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2011 NFL Mock Draft: Cowboys Trade Up?

Brian Galliford and Dan Kadar have completed their last Monday SB Nation NFL mock draft of the season, and this one is a doozy for Cowboys fans. They have included what they see as likely trades, and the first one of the draft involves the Cowboys and a big name.

Projected Trade
ARI gets: No. 9 overall, No. 40 overall (second round)
DAL gets: No. 5 overall, 2012 third-round pick

5. Dallas Cowboys (f/ARI): Patrick Peterson, CB, LSU. Peterson is a guy that Jerry Jones would go up (relatively cheaply) to get. He's a perfect fit for Dallas. Arizona, meanwhile, can slide down, pick up another pick this year, and continue their re-build with more bodies at better value - even if they lose a third next season.

While the loss of their high second round pick and the resulting inability to fill an offensive line hole with a potential impact player smart, most Cowboys fans would be pretty juiced by the prospect of adding the guy who many think is the top talent in this draft at a key position of need. The pickup of the future third makes the points even out.

There are several other Cowboys related points to take away from this mock draft.

  • Prince Amukamara goes seventh, so he would not be on the board for Dallas even if Peterson falls to five or six.
  • Blaine Gabbert goes eighth, so Dallas would not be in a position to incite a bidding war from those looking to trade into their spot.
  • Julio Jones goes 13th, so there would be some potential of being the strategic trade-up spot for teams looking for an elite receiver.
  • The other end of the Cowboys-Cardinals swap sees Arizona pick Tyron Smith at No. 9. He looks like a likely top ten or twelve pick whether or not the Cowboys go for him.
  • Cameron Jordan, J.J. Watt and Anthony Castonzo go at 16, 18 & 19. Those are reportedly the players the Cowboys are primarily interested in. It's a little hard to feel like they're getting great value when most mock drafts still have them going this low.
  • Jake Locker and Ryan Mallett go at Nos. 10 and 15 to Washington and Miami. There is going to be a lot of disappointed head shaking if that happens.
The first round of the 2011 NFL Draft starts at 7 p.m. (CT) on Thursday, April 28, and SB Nation has everything you need to prepare: NFL mock drafts, draft projections, scouting reports, the full NFL draft schedule and more. Check it out at SB Nation's NFL Draft page and our NFL Draft blog, Mocking the Draft.

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