The Dallas Cowboys acquired draft capital in the Micah Parsons trade then some of it back in the deal with the New York Jets that brought them Quinnen Williams.
So with the Cowboys stuck in a rut despite with two first-round draft picks, ESPN’s Bill Barnwell urged them to trade out of pick No. 20 to acquire further draft capital.
Dallas has its own pick, No. 12, and acquired No. 20 from the Green Bay Packers for Parsons in the blockbuster deal last August. But they only have one selection between Nos. 20-112 (No. 92) and are slated to have just six selections in next year’s draft.
The Cowboys, who went 7-9-1 in 2025 in Brian Schottenheimer’s first season as head coach, still have Super Bowl aspirations despite missing the playoffs in consecutive seasons.
Bill Barnwell: The Cowboys Should Trade Out of No. 20
The Cowboys can address their needs with high-end talent in the first round.
But they still need depth, especially on defense, despite trading for Williams and fellow defensive linemen Kenny Clark and Osa Odighizuwa. Dallas was 30th in the NFL in total defense (377.0) in 2025 after finishing 28th in the league in 2024 (355.2 yards-against per game).
So Barnwell laid out the Cowboys’ plight entering next weekend’s draft in Pittsburgh, especially with their second-day selections.
“They don’t have a second-round pick in this year’s draft, and their third-rounder is 16 picks later than where it would have originally landed as a result of the George Pickens and Osa Odighizuwa swaps,” Barnwell wrote. “The Cowboys will send the better of their two first-round picks in 2027 to the Jets [in the Williams trade] and they don’t have fourth- or fifth-round picks next year, either.”
Barnwell explained why Dallas needs to get creative to recoup draft picks, which will offset some of their higher-priced veterans. Trading the No. 20 pick is one of the few ways they can do so.
“The way to survive with that sort of roster is to build through the draft and rely on talent making an impact while players are on rookie-scale deals,” Barnwell wrote. “Adding more young talent to this roster is the only way the Cowboys can build a Super Bowl contender around their big-money group of veterans.
“Moving down from No. 20 to add more capital would be the right way to get them there.”
The Cowboys’ Wheelings and Dealings are Affecting Their Salary Cap too
The Cowboys sold high on Parsons, especially considering he tore his ACL in Week 15 with the Packers. But the deadline deal for Williams, where Dallas sent a first-round pick and next year’s second-round selection to the Jets, is going to cost them from a salary-cap perspective.
“Though trading Micah Parsons avoided what could have been a record-setting commitment to the top of their roster,” Barnwell wrote. “The draft capital sent to the Jets for Quinnen Williams all but ensures that the Cowboys will make their defensive tackle one of the highest-paid defenders in football over the next 12 months.
“Between Williams, Kenny Clark, Dak Prescott, CeeDee Lamb and Pickens, the Cowboys have a very expensive core.”
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