In our inaugural mock draft database of the season, we take a peek at 25 different mock drafts published over the last two weeks to see whether we can get a better feeling for the early names mocked to the Cowboys.
As it currently stands, 21 of the 25 mocks are projecting the Cowboys to take a linebacker, with Sonny Styles (17 mocks) the clear favorite ahead of Arvell Reese (2) and C.J. Allen (2). The second most popular position is cornerback, but the consensus here is less clear with Avieon Terrell (7) ahead of Colton Hood (5) and Brandon Cisse (3). Edge rushers come in third overall with the mocks defaulting to Keldrick Faulk (6) with Akheem Mesidor (2) and Cashius Howell (1) also getting some consideration.
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The early consensus here seems to be LB Sonny Styles with the 12th pick and a CB with the 20th pick, a combo offered by 10 mocks.
But keep in mind, it’s still January, and a lot of things can still happen. When we did a similar exercise last year, Ashton Jeanty (13 of 25 mocks) and Luther Burden (9) were the favorites. Not a single mock had the Cowboys taking an offensive lineman.
The table below lists this year’s 25 mocks by their publication date and shows which player is mocked to the Cowboys in which spot.
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Mock Draft
Player (12th)
Position
College
Player (20th)
Position
College
Last Updated
Huddle Report (Williams)
Sonny Styles
LB
Ohio State
Colton Hood
CB
Tennessee
28-Jan
NFL (Brooks)
Sonny Styles
LB
Ohio State
Keldric Faulk
Edge
Auburn
28-Jan
Yahoo (McDonald & Tice)
Sonny Styles
LB
Ohio State
Brandon Cisse
CB
South Carolina
28-Jan
NFL Spin Zone (Scataglia)
Sonny Styles
LB
Ohio State
Avieon Terrell
CB
Clemson
27-Jan
Sportsbook Review (Paul)
Sonny Styles
LB
Ohio State
Colton Hood
CB
Tennessee
27-Jan
CBS (Brockermeyer)
Jeremiyah Love
RB
Notre Dame
Sonny Styles
LB
Ohio State
26-Jan
NFL (Jeremiah)
Colton Hood
CB
Tennessee
Keldric Faulk
Edge
Auburn
26-Jan
Sporting News (Iyer)
Carnell Tate
WR
Ohio State
Avieon Terrell
CB
Clemson
26-Jan
Tankathon (Staff)
Keldric Faulk
Edge
Auburn
C.J. Allen
LB
Georgia
26-Jan
Draftwire (Popejoy)
Sonny Styles
LB
Ohio State
Cashius Howell
Edge
Texas A&M
25-Jan
NFL Spin Zone (Bedinger)
Sonny Styles
LB
Ohio State
Avieon Terrell
CB
Clemson
25-Jan
PFF (Wassermann)
Sonny Styles
LB
Ohio State
Avieon Terrell
CB
Clemson
25-Jan
Foxsports (Staff)
C.J. Allen
LB
Georgia
Brandon Cisse
CB
South Carolina
24-Jan
PFSN (Randall)
Arvell Reese
LB
Ohio State
Colton Hood
CB
Tennessee
24-Jan
Essentially Sports (Pauline)
Sonny Styles
LB
Ohio State
Avieon Terrell
CB
Clemson
22-Jan
SD Union Tribune (Brown)
Caleb Downs
S
Ohio State
Akheem Mesidor
Edge
Miami (FL)
22-Jan
CBS (Edwards)
Keldric Faulk
Edge
Auburn
Colton Hood
CB
Tennessee
21-Jan
CBS (Renner)
Sonny Styles
LB
Ohio State
T.J. Parker
Edge
Clemson
21-Jan
Draft Countdown (Bosarge)
Sonny Styles
LB
Ohio State
Akheem Mesidor
Edge
Miami (FL)
21-Jan
ESPN (Kiper)
Sonny Styles
LB
Ohio State
Akheem Mesidor
Edge
Miami (FL)
21-Jan
SB Nation (Staff)
Keldric Faulk
Edge
Auburn
Sonny Styles
LB
Ohio State
20-Jan
Draft Network (Eisner)
Sonny Styles
LB
Ohio State
Brandon Cisse
CB
South Carolina
19-Jan
PFF (McGuiness)
Arvell Reese
LB
Ohio State
Keldric Faulk
Edge
Auburn
19-Jan
USAToday (Middlehurst)
Sonny Styles
LB
Ohio State
Avieon Terrell
CB
Clemson
19-Jan
The Athletic (Brugler)
Sonny Styles
LB
Ohio State
Avieon Terrell
CB
Clemson
15-Jan
The early data here suggests LB, CB, and EDGE will be the focus for the Cowboys. But how likely are which players to be available at pick 12 or 20, including players not listed here?
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You could look up the player ranking on your favorite big board, you could make up your own ranking, and you could even use a consensus big board for such a player ranking. Or we could look at the average draft position for the key defensive prospects based on the 25 mocks above, and how often they were available at pick 12 or 20, which is exactly what you see in the table below.
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POS
Avg. rank
Player
Available at No. 12
Available at No. 20
LB
3.4
Arvell Reese
8%
—
12.9
Sonny Styles
92%
8%
27.4
C.J. Allen
100%
84%
CB
12.2
Monsoor Delane
40%
—
13.8
Jermod McCoy
68%
4%
20.4
Avieon Terrell
100%
52%
28.6
Brandon Cisse
100%
92%
29.4
Colton Hood
100%
96%
EDGE
5.4
Rueben Bane
4%
—
6.8
David Bailey
8%
—
13.2
Keldric Faulk
60%
16%
23.2
Cashius Howell
96%
56%
28.1
T.J. Parker
100%
84%
28.8
Akheem Mesidor
100%
96%
Within the narrow confines of this 25-mock list, that gives the Cowboys some options, with the big caveat that it’s January and there’s still a long way to go to the draft.
The Cowboys can always hope that Arvell Reese, Rueben Bane, or David Bailey miraculously drop all the way to No. 12. Very unlikely to happen, even if five mocks (20%) have one of the three dropping to No. 12.
Pick between Sonny Styles and the two top-ranked corners, Monsoor Delane or Jermod McCoy. 24 of the 25 mocks (96%) have one of the three available at No. 12.
If you’re hell-bent on picking a pass rusher, Keldrick Faulk is your only option at No.12 and that feels like a bit of a reach for a perceived need.
There’s also an interesting trade-down option here. You’ll probably want to stick around at No.12, or perhaps do a Micah Parsons and trade down no more than two spots, and still have a chance at Styles, Delane, McCoy, and Faulk. But looking at the table here, there may be value in a Travis Frederick-style trade down from No. 20 to about 28: Many of the players you might like at 20 might still be available at 28, like LB C.J. Allen, CB Brandon Cisse, CB Colton Hood, DE T.J. Parker, or DE Akheem Mesidor. That trade might conceivably give you the Texans 3rd round pick (69) if you throw in the 5th-round comp pick, though I have no idea if the Texans would be interested in moving up.
What would be your choice right now, based in these 25 mocks?