The Dallas Cowboys have two first-round picks in the 2026 NFL Draft and could make a ton of progress before the regular season begins. Given how stout the offense is, Dallas using both selections on defense is not out of the realm of possibility.
And that might be the best course of action, too. Dallas sported one of the best offenses in the NFL last year and might truly be one average defense away from returning to the playoffs. Heck, the NFC East doesn't appear to have a clear-cut favorite at the moment, either.
Let's get into a Cowboys mock draft roundup to see who the experts are picking for this team.
Dallas Cowboys 2026 NFL Mock Draft Roundup
Chad Reuter, NFL.com - Sonny Styles, LB and Colton Hood, CB
This first one from Chad Reuter is quite interesting, as the Cowboys trade down from pick 20 in this mock and make their second first-round selection with the 29th overall pick, which originally belonged to the Kansas City Chiefs.
This could be a feasible thing for Dallas to do, as they'd only move down nine spots, get extra capital from doing so, and would still be in a position to snag a defensive prospect if they wanted to double-dip on that side of the ball. Sonny Styles is a day one starter at inside linebacker on most teams, and Colton Hood is a first-round cornerback prospect and would address a burning need on the backend of the defense.
Mel Kiper Jr., Matt Miller, Jordan Reid and Field Yates, ESPN.com - Rueben Bain Jr, EDGE and Zion Young, EDGE
In a collaborative mock draft from ESPN, the Cowboys are double-dipping with pass-rushers, taking Rueben Bain Jr and ZIon Young. Bain is one of the more interesting prospects, and not many can truly agree on him. He's quite undersized overall and might not have a 'true' position in the NFL.
However, he can get to the quarterback at a high level and is largely viewed as a top-15 prospect. Zion Young, however, is a more developmental player and not someone who would likely see the field early on, unlike Bain. While Dallas could justify double-dipping at the position, it might be smarter to spread out the selections on defense if they do address this unit with both picks.
Josh Edwards, CBSSports.com - Makai Lemon, WR and Emmanuel McNeil-Warren, S
This final mock draft from Josh Edwards is a different haul. Dallas takes USC wide receiver Makai Lemon with their first pick, and then takes the hard-hitting Toledo safety Emmanuel McNeil-Warren at the bottom of Round 1. There could be a point in time, as Edwards notes, where Dallas does have to choose between CeeDee Lamb or George Pickens, so adding Lemon can help soften that blow if that situation arises.
McNeil-Warren is a hard-hitting, physical safety prospect with all the tools to be an impact starter, and given how weak this defense still is on paper, you could justify any sort of defensive prospect in the first round. There truly isn't one right answer, but the predictability of defensive selections is obvious.