
COWBOYS SQUAD SHOW: The countdown is on for the Cowboys, with lots of rumors and less than 2 weeks to go until the NFL Draft.
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I am Jeff Biggs and I am ready for Monday night squad show football.
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I am Marcus Mosher and the draft cannot come soon enough.
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Well said,
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Glenn Stretchmith. And I bet Jeff Biggs worked all afternoon on that intro right there.
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All afternoon.
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How about them Cowboys? It's the Cowboys squad. Everything Dallas Cowboys every week covering all the big hits and game changing plays from America's team. The way only the Locked on podcast network can get ready and squad up. It's the Cowboy Squad show starting now.
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That's right. You got to do it. You got to squat up. That's what we do every Monday and Thursday to complement the great work every single day of Marcus and Landon on the daily Lockdown Cowboys podcast. We affectionately call this the Cowboys squad show. And the good news is we are now less than two weeks away from the NFL draft and as Marcus said, it cannot get here soon enough. But as always, we start with a welcome to the co host of the daily Lockdown Cowboys podcast. That would be Marcus Mosher and former Cowboys coach Glenn Stretch Smith. Landon will be back with us on Thursday. Aisha Morrison, she'll be back with us on Thursday as well. For the meantime, we've got a full jam packed show for you tonight. The very latest on what is going on with the Cowboys as we count down to the draft. Some good news and some bad news off the field and all kinds of rumors, all kinds of rumors nonstop here as again, the countdown goes on. All right, Marcus, let's kick things off with you, my friend. You and Landon, props to you have been absolutely crushing it on your show every day. I mean, everything you can think of, every scenario, every draft, every rumor, all over it. That's why you got to make a point to listen. And while you're doing that, why not just jump in and join the everyday club too? I mean, just two birds. Subscribe to them. Yep, do the everyday air club and you will be set. Right.
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So yeah, if you want to chat with us all day long in a Discord server, you can do that all. It's $5 a month. That's all it takes. Come join the everyday club. Loton Cowboys supercast.com.
A
wow, see, look at that. That was seamless. That was not even planned. That was completely off the cuff, as we like to say.
B
It's almost like I've done 3,000 episodes of the lot on Cowboys podcast now. So we're good.
A
Not that we're counting, right? Not that we're counting. All right, so click bait. Or not. Okay, look everybody, I mean, everywhere you go, everywhere you turn, everybody's talking about what the Cowboys might do, what they should do, what they could do. But the real shift, the real shift is the Cowboys making a move up to get a better spot in the draft to secure one of those star defensive players that both you and coach and Landon and Aisha have been talking about now for months. So with that said, as we sit here on the Monday night, less than two weeks from the draft, is it smoke or is there maybe a little bit of fire?
B
Well, I think there's fire there for a couple of reasons. You're starting to hear more and more about the players that they're just not interested in. And I think a good example is Jad McCoy, the cornerback from Tennessee. We've heard for months now that they've been kind of out on him. I think Nick Harris from the Fort Worth Star Telegram was the first one to report that. And now you're even starting to hear some of the national guys, including Dane Brugler from the Athletics, say, hey, there's a lot of teams inside that top 10, top 12 that just aren't comfortable with the knee. And then you talk about someone like Reuben Bane with these short arms. And now this off field incident that came to light on Sunday afternoon and you start looking at your board and there's only about five or six names that you feel comfortable with. And if you're sitting at pick 12, the odds of one of those guys falling to you isn't very high. So I think that's why you're starting to see more of this trade talk. It's because I, I think the Cowboys would love to come out of the first round with a firm round one graded player. And if it cost, you know, 12 and 20 to go up and get them, maybe that's an overpay. But at least you're coming out of round one with a guy that you think can be a difference maker on that side of the ball. So to answer your question, Jeff. Yeah, I, I think there's, I think there's a lot of fire here.
C
12 and 20 to go up where?
B
Well, it depends and I, we should mention that if, I think if you're going up for one of the pass rushers, Arval Reese, David Bailey, you probably need to get to three or four if you want to go up to get Sunny styles. What else?
C
12 and 20 and what?
B
Well, that's, that's probably why that won't happen stretches, because it's going to take more than 12 and 20. Yeah, probably. Yeah. And if you want to go up to get Sunny styles at like 6 or so, I think that's a way cheaper option. And if you want to go up to get Monsoon Delane or Caleb Downs, I think you're looking at like the 8 to 9 range and maybe then you're not talking about giving up two first round picks for one player.
C
I mean, I like, I like your point. I like the points. I, What I, what I'm telling you is there will be guys that are going to overvalue offensive tackles. There's going to be guys that are going to overvalue in those positions. And so I'm, I'm not from the school that you have to move up right now. Now if they start going off early, I mean, you start seeing, I mean, let's just be honest right now, if you had to wager your last hundred dollars, you're going to say Mendoza one, you're probably going to say love to Reese three. Okay, now somebody's going to want to take an offensive tackle, that top offensive tackle, and when they do, there'll be another team that desperately wants an offensive tackle that's going to get in that position. And so I think you're still. We're a ways out and I think there's going to be, I do think you'll see one of these guys that we continue to talk about, the four guys that we've continued to point to, the four guys that we talked about at nauseam on this show about where the Cowboys would go. And I think one of those guys might in fact fall to you at 12.
B
That's the hope. I, I just, My worry is, Stretch, that you get down to one name who's available at 9, and now you're sweating it out between the Chiefs, the Bengals and the Dolphins. And what happens if that guy goes, let's say he goes to Cincinnati at 10. Do you just pick your highest right now?
C
You move back. You move back. Guys wanting to get in there.
B
Yes. And that's, that's where.
C
This is where you can't. This is where you can't. You, you know, you can't wet your pants. If they're not there, then you have to be ready to move back. That's, that's what you have to do. You're gonna have to be ready to move either way. And I get it. Everybody wants the guy that, that is going to come in and be a day one starter. I understand that. But guess what? If it doesn't go your way, which I'm not I'm not from that school. I think one of those four guys will be there at, at, at, at 12. But if they're not, you better get yourself ready to get back.
B
So here's the question I have for you, Coach, because I agree with you. If, if all those guys are off the board at 12, there's just nobody at that spot that's worth drafting. Now, there could be offensive guys, wide receivers, offensive tackles, tight ends that are worth coming up for.
C
Right. But that means your phone's going to be ringing, right?
B
Well, my question for you is, do you think the Cowboys would lose a trade on the trade value chart just to move back? Because this is. I, I don't know that you're going to get full value. Maybe you got a team like The jets at 16 that want to come
C
out this whole draft. I mean, that's like your. That and I get it. I mean, that's like, that's, that's your, that's your suit of the day. And you've worn it for about a month every day. Well, I get that.
B
And the idea is that if you're going to take the same player at 12 that you would take at 16. Yeah, maybe the trade values chart says that you need a third round pick, but if the jets are only offering you a fourth round pick, it is still better off moving back from 12 to 16 to get that additional pick and then make, make your selection. And this is what I've been talking about with teams Inside the top 10 is I, I think they're going to be some teams, including the Bengals, the Commanders and the Saints, that would all be willing to take 80 cents on the dollar to move back to 12 to maybe draft an offensive tackle or receiver there. I just, I don't know that it's going to be as expensive to trade up as in previous years. Now, if you want to go up to three, that's an entirely different story. But I think trading up six spots, five spots, might not be as, as expensive as we may think.
A
Well, to, to your point, when you go ahead. No, I was going to say, according to Albert Breer, who I like a lot, he, he thinks that at least right now, five teams want to trade down five, three to seven.
B
And the reasoning is, is because this is a really strong draft on day two, it's not particularly strong inside the top 10. And if you're a team like the Browns, they have obvious needs, an offensive tackle and wide receiver. The offensive tackles that you're going to get at 12 are not any different than you're going to get at 6. And the same thing can be said for wide receivers. So if you can move back six spots and pick up a pick or pick up, you know, move from 39 to 20, I could see Andrew Barry and Cleveland doing that. So I, I do think there's going to be teams that are willing to move down that would allow the Cowboys to come up and get the guy that they want.
C
Yeah, I mean again, I'm from the school that your phone is going to be ringing like crazy because let's just say a team like the Texans, where are they at about 28, 27, 28, 28.
B
I think, I think you got it.
C
Yeah, yeah, yeah. If they want to, if they want to come bolting up in there to, to say get Sadiq or take the, whoever.
B
Right?
C
Yeah, you got, take the, take them. I'm just saying take the, take the SC receiver. Let me tell you something.
B
You.
C
There's going to be multiple teams that are going to want to do that. I don't believe it's going to be as cheap as you think it is. I think everybody is jockeying that angle because there are four teams with multiple first round picks. So everybody then assumes, well it's, it's going to be cheaper because we've all talked about the draft is strongest probably player 35 to player 105. So how do you get as many in there as you can get? That's that, that's, that's what everybody's trying to do. There's no, there's no damn secrets out here anymore. I mean if there is any secrets, you got 90,000 NFL Scoop jockeys who think they're going to put the secret out there. So there's not any, there's not any real conceived like oh boy, they're going to go this direction, but they're really going to go that direction. There's too much studying going on of rosters. There's too much free flow of information for, for there to be some sort of sneak and bull. We're gonna, we're gonna, we're, we're gonna come in the back door here and they're never gonna see us coming.
B
I, I just think when you're trading up for a non quarterback, usually it's not that expensive outside of the top five. Now we saw Travis Hunter went for a lot last year. We saw Willie Anderson in 2023 go for a lot. But it wasn't all that expensive for the, the Lions to move down to get Jir Gibbs I'm looking at a trade right now. Well, let's look at the, the Micah Parsons trade. The Cowboys TR went from 10 to 12 and all it cost Philadelphia was pick 84. They moved up two spots and it cost them a late third round pick. I kind of think that's about what the cost is going to be to go from like 12 to nine this year.
C
Just because you're talking about two spots to get another top 100 player.
B
What I'm saying is, read the book.
C
I'm giving you the Cliff Notes.
B
I mean, right.
C
As many picks in there as we can get.
B
What I'm saying is I don't think it's going to cost you two first round picks to go from 12 to 6. Right. I think it's going to cost you. I think it's going to be something like we'll give you 12 and 20, you give us six and either pick 39.
C
Talking about a top. You're talking about a top six versus a top 10 or 11. I mean, there's a separation in distance there. I, I'll just tell you what, let's look at this another angle and I'll just, I'll just throw this out there at you. I'm going to look at this because I'm gonna, I'm gonna have to read my notes here, but let's just say for craps and giggles that Monsoer Delane is your number one corner. All right.
B
Got it.
C
Would you agree with that?
B
He is for me, yes.
C
Okay, so who do you have ranked
B
to Chris Johnson from San Diego State?
C
Okay. And I've got him. I, I've got him at five, but I, I think the South Carolina corner for me is two.
B
All right, you, you have.
C
Go ahead.
B
Yeah. Brandon C. Say really good player.
C
Okay. See, say so whatever. C. Say Johnson. Let's just say those two guys are about on the same level. There is a, there is a significant drop off from Delane to C. Say there's a significant drop off from Delane to Johnson. All right, so once, once that corner goes. Now, now you, now you've got, and I don't know how many guys that is, but you've got. I mean, you've got more than a handful of guys that are, that are going to move into that. What I would consider to be that upper plateau of, of players. Just like in my mind, there's one safety and after the safety's gone, then there's a drop off with that position. What I'm getting at here is that once the Guy is gone. You're still seeing a sense of urgency for somebody to want to get up to get their guy. Let's just. And again, I'm giving you multiple for instances, but I think you're going to have guys who are going to overvalue Simpson, the quarterback at Alabama. And, and they're going to do that because of the position. So it, once Mendoza goes, you get in that 9, 10, 11, 12 range, the phone's going to be ringing because somebody's, somebody is going to value that Alabama quarterback because of the drop off that's there. You're going to see those other guys get slotted into those other positions. Am I making sense of what I'm saying? Both of you are just looking at me like a damn mule looking at the gate.
A
I mean, I got. Yeah, totally. Yeah, 100%.
B
It makes sense. Sense to me. I just, my overall point is I, I don't think, I think you're going to see a really active trade market from picks 12 to 15 and I think that's going to be really good for Dallas trying to maneuver to go up and get your guy. I, I agree. When these guys go off the board like Delane, there's going to cause a sense of urgency. We'll see how it plays out.
A
Okay. I like that. Well, there are some other rumors out there as well and some other, other players that we can talk about. Also want to get your thoughts on. Really, just right now, tonight, who do you feel that the Cowboys might be looking at? And you talked about some of the players that might be falling off the board. We'll take a look at all of that and a whole lot more as the Cowboys squad show continues. Got to talk to you though about what they're doing over at Indeed. Right, because you got the workplace chaos, deadline stacking up, your inbox overflowing and, and the one position you have to fill is still sitting open. And when the pressure's on, you need the right hire. This is a job for Sponsored Jobs Indeed. Sponsored Jobs helps you reach the people who actually fit what you're looking for. Skills, experience, location. So you're not just hoping the right candidate stumbles across your post. So here, here's what you do. You spend less time searching, more time actually interviewing candidates who check all of your boxes. Less stress, less time, more results. When you need the right person to cut through the chaos. This is a job for indeed. Sponsored Jobs and listeners of this Show Get a $75 sponsored, excuse me, Sponsored job credit to help get your job. The Premium status it deserves@ Indeed.com
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so
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just go to Indeed.com podcast right now. Support our show by saying you heard about Indeed on this podcast. Again, Indeed.com podcast terms and conditions apply. Need to hire. This is a job for Indeed. Sponsored Jobs. We're back. Cowboy squad show Marcus Mosher, former Cowboys coach Glenn Stretch Smith. Great to be with you as we count down. Less than two weeks to go now until the NFL draft. All right, so Marcus, what's the very latest? Where, where are you and Landon at with your, your latest board? Who, who is, who do you think might be around at number 12 at this point after all the speculation and formulation you guys have been going through?
B
I mean, Reuben Bain, that's really been the name that we've talked about a lot. Oh, and we, we should get into Reuben Bain a little bit. So do it. If you were watching college football during the, the regular season and the postseason, I think you came out of the regular season thinking there's no way the Cowboys are gonna get a shot at this player. This is like a lock top five pick. And the further that we've gone along in the process, you're starting to see him fall a little bit. Now there are some reasons, right. He's got sub 31 inch arms and that's historically small. He didn't.
C
That's the number one and biggest reason.
B
Yes.
C
Because nobody with that length of arms has ever gotten double digit sac in the NFL. That's the biggest reason.
B
Correct. Now, there's also other reasons. He didn't test at the NFL combine or his pro day. I'm not super worried about that because he showed you on tape that he's a good mover, but I don't think he's, I don't think he's a 4, 6 guy stretch. I think he's more like a 47548 guy. And if you need a guy that's really good playing in space or that's going to be up lined up as like an overhang defender, I think there's guys in this class that are maybe a little bit better than that. And then on top of that he has these two reckless driving citations. I believe both were dismissed. One was resulted in a fatality in 2024 according to multiple sources. It doesn't seem like he was particularly straightforward about some of his answers. So you kind of combined all of those things together and you see why a guy like Bain, who was awesome in 2025, could be falling to the double digits.
A
Wow.
C
When you say what's straightforward with his answers. What are you saying he was fibbing?
B
Well, I don't know if he was fibbing, but it sounds like maybe he wasn't giving them whole truths. This is basically the same as 50, right. You know how these interviews go.
C
William comes in there and starts telling you a wives tale. What do you, what are you telling him?
B
He, he's got, he's got.
C
By the way, that's Marcus's little crap bird.
B
Yeah. He's got red flags all over. I, I, we're, he's, he's off our board. But. Yeah, I mean I, I think, I, I think there are some scouts and some personnel decision makers that just maybe weren't thrilled with some of the answers that he was giving. But again, I, I don't know how much that's going to affect his draft stock. I agree with you. Stretch like the arms are a big thing. This is a traits league and there are guys, including our guy Willie McClay that really, really values traits. If you're, if you just don't feel comfortable drafting a sub 31 inch arm edge rusher who doesn't run in the four sixes, it might not be the guy for you.
C
So I'm saying, I'm saying I don't, I don't like that pick. At 12. We get the 20, that it may change a little bit, but I don't
B
think he's getting to 20, which makes the whole point moot. Right?
C
Yeah, but, but I'm just saying I, I believe 12 is too rich. That's, that's the point I'm making.
A
Yeah. So, so what both of you know about the Cowboys putting a gun to your head. Would you say that he is still on their board? Is he off their board or is it just like you said, depending on where he is, when he's available?
B
I think he's on their board, but I just don't know if he's someone that they're, Again, this is my read. Yeah, I don't know if he's somebody that they're going to prioritize. We heard some people last week, including Jordan Reed from ESPN mentioning him as like a trade up candidate for Dallas. I don't see that.
C
Yeah, I don't see that either. I don't see him, I don't see him taking him off. I mean that's, you know, if he's, if, if he's known to be a nun, you know, he's, they say he's a, you know, not an alcohol guy. I mean and they, you know, I guess they, they tested. So, you know, not involved with the hippie lettuce. Then, you know, you got it. You got to kind of say, okay, well, you know, are you really going to ding him and throw him all the way off? Because, you know, he thinks he's driving his Range Rover in some damn video game.
A
What about the arms, though? I mean, can the arms be.
C
No, no, no, no, no. That's the number one thing. No, no, no. 30 inch arms is an immediate problem for me. And that's why I'm saying he could play like a Tasmanian devil. At the end of the day, when he gets to the NFL, you're going to get bigger, longer, stronger offensive tackles that will lock on you and you got zero chance. So that's a problem for me. And I feel the same way about, and I, and I love Cash or Sal. I feel the same way about him.
B
I, the only point that I would make is both those guys were so productive in college despite having short arms. And I, I know your, your point. Stretches, you're going to get to the NFL and you're going to see a 35 and a half inch arm tackle. He, he just doesn't really win that way. It's not a, their games are not based on power. It's being able to bend and, you know, get around the edge and they play with the motor. They, they hustle. I think they're going to be productive in the NFL. It just might not look what like it usually looks like for a top 10 or top 12 pick.
C
Yeah, this. I'm just telling you there's too many other directions for me to go at that pick with the guy that's got shorter arms. I mean, I'm not taking anything away from him. I mean, I'm not, I'm just telling you that, that, that, that bothers me. And you say, well, he's productive in college. How many of those guys that he plays against are going to the NFL? One percent. Let me help you out.
B
One percent, which is fine. My issue is, let's say you're not taking Bane at 12, but you want to pass rusher and you take Hakeem Mazador from Miami instead. Well, it's not like he's a clean prospect either. He's 25 years old, was viewed as a day three pick before the 2025 season. He got to play opposite of Reuben Bane. So he never had any of the difficult matchups and he's got multiple surgeries on his feet. And that's never Good. It's, to me, it's, you know, half dozen and six of the other. Right. Like it's you. Each of these guys has got major problems. Give me the guy that was better in college and is significantly younger.
A
Works for me. I'm down with that. Sign me up. Let's go.
B
Look, I hope they feel the same, but I, I wonder.
A
We've got, on our, on our, in our comments asking about McCoy, Gerard McCoy. Is he, is he definitely, do you think, off. Off the board or at least early off the board.
B
So we should mention that the Cowboys had him in on a 30 visit this weekend.
A
All right.
B
I just, I don't know if anything is going to change. I mean, they can do medicals at this 30 visit, but just based on all the reporting that's been out there now, it doesn't seem like he's a guy that they are interested in right now. Maybe they just wanted to double check where he's at. Maybe they wanted to put him back on their board. Not at 12, maybe at 20, if you were to follow that far. But I, I just don't get the sense that he's somebody that they're seriously considering in round one.
C
Yeah, I, I, I don't think. I, I don't think so either. Now, you keep using the term off the board. Does that? Or are you saying that as in there not drafting them at all? Are you saying that as if they're moving them down to, to, to, to more of a logical grade than what people have them at?
B
It could be either, right? Honestly, it could be.
C
No, it didn't matter. And if you throw them off the board, then they ain't drafting them, period.
B
Well, I'm saying.
C
Then you're moving them down.
B
I'd say it could be that or it could be you're just putting him in a spot on your board that you have no chance to draft him so effectively he is off your board. You know what I mean? Like, if you're going to rank him 90th on your board, you might as well just have them off.
C
But you got, I mean, you have to, you still have to have, you've got to. The point I'm making is if you have him ranked 90, but put him in there 90, it doesn't matter. It doesn't matter if somebody, it doesn't matter if somebody else going to take him. You got to put him in there. You got to align these guys the way you see fit for your football team. Not, not for the league, for your football team.
B
I Mean, I agree, but we hear every year that these teams have really small draft boards of like, I think it was one year New England had like 99 players on their board. And we know that there's going to be 250 guys drafted, but there's just going to be guys that don't fit scheme wise, health wise or talent wise that they just, they're not even going to mess with putting them on their board. I think McCoy will be on there. I just don't think he's going to be at a spot that is reasonable to select him.
C
I mean, I don't either. I don't think he's a. He would be where they would pick either at 12 or 20. Where they sit today. I don't believe that's a possibility.
A
All right, so back to the near the top of the draft and possibly moving on up. What about the, the speculation that one of the Ohio State players is going to be available? Yeah. Which? Take your pick.
B
Well, let me ask you Stretch, if
C
either one of those three guys is available, you better pull the Damn trigger at 12.
B
Well, yes, if it's at 12, I'm sprinting from Erie PA to Pittsburgh to go put the card in hamstring before
C
you got around the B the bottom side of the river.
B
That true? So yeah, any three of those picks at 12 is A. My question for you, Stretch, is let's say the Titans at 4. All those guys are available. The Titans at 4 want to offer you a sweetheart deal. Like it's going to cost you 12 and 20 and you get four and a day two pick. Right. Which of those guys would you be wanting to take at first? 4 between sunny styles, Caleb Downs and Arvell Reese.
C
I would, I would. If I had to rank him, I would rank them. Reese, Styles, Downs. That's how I would rank them.
B
If you're those three guys, that's how I would rank him too. It's scary that we're agreeing too much on.
C
I'm gonna leave the show now. I've had enough.
B
I'll change that up. But for me, I can't give up two first round picks for a linebacker or a safety. Like it's just there's no value there. Now if you're doing it for an edge rusher and a guy like Reese that could actually play a little bit of the linebacker for you as well, I can get behind it because I do think he's a franchise changing difference maker. I mean we love Styles Downs.
C
Yeah. The problem with me with Reese is, is he playing, play at Ohio State. He plays so much off backer. I mean, you're, you're, you're having to project that, that, that he's an edge guy. And, and I get it because all those players that are gonna, that, that are, to me, all of those Ohio State guys this year. Well, I'm saying those two specifically are, are, are violent with their hands. I mean, they strike and they get off. And so I can see where people can be getting themselves to where they're, you know, that, that they're fired up about the way Reese can shed and separate. That's same thing with Styles.
B
Yeah, that's. I'm with. I think Reese is the best player this draft, to be honest with you. And I was watching an interview the other day where he said that, you know, he's really never been coached.
C
I think he's better than Love.
B
Yeah.
C
As a football player.
B
Yes.
C
Show down, mark that down. We can come back about two, three years, talk about that.
B
I, I have my board right here. I actually have Love too, so it's not far off.
C
I'm.
B
If you want to put Love at Juan recent too, that's fine. I, I just have not seen very many players that can play off ball linebacker, that can rush the passer off the edge, that can blitz, that can stop the run, that can set the edge, can drop into coverage. I mean, stretch. He is a football player and we can argue about.
C
I'm not disagreeing with that, but I'm telling you, so is Love. He is absolutely football player. He will block your ass. He can anchor, he can strike, he can run a route. He can catch the football. He's smart. You look how they run protections at Notre Dame. I mean, he, he, he can dual read. He can go front, side to backside with his eyes. He runs with his eyes. I'm not disagreeing with you. I think both of them are really good football players.
B
I think those are the two best players in the draft pretty clearly. But to me, like, if you can go up to four and get the guy that I think is the best player in the class, at least you could talk yourself into the vision of like, okay, we traded Micah Parsons away. We didn't get enough. But what we did do is we turned those two first round picks into Arvel Reese, who's going to cost us $40 million less per year than what Micah was going to cost us. And we're resetting the clock a little bit. Micah, I believe, is 26. Arvell Reese is 21. We're getting five years younger at least I can see that as a plan. I think if you're just sticking at 12 and you draft a Key Mezador and you draft a colton hood At 20, I just have a hard time seeing the defense getting a lot better.
C
I mean, Arvell reached 20.
B
I think he's right. 20, 21. I got his age right here. He's 20.6 right now, so. Yeah. Yeah.
C
So the guy can't even buy damn Budweiser yet.
B
Well, let's pick a better beer. My gosh.
C
All right. Lining Kugel. What's the crap y' all drink? A Rolling Rock. What do y' all drink up there?
B
There you go, Jeff. We're good.
A
Okay, real quick, before we get a break as we sit here right now, what are the chances of one of those four teams? Just saying at the end of the day, yeah, you know what? We probably weren't. But now that we've thought about it, we think he's the best player also. So we're just going to take him ourselves or another team maybe moving up themselves.
C
What are you saying the Raiders drafted Harvell Reese?
A
No, not the Raiders. Not the Raiders.
B
I mean, I think it's feasible to think that he could go to the jets at 2. Like, I don't think it's a foregone conclusion that the jets pass on him. And if he doesn't go to, I could see him going three to Arizona. I could certainly see him going forward of the Titans. So I, I would. Me personally, I would be shocked if he made to the Giants at 5. I would be shocked.
A
Yeah, that's fair. All right, Marcus.
C
I think he's a good enough player where somebody is going to give up a bunch to try to get up there and get him. I'll tell you that.
A
Yeah, see that too. That too. All right, Marcus, before I go to my fanduel read, can you give us that plug again so I get it right for the everyday air club? For the specific one, please.
B
Yeah. Don't forget to check out the Every Dare club. You're going to get AD free access or ad free episodes to the Locked on Cowboys podcast with Landon and I and other listeners of the show. So make sure you tap the link in the show notes or go to locked on cowboys.supercast.com to join the club.
A
It's Marcus. He's the best. Well, let's talk about fanduel because the NBA playoffs are here and every possession matters. Every matchup is magnified and every game can swing a series. And right now, FanDuel is giving new customers a great way to get in on the action. Here's what I like about it you you can bet just $5 and get 250 in bonus bets if your first bet wins. It's that easy. The app makes it easy to follow the action with player stats, trends, matchups, all in one place and during the playoffs. That extra insight really, really matters when you're looking at stars role players in key moments. It just makes the entire playoff experience more engaging from start to finish. So here's what you do. You head to FanDuel.com to get started. FanDuel play your game. All right, welcome back Cowboy Squad show Former Cowboys coach the one and only Glenn Sprat Smith and the co host of the daily Lockdown Cowboys podcast, Marcus Moer, along with Landon McCool. We'll get back to the draft in a bit, but we had some other news that went down over the weekend. Since we were already talking about Reuben Bain. We've talked a lot about the moves that the Cowboys have made this offseason to improve the secondary, but over the weekend, kind of a bad move for safety Marquis Bell, arrested on drug possession charges, one of them a felony. What do you what do you think of how that's going to play out? And I don't know what what is this Looking at a possible suspension and his spot with with the defense and the new coordinator coming in, I wouldn't
B
be surprised if there's a small suspension. From what I know at least a little bit about it, I believe the case is already closed, which is again, good news for Marquee Spell got it out of the way really quickly. I this is important because I think Maris Bell is one of the guys that's going to fit Christian Parker's defense really well. They've been looking for this slot defender and what we've been told is they're looking for a guy that's like 6 foot 2, 210 pounds, could play linebacker, can blitz off the edge and cover a little bit. I mean, that's basically what Mark Mar did in 20233 when he was a linebacker for Dan Quinn. And I just think given what they have at cornerback right now and they don't really want to move Duron Bland down into the slot. He might be your slot defender in Week one, so if he's not available because of a suspension or whatever, that would be a big loss. I I think he's somebody who the Cowboys resigned this offseason could have a much bigger role than anybody anticipates.
C
Did they say what the substance was?
B
No.
A
No.
C
I mean, I. You know, I. I have a hard time putting a lot of faith in those kind of guys. I really do. I mean, I'm. I'm just. I'm just gonna be honest. I mean, I. You know, and depending on. Especially when. When you see the history of this. This organization. But, you know, if it's. If it's the, you know, if he's just. If he's just burning it out of a strawberry zigzag, that's one thing. If he's, you know, if it's something different, that. To me, that's a different animal.
A
Yeah.
B
And honestly, that's something that we don't know. Maybe we'll find out of the next couple weeks, but obviously, it's not great. For a guy that's not only number one trying to make the roster, but number two trying to carve out a space, you know, in the starting lineup or a roll on defense, you don't want to give the coaching staff in the front office any reason not to trust you and not to. To keep you. This is a big slip up from Marquis Bell, who, again, undrafted free agent, can't have these. Yeah.
A
And I know head coach Brian Schottenheimer has been a big, big speaker of the new culture with the Cowboys that he's trying to cultivate. And so hopefully, like you said, the case is wrapped up, and hopefully it's not. I don't know, maybe not what we think or what we're imagining. Hopefully, it'll. It'll all work out.
B
Yep.
A
Yep. Coach, what were you laughing at?
C
I'm laughing at cultivating the culture. Hey, maybe growing it out there.
A
Depends on what culture you want. No, hey, I'm not gonna comment.
B
We're good.
A
It. Well, just a quick sidebar note, in all seriousness, I. I just feel like I need to. I need to say this. I had a substance abuse issue early in my life. I've been sober, actually. Coming up on 40 years later.
C
Congratulations.
B
There you go, Jeff. Good job, buddy.
A
God saved my life, and that's. That's a big part of my testimony. So my point is that I. I, you know, I believe and believe guys can turn around and all that, so I'm.
C
Hope.
A
I, you know, we. We kind of had some fun with it, but I hope and hope and pray that he's okay. And it won't be. Won't. Anything else won't happen, and it'll be a wake up call and he'll be able to be better for it and something good will work out of it for him. In all seriousness, all right, one thing that I, I don't think is serious, but it, it keeps coming up again, not, not only the, the Max Crosby rumors that are still out there, but how about this, this doozy over the weekend, The Baltimore Ravens looking to swoop George Pickens for the number 14 pick. Is that just old fashioned vintage? Two weeks before the draft, I've got nothing. Or do you think there's any legs to that at all?
B
Can I tell you how this works in the content creator business, Jeff? Is that usually, Usually what happens is you get a playbook on Monday of like, okay, here's stories that click really well early on the week. So let's come up with a couple fake trades with guys that have big SEO, which means, you know, guys that are going to show up on Google. Right?
C
You speak like you followed that playbook pretty well.
B
Yeah, I mean, so I've made a career to this stretch what it is. Okay. Hey, George Pickens, let's do, let's, let's go. Five wide receivers that the Ravens could trade for ahead of the draft. George Pickett's name shows up and that's how we end up talking about it here on the squad show.
A
All right, so there's, I mean, I feel like I, we ask this every episode. So the odds of George Pickens getting moved on draft night or around draft
B
night, I think, I think every day that goes by, it's less and less likely that George Pickens gets traded this year because number one, teams are going to want to draft the receivers and get these guys on rookie contracts. They don't want to give up first round picks, especially this close to the draft. And there's just not that many teams right now that have the salary cap space to fit him on their roster. Right now. If you were to take him on a franchise tag, it would be $26 million. Obviously you'd be signing him to a long term contract and you could maneuver that however you wanted. But I, I don't see George Pickens getting traded this year at all.
C
I mean, I, I don't, but I, but, but I also don't know what someone may offer you for him. What we always go back to is what he was available for one year ago now. Did this, what he's done in one year with Dak Prescott in this Cowboys offense, does that skyrocket him? I, I don't think so. I, I just Again, we, how many times would we set it on here? I mean he was available to every NFL team a year ago for a third round pick. I just, I mean so somebody could, somebody could jump up and, and say yeah, I'll, you know, we'll, we'll give you a king's ransom for him. But I, I highly doubt that.
B
We always talk about how he was available at this exact same time last year for a third round pick as Stretch just mentioned. The other part of it that we don't talk about enough is he was on a rookie contract that was paying him absolutely nothing and still teams didn't want him. Now I think he improved his value a ton in 2025, but not so much that he's suddenly worth a first round pick in more plus a 35, $37 million a year contract. Most teams won't give up both, they won't give up a big contract and draft picks. And I think for a guy like Pickens who's had a rocky college career, a rocky start to his NFL career, I think they want to get more data before making a franchise altering trade like that.
A
I think you're right. I just, I guess you, you can, you can accuse me of having mula Getta mania. I just, I, I'm, it's like an obsession with me. Marcus, remember when the Rangers signed a Rod? Remember that? Just like everybody away like whoa, where the heck did that deal come from? I just feel like Mulaguetta like we talked about it. During the off season, Pickens was listed as the number one free agent even though we knew he really wasn't going to be a free agent. And I just. His job is to try to get him paid and get him a big deal. And if the Cowboys. Rightfully so, and you guys have pointed it out perfectly, you know, they've got the Hammer right now. They've got that, that cost control with the tag. But all it takes is just one team. One, one hit Mulaguetta to schmooze with one GM and say this guy can turn your off and he can do this. And look at this and look at this play and look at that. That's all it takes. So I, I don't know. I think you're right.
B
The other part of this is there could be a team that absolutely loves George Pickens, right? And they are willing to give him, let's say it's $38 million a year. They're, they're, they're willing to make him one of the highest paid receivers in the league still comes down to draft capital. Right? Is that team going to be willing to give Dallas two first round picks? Because that's, that's what the act, the franchise tag says. Now maybe the Cowboys would be able to negotiate that down, but even then, let's say it's a first round pick and a third round pick. Would, would that team be willing to give up that. I don't know. To me, that first round pick where? Well, give me a number.
C
I don't wanna. I mean that, I mean we could say 30, 28. Houston.
B
Even then maybe Dallas will feel like, you know what if it's, if it's Houston, it picked 28. We'd just rather have the player. So no thanks.
C
Right, so that's what I'm saying. So now move, move, move the pick up to a top. You know, a top 12 or a top.
B
No, if it's like, let's say it's like Miami at 11. Miami is like, oh, we love Pickens. We want to bring him into our culture. Okay, that's different. Do I see Miami doing that?
C
No.
B
They have no, no money to spend. But I think that's why this is going to be so difficult to get done.
A
Okay. All right, well, I decided to get that out. But, but I hear you and I think you're right. I think you're right. And it's probably just a big nothing burger and we'll laugh about it and joke about it later in the summer. All right, let's take our final time out. When we come back, I have another trade rumor that I want to run by you. This would be for the Cowboys on the receiving end, not with a receiver. We'll do that and we'll get your final thoughts and get a couple comments in as well. Great to be with you. This is the Cowboys squad show. Well, as you know, it's the 13th. Technically today. You might be listening to the show tomorrow. Right. And it would be the 14th. Or maybe you'll listen on the 15th. Whatever day, it's tax time. But for a lot of us, the old way of doing taxes is a lot. You try to book an appointment that's not the most convenient. You're still sitting in a waiting room with a stack of papers you're emailing back and forth, wondering if they really get your situation. Well, this year you're getting a major upgrade. Intuit TurboTax now has in person locations nationwide. You can meet face to face with a real tax expert and your documents get uploaded straight to your TurboTax app right on the spot. Just like that, you're done. Your TurboTax expert works to get you every dollar you deserve while you get real time notifications and you go about your day. That's it. It's the relief of walking in, meeting a real person and walking out knowing your taxes are being handled right. So head to turbotax.com local to find a store near you and book your appointment. Cowboy Squad Show Marcus Mosher Glenn Stretch Smith Marcus, what do you and Landon have coming up the rest of this week as we get ready for the, the week before the draft?
B
Yeah, we're going to continue to talk about all of the latest rumors coming out of the draft with the Cowboys who they're targeting at 12, what some trade ups could potentially look like. We're also going to look at some players that we haven't discussed enough that could be options at 12 and 20, including someone like Blake Miller, a offensive tackle from Clemson. We'll take a look at traden Stukes, a safety slash cornerback from Arizona. So we're going to be doing a lot of work on some names that you should know going into the draft like that.
A
I like that. You know, it has been quiet on the trading for a defensive starter front. We haven't heard a lot of those rumors pretty much the last week or so it's just been rumors of the Cowboys moving up to try to get a starter starting caliber player.
B
And I think the reason is, is because we're so close to the draft now at this point, Jeff, I think you just want to see, you want to see how the draft is going to play out because maybe that linebacker will fall to you at 12 Sonny Styles. And now you don't have this need to go out and trade for a Jordan Brooks or maybe you're going to get Jacob Rodriguez in a trade back from 20 at picking 29 and now you've solved that position. I think they're going to make another trade. I just wouldn't be surprised if it happens two weeks after the draft, much like the George Pickens trade last year.
A
Okay. Coach, you hearing anything?
C
Nope.
A
Nope. Okay, great.
B
Contribute contribution, Stretch. Appreciate it. That's why we pay you.
C
Let me tell you what I ain't gonna do. I am not going to come on here and make up some bull corn. I can promise you if I'm, I wouldn't want that if I'm giving you something here. I mean I, that's how I feel. I mean we talked about McCoy and, and, and we put that out there But I, I, I think we're still guys, we're still 10 days out of this, and I'm telling you, I know for a fact they're still formulating their position and where they're at.
B
Okay. Can I ask you about this, by the way? Because. No, I'm going to anyways. I think it was Todd Archer that reported that they had their first draft meeting on Friday. It might have been Thursday. Thursday or Friday. Doesn't that seem really late in the process? And I, I mean, I get it. You've got your scouts out doing pro day stuff, you had guys doing free agency stuff. But why are you waiting until mid April to get together to do this?
C
When do you want, when do you, when do you want to bring everybody in from off the road, from out working, going to pro days, out working guys out? When, when do you want them to come in?
B
We'd like to have them do at least like a meeting every couple weeks or whatever, right? Like kind of check in to start stacking your board or start talking through some scenarios. Like, I think you should already be laying the groundwork on some of these trades. I mean, I know.
C
No, I mean, keep, you keep, I, I'm, I'll tell you, like you ought to tell that squatter of yours. What are you not understanding, the N or the O? Oh, they're not coming in this early because they're still gathering information. They're still putting all of it together. So, no, there's, there's no reason to come in until, you know, two weeks, 10 days before what's going on. That, that, that's just, it's always been that way. I mean, ever since I was there, it was, it was always, you know, several weeks headed into it. And, and they're not gonna, I mean, guys are still looking at, still looking at a bunch of different things. They're still looking at tape. You got a whole new coaching staff, a whole defensive coaching staff that's come in here, and those guys are going to have some say in, in, in that, in that process, whether you want them to or not.
B
Let me ask you this stretch. We're seeing this trend more and more where coaches and even some scouts and gms, like, I'm going to give you the Rams, for example, they're not sending their coaches to the combine. They're not sending their coaches to the pro day. They're having them work on film stuff at the facility. They're having meetings, they're stacking their boards. Is that a better strategy of how to build Your board rather than sending these guys all over the country.
C
I mean, I think there's multiple ways to look at that, that. The Rams have a pretty solid and sound coaching staff, don't they? I mean, other than what they fired the. They fired the special teams guy.
B
Yep. Yep.
C
Okay, so Shula's back. I mean, you know, not going to change what they're doing offensively. I mean, why. I would say you could be more constructive, you know, being. Being in the office. And you get to see everything. Anyway, it's all taped, so, you know, that's my point. For what? Because you want to go. Because you want to go eat it. You know, you want to go eat at.
B
It's a prime 47. No St. Elmo's.
C
St. Elmo's Fire. Yeah.
B
Yeah. Want to get the.
C
The.
B
The shrimp cocktail? Well, that's what I wonder. Like, are. Are you better off just having those guys back at your facility? Because how much. How much information can you really get from these pro days?
C
I mean, I. I mean, we were still. We were still gathering information to the very end. I. I don't understand what your. What your question.
B
Like, how much is what you see in a pro day going to change your overall evaluation?
C
I don't know that that's. I don't know that that that's what's. That's not necessarily what you're looking for. You're going in there. You're going in there solidify. I thought more than you are change at all.
B
Well, but if you're going in there to solidify, why not just stay back, have the tape sent to you. Watch it when you get a, you know, pizza.
C
Okay, so, I mean, what. I. I don't get it. So you ride down the road and go watch a kid at Baylor, or you ride down the road and you go watch.
B
I think that's down the road, you
C
go watch kid at Texas.
B
My. My overall point is, I wonder if they're just waiting too late in the process, because you got to have these meetings, you got to discuss these players.
C
You got to have all the information before you can. You. You can't. You can't start putting guys up on the board this early.
B
I just disagree with that.
C
Here's the problem is you live in Erie and you have nothing to do. And so you. You want to get the head start on everybody in America. And that's not necessarily how it works.
B
We hear from. We hear from people all. All year long that, you know, these guys aren't really moving it up. Up and down the board. You know that it's just the media catching up because they had their grades.
C
Who tells you that?
B
I mean, it's all over the place on social media where these teams believe they have.
C
Let's buy into what they're saying on social media. I got you.
B
You can't lie on social media. I've heard. Listen. But the only point I'm making is stretches. It just feels like there's not enough time to argue about 200 guys. 200 and 250 guys.
C
That's not. That's not what you're doing. The scouts have already presented the guys. They've already. They've already put up there who they like. That's already been done. But I also. There's no reason to start formulating a. A board until you. Until you have and you've gathered all the information.
B
I just have a problem. Never mind. I don't want to get into it. It's not worth it. Never mind.
A
No.
C
You don't think the Cowboys. You don't think they're. Their. Their front office is worth the tinker?
B
No, it's not that. It's just the process of. Okay, the scouts give us a grade. The coaches come in and they basically disregard the grades because they're going to draft the guys that they want to draft anyways. It just feels like a very flawed process.
C
I'm telling you, it's not. It's not. It's not that easy. I think with the free flow of information, I think it's made it more. It's made it more fluid with everybody. But it. I mean, it. It's not easy. If you think that the Raiders are sitting over there belly laughing that they've got their quarterback, I got news for you. That. That. That ain't happening. They. They don't have any idea. They don't. And they've done all the work that they can do, and they don't have any idea. They have so much of a non idea that they went and got Kirk Cousins.
B
Well, they got to be a nice mentor for Fernando. That's. That's all.
C
You know what I'm telling you, they air conditioned Vegas for you because you have all the answers. Go out there and empty your pockets and make a lot of money and quit crapping around on this podcast.
B
I'm just saying they. They side
C
guy, give him the gold jacket. He's headed to. Headed to camp.
B
I didn't say that. Listen.
C
No, I. You don't have to say it. I can see it on your Face.
B
If you draft the quarterback at one, obviously they believe that he's going to be the guy. That doesn't necessarily mean that he's going to start week one. There's been plenty of quarterbacks that have been drafted at number one that don't start right away.
C
Yahoo.
B
Carson Palmer was. Carson Palmer was a great example. I don't think he started a single game his rookie year. Patrick Mahomes was drafted at 10. He started one game.
C
No, not talking about 10. You should one.
B
Carson Palmer's a great example of it.
C
Half these people on this podcast don't even know who Carson Palmer is
B
to Marcus Russell.
A
I don't think they know him either. Are the Cowboys done, by the way, with their meetings or they have any more. Do you know?
B
I think more.
C
They just started.
B
Well, you're saying the 30 visits are the actual meeting.
A
30 visits?
B
30 visits. I think they still have three more that they can use. It doesn't necessarily mean that they're going to, but I think they still can have a couple more.
A
Okay. I was kind of. I was following you, though. I think what you're trying to say is you have one of those meetings. Can one of those. Maybe. Maybe you were surprised, maybe pleasantly surprised. Maybe the guy looked better in person than he did on tape and, oh, wow, the guy moves. I moved this guy up. We like him a little more. Or down, who knows?
B
I think you get in trouble when you're moving guys this late in the process, but that's me.
A
Okay, real quick, one more trade rumor. The Colts looking to move former Pro bowl corner Kenny Moore. You like him at all as a possible fit?
B
I love Kenny Moore. He's a great, great cornerback. But the problem is he wants new contract and I believe he's represented by the boogeyman, so I don't know if that's gonna work out for Dallas.
C
Ouch.
A
That's a double negative right there. Yeah. Okay. Wishful thinking.
B
He's a really good player, though, and he's. He's been an awesome slot corner for the last couple years, but I think he wants a new contract. I doubt the Cowboys are going to be the team that gives it to them.
A
Okay, fair enough. All right, guys. Well, hey, the next time we meet, we're going to be one week to go until the draft. Marcus, when you're back with us, will be even less than that, which is awesome when you start and stop and think about it.
B
Yeah. And I'll have all the answers for you next week because Stretch thinks I have them.
A
So I like when you do those little drive bys though on Thursday. I know you got a lot going.
B
I'll be back. Don't worry. I'll be back.
C
Yeah, he wants to come by here and give some snarky remark on the, on the, on the, on the thread down there. Yeah, I will.
B
Don't you worry, Coach.
C
I am on the edge of my chair in anticipation for it happening.
A
Thursday was your cheat mail cheat meal better than expected, huh?
C
It was so good I went and had me a chicken fried steak and the only way to made it any better is if I could could have got it in an IV and just plugged it right in.
A
There you go. There you go. All right, guys. Thank you. Thank you to everybody that was with us tonight. Love you guys. Appreciate you. Don't forget, check out Marcus and Landon on the daily Lockdown Cowboys podcast. If you're driving around on the radio, listen to the coach and we'll be back with you on Thursday for another edition of the Cowboy.
Hosts: Marcus Mosher, Glenn “Stretch” Smith, Jeff Biggs
Description: With under two weeks to go until the NFL Draft, the Cowboys Squad Show dives into Dallas's potential draft maneuvers, evaluates rumored prospects, and sorts through rumors on picks, player trades, and off-field storylines.
In this episode, the Cowboys crew weighs the likelihood and wisdom of Dallas trading up in the 2026 NFL Draft, especially to secure a difference-making defensive prospect. They break down key rumors around specific players—namely top defensive targets and prospects with red flags—while providing real-time insights on roster needs, possible trades, and the general state of the draft market. They also address off-field news affecting the Cowboys, evaluate speculation surrounding big-name trades, and give fans a peek at their current draft board and preparation process.
| Topic | Timestamp | Brief Summary | |-------------------------------------------|---------------|-----------------------------------------------------------------| | Trade-Up Rumors and Board Scenarios | 03:00–17:00 | Cowboys considering moving up, potential costs, risks, and logic| | Player Focus: Reuben Bain & Short-Armed EDGE Dilemma | 18:58–24:43 | Detailed breakdown of edge prospect red flags | | Assessment of McCoy and Draft Board Logic | 25:27–27:52 | McCoy's 30 visit, medical concerns, and "off the board" meaning | | Dream Scenarios & Top Prospects | 28:22–34:07 | Who to target at 12/if moving up; how to tier the prospects | | Bell Arrest and Defensive Depth | 36:32–39:53 | Implications for Cowboys’ secondary | | Wide Receiver/George Pickens Trade Rumors | 40:33–45:54 | Skepticism and explanations around headline trades | | Draft Process/Meetings/Information Flow | 47:57–55:59 | Behind-the-scenes on how Cowboys prep for the draft | | Kenny Moore & Final Trade Rumors | 58:29–59:06 | Colts CB trade rumor, quick analysis and snappy closer |
For the most comprehensive Dallas Cowboys draft coverage, subscribe to Locked On Cowboys and join the Everyday Club for ad-free episodes and insider discussions.
“You have to be ready to move either way. … This is where you can't wet your pants.” – Glenn “Stretch” Smith (07:26)