pick 12 after his incredible pro day, the Cowboys would be getting the top CB prospect at a discounted price, but the team would be slightly overpaying for McCoy.
One of the most polarizing players in the draft, Faulk is ranked 15th for Brugler because of his intriguing traits, age and upside. He’s ranked as the fourth best edge prospect in the draft and could be a surprising top 10 pick.
Faulk has been mocked to the Cowboys in the draft process; although many Cowboys fans wouldn’t like the pick and it would be a slight overdraft at 12, selecting the former Auburn Tiger wouldn’t be a bad choice. Getting Faulk at 20th overall would be a big win.
If they don’t have the opportunity to grab Downs, Thieneman has been a popular player mocked to the Cowboys at 12. He’s Brugler’s second ranked safety but drafting him six spots higher than he is on the big board would be a bit of a reach.
Brugler’s CB4 has been a prospect consistently mocked to the Cowboys with their second first-round pick at 20th overall. That would be an overdraft but Terrell does make for a perfect player to trade back for and select later on Day 1.
The former Miami Hurricane is the fifth ranked edge rusher, and 28th overall in The Beast. Mesidor has been gaining momentum with the Cowboys’ 12th overall selection in recent mocks, which would be a big overpay by the team.
However, the more popular match for Dallas and Mesidor has been at pick 20, which is still an overdraft, but more palatable.
Rodriguez has been a prospect who has been heavily mocked to the Cowboys of late because of the team’s failure to land a solid LB in free agency. Brugler has Rodriguez as the second-best LB in the draft, but as the 40th player overall. The Cowboys drafting him at 20 would be a massive overdraft.
However, trading back and grabbing the former Texas Tech product in the second round would make for a better fit. A long-rumored swap with the Cleveland Browns where the Cowboys get picks six and 39, while giving up 12 and 20 could land them a top-tier defender at six, with the hope they can still draft Rodriguez at 39 would be perfect.
LB3, 46th overall on the big board, and with a second-round grade, Allen falls well short of many other draft prognosticators projections. Considered a first-round option by many and someone often mocked to the Cowboys at 20, Allen would be a big reach according to Brugler if the team drafted him in the first round.
This might be the biggest discrepancy between Brugler and other draft analysts.
You can chat with or follow Ben on twitter @BenTalksCowboys and be sure to follow Cowboys Wire on Facebook to join in on the conversation with fellow fans!
This article originally appeared on Cowboys Wire: Cowboys top targets for 12, 20 in Athletic's Dane Brugler's rankings
Continue reading...
Brugler’s masterpiece just dropped and it gives Dallas Cowboys fans a breakdown on the ability of players linked to the team. It also can be a guide to where Brugler believes each prospect should be drafted; ranking the players overall, by position and round where he feels they might be selected.
This offers insight into the Cowboys’ potential picks being considered reaches or if they are getting a steal with some of the players consistently mocked to the team. Here are a few interesting nuggets from Brugler’s beast and the players linked to the Cowboys.
Arvell Reese top player overall, David Bailey 7th
Reese is listed as Brugler’s top player in the draft, which also makes him the top edge in the class, with Bailey coming in as the second best pass rusher. With the recent reports that the Cowboys are willing to trade with the Arizona Cardinals to move up to the third pick overall and possibly select Bailey means the team might consider the Texas Tech prospect to be a top two defensive player in the draft.
If the Cowboys made this trade, it’s a move that might signal how the team feels there’s a drop-off after Reese and Bailey at edge rusher and they want to ensure they draft one. Bailey being the seventh best player on Brugler’s board means it would also be a slight overdraft.
Sonny Styles 4th overall, Caleb Downs at 5
Another pair of Ohio St. players round out Brugler’s top 5 overall prospects. Styles is the top linebacker in the draft, Downs the top safety.
The Cowboys have been linked to both players throughout the draft process and while the prevailing thought has been Styles getting to pick 12 is a pipedream, one recent mock draft did have him falling to Dallas.
Arvell Reese - Jets
Caleb Downs - Giants
Sonny Styles - Cowboys
Latest Mock Drafthttps://t.co/WIAwnvRuIz
— PFF (@PFF) April 7, 2026
Downs has been a very popular prospect mocked to the Cowboys with the 12th pick overall. Despite being highly regarded as a top player, safeties rarely get drafted inside the top 10, which gives Dallas a shot at Downs.
Getting either player at 12 would be a steal for the Cowboys, according to Brugler.
Rueben Bain 9th overall
Another player who seems to be falling a little in the draft community, which could lead to the Cowboys getting lucky. Bain is third in the edge rushing rankings and is the ninth best player overall on the analyst’s board.
Drafting Bain at 12 would be another win for the Cowboys.
Mansoor Delane 6th overall, Jermond McCoy 14th
With the team continuing to look for CB help this offseason, Delane and McCoy have been two prospects routinely mocked to the Cowboys. Delane is the top CB in Brugler’s rankings, while McCoy is the second rated option.
If Delane made it to pick 12 after his incredible pro day, the Cowboys would be getting the top CB prospect at a discounted price, but the team would be slightly overpaying for McCoy.
Keldric Faulk 15th overall
One of the most polarizing players in the draft, Faulk is ranked 15th for Brugler because of his intriguing traits, age and upside. He’s ranked as the fourth best edge prospect in the draft and could be a surprising top 10 pick.
Faulk has been mocked to the Cowboys in the draft process; although many Cowboys fans wouldn’t like the pick and it would be a slight overdraft at 12, selecting the former Auburn Tiger wouldn’t be a bad choice. Getting Faulk at 20th overall would be a big win.
Dillon Thieneman 18th overall
If they don’t have the opportunity to grab Downs, Thieneman has been a popular player mocked to the Cowboys at 12. He’s Brugler’s second ranked safety but drafting him six spots higher than he is on the big board would be a bit of a reach.
Avieon Terrell 27th overall
Brugler’s CB4 has been a prospect consistently mocked to the Cowboys with their second first-round pick at 20th overall. That would be an overdraft but Terrell does make for a perfect player to trade back for and select later on Day 1.
Akheem Mesidor 28th overall
The former Miami Hurricane is the fifth ranked edge rusher, and 28th overall in The Beast. Mesidor has been gaining momentum with the Cowboys’ 12th overall selection in recent mocks, which would be a big overpay by the team.
However, the more popular match for Dallas and Mesidor has been at pick 20, which is still an overdraft, but more palatable.
Jacob Rodriguez 40th overall
Rodriguez has been a prospect who has been heavily mocked to the Cowboys of late because of the team’s failure to land a solid LB in free agency. Brugler has Rodriguez as the second-best LB in the draft, but as the 40th player overall. The Cowboys drafting him at 20 would be a massive overdraft.
However, trading back and grabbing the former Texas Tech product in the second round would make for a better fit. A long-rumored swap with the Cleveland Browns where the Cowboys get picks six and 39, while giving up 12 and 20 could land them a top-tier defender at six, with the hope they can still draft Rodriguez at 39 would be perfect.
CJ Allen 46th overall
LB3, 46th overall on the big board, and with a second-round grade, Allen falls well short of many other draft prognosticators projections. Considered a first-round option by many and someone often mocked to the Cowboys at 20, Allen would be a big reach according to Brugler if the team drafted him in the first round.
This might be the biggest discrepancy between Brugler and other draft analysts.
You can chat with or follow Ben on twitter @BenTalksCowboys and be sure to follow Cowboys Wire on Facebook to join in on the conversation with fellow fans!
This article originally appeared on Cowboys Wire: Cowboys top targets for 12, 20 in Athletic's Dane Brugler's rankings
Continue reading...
