New Report Fuels Rumors Cowboys Trade Up In Draft For Specific Micah Parsons Replacement
· Yahoo Sports
The Dallas Cowboys have the assets to move up in the NFL Draft, and a new mock draft points to the team making a bold move up to fill the void left after last year’s Micah Parsons trade.
We are officially in April, and that means the 2026 edition of the NFL draft is just a few weeks away. In this year’s event, the Cowboys actually have a pair of picks in the top 20 because of another seven-win season last year, and after landing an extra pick in a move before the trade deadline.
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Dallas has been linked to a variety of players with their picks at 12 and 20, respectively. And getting two top 20 talents in this year’s class is a coup for a Cowboys team that has had back-to-back losing seasons. However, it also gives them a pair of assets they could use to move up into the top 10, or perhaps even the top five.
That is what The Athletic’s Bruce Feldman expects on April 23. The college football insider released his latest mock draft based on “intel gathered from coaching, scouting, and agent sources over the past month-plus,” and he predicts the Cowboys will send the No. 12 and 92 picks in Round 3 to the Arizona Cardinals for their selection at third overall.
The reason why he believes this is a realistic possibility is that the Cards will prioritize upgrading the offensive line in Round 1, and taking one at three would be a reach. So who does he expect Dallas to select with the third overall pick?
Dallas Cowboys take David Bailey with 3rd pick in NFL Draft
Nathan Giese/Avalanche-Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn ImagesFeldman believes the dream scenario would be for Ohio State star Arvell Reese to still be on the board at that time. However, he foresees the New York Jets taking him at No. 2. So instead, the CFB insider predicts the Cowboys’ backup plan will be Texas Tech star David Bailey.
“The former Stanford player isn’t as versatile as Reese, but he is a little bigger and longer at 6-4, 251 with 33 3/4-inch arms. He’s almost as fast — he ran a 4.50 40 and vertical jumped 35 inches,” Feldman wrote. “He was vertically unblockable last season for Texas Tech on what was a very talented D-line, as he had 14.5 sacks, tied for No. 1 in the FBS.
“I think he’s an even better edge rusher than Abdul Carter, who went in this spot last year to the New York Giants. (And that’s not a knock on Carter.)”
Trading Parsons to the Green Bay Packers before the 2025 season created a massive void in Dallas’ pass rush. They went from third in the NFL in sacks (52) in 2024 to being in the bottom 10 (35) last year. Bailey, or Reese, would go a long way toward helping to fill that massive void next season.
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