Former Cowboys coach Bill Parcells was so quotable. In the late 90s, when he was the coach in New England, he was battling with Patriots management about personnel decisions. He famously said then, “If they want you to cook the dinner, at least they ought to let you shop for some of the groceries.” Team owner Robert Kraft disagreed, and Parcells left after guiding the team to the Super Bowl in January of 1997.
Along those lines, as the dust settles on the Cowboys’ 2026 draft class, it appears clear that Jerry Jones let Brian Schottenheimer and the new defensive coordinator, Christian Parker, create the grocery list. Of the seven players selected last month, five were defensive players. Which makes sense considering the Cowboys’ defense was 30th in yards allowed per game and 32nd in points allowed per game. It was one of the worst defenses in the history of the NFL.
Jerry Jones has always been a fan of drafting offensive players. They are the ones that get noticed more often and thus grab headlines and thus sell tickets. There was that time in 2014 when the Cowboys’ pick came up, and Johnny Manziel was still on the board. Jerry desperately wanted to select the Texas A&M product known as Johnny Football. Jerry’s son Steven and he nearly came to blows that night in the war room. Ultimately, cooler heads prevailed, and the Cowboys selected Notre Dame offensive lineman Zach Martin. Zach became a 9-time Pro Bowler and 7-time first-team All-Pro. He just retired in 2025. He is likely headed to Canton and Hall of Fame enshrinement. Manziel, meanwhile, flamed out after two NFL seasons.
The Cowboys hope that this year’s draft produces players who are the defensive equivalent of Martin. In Caleb Downs, they may have found one. Dallas moved up one spot in the first round to ensure they got the safety out of Ohio State. Downs began his college career at Alabama and excelled at both football factories. There are several personnel people in the NFL who believe Downs was the best player in the draft. On a national TV show, former Alabama coach Nick Saban recalled coaching Downs, “This guy is so instinctive, he’s got really good ability,” Saban said. “He’s a phenomenal person, and a football junkie.”
Downs was one of two first-round picks by the Cowboys. The other was Malachi Lawrence, an edge rusher out of the University of Central Florida. With Quinnen Williams and Kenny Clark on the interior of the defensive line, the thought is that outside rushers will get a lot of one-on-one blocking. That bodes well for Lawrence, who reminds Cowboys vice president of player personnel, Will McClay, of DeMarcus Lawrence and DeMarcus Ware.
In subsequent rounds, the Cowboys selected a linebacker from Michigan, a cornerback from Florida, and another edge rusher from Alabama. There were also two offensive players taken, as an offensive tackle was selected in round 4 and a wide receiver with their final selection in round 7.
It was universally applauded as a great draft by the Cowboys, but now the pressure begins. Now it is time for Schotty and Christian Parker to take all of those ingredients and, using the Parcells imagery, turn them into a great dinner. In these parts, great still means getting to a Super Bowl or at least a Championship Game. If you remember the mid-90s, you still vaguely remember how that kind of success tastes. If you don’t remember them, just know that winning at that level leaves a mighty good taste in your mouth.
It all started with a good grocery list. Then the Cowboys’ brain trust went shopping at the finest stores: Ohio State, Michigan, Florida, and Alabama. As for buying the groceries, well, Schotty and Parker want no part of that. Jerry is on the hook to pay for all of this, knowing that, in this day and age, a great meal is very expensive.
Sports columnist John Rhadigan is the host of
The Rangers Podcast on DLLS Sports.
