{"id":816525,"date":"2026-03-17T06:10:07","date_gmt":"2026-03-17T06:10:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/816525\/"},"modified":"2026-03-17T06:10:07","modified_gmt":"2026-03-17T06:10:07","slug":"dallas-cowboys-aggressive-trade-leads-to-a-top-defender-in-mock-draft","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/816525\/","title":{"rendered":"Dallas Cowboys aggressive trade leads to a top defender in mock draft"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1nfb3k4i _16w9vov1 _16w9vov0 ls9zuh1\">Mock draft season is in full swing. This week, the Dallas Cowboys made a move to add another top-100 pick, trading defensive tackle Osa Odighizuwa to the San Francisco 49ers for the 92nd selection in the upcoming draft.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1nfb3k4i _16w9vov1 _16w9vov0 ls9zuh1\">With the Odighizuwa trade now official, Dallas now owns three top-100 picks coming at 12, 20, and 92. While a third-round pick isn\u2019t anything to write home about, having an additional top 100 selection will give the Cowboys some flexibility to move up in the draft if they so desire.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1nfb3k4i _16w9vov1 _16w9vov0 ls9zuh1\">This weekend, the team at <a href=\"https:\/\/www.profootballnetwork.com\/3-round-nfl-mock-draft-march-2026-elijah\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Pro Football Network<\/a> explored this exact scenario in their latest mock draft. With talented pass rusher David Bailey still available at pick six, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.profootballnetwork.com\/3-round-nfl-mock-draft-march-2026-elijah\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">PFN<\/a> had Dallas making an aggressive move to acquire the Texas Tech product. The Cowboys sent picks 12, 92, and a 2027 second-rounder to the Cleveland Browns in exchange for the sixth-overall pick.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1nfb3k4i _16w9vov1 _16w9vov0 ls9zuh1\">Here is what<a href=\"https:\/\/www.profootballnetwork.com\/3-round-nfl-mock-draft-march-2026-elijah\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\"> Alec Elijah<\/a> of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.profootballnetwork.com\/3-round-nfl-mock-draft-march-2026-elijah\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">PFN<\/a> had to say about why the aggressive move could make sense for the Cowboys.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1nfb3k4i _16w9vov1 _16w9vov0 ls9zuh1\">The Cowboys could look to keep one of the draft\u2019s most dangerous pass rushers in-state by targeting David Bailey. After an active stretch in free agency, Dallas may still look to strengthen its defensive front and could even explore a trade with the Cleveland Browns to secure Bailey before another team has the opportunity.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1nfb3k4i _16w9vov1 _16w9vov0 ls9zuh1\">Bailey proved himself as a relentless edge threat in 2025, recording 14.5 sacks and forcing three fumbles. Finishing his college career with 29 sacks and 10 forced fumbles, the Texas Tech product consistently disrupted opposing offenses. His explosive pass-rushing ability and relentless motor could make him an ideal addition to the Cowboys\u2019 defensive front.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1nfb3k4i _16w9vov1 _16w9vov0 ls9zuh1\">Moving up six spots in the first round would certainly be a bold move, and there is a chance the Browns could want more than the package PFN put together. Even so, if a defensive player of Bailey\u2019s caliber is still available and Cleveland is willing to negotiate, it could be the big move Dallas needs to complete their defensive rebuild.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1nfb3k4i _16w9vov1 _16w9vov0 ls9zuh1\">In this scenario, Dallas would hold on to pick 20, giving them a chance to select a linebacker or cornerback to pair with Bailey. With all their holes on defense, losing out on the third-round pick they just acquired would sting, but you could argue the combo of Bailey + whoever they select at pick 20 would be significantly better than whatever trio they got by sticking and picking at 12,20, and 92.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1nfb3k4i _16w9vov1 _16w9vov0 ls9zuh1\">The Cowboys have taken some big swings this offseason, but using their draft capital to trade up to acquire a premium defender in the draft could be the home run move they need to cap off a productive offseason. If David Bailey, or another top defensive prospect, starts to slide, Dallas would be wise to leverage their recently acquired third-round pick and additional draft capital to make a bold move and acquire a top defensive talent.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Mock draft season is in full swing. This week, the Dallas Cowboys made a move to add another&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":816526,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[3],"tags":[91200,437,7,6],"class_list":{"0":"post-816525","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-nfl","8":"tag-dallas-cowboy-mock-drafts","9":"tag-dallas-cowboys-draft","10":"tag-football","11":"tag-nfl"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/116243033195585530","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/816525","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=816525"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/816525\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/816526"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=816525"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=816525"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=816525"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}