Mel Kiper’s two-round mock draft ignores Cowboys’ top-30 visits list

Creating mock drafts for the entire NFL certainly doesn’t seem easy, but ESPN’s Mel Kiper has been getting a lot of flack for his latest two-round mock draft (subscription required). For starters, he picked four defenders in his top four picks, a situation that hasn’t happened in over 30 years. Sometimes, it’s like these draft analysts want people to get mad at their picks. Kiper’s two selections for the Dallas Cowboys don’t make much sense, either.

The reasoning for that isn’t because these are bad players or players the team couldn’t benefit from having. It’s because it ignores several facts that we know about the Cowboys organization. First of all, based on everything Jerry and Stephen Jones have said, the likelihood is that Dallas is going for an offensive lineman or wide receiver in the first round. His first-round choice is a defensive end.

The second reason his picks don’t feel all that realistic is that neither player selected was on the Cowboys’ official 30 pre-draft visit list. Why does that matter? Since 2006, only two players that were first-round picks by Dallas were not from the 30 visits list. One was CeeDee Lamb, who Jerry Jones even described as falling into the Cowboys’ lap, so that explained that situation. Before that, in 2012, Morris Claiborne became the first top pick since DeMarcus Ware (2005) to be selected without visiting The Star prior to the draft.

In this mock, Kiper’s two selections were Penn State DE Arnold Ebiketie at 24th overall and Washington State OT Abraham Lucas at 56th overall.

Neither of Mel Kiper’s top-two picks for the Cowboys in his latest mock draft (Arnold Ebiketie and Abraham Lucas) were on Dallas’s top-30 prospect visits list

As mentioned above, it’s incredibly rare for the Cowboys to select a player in the draft who wasn’t on their 30 invites list. Regardless, let’s take a look at Kiper’s choices.

Arnold Ebiketie, DE, Penn State:

Here is what Kiper said about this pick (from Blogging the Boys):

"“I wanted to find a fit for him in Round 1. The Temple transfer really improved last season, putting up 9.5 sacks. He has a powerful lower body and knows how to use his hands. The Cowboys have to find a way to replace Randy Gregory, and Ebiketie could help.”"

Literally right after this Kiper admits that the Cowboys could also choose a guard or wide receiver at this spot to cover his tracks. So, why didn’t you pick a guy they have clearly been eyeing, Mel? Regardless, Ebiketie is a great edge rusher who could easily fill the void left by Gregory. He is athletic and explosive. However, this draft class is filled with talented defensive ends. The Cowboys can afford to wait until a later round and prioritize higher needs.

Abraham Lucas, OT, Washington State

Kiper mentions the obvious need for offensive line help here with this pick. He believes Abraham Lucas can compete with Terence Steele for a tackle position or he could move inside to guard. He’s a talented player who would make an impact on any roster. But, let’s go back to the visits. Both Kenyon Green and Zion Johnson are offensive linemen heavily associated with Dallas. Both are on the top-30 list. So, if either of them were available at 24, why not select one of them and then get a defender or wide receiver in Round 2? Again, these aren’t bad picks, they just don’t really line up with what the front office is hinting at. To be fair, though, we all know Jerry Jones is known for making rash, unexpected moves.

It’s of course uncertain whether or not Kiper took these visits into account when doing his mock draft. But with the Cowboys’ history, it’s tough to ignore the list.