A report from ahead of this past weekend suggested that Dallas Cowboys
owner and general manager Jerry Jones could target a pair of defensive players with overall picks No. 12 and No. 20 of the 2026 NFL Draft.
It sounds like others around the league agree that Jones will look to bolster his club’s defense on the night of April 23.
What Jerry Jones is allegedly “thinking” regarding the Cowboys’ first-round draft picks
For an article published on Monday, NFL insider Jason La Canfora of SportsBoom US spoke with one general manager and a personnel executive about how Jones will approach the upcoming draft.
“Jerry is thinking defense,” the general manager said directly. “With both picks.”
Jones traded star pass-rusher Micah Parsons to the Green Bay Packers in late August 2025, and the Cowboys seemingly won’t be trading for Maxx Crosby of the Las Vegas Raiders before the 2026 campaign gets underway. Ohio State safety Caleb Downs, Miami pass-rusher Rueben Bain Jr. and San Diego State cornerback Chris Johnson are among the players who have been linked with the Cowboys.
“It’s a corner and a pass-rusher, right?” the personnel executive said about who the Cowboys will acquire in the draft’s first round.
Why the Cowboys won’t use a first-round draft pick to address this position
ESPN stats show that the Cowboys ended the 2025 regular season ranked last in the NFL with an average of 30.1 points allowed per game and 30th with an average of 377 yards surrendered per contest. Clearly, landing defensive tackle Kenny Clark as part of the Parsons trade and acquiring both defensive tackle Quinnen Williams and linebacker Logan Wilson ahead of the Nov. 4 trade deadline wasn’t enough for Dallas to save its campaign.
“Defensive tackle has been an abomination for years, but this draft doesn’t offer many options in that regard with picks this high,” La Canfora added about the Cowboys. “There will be no shortage of pass-rushers for Jones to choose from. And it would be quite a shocker if at least one of these first-round picks isn’t designated for one.”
For a mock draft posted on Sunday night, Cleveland Browns insider Tony Grossi of ESPN Cleveland/The Land on Demand predicted that the Cowboys will grab Miami defensive end Akheem Mesidor at pick No. 12 and Clemson cornerback Avieon Terrell at selection No. 20. Some had said that the Cowboys could trade with the Browns to move up in the draft order with at least one defensive player in mind.