April, the month of the NFL Draft is finally here. Draft season is always interesting from a fan’s perspective. It always starts with picking your favorite “realistic” prospect for the team you root for. It’s always fun. However, as the Draft gets closer and closer, it seems like the prospect is going to be off the board when your team’s finally on the clock. With the Draft 20 days away from today, I feel that way about the Dallas Cowboys and Cornerback C.J. Henderson.
With Byron Jones headed to the Miami Dolphins, cornerback is the consensus top need for the Cowboys. Chidobe Awuzie and Jourdan Lewis will enter contract years and both have yet to prove they can be reliable starters. Henderson, in the eyes of most, is the second-best cornerback in the Draft behind Jeffrey Okudah (a player the Cowboys can only dream of drafting since he’s likely to be a top 5 pick).
But the Jacksonville Jaguars, Las Vegas Raiders and the Atlanta Falcons all pick before Dallas. Right now, I believe Henderson is a long shot to wear the silver and blue. With that being the case, I believe there’s a player the Cowboys could find and be interested in. LSU Tiger EDGE K’Lavon Chaisson.
Despite the recent signing of Aldon Smith and a potential return from Randy Gregory, Chaisson might be too good to pass on. On Matt Miller’s Big Board, the LSU defender ranks as a top 10 talent. On Dane Brugler’s Defensive End rankings he’s #3 behind Chase Young and A.J. Epenesa.
Chaisson played as a stand-up rusher in LSU and showed a lot of explosiveness off the edge during his college career. Brugler describes him on The Athletic as: “Overall, Chaisson wasn’t a big-time producer at LSU and is still maturing physically and emotionally as a football player, but his explosive ability to rush and cover fits today’s NFL, projecting as a high-ceiling edge defender.”
Chaisson is likely to slip all the way to the 17th pick with three quarterbacks going early and teams making a run at a loaded offensive tackle position. Heck, I wouldn’t be surprised if three wide receivers are taken in the top 15.
The Cowboys made a bet in Aldon Smith and are hoping to see Gregory once again. But Smith is 30-years-old and Gregory has yet to play a full season. He played in 14 in 2018, a career-high for him, but only played in less than 50% of the defensive snaps.
If Chaisson is there, the Cowboys should likely pull the trigger and add a top defensive end talent to their defense. The defensive backfield could remain vulnerable, but opposing offenses should have a hard time dealing with a pretty talented defensive line that can rush the quarterback from all four positions.
Chaisson is physically talented, but a leader as well. As reported on TV during LSU’s demolition of Oklahoma, Chaisson had the entire defensive unit for LSU huddle together on the sideline to discipline the players to cut out all the foolish behavior and late hits so that all of them would be available for the championship game 2 weeks later. That is a leader! That is exactly what Dallas needs.
What about if Yatos – moss is there defensive end penn st??
If the choice was Chaisson and Henderson, I would pick Henderson, because CB is a bigger hole than Edge. You can get an edge rusher in rounds 2-4. Terrell Lewis, Julian Okwara, Jonathon Greenard, Bradley Anae, Curtis Weaver, Anfernee Jennings, Jabari Zuniga and Alton Robinson could all be had after the 1st round. If you wait on corner you could miss the possible starters by pick 51.
Taco 2.0 – say no to DEs with low production. Go with a difference maker in round 1 or try to trade back for some extra throws at the board.
The Cowboys need to pull the trigger on K”Lavon Chaisson!!
We won’t get another DE in the 1st round!! We already have 5 or 6 other DEs on the team now and that’s not including Randy Gregory or Aldon Smith!! We have way too many other needs on defense to waste a top draft pick on another DE!! If Cj Henderson isn’t there in the 1st round then we should trade back a few spots, gain an extra draft pick and draft Xavier Mckinney in the 1st round and then pick Aj Terrell or Damon Arnett in the 2nd round!! I really think we should draft Xavier Mckinney in the 1st round no matter what, cause after this season we won’t have any safeties on the team with the potential to start!! We’ll have at least one corner on the team after this season that’s started for us before!! So to me, as bad as we need a number 1 corner, we need safeties more!! And we need both of those positions way more than a DE that we have too many of already!! So again it would be stupid to draft a DE in the 1st round!!
I’d like to see some Cowboys 1st Round Big Boards, excluding QB, RB, and TE. Rank them how you would pick them if the Cowboys were on the clock at any pick position.
Edge Chase Young
CB Jeff Okudah
LB/S Isaiah Simmons
DT Derrick Brown
WR Jerry Juedy
WR Cee Dee Lamb
WR Henry Ruggs
CB CJ Henderson
Edge K’Lavon Chaisson
DT Javon Kinlaw
CB Kristian Fulton
S Xavier McKinney
LB Kenneth Murray
LB Patrick Queen
CB Trevon Diggs
WR Justin Jefferson
WR Denzel Mims
S Grant Delpit
Edge Yetur Gross-Matos
Edge Zach Baun
CB AJ Terrell
WR Jalen Raegor
C Cesar Ruiz
CB Jeff Gladney
OT Tristan Wirfs
OT Jedrick Wills
OT Andrew Thomas
OT Mekhi Becton
If Henderson is gone before 17 and the Cowboys take Chaisson or Kinlaw over Fulton, then I would think they will be forced to draft a CB in round 2. After the 2nd round the starting quality of CBs really drops off and they would have a huge hole in B Jones spot.