With the 2025 NFL Draft less than two weeks away, the positions teams will be targeting early in the draft have started to come into focus. And while it is not the betting favorite position for the Dallas Cowboys to target in round one, the idea of the team drafting an offensive lineman with their first pick has gained momentum. The Cowboys recently hosted first round offensive linemen Kelvin Banks Jr. out of Texas and Armand Membou from Missouri on official thirty visits. Both played tackle in college and would likely kick inside to guard for the Cowboys. And according to Marcus Mosher, Draft Kings gives the Cowboys a 17% chance to select an offensive lineman in round one, the third most likely position on their list behind only wide receiver (30%) and cornerback (19%). There is a real chance the Cowboys will use a first round pick on an offensive lineman for the third time in the past four years.
Many Cowboys fans have been critical of the idea. They argue the Cowboys have a severe deficiency of talent at nearly every offensive skill position outside of Dak Prescott and CeeDee Lamb, and they are correct about that. Wide receiver and running back desperately need to be upgraded for the Cowboys to have a chance to be competitive this coming season. So why in the world should Cowboys fans not be upset with the team foregoing the top talent at these positions to select yet another offensive lineman?
The Dallas Cowboys undoubtedly need to get better in the running game and the passing game. And part of that is certainly adding playmakers this team sorely lacks on offense. But another, no less important part is rebuilding the offensive line. Better blocking upfront will drastically improve the run game, no matter who is carrying the ball. Watching Eagles running back Saquon Barkley dominate in 2024 convinced many football fans that teams should be investing in running back, when really, it should have convinced them teams should be investing in the offensive line. Barkley never topped 1,312 rushing yards in a season during his career with the Giants. In his first season in Philadelphia, he rushed for over 2,000 yards. Why the sudden uptick in production? Was it because Barkley, who was 27 years old during that season, suddenly became a better player or learned something new about playing running back? No, it was because Barkley went from running behind one of the worst offensive lines in football to running behind one of the best. Barkley averaged 5.8 yards per carry, beating his previous high of 5 yards per carry by nearly an entire yard. He rushed for 829 yards before being touched by a defender, nearly 200 yards higher than the next closest player. While Barkley is clearly one of the most talented players in the league, the impact of the Eagles offensive line giving him room to run cannot be ignored. The Cowboys are not going to land the next Saquon Barkley in this draft. The closest prospect to Barkley in terms of pure talent level, Ashton Jeanty out of Boise State, will likely be gone far before the Cowboys pick at number twelve. But the Cowboys can take another step towards building a dominant offensive line like the Eagles by adding a young, talented player to fill the right guard spot left empty by the retirement of future Hall of Famer Zach Martin. Adding an offensive lineman in round one will make whatever running back they do pick a better player.
Taking steps to build a dominant run game will also help the passing game. Forcing teams to play more men in the box which will leave the Cowboys receiving options in man coverage and make opposing defenses more susceptible to play action will instantly bolster the Cowboys passing ability. Upgrading in terms of talent at wide receiver is a necessity. But creating easier matchups for the Cowboys wide receivers to win is a tangible way to improve the production of the receivers already on the Cowboys roster and aid whatever playmakers the Cowboys add during the draft. Although a round one wide receiver is certainly tempting for the Cowboys and would be a good use of their draft capital, leaving round one without a receiver is not the end of the world. The top of this wide receiver draft class has been criticized for its weakness when compared to other wide receiver draft classes, and the later rounds feature plenty of intriguing prospects. This draft class also boasts many exciting running backs who will be available throughout the draft, allowing the Cowboys to use a later round selection on the position and still find a quality starter. The depth of the draft at wide receiver and running back should allow the Cowboys to take an offensive lineman in round one and still significantly improve in those positions as well.
Another enticing element of an early Cowboys offensive line selection has been their extremely high success rate on offensive lineman drafted in the first round. The jury is still out on Tyler Guyton headed into year two, but the other four offensive lineman (Tyron Smith, Zach Martin, Travis Frederick, and Tyler Smith) drafted in the first round by the Cowboys in the past 15 years have gone on to become All Pro players. Offensive line is the position group where the Cowboys have earned the most trust from the fanbase when it comes to successfully making first round picks.In a draft where the Cowboys cannot afford to miss on a player, perhaps it makes sense to stick with the position they have the most success drafting.
The Dallas Cowboys offense needs a complete retooling in 2025. They need to add a wide receiver, they need to add a running back, and they need to add an offensive lineman. If the best player on the board on April 24th is an offensive lineman, the Cowboys should not shy away from making that pick. It will help their run game and their pass game. And they will still be able to add a playmaker at wide receiver in the second round and at running back in the third round or later. While an offensive lineman will never be the most exciting pick, it very well could end up being the pick that makes the Cowboys the best version of themselves for not only the coming season but many years to come. An interior offensive line consisting of All Pro Tyler Smith, promising second year center Cooper Beebe, and a first round draft pick would not only be supremely talented but also very young, with Smith, the oldest, being just 24 years old. The benefits of building a talented, young offensive line will be evident in the Cowboys offense likely for the rest of Dak Prescott’s career and beyond. Locking in high level play there for the long term should be an exciting prospect for Cowboys fans, not an upsetting one.
