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NFL Mock Draft 2012: David DeCastro The Safe Pick For Dallas Cowboys?

The great minds over at SB Nation have assembled all 32 NFL blogs for an interactive mock draft of the first round. On Friday, the Dallas Cowboys were up, with Blogging The Boys making the selection:

The Cowboys interior offensive line was a problem last season, and with the release of Kyle Kosier at guard last week, the position is truly in flux. Dallas did pick up a couple of veteran guards in free agency, but the future of the position is still in question.

Enter David DeCastro, who many scouts have said is the best guard prospect to come along since Steve Hutchinson. He's got every skill you need and is a fierce run-blocker. Blessed with agile feet, he's extremely good on the move, and in the Cowboys run-blocking scheme the guards are often asked to pull. DeCastro is projected as the kind of player you pencil into the starting lineup for the next decade. Dallas picked up their tackle of the future last year with Tyron Smith, they could do the same at guard this year with David DeCastro.

As they point out in the article, interior lineman are some of the safest picks in the draft, especially early. Picking DeCastro would give Dallas one of the best left sides of the offensive line for the next decade.

It might not be the flashiest selection, but there's a lot less downside than going for potential with one of the raw defensive lineman that could be available at No. 14.

For the latest news and analysis on the Cowboys draft plans, check out SB Nation Dallas' exclusive storystream, while Blogging The Boys is your off-season home for all things related to America's Team.

Photographs by jamesbrandon, jdtornow, phlezk, flygraphix, mcdlttx, tomasland, and literalbarrage used in background montage under Creative Commons. Thank you.