It wasn’t the best work by the Dallas Cowboys’ draft team, which has done pretty well in recent seasons. They did enter 2019 shorthanded after giving up their first round pick in a trade with the Oakland Raiders.
That move landed them Amari Cooper, which they have no regrets whatsoever about. It did mean their top pick had to wait until the No. 58 overall selection, which is where they took UCF defensive tackle Trysten Hill.
Hill fills a massive need for them at the 3-technique, but has concerns about his maturity. Defensive coordinator Rod Marinelli is going to have to dig deep to push Hill and get the most out of him — but that’s something Marinelli has done his whole career.
One player they won’t have to do any pushing for is Tony Pollard. A do-it-all player out of Memphis, Pollard is listed as a running back, but will help in a myriad of ways.
He has experience as a receiver, in addition to lining up as a traditional running back for the Tigers. He also posted a 4.38 40-yard dash in his pro day, which seemed much closer to what he showed on tape than the 4.52 he had at the NFL Scouting Combine.
Where Pollard will really help though, is on special teams. It’s been years since the Cowboys have had a premier kick returner and Pollard can be that. He had seven returns for touchdowns in the past three seasons, which can really change the course of games for the defending NFC East champions.