The Dallas Cowboys had a huge 2023 NFL Draft class, kicking things off with one of the most ridiculously strong athletes on the defensive line in this year’s class — Michigan defensive tackle Mazi Smith. From rounds 1-7, the Cowboys were balanced in their approach. They may not have gotten all of the flashiest names in this class between Mazi Smith, Luke Schoonmaker at tight end, DeMarvion Overshown at linebacker, and others. It doesn’t necessarily matter how big the names were in the NFL Draft community if you got the right players for your team.
And I think the Cowboys did.
And that extended beyond the 2023 NFL Draft as well into undrafted free agency, where the Cowboys were aggressive in landing some of the top targets on the UDFA market.
The times have changed, of course, given the fact that the undrafted market is so competitive year in and year out, but some of these guys as undrafted players are getting as much or more guaranteed cash in their pocket to sign than 6th or 7th-round draft picks.
The Cowboys gave Mississippi State LB/EDGE Tyrus Wheat $185,000 in a base salary guarantee as well as a $20,000 signing bonus, good for $205,000 in total guarantees. Last year, in the 6th round, the Cowboys took a player named John Ridgeway, who received $242,000 in total guaranteed money. Obviously, the difference there is minimal, and it should speak to what your scouting department and coaches feel about a player.
There are some UDFAs around the NFL who will not receive but $20,000 or so to join an NFL team in terms of guarantees.
Follow the money: Dallas Cowboys early undrafted favorite to make the team
So, what is Tyrus Wheat all about? Well, Dane Brugler, the lead NFL Draft analyst and scout over at The Athletic, had him pegged as a fourth-round prospect leading up to the draft itself.
The great @dpbrugler gave Miss. State EDGE Tyrus Wheat a fourth-round grade.
— Marcus Mosher (@Marcus_Mosher) April 29, 2023
Cowboys just picked him up in UDFA.
What makes him a possible fourth-round player? Fourth-round guys fall out of Day 2 for one reason or another, but typically, these are guys you covet early on Day 3 because they have some type of trait or level of production, but oftentimes not the combination of both. Sometimes guys do just slip through the cracks, but Tyrus Wheat looks like he was solid — not spectacular — in both the production and traits departments.
He had 25.5 tackles for loss and 17 sacks at Mississippi State with three interceptions, three forced fumbles, and 129 total tackles.
Tyrus Wheat is a LB prospect in the 2023 draft class. He scored a 7.19 #RAS out of a possible 10.00. This ranked 747 out of 2652 LB from 1987 to 2023. https://t.co/y9BCz7dIrY https://t.co/aDGSULwfTe pic.twitter.com/lA2rf9Tbed
— Kent Lee Platte (@MathBomb) April 30, 2023
Mississippi State LB Tyrus Wheat is another Shrine Bowl standout who could land with the #Patriots. Wheat is a physical, well-built edge/LB hybrid. Great flexibility, pop in his hands to set the edge.
— Evan Lazar (@ezlazar) April 21, 2023
Lines up on/off the ball, speed to power pass rusher, & can drop in coverage. pic.twitter.com/arGAIsImDQ
Of course, everyone is rightly focused more on the Cowboys’ drafted players in 2023, but when you look at the UDFA class they brought in, they clearly had some draftable grades on a couple of guys and feel like there might be a chance they can contribute.
Although Tyrus Wheat doesn’t have ideal measurables, money talks and the money says he might be the most likely undrafted rookie to crack the Dallas Cowboys’ 53-man roster this coming season. It’s a deep group on that defensive front for Dan Quinn, but perhaps the Cowboys landed themselves a steal in the post-draft frenzy.