Brian Schottenheimer’s first NFL draft as Cowboys coach could fall several ways for Dallas

By Canadian Press on April 17, 2025.

FRISCO, Texas (AP) — Brian Schottenheimer’s first NFL draft as coach of the Dallas Cowboys comes after a run through free agency in which the club put the emphasis on defensive reinforcements.

That’s a bit of a twist for a former offensive coordinator getting ready to debut as a head coach while also calling plays for quarterback Dak Prescott.

“You look at what we did, I mean, I got Klayton Adams looking at me, ‘Hey man, I thought you were an offensive coach,’” Schottenheimer said, referring to his new offensive coordinator. “But I will say there’s a couple times that … we were making some decisions in free agency and I literally had to say, ‘Well, we need to go with this guy,’ and he was on the defensive side of the ball. But that’s what’s best for the football team.”

Similar questions will have to be answered when the Cowboys come up at No. 12 in the first round of the draft April 24. And there’s a similar theme from a year ago, when Schottenheimer was former coach Mike McCarthy’s offensive coordinator.

The Cowboys needed a running back then, but decided to stick with what they had. Dallas added Javonte Williams to start free agency this year, while letting Rico Dowdle go to Carolina after Dowdle became the first undrafted back in club history to rush for 1,000 yards.

Depth at running back is one of the primary talking points of this draft. And one of the top prospects, Heisman Trophy runner-up Ashton Jeanty of Boise State, played high school football just a few miles from the Cowboys’ team headquarters in the Dallas suburb of Frisco.

Still, there goes Schottenheimer again, talking defense.

“I think there’s a lot of depth on the defensive line. Both interior and on the edge,” Schottenheimer said. “I think there’s a lot of depth obviously with the running back position. I mean, there’s guys at every level with every different grade on them that you’re like, the difference is not that huge.”

Executive vice president of personnel Stephen Jones suggested on his radio show nine days before the draft that the Cowboys might trade down in the first round but were unlikely to move up.

That’s what Dallas did four years ago in getting star pass rusher Micah Parsons, who could be on the verge of becoming the highest-paid non-quarterback in NFL history.

The Cowboys had the 10th pick when they traded down to get Parsons at the exact spot where they are this year.

The depth at running back plays into the possibility of trading down to add picks for the Cowboys, who also added former Philadelphia and Carolina back Miles Sanders in free agency.

“Part of what we do in free agency is to make it to where hopefully there’s a great player sitting there with each pick that we really like and don’t want to be nailed down to, ‘Hey, it’s got to be a defensive lineman or it’s got to be a receiver or it’s got to be a linebacker or a running back,’” Jones said. “We like the two running backs we signed in free agency. We’ll see if there is a young back there as well that can help us in the draft. We’re certainly wide open to that. Just see what comes our way.”

Need

A little more than a decade ago, the Cowboys rebuilt their offensive line into one of the league’s best by drafting a blocker in the first round three times in a four-year span.

Dallas would complete a replay of that by drafting an offensive lineman in the first round after getting Tyler Smith at 24th overall in 2022 and Tyler Guyton at 29 after a trade down last year.

Such a move wouldn’t be a surprise considering six-time All-Pro right guard Zack Martin retired this offseason, pushing Dallas further into a transition up front.

While the Cowboys could comfortably name a starting five on the offensive line right now, there could be competition at multiple spots. A rookie first-rounder would ramp that up even more, and Schottenheimer has placed an emphasis on the Cowboys being more physical and trying to improve one of the NFL’s worst rushing attacks.

“If we’re not creating competition then I’m not doing my job, and the players need to understand that,” Schottenheimer said. “There’s no jobs being given out.”

The Cowboys are thin in proven receivers behind star CeeDee Lamb after letting Brandin Cooks get away in free agency, and linebacker could use help with the apparent decision not to re-sign Eric Kendricks.

Don’t need

The offseason trade for Joe Milton III took the Cowboys out of the market for a backup to Prescott. They also have Will Grier, so drafting a quarterback would appear unlikely. There’s some level of need at every other position.

___

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl

Schuyler Dixon, The Associated Press

27
-26