The closer we get to the 2026 NFL Draft, the more everyone in the football media world seems to be talking about the Dallas Cowboys trading up for a prospect.
And to be fair, we've contributed to that discussion.
As you would expect, the rumor mill is spinning in every direction, and nobody knows what's real and what's being fabricated before the draft. That's part of what makes it fun. While there are some out there saying that the Cowboys would only like to move up a modest amount (if at all) and keep two first-round picks, Peter Schrager of ESPN is saying that he's heard the Cowboys are one of the teams interested in potentially moving all the way up to the 3rd overall pick. And that would be incredibly reckless.
Peter Schrager hints Dallas Cowboys could be plotting a reckless move up the 2026 NFL Draft board
"I have heard talk that they [Cowboys] might be one of the teams that's moving up all the way to 3."
— Get Up (@GetUpESPN) April 22, 2026
—@PSchrags on why the Cowboys are an interesting team in this year's draft ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/WiBQvUatax
Schrager says that there is talk that the Cowboys could be one of the team's poised to move up to the 3rd overall slot if the Jets don't take Ohio State linebacker Arvell Reese.
Although it's reasonable to speculate that the Cowboys could be poised to move up because they have picks 12 and 20 in the 1st round, this is simply not how they have traditionally operated. And what they do works for them.
The Cowboys haven't traded up in the 1st round since 2012 when they traded up to take LSU cornerback Morris Claiborne. And on top of not really ever trading up, the Cowboys' 1st-round track record in the draft over the last decade or so is arguably the best out of any NFL team.
History says they know how to identify talent in the 1st round, and will be able to get better value by staying put or even trading back.
But that's the name of the game right now when it comes to the NFL Draft. Everyone is talking about teams trading up, trading down, and essentially just talking in circles. It's a way for teams to get misinformation out there, and frankly, for a team like the Arizona Cardinals, it's a way to drum up potential interest in their pick.
This is just a theory, but the Cardinals could easily leak some intel that the Cowboys have called them about the 3rd overall pick, and all of a sudden, that's a fun pre-draft storyline for everyone to follow. Simultaneously, anyone else interested in moving up to 3 has to figure out if the Cowboys are really interested or if the Cardinals are bluffing.
We all know how this game is played.
But the reality is, if the Cowboys were to trade up to the 3rd overall pick and forsake the kind of draft capital required to do that, it would be a waste of their return on the Micah Parsons trade. Not because Arvell Reese is a bad prospect, but because they'd almost be trading the same amount to move up for Reese as they got in return for Parsons.
The Cowboys might not always do the popular thing with their fan base, but Jerry Jones is going to protect his draft assets.
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