The folks over at SB Nation's Mocking The Draft have recently gone above and beyond the call of duty by releasing a five-round mock draft. Of course, mock drafts published now, before the season is officially open and before free agency opens, don't count for much but that doesn't change the fact that we love them. For the Dallas Cowboys, the guys at MTD filled holes both on offense and defense throughout their five-round mock.
Here's what they gave to Dallas:
With the Cowboys' first-round pick, they predict that Dallas selects Stanford guard David DeCastro at No. 14. DeCastro is rated as this draft class' best guard and as he excels at both run blocking and pass protection. The Cowboys who allowed 39 sacks in 2011, could definitely use an upgrade at the position.
With the 13th pick in the second round, the folks at MTD predict the Cowboys select Central Florida cornerback Josh Robinson. The Cowboys had the 23rd-ranked pass defense in 2011 and MTD actually says that cornerback is a bigger need than guard is.
With the 19th pick in the third round, the mock draft has the Cowboys selecting Georgia center Ben Jones. Again, the Cowboys need help on the offensive line and Jones can at least add some depth at center.
MTD predicts the Cowboys go back to defense in the fourth round by selecting Fresno State defensive end Logan Harrell with the 18th pick. You can't put a price on pass rushers and Harrell earned first-team All-WAC honors after the 2010 season for making 10.5 sacks and 46 tackles, 14 of which were made for a loss.
Finally, in the fifth round, they selected Texas Longhorns outside linebacker Keenan Robinson with the 17th pick. Robinson led the Longhorns in tackles in the 2010 season and was a second-team All-Big 12 selection. He would add some depth to the Cowboys' linebacker corps.
The Super Bowl still needs to be played and free agency needs to open before the draft rolls around, but NFL fans know it's never too early for a good mock draft.
For more on the Cowboys, head over to Blogging The Boys, and for more updates on the draft, head to Mocking The Draft.