Cowboys Day 3 grades: Deuce Vaughn selection makes up for brutal trade

The 2023 NFL Draft is in the books and the Dallas Cowboys wound up with five picks on day three. Here, we look back at those selections and assign a grade for each incoming rookie.

Thankfully, they were saved with a late-round steal, which made up for an ill-advised trade for a player who likely wouldn't have been drafted.

Cowboys Round 4

The first pick Dallas made on Saturday was a bit of a surprise one. With needs on the offensive line still glaring, they went with Viliami Fehoko from San Jose State who plays a position of strength.

Fehoko is a well-built defensive end at 6-foot-4 and 276 pounds and put up some insane numbers for San Jose State. He finished with 191 tackles, 23 sacks, and was credited with 47 tackles for a loss.

But he now joins a roster that has DeMarcus Lawrence, Dorrance Armstrong, Dante Fowler, Sam Williams, and Chauncey Goltson who all play defensive end. Throw in the fact that Micah Parsons also plays on the edge and it seems as though Fehoko won't be on the field at all anytime soon.

With fourth-round picks, that's not always uncommon but there were greater needs elsewhere — especially without a starting left guard on the team. Fehoko is also the second older rookie Dallas drafted — he turns 24 in December and second-round pick Luke Schoonmaker will be 25 in September.

The player is better than the fit and the lack of concern about age is mind-boggling.