2024 NFL draft: Tyler Guyton, Jonathon Brooks gaining steam as Cowboys' top picks

[DrRage]

Less than two weeks until draft day and things are starting to take shape in Cowboys Nation. Draft boards are beginning to stabilize with many mock drafts honing in on two specific players for Dallas’ first two picks. Tyler Guyton, the 6-foot-8, 322-pound offensive tackle from Oklahoma, and Jonathan Brooks, the do-it-all running back from Texas, are popping up in mock draft after mock draft for Dallas. With clear needs at both OT and RB, the selection of these two players makes sense, positionally. As the roster currently stands, Rico Dowdle is the lead RB in Dallas and two undrafted free agents with a combined four starts between them are the new starting offensive linemen. That should be concerning to just about every Cowboys fan but are Guyton and Brooks really the favorites? A crazy thing happens this time of year. After months of wild swings from one direction to the next, draft boards tend to become more homogenized. A few players still serve as wild cards but generally draftniks agree where most players are slated to go. Teams begin to get linked to players, as is the case here. Sometimes it’s team sources leaking information to the media, other times it’s a byproduct of group think. If everyone is mocking one player to the Cowboys over and over again, it has to be true, right? History offers a firm maybe. The Cowboys have recently been known to do things rather covertly. Very few outlets had Dallas linked to Mazi Smith in 2023. And Matthew Bergeron, the other player they were considering instead, was equally surprising to most. The year before, no one saw the Tyler Smith selection coming until a couple days before the draft. Even then it was just whispers and by no means an expectation amongst the community. Smith wasn’t even a 30-visit in 2022 after all. In the second round it was the complete opposite in 2022. Sam Williams seemed like a forgone conclusion prior to the draft. Dan Quinn took a shining to the pass rusher from Ole Miss and he looked like a shoe-in to be the Cowboys second pick. In the 2020 draft the Cowboys seemed locked in on K’Lavon Chaisson for quite some time. Mock drafts had the LSU pass rusher going to Dallas for weeks. And if it wasn’t for a surprise drop for Lamb, Chaisson likely would have been the pick at 17. Similarly, Leighton Vander Esch in 2018 was popular choice in mock drafts in the days leading up to the draft and rumors of Dallas’ interest proved correct when they selected him No. 19 overall. Picking at 24 and 56, the Cowboys are at the mercy of others. Even if they are truly honed in on Guyton and Brooks, someone could draft them before Dallas gets a chance. It’s also possible a better player could fall into the Cowboys’ laps and make them adjust their strategy altogether. The lesson to take away is to keep an open mind. Sometimes where there’s smoke, there’s fire. But more often than not, the Cowboys won’t tip their hand until the last minute. An offer for Cowboys fans For the best local Austin news, sports, entertainment and culture coverage, subscribe to the Austin American-Statesman. $1 for 3 months 9 running backs for Cowboys to choose from in 2024 NFL draft10 worst first-round picks for Cowboys under Jerry JonesDak Prescott's heir among 5 underrated draft needs for Cowboys
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