Like any other team, the Dallas Cowboys are intensely analyzing their roster needs as they approach the 2026 NFL Draft. Some of them have changed over the last month with free agency and trades, and others are just as glaring as they were three weeks ago. One factor that the team is certainly considering is the potential development of recently-drafted prospects, and it’s one that could heavily impact who they bring in from this year’s rookie class.
This isn’t a novel concept. The existing talent
in your pipeline always impacts roster decisions: cap casualties, veteran signings, and the draft. But when you look at the Cowboys’ current makeup, they could be unusually dependent on players still on their rookie contracts in 2026. How much they trust those assets to mature and contribute this season could go a long way to shaping their upcoming draft class. Let’s look at a few.
Tyler Guyton
Tyler Guyton filled the assumed role of a first-round pick by being a Day 1 starter at offensive tackle since 2025, minus a four-game stretch when he was benched as a rookie. But between already missing nine games in two seasons and struggling with overall performance and penalties, Guyton is hardly a sure thing at this point. Last year did show signs of growth on the field, when he could stay on it, so there’s good reason to hope that he puts it all together in his third season.
Still, reasonable concerns will make things interesting in this draft. With how the 2026 class stacks up, there’s a strong possibility that the best player available when Dallas is on the clock at either the 12th or 20th pick will be an offensive tackle. If the likes of Sonny Styles, Caleb Downs, Mansoor Delane, and the top edge rushers are all gone by the time Dallas is on the clock, that means at least one of Francis Mauigoa, Spencer Fano, or Monroe Freeling is probably there. The same could be true at #20 if one of them falls further, or if other prospects like Caleb Lomu or Kadyn Proctor are high on Dallas’ board.
After recently renegotiating Terence Steele’s contract, Dallas is probably locked in with him at right tackle for at least two more years. So that’s why the focus becomes Guyton on the left side. If you trust Guyton enough to see what Year 3 brings, then you probably skip over these OT prospects and focus on bigger needs. But you can see why that trust factor is so big here, because it’s very possible that the best-available-player will indeed one of these tackles over the linebackers, edge rushers, or defensive backs that you more sorely need.
Remember, this isn’t entirely the same offensive staff that helped bring Guyton to Dallas. Brian Schottenheimer was the “coordinator” under Mike McCarthy, but Klayton Adams, a former OL coach in Arizona, and current OL coach Conor Riley both came a year later. Their opinions on Guyton will weigh heavily on his stock and this trust factor. If they don’t see light at the end of this tunnel, they may push the front office to consider a new direction at left tackle.
Donovan Ezeiruaku
How about an even more recent pick? There was ample hype about Donovan Ezeiruaku coming out of last summer, but his rookie season only provided rare flashes. Now there’s a new defensive regime under Christian Parker, and a move to new schematic looks with increased 3-4 principles. Some argue that these will only benefit Ezeiruaku, who better fits the mold of a 3-4 OLB than a 4-3 DE. But still, new coaches and a new defense could stall development.
The Cowboys already made one big move for the pass rush when they traded for Rashan Gary, but he’s seen as more of a wingman in an edge-rushing duo. If one guy on the current roster is going to become a double-digit sack artist, it almost has to be Ezeiruaku. But given his slow start last year and an offseason of further change, how much can Dallas trust him with such major responsibility?
To be clear, even if the team has full faith in Ezeiruaku’s future, that doesn’t stop them from taking a top EDGE prospect like David Bailey or Rueben Bain Jr. if they fall out of the top 10. But what about once you cross into that next tier of more questionable guys like Keldric Faulk and Ahkeem Mesidor? If you have high confidence in Ezeiruaku, do you really want to pick up those red flags with a first-round pick? And once you get to the likes of Zion Young, Cashius Howell, and T.J. Parker, are they really any better prospects than Ezeiruaku was a year ago?
Shavon Revel Jr.
You can apply some of this same logic to Shavon Revel Jr. at cornerback. Again, he’s not stopping you from taking Mansoor Delane on the first round. That’s one of the dream scenarios, really: Delane and Revel starting on the outsides and DaRon Bland moving back into his ideal slot role. That also makes free agent Cobie Durant a highly-quality CB4 and good insurance against health concerns for Bland or Revel. But even that assumes Revel is ready for a top-three role in 2026, which is asking a lot of a guy who started five games last year and played in seven.
At the 20th pick, Dallas could have some interesting choices with another medically-flagged prospect in Jermod McCoy, plus some later-round guys in Avieon Terrell, Colton Hood, and others. But once you get into those discussions, now you’re more considering them against what you already heave. Many had Revel as a first-round talent in 2025 who fell due to medical issues. But the team sounds high on him now, including Parker as the new DC, so they may decide to pass on second-tier CB prospects in the hope that Revel is about to give them huge value for last year’s third-rounder.
Luke Schoonmaker
We could even look at Luke Schoonmaker and the TE position for a moment. It hasn’t been a good three years for the former second-round pick, who instead of pushing Jake Ferguson has instead lost ground to undrafted Brevyn Spann-Ford in the rotation. In this TE-rich 2026 draft class, Dallas will likely see more than one opportunity to upgrade the position. How much that’s viewed as a luxury over a necessity, though, depends a lot on whatever lingering hope they still have for Schoonmaker. Considering he turns 28 in September, it probably isn’t much. So while they did just spend a second to get Schoonmaker three years ago, waning trust could easily prompt another significant investment at tight end.
Others
We can keep going through even some of the more recent Day 3 picks. How much do the Cowboys trust Jaydon Blue and Shemar James, last year’s fifth-round picks, to provide quality depth at RB and LB? Is Caelen Carson, a fifth-rounder from 2024, seen as a high-quality depth CB or more of a failed prospect at this point? And while all signs are pointing up for him, is Ryan Flournoy just walking into next year as WR3 without any real competition? That would be quite the vote of confidence in the former sixth-round pick.
Because they haven’t made the big moves that many hoped for this offseason, the Cowboys are all the more dependent on the draft to improve the roster. This isn’t just the 2026 draft, but the continuing returns from recent classes. What happens this April may tell us a lot about how much must trust they still have in some of their younger prospects, for good or bad.
