Dallas Cowboys: 7-Round 2020 mock draft at season’s end fills sneaky holes
By Randy Gurzi
Round 5: Essang Bassey, CB, Wake Forest
Earlier we were looking at positions that were ignored but now we get into the fifth round and that’s no longer the case. Dallas has several draft picks invested in their cornerback corps with Byron Jones (first round), Chidobe Awuzie (second round), Jourdan Lewis (third round) and Anthony Brown (sixth round).
There could be some change though as Jones is set to hit free agency. The degree to which he will be pursued will depend on the new staff. Currently, Rod Marinelli and Kris Richard have done no favors for players such as Awuzie who excels at playing the ball but the defensive brain trust in Dallas forces him to play the man.
Perhaps the new staff will look at Awuzie and Lewis and decide they can let Jones walk and spend that money elsewhere. Or maybe they will agree with the majority of fans who believe Jones is the most important member of the secondary and plead with the Joneses to re-sign him at all costs.
Either way, they need to add someone to the backfield and that ends up being Essnag Bassey in this mock. The Wake Forest product would never work with Richard who believes a 5-10, 190-pound corner should be benched for someone taller — as he has done with Lewis who is clearly better than Brown. But with new coaches, Bassey has a shot to make an impact.
In four seasons with the Deacons, Bassey has an impressive 43 pass defenses and has five interceptions, including three in his second season. This could end up being a great pick this late — if he can maximize his potential.