Amid what's been a chaotic combine thus far, basically every Dallas Cowboys fan is holding out hope that a blue-chip defensive prospect will fall right into their lap at pick 12. And a sensational combine from Sonny Styles has all but confirmed he won't last until the Cowboys are on the clock.
The defensive players are the defining players of this draft class, but a top-heavy offensive draft could shift things in Jerry Jones' favor. Luckily, Cleveland Browns' head coach Todd Monken hinted at the Browns addressing offense at No. 6 overall, which is great news for the Cowboys.
Not only did Monken allude to Cleveland leaning more towards the offensive side of the ball, he also specifically mentioned the offensive line. If they draft someone like Francis Mauigoa or Spencer Fano with the sixth pick as planned, that's one less team that is drafting defense in the top 10, therefore helping Dallas out.
“Gotta build it up front," Monken said. "That’s it. I mean, it starts up front. It starts in the trenches on both sides of the ball.”
Todd Monken may help the Dallas Cowboys land a stud defender in the 2026 NFL Draft
The two teams that have been the hardest to predict throughout this pre-draft process are the Browns and the New York Giants. Both teams have enough holes that they have enough merit to address both sides of the football with their first-rounders, so hopefully, they both roll with offense.
In a perfect world, the Cowboys come away with one of Styles, Caleb Downs, or Rueben Bain with the 12th pick and double down on their defensive woes at No. 20. That trio are some of the most dangerous prospects in this draft, and will make Christian Parker's job far easier.
The Browns have countless needs on offense and they have talent defensively, so assuming they address offense, that's one more team that won't sabotage Dallas' hopes of coming away with one of these three guys. Every pick and every team counts, so the more teams that draft offense and avoid the defense, the better.
Downs is pound-for-pound the safest prospect in this entire draft class. Styles is an athletic freak that can do a little bit of everything defensively, while the reports about Bain's small arm length could potentially push him down the draft board enough that he is the Micah Parsons replacement in Dallas.
They are all total game-changers, and nobody would complain about the opportunity to land any of these prospects. However, it will require a lot of these swing teams to draft the way Jerry Jones is hoping they will, which starts and ends with Monken and the Browns' own selection.