As the college and pro football seasons enter the home stretch, teams are already heavily scouting their potential targets ahead of next year’s NFL Draft. With that in mind, we’re looking at just who could become future Dallas Cowboys next April.
After Dallas nearly spurged to bring in Jamal Adams from the New York Jets at the trade deadline, it’s clear that the Cowboys would like some help at safety. The backend of the secondary has been a thorn in the side of Dallas for several years now.
Jeff Heath has been a valuable member of the team with his ability to connect for monster hits and a knack for creating turnovers at critical times. But Heath has never been particularly great in coverage and he has had more downs than ups in recent seasons, despite continued stellar play in special teams coverage.
Despite that, with Heath nursing injuries, opposing offenses have been able to attack the middle of the field, and the run defense, in particular, has suffered this season. While third-year standout Xavier Woods has helped address some of the absences with his coverage skills, the team is also missing special teams ace and strong safety Kavon Frazier as a bruiser against the run.
The Cowboys must finally address this position. For the first time in a while, they would be best served to do so before day three of the NFL Draft. Here are a few names to keep your eye on:
Grant Delpit, Louisiana State Tigers
The hot name at the safety position on many draft boards throughout the summer and fall has been Grant Delpit. You can currently find Delpit patrolling the defensive backfield for the No. 1 team in the country, the Louisiana State Tigers.
Many have dubbed LSU “DBU” (Defensive Back University) and for good reason. Some of the top secondary talent in the NFL have come from their college days at Death Valley, including Adams. Continuing that tradition, Delpit very much looks the part of an NFL safety in his junior year in Baton Rouge. Current defensive backs coach and defensive play-caller Kris Richard loves the long and rangy defenders, which Delpit fits.
Delpit has been on the radar for a couple of seasons now, however, it appears that his performance hasn’t been up to snuff so far this fall. His tackling hasn’t been good. At times he will completely whiff on attempts to bring down runners. In coverage, he can get beat going downfield which isn’t something that you want from a potential first-round draft selection.
It should be noted that these issues can be fixed. When you look at the player, his traits are definitely there. With a guy like Delpit, you’re scouting potential and body as much as current production. However, by not blowing scouts out of the water with statistics and results, Delpit could be in a situation where he’s gone from a potential top ten pick to closer towards where Dallas might be drafting.
With the Cowboys having a young center fielder in Woods, Delpit could play closer to the line of scrimmage where his physical play would better suit his style. Delpit can be a guy who is initially used similarly to how Byron Jones was used early on in his career when he was given the task of virtually removing tight ends as options.
Given how most tight ends in the NFL are today, it doesn’t seem likely that they will burn Delpit down the field with speed, and, with his physical profile, receiving tight ends won’t overpower him which would allow him to make plays all over the middle of the field.
Delpit’s size makes him a very attractive option to combat the new wave of NFL tight ends. When the NFL combine rolls around, NFL scouts and writers will salivate over how he performs and, despite the slide this season, he will still likely be a top 15-20 pick in the draft.
Ashtyn Davis, California Bears
If you are looking for a free safety with range, then Ashtyn Davis may be your guy. His film shows that he has the ability to be all over the field playing from a single high safety spot with a lot of responsibilities. Playing center field allows him to use his eyes and mental processing to make plays on the ball.
Watching Davis with his instincts on full display is a treat. He isn’t the physical specimen that Delpit is, but at 6’1” and 200 pounds, Davis still has the size to do some damage on the backend. While he lacks the frame and physicality to deal with blockers close to the line of scrimmage, he can fly to the ball like a missile and bring the pain with him.
In the run game, he won’t shy away from contact. His issue comes with navigating tight spaces and avoiding blockers. He lacks the upper body strength to shed larger opponents on a consistent basis. However, when he reads the play correctly, Davis brings down the runner more often than not. It is seldom that Davis will actually whiff on a tackle attempt.
He may be best known for that hit against BYU, but he is more than just a hitter. Throwing the ball near Davis can be damaging to your health, or at least the health of your offense.
Patrolling the secondary is where Davis excels the most. He has the ball skills to create interceptions which is something that the Cowboys have struggled with for years. In fact, the Cowboys are dead last in the NFL in creating interceptions with just 32 since 2016. The lack of pressure from potential turnovers has also allowed quarterbacks to enjoy the 10th best passer rating against Dallas during that same span.
Put Davis as your single high safety and look for that to change. He anticipates well and can close on potential receivers in a hurry. Currently, the Cal Bear senior is thought to be a mid-second round to third-round prospect.
Xavier McKinney, Alabama Crimson Tide
Due to all the attention Delpit has garnered this season, it feels like the perception of SEC mate Xavier McKinney has been lost in the shuffle a bit. At this point, McKinney is my No. 1 graded safety for the 2020 NFL Draft class. A playmaker on the backend who can provide help in a myriad of ways, McKinney is providing both the body of work and the physical presence that teams look for.
The Cowboys do like to use their defensive backs to create pressure on the quarterback and that is something that McKinney has been able to offer with the Crimson Tide. Over the last two seasons in Tuscaloosa, McKinney has recorded five sacks and 9.5 tackles for loss. So, playing down around the line of scrimmage wouldn’t be an issue for him.
One aspect that the Cowboys have shown a propensity for favoring when drafting players is position flexibility and McKinney definitely has that. He plays both safety and nickel corner in Alabama’s defense.
McKinney has done very well in coverage this season with 10 passes defended and two interceptions. He has plus instincts that make him a highly coveted player in the upcoming draft.
Though he has only recorded three interceptions total in his two seasons, McKinney’s four forced fumbles and the ability to rush the passer should be factored into his playmaking ability. Given his skills at covering and playing close to the line, you have the most well-rounded safety in the class at this point.
Should Dallas want to take a look at him late in the first round — or should the get fortunate and land him in the second round — McKinney and Woods would make a safety duo of Xaviers that could really help the defense turn the corner with a plus backend for the first time in the Jason Garrett era.
Honorable Mentions
Two other names to focus on in this safety/defensive back class are Texas Tech’s Douglas Coleman III (who is a converted wide receiver) and Antoine Winfield Jr. out of Minnesota. Yes, Winfield is the son of former Buffalo Bills and Minnesota Vikings defensive back Antoine Winfield. The young Golden Gopher standout definitely has the NFL pedigree. Much like his father, Winfield Jr. has demonstrated an ability to create turnovers. Coleman (8) and Winfield Jr (7) are one and two in the nation in interceptions.
The knock on Winfield is that he is a bit smaller and with current defensive passing game coordinator Richard, that will be viewed negatively. Richard prefers the elite measurables in his defenders. With what these two players have accomplished this year, size shouldn’t be a deterrent given how woefully the safeties have performed in Dallas for the last decade.
The Cowboys need to go against the norm with their recent reluctance to upgrade at safety and try to get back to what they once were over 20 years ago, a punishing defense that thrived on big plays.
Do you think the Cowboys will finally use some of their early draft capital on safety help? Share your thoughts on the Jeff Heath-led group with Patrick on Twitter @DraftCowboys.
