Dallas Cowboys: Re-drafting first-round picks from last 5 years
2015 NFL Draft, No. 27 Overall
Actual pick: Byron Jones, CB, UConn
Re-draft pick: Danielle Hunter, DE, LSU
Whether he was lining up at safety or at cornerback, Byron Jones was a quality player for the Dallas Cowboys. Heck, that’s probably obvious from the amount of money the Miami Dolphins were willing to pay him in 2020 free agency. While he may not have been a superstar, he’s a high-end man-coverage defensive back that offers a ton of versatility.
And the truth is that the Cowboys could have certainly used a player of his ilk back in 2015. They were still looking for Morris Claiborne to work out and had Brandon Carr at cornerback but needed someone with Jones’ athletic skillset added to the fray. But that also doesn’t show that there were more pressing needs elsewhere on the defense.
DeMarcus Lawrence was a relatively unproven player at defensive end at the time and Jeremy Mincey was the other starting defensive end. The need is obvious when you consider that they took a gamble on Randy Gregory on Round 2. However, they could’ve taken Danielle Hunter, who ultimately fell to the Vikings in the third round.
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Hunter has developed into one of the league’s best defensive ends since being drafted, accruing 54.5 sacks in five seasons with 14.5 in each of the last two years. And for as good as Jones was for the Dallas defense, having another dominant force on the edge would’ve had an even more meaningful impact.