Dallas Cowboys: Where does rookie Connor McGovern fit in?

The Dallas Cowboys used their second draft pick on an interior offensive lineman for the second year in a row. But where does the rookie fit on the line?

The Dallas Cowboys entered the draft with no glaring needs, so the approach was to just pick the best players available.  The front office decided to select Connor McGovern, a guard/center out of Penn State. McGovern was reportedly the highest rated player on the Cowboys’ board when their number was called late in the third round.

This was a questionable pick, considering that the offensive line is already one of the strongest units on the entire roster. The left tackle, right guard, and center position (most likely) are taken by Tyron Smith, Zack Martin, and Travis Frederick.

Dallas invested a second-round pick last year into Connor Williams who played left guard and made strides throughout the season. So it is unlikely that they will just give up on Williams and the team would not use a third round pick as an insurance policy.

One possibility is that the Cowboys trade right tackle La’el Collins. Collins is on the last year of his contract and his set to charge $9.9 million in cap space, per Spotrac.

In this scenario, Williams would slide over to right tackle– keep in mind Williams played tackle in his college days at the University of Texas. Then, McGovern would start at left guard.

Another scenario is that the Cowboys do not trade Collins. Instead, they swap him and Williams positions (Collins goes to left guard, Williams goes to right tackle). The rookie would not start, but learn the system and adapt to the Cowboys’ standards with the goal to start in 2020.

Collins won’t be with Dallas in 2020 because they have to pay plenty of young stars. On contract years, players tend to play their best. So the Cowboys might keep Collins on the team for one last year.

In the press conference after day two of the draft, Stephen Jones (director of player personnel) spoke on the reasoning behind drafting McGovern:

"“What he can do for this offensive line, I mean he’s a swing player, he’s also a future player. We all know these young guys come of age and then you got to make some tough decisions. We all know what’s coming at us in terms of our roster, in terms of players we’re gonna have to play.”"

So take this how you will, but it shows that McGovern is not just picked to be insurance but to be a starter in the future. It may not be this year. Dallas might keep Collins and Williams on the line, but the front office envisions McGovern being a real contributing factor for the Dallas Cowboys.

How would you grade the pick? How would you grade the draft overall? Where does McGovern fit on the offensive line? Feel free to share your thoughts and ideas in the comment section below!