Dallas may be looking to cash in some of its trade chips.
The Cowboys are in the mix to move up in the 2026 NFL Draft, possibly to get ahead of the Giants, who now sit at No. 5 and 10 overall, according to ESPN’s Peter Schraeger on the eve of the festivities in Pittsburgh.
“There is talk right now around the league that the Cowboys might be a team that is either moving back if they feel like they definitely can’t get one of [the elite players in the draft], and they want to collect more picks, they don’t have a second round pick,” Schrager said on Wednesday morning’s of “Get Up.”
“Or moving up and taking a big swing. I have heard they could be one of the teams that’s moving up all the way to three if Arvell Reese is on the board. And the Cardinals are willing to trade back. So the Cowboys become a really interesting team in this draft.”
Schrager’s latest mock draft has the Cowboys trading up to No. 9 overall, one slot ahead of the Giants, to draft LSU cornerback Mansoor Delane.
The trade Schraeger is projecting is a big one, as the Cowboys swap their No. 12 and No. 20 picks with the Chiefs for No. 9 and No. 29.
Dallas is a major player in this draft since it acquired draft capital from the Packers in exchange for their former star pass rusher, Micah Parsons.
They cashed some of that in when they acquired former Jets defensive lineman Quinnen Williams.
“We’re more than 24 hours out but with the 12 and the 20 and the need for defense and a defensive star, I am keeping an eye on Brian Schottenheimer, Stephen Jones, Will McClay, and of course Mr. Jerry Jones to see how they’re taking this draft and and approaching it over the next 24 hours,” Schraeger said.
During a press conference on Wedneday, Jones joked that he and former president Bill Clinton, who entered the room in a surprising scene, were “negotiating the draft” together.
Schrager is among the most plugged-in mock drafters in the NFL, as he does zero of his own scouting and does his prognostications based purely on talking to teams and executives.
Thursday night’s first round still has tons of intrigue, as he has the Jets slated to take pash rusher David Bailey, despite disagreement from the betting markets, who have been hammering Reese to be drafted No. 2 overall all week long.
[Notigroup Newsroom in collaboration with other media outlets, with information from the following sources]
