It's the silly season, where every NFL analyst and pundit, professional or amateur, takes a stab at predicting how the draft will unfold. We all know that they are fruitless exercises, but none the less, we love to see how someone else envisions the thought processes of 32 General Managers; sometimes without knowing more than a little about that teams overall needs.
Last year, with the Cowboys picking at slot nine, it was a bit easier to predict the handful of choices. For one, Dallas had a huge, glaring need; offensive tackle. Marc Colombo was one of the league's worst tackles two years running.
We knew that certain prospects would be gone before Dallas selected; Cam Newton, Von Miller, AJ Green and Julio Jones were almost assured to be gone before Dallas hit the clock. This year, at 14, things are a bit different. We know the two quarterbacks will be gone (Luck and RGIII) and the best tackle (Matt Kalil), but there are many more slots before Dallas' comes up.
With several needs, the Cowboys could go in multiple directions. They need help on the interior of the offensive line, in the secondary, the linebacking corps needs depth and the defensive line could use some supplements.
Please, no Braun jokes, urine a lot of trouble if you use a bad Braun joke amigo.
Jason Garrett has stated that the club will adhere to the BPA approach; selecting the best player available. But what happens if that player is at a position of no need, or overkill? How true is that statement? If Trent Richardson falls to 14, does Dallas select him, or auction the pick? If Luke Keuchly is the BPA, does Dallas really select an ILB after going back-to-back second-rounders in '10 and '11 (Lee and Carter)?
What happens if CB Dre Kirkpatrick is gone? Does bad boy Janoris Jenkins become a possibility? Just like with the mock drafts, the direction of the club will start to make sense as free agency plays out, starting next week. Before then, everything else is pure conjecture; but fun as hell.