Dallas Cowboys: Top 5 potential first-round draft picks in 2021
By Connor Green
3. Kwity Paye, Defensive Tackle, Michigan
As previous slides have touched upon the Dallas Cowboys defense is in dire need of help. The team finished the season with one of the worst run defenses in the league. Drafting Michigan defensive lineman Kwity Paye could help America’s Team address this problem.
The 272-pound defensive lineman is one of the highest-rated defensive players in this years’ draft class. Paye has been a consistent disruptor at Michigan and finished the 2019 season with an impressive 6.5 sacks and 12.5 tackles for loss.
Paye, unlike several players on this list, decided to play this year. The senior posted two sacks and 16 total tackles in his four games played this season (Michigan only played six games due to complications arising from the COVID-19 pandemic).
The Cowboys attempted to address their struggles at the defensive tackle position in the 2020 NFL Draft. The team selected Oklahoma defensive lineman Neville Gallimore in the third-round. Gallimore finished his rookie campaign with 0.5 sacks and 28 total tackles while starting nine games for Dallas.
Dallas also saw some promising development from their second-year defensive lineman Trysten Hill. However, the 22-year old had his season ended prematurely due to a season-ending ACL injury. Despite some of the promise that Gallimore and Hill showed this year the team still needs help stopping the run and Paye could provide that help.
The Dallas Cowboys are in dire need of a defensive lineman who can stop the run and provide constant pressure up the middle. Michigan defensive lineman Kwity Paye has the ability to provide Dallas with that if the team winds up selecting him with the tenth overall pick in the draft.