NFL Draft's most interesting teams: How can the Cowboys turn their picks into help for a playoff push?

The Dallas Cowboys have an extra first-round pick in the NFL Draft. It didn’t come for free.

The Cowboys’ own pick is 12th overall. The other pick will be 20th, coming from the Green Bay Packers as part of the Micah Parsons trade. Parsons is gone, but having the extra first makes Dallas one of the more interesting teams in this draft.

The Cowboys have to make those firsts count. They aren’t on the clock again until the 92nd pick, late in the third round. And if those picks help right away, it might make the difference in Dallas getting back to the playoffs.

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The easy answer for the Cowboys in the draft is picking defense, defense and more defense. The offense is very good and set at practically every position. But it’s often hard to figure out what Dallas will do in the draft. Many mock drafts over the years have whiffed on predicting their pick. But whatever the Cowboys do with the picks, they need instant impact players.

Cowboys have some urgency

Since trading Parsons, the Cowboys have operated like they want to win now.

Last season, even though making the playoffs was probably out of reach, Dallas traded a 2026 second-round pick, a first-round pick in a deep 2027 draft and defensive tackle Mazi Smith to the Jets for defensive tackle Quinnen Williams. This offseason, they traded a 2027 fourth-round draft pick for Packers edge rusher Rashan Gary. And while the Cowboys didn’t “bust the budget,” as Jerry Jones said in his annual overstated proclamation that he doesn’t follow through on, they did sign safety Jalen Thompson to a three-year, $33 million deal and put the franchise tag on receiver George Pickens.

What will Jerry Jones and the Dallas Cowboys do with two picks in the 2026 NFL Draft's first round? (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

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Other than Pickens, the moves were to fix a dreadful defense that allowed the most points in the NFL last season. As was a coordinator change. The Cowboys brought in Christian Parker, who was passing game coordinator and defensive backs coach with the Eagles.

So it seems obvious that the Cowboys will take two defensive players in the first round and keep improving that side. But Dallas is keeping its options open.

Cowboys could make a big trade up

Jones said the team will look at trading up or trading down in the draft, depending on how it unfolds.

"You should — when you've got the kind of assets or the kind of ammunition we've got in this draft, you should look at all machinations," Jones said last month, via the team’s site.

The Cowboys’ clearest need heading into the draft is off-ball linebacker. In the latest mock draft from Yahoo Sports’ Charles McDonald and Nate Tice, Tennessee cornerback Colton Hood was the Cowboys’ pick at No. 20. But could Dallas try to move up and make a big splash for one of the projected difference-makers in the middle of the defense?

Ohio State’s Sonny Styles is going fourth overall in that mock draft, and after a remarkable workout at the NFL scouting combine he’s clearly a tier above every other off-ball linebacker. Would the Cowboys entertain trading both picks to move up for Styles? Based on the traditional trade value chart, picks No. 12 and No. 20 packaged together is pretty close to the value of No. 3 overall. Styles would be the type of instant impact player, a clear Defensive Rookie of the Year candidate, that could boost Dallas’ defense right away. It would be a costly move up, but it would make sense for the Cowboys. It would probably make sense for the Cardinals too.

The Cowboys have options due to their draft capital. They could stay put and draft two potential starters. They need a linebacker and perhaps another cornerback. Tice and McDonald had them taking an edge defender, Auburn’s Keldric Faulk, at No. 12. That would be reasonable too. They could move up for someone like Styles, who would be a splashy fix for a clear need.

Or, maybe the Cowboys surprise everyone if Ohio State receiver Carnell Tate or an offensive lineman they like falls. No position on offense is a glaring need, but two first-round picks gives Dallas flexibility to take the best player available. Perhaps there’s some deal cooking with a veteran defender. They had reportedly been interested in Maxx Crosby earlier this offseason, and while that seems to be dead, it shows the Cowboys are willing to make that type of move.

All lanes are open for Dallas. If they figure out the right path, it might lead them back to the postseason.