One of college football's best is shining on the biggest stage. Miami's Rueben Bain Jr. has recorded four sacks and 5.5 tackles for loss in the College Football Playoffs, and he's making his pitch to Jerry Jones ahead of the 2026 NFL Draft.
The Cowboys obviously need help putting pressure on opposing quarterbacks, and they can easily get that with Bain Jr., one of the most highly rated prospects in the upcoming draft. Cowboys fans will love what Bain Jr. had to say to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram following Miami's win against Ohio State. The star edge rusher says he would love to play for the Cowboys if given the opportunity.
“It’d be amazing. Any opportunity I can get, no matter where I’m playing, it’d be a blessing. I’ve already made myself familiar with the [stadium] grounds. It’d be an amazing opportunity.”
Miami star edge rusher Rueben Bain Jr. says he would love to play for the Cowboys
The only thing that could stop Jones from drafting Bain Jr. would be if another team were to beat them to the punch. The Cowboys have also been linked to Texas Tech edge rusher David Bailey. Drafting him would be a win to fix their atrocious pass rush.
The losses to the Lions and Vikings served as harsh reminders that if Dallas were to draft two pass rushers in the first round, it wouldn't be too extreme at all. The defense was barely able to touch Jared Goff and J.J. McCarthy, allowing both quarterbacks to look like prime Tom Brady.
The departure of Trevon Diggs will have a lot of mock drafts predicting the Cowboys to take a cornerback with one of their two first-round picks. But a pass rusher should be the priority with their first pick, and Bain fits that bill.
Bain Jr. is a big body at 6-foot-3, 275 pounds, and he possesses the power and speed off the edge that Dallas badly needs. He and Donovan Ezeiruaku could end up becoming a real problem for the NFL.
Jones could also dip into Akheem Mesidor, Bain's teammate at Miami. Drafting him would also be possible for Dallas, as ESPN's Mel Kiper Jr. listed Mesidor as the 21st best player on his prospect rankings. Mesidor repeated Bain Jr.'s same sentiment to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram by saying it would mean "the world" for him to play for the Cowboys.
Even though the Joneses have plenty of options, Bain Jr. would be the perfect pick for Dallas. He's not just a game changer, but he's the game wrecker that could change everything for the Cowboys in 2026 and beyond.