Dallas Cowboys: 5 things to ponder post-NFL Draft

For the Dallas Cowboys, the final GPS destination reads Florida. It’s Super Bowl or nothing for the team. Here are five things to ponder post-NFL Draft.

It’s time. Now that the 2019 NFL Draft is complete, the Dallas Cowboys can focus on the new miles heading into the new season, which will hopefully end in Florida, home of Super Bowl 54.

No matter what road map or set of coordinates you view, the optics for 2019 remains simply singular: Enter the Super Bowl or fall to football purgatory. Sure, it can be argued that every team, including the Dallas Cowboys, lives and dies by that banner.

But, this year is different. Head coach Jason Garrett is working for a new contract, or else. Dak Prescott, Amari Cooper, Byron Jones, and Ezekiel Elliott are playing for new contracts as well.

Things are primed for change. Can the Cowboys deliver a title run with this current gang still intact? Let’s zip into five things you should be thinking about now that the 2019 NFL Draft is over.

1. The Power of Amari Cooper

Trading for number 19 was a steal. Now only does the wide receiver provide a clear flight path for the future, he also serves as a model figure to alter the Cowboys’ fate in 2019, just like he did in 2018. Simply put, no Amari, no Super Bowl talk.

Now that the Dallas Cowboys have a true number one receiver, the focus is how the young guy will perform with a full training camp and 16 regular season games under the roof of America’s Team. The Cowboys didn’t have a first-round pick in 2019, but clearly, nobody is shedding any tears.

2. The drafting confidence

Leighton Vander Esch. This name provides the team with a lot of ammunition power when it comes to draft choices. Many questioned the selection of Vander Esch. Now, nobody is throwing up questions marks around the war room. Instead, the Cowboys are getting good grades for their 2019 draft selections.

Well, not all fans are drinking the Kool-Aid.

3. Draft method

Let’s talk about the 2019 draft picks. It feels like the Dallas Cowboys drafted to fill holes because they believe that the team’s main muscle exists already. With DeMarcus Lawrence signed up to a big contract, the Cowboys built more firepower on the defensive line to aid him. Drafting a safety was avoided.

The Cowboys bolstered their strength on the offensive line as well, which was already a strength, to begin with. For me, it boils down to this detail. The team drafted to supplement their already existing talent. By doing this, the Dallas Cowboys believe they have the roster to make a deep run into the playoffs by resolving the holes left in 2018.

4. The Return of the Kings

DeMarcus Ware wants a job.

Look, with Jason Witten suiting back up for 2019, I’m all about nostalgia. Ware earned a ring with the Denver Broncos, capping off a storybook career that began in Big D. If he can help, which I believe he can, the Cowboys should be all over him.

5. Copy the New Orleans Saints

With the Cowboys absent on day one of the 2019 NFL Draft, that meant that every pick had to be right. The team used their fourth-round pick on a running back, who turned out to be Tony Pollard. Running back Mike Weber was also selected in the seventh round.

Spending a valuable fourth-rounder on the running backs room could turn out to be a waste. However, the Cowboys want to protect Ezekiel Elliott and his game day mileage. He’s getting some muscle on the offensive line and now, he’s got Pollard to change-up the pace.

I’d love for the Cowboys to copy the Saints, and their two-headed monster running attack. Replicating that formula in Big D might be laughable, but let’s see how that plays out with new offensive coordinator Kellen Moore calling the shots.