The Dallas Cowboys drafted defensive end Taco Charlton with the 28th overall selection in 2017. Two years later and they’ve now elected to waive him.
When the Dallas Cowboys made Michigan defensive end Taco Charlton the 28th overall selection in the 2017 NFL Draft, it was a controversial pick. Not only was Wisconsin star linebacker T.J. Watt still on the board, but Charlton was considered a developmental project that the Cowboys themselves had a second-round grade on.
Just over two years into his career in Dallas, the Cowboys have now decided to part ways with the former first rounder. According to Michael Gehlken of the Dallas Morning News, the team has waived the 24-year old after failed attempts to trade him, placing Charlton on the waiver wire allowing other NFL teams to claim him up as a result.
It is very unusual for any team to give up on a first round selection so quickly. And Charlton actually posted a solid rookie season in 2017, recording 19 total tackles and 3.0 sacks in 16-games. But last year, Taco struggled to record 27 combined tackles and a single sack in 11-games. That was due in part to injuries as Charlton had both ankle and shoulder surgery in the offseason.
But there also seemed to be a disconnect between Charlton and the coaching staff in Dallas, as he was a healthy scratch for a short stint last season and has been inactive through the Cowboys’ first two games of 2019. Rumors about a possible trade have lingered for months but came to a head with the start of the regular season. Now the team has opted to move on entirely.
Although his NFL destiny is yet unwritten, Taco Charlton will go down as one of the Dallas Cowboys’ biggest draft blunders in franchise history. Especially considering the early start T.J. Watt has had with the Pittsburgh Steelers, recording 20.0 sacks over his first two seasons.