
The Dallas Cowboys weigh tough draft decisions as uncertainty surrounds Rueben Bain and Jermod McCoy. Will Dallas gamble on outlier talent or stick to their scheme-first philosophy?
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Marcus Mosher
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Marcus Mosher
What should the Cowboys do if they have no interest in drafting Ruben bane or Jamal McCoy? We'll tell you next.
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Marcus Mosher
On Podcast network your team every day. Welcome back. I am your host Marcus Mosher. He is Landon McCool and on today's show we're talking about the Cowboys trading up in round one. We'll talk about some fallback options at pick 12. But Landon, I want to start with this. We got the big Reuben Bane news over the weekend. We talked about it on Monday show. If you didn't get a chance to listen to that, go check it out. But as more information has come out over the last 24 hours, first of all, you're hearing more and more teams maybe aren't thrilled with the way that Ruben Bane answered some questions in interviews. You're starting to hear that, you know, maybe he's not going to go inside the top 10. And we also heard from Brian Broadus over at 1053, the fan in Crown Global Media that the Cowboys probably won't select Reuben Bane if he falls to them at 12. We also have that confirmed on another source that you and I both know. Well, first of all, what do you think of the Cowboys passing on Bain at 12? And does that make sense to you?
Landon McCool
It doesn't make sense to me. I mean, look, I, I think that there's clearly we've had these kind of conversations before where it's, it's two different things. It's how we feel and then how they feel. Right. I think if the, the view in inside that building is that he does doesn't fit the, the physical profile of an outside edge player and that he's, you know, more in like we've heard other teams talk about potentially, you know, thinking of him as more of a three technique and, and looking at him that way, if that's the case, I could certainly see how the juice is not worth the squeeze for you. Right. Like, because to me, the value of this player is playing on the edge. So, yeah, I could see how, if you wanted to play him inside there, it comes with an even different set of pros and cons that certainly may not add up to what you would think a 12th round, a 12th overall pick is. But, you know, I think that's what we're trying to square a circle here, and it's hard for us to kind of put ourselves in their seat, I guess. You know, my view is that if you don't think that he's an edge player and you're trying to play him this, you know, specifically at this four I five, you know, maybe three text, it's just not a great fit. So I guess that's. That would definitely kind of put him, you know, out of the. Out of the range of where you would feel the Cowboys would be comfortable taking a player like that.
Marcus Mosher
I am a firm believer in scheme fit, and you need to make sure that you're drafting guys that fit your scheme or the ski. The defense won't work. Right. But at the same time, the Cowboys just overthinking this because Reuben Bain was awesome and he in college and he dominated older tackles and he dominated longer tackles. And he's a guy that moves really well and the bend is ridiculous, and he even on plays where he's not getting sacks, he's getting pressures, he stops the run, he can play in space. Is this just a classic case of what will McClay in the front office maybe valuing traits too much?
Landon McCool
If that's what we will find out. I mean, that's the problem, is that it's a gamble. Right. I tend to view what. What he's done on tape and view it as less of a gamble. They may disagree with me. It's. Look, it's not like there aren't points to the argument. Right. Like, you know, Reuben Bain would be a historical outlier.
Marcus Mosher
Absolutely.
Landon McCool
There's like, there's no way around that. So I guess the argument is, do you believe that Bane is good enough to be that historical outlier? And let's be clear, it's not just that it's good enough to Warrant a top 12 pick while being historic outlier. So I again think, yes, that he is. Because what you saw at the end of the year is a guy dominating at the absolute highest level possible of college football. But, you know, if they don't view him as being a physical trait fit for the position that, you know, that he would project the easiest to, I could see this as being a, hey, yeah, I think we'd like him as a defensive tackle in the second round, but that's not where he's going to go.
Marcus Mosher
I just struggle with this one because he's such a good player. But if Will McLay and Christian Parker don't think he fits the defense, then they don't think he fits the defense. And you don't want to overdraft a guy just because somebody else has him ranked high. It just, to me, it's a mistake. We'll see what happens. The other name is Jermod McCoy, who the Cowboys had on a 30 visit. We, every report that we've heard seen says that the Cowboys are not interested in McCoy. It seems like coming out of that 30 visit, nothing has changed. And in fact, Lana, now you're starting to hear more national reporters, including our guy Dane Brugler from the Athletics, saying, yeah, there are several teams that just aren't comfortable with the knee and feel like that a, a second surgery might be coming. And my question to you is, if Bane is not in consideration at 12 and Jaman McCoy is not in consideration at 12, you're starting to really get low on the number of guys you could make a move up here for.
Landon McCool
Well, yeah, and I think, you know, you and I have talked about this before, that 12, I mean, this is something we said months ago when, you know, both McCoy and Bain were potentially, you know, players that you, you think that the Cowboys could draft. And I, I said that 12 is always going to be the one that you were kind of holding your breath to see exactly what happens. Right. 20. It felt like you had a laundry list of guys that you're going to be able to pick because the talent has kind of plateaued there. And if you just accept that, you're going to be happy with the player that you take and. But 12 is a spot where, you know, you're really kind of on the razor's edge. If you're going to get one of these top end guys that you like and if you, before the draft even happens, eliminate two of those, let's say seven, let's call it seven at that point now you're left with only five of those players. You have to hope that One of those five players makes it all the way down to 12. And you know, we've, we've talked about what that looks like. It's not exactly an easy slalom down picks of player teams that want defensive players. Yeah.
Marcus Mosher
And we're going to get into that in just a little bit. But one other nugget of information that we got on Monday, and it comes from Nick Harris, friend of the show at the Fort Worth Star Telegram, and he said that Colton Hood, if the Cowboys don't pick a defensive back at 12, you can pencil him in to the Cowboys at 20. This is the cornerback from Tennessee who really took over that number one cornerback job once McCoy went down with the injury. 5 foot 11, 193 pounds, not the most twitchy guy, but somebody that does have a lot of long speed, is a really good tackle tackler if he is the option at, if he's the pick. Excuse me, at 20 for the Cowboys. How would you feel about that?
Landon McCool
I mean, I'd feel fine. I feel good. I mean, I, I like Colton hood enough that 20 would is okay for me. Again, like, I, I'm. That pick makes a lot of sense because he's young, he's, he's an up, he's a high ris. I think again, like 20 is at a spot where you feel like if he comes in and he earns a starting spot right away, that's fantastic. But if he doesn't, I feel like you can slow play him a little bit because you do have several other veterans on the team now, especially with, with Durant being added and, and you see what you've gotten. Let's say Rebel comes in and really looks good. Like, you know, I still think you need a guy like that and having the cornerback depth is going to be good. And I think of those guys that you would take at 20 potentially, you know, outside of maybe. I mean, depending on where Chris Johnson goes, I would say that he probably has the most upside. Right. Like as far as the kind of later, later first round, you know, corners. So, yeah, just a kind of mix of traits and production and where his needle is pointing so well, I sure have it.
Marcus Mosher
Age. Right.
Landon McCool
Like, yeah, he.
Marcus Mosher
I've said this multiple times in the podcast. He's not my favorite cornerback. I like Chris Johnson more. I like Avion Terrell maybe slightly more. But you're talking about like in the same year of cornerbacks. Right. And you're gambling on somebody with speed, age, SEC production, like, I, I get it. And if you want me to know who's the best tackler of that group, it's probably Colton Hood. So again, I get it. Would I give it an A plus plus, pick a great no. But would I be fine with it? Yeah, I think so.
Landon McCool
Again, for me, reaching is not like picking a guy that you have like one, you know, spot on your top 100 better than it's reaching out of four. Yeah, it's about reaching out of tiers. Right. Reaching down a tier when you have a higher tiered player available. And I think that's the actually, that's actually kind of the crux of the conversation at 12, to be honest, is, is what are you going to do and are you going to be able to get that access a higher tier of player that you you would you're hoping for at 12?
Marcus Mosher
Yeah, let's talk about that because that's my fear is that they're going to get stuck at 12 and have to take a player from at least one tier down. Can they afford to stick at 12? We'll get to that next
Landon McCool
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Marcus Mosher
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Landon McCool
I think I half agree. I think that the odds of them taking one of those five players at 12 has greatly decreased. Yes, Yes. I think the odds of them taking one of these top five players correct hasn't changed and maybe even increased because now the picture is very clear. Right? It may be even more clear than before. I think before it was easy for us to say, man, six, seven of these guys, like there's, there's a chance that we could stick and pick. Now that seems a lot less likely. And, and maybe that's the kind of motivation you needed to make sure you've got your trade offers in line when it's, when it comes to draft day. Right. And I think we've explored a lot of these different types of trades and I whether it's a trade down or I think, you know, again, I love the idea of one of these elevator trades where, listen, you decide you're going to go get one of these guys, but you use the value of a trade back in your second first round pick to go up and get it I think again, the goal is to kind of keep the same number of top 100 picks hopefully and get up to where you can get one of those five guys. I just feel like sticking at 12 has become less appetizing option than it was before. And I also think that it makes some sense that we, it feels like we heard, we hear a lot of names that are whispered that are more top of the second round guys than potentially even at 20. And I think, I think it has to do with the fact that they, they must be exploring trade back options. And it does. I don't need necessarily just a 12, but you know, potentially in general and yeah, in general. So something to think about.
Marcus Mosher
There's just a scenario that I keep. I, I love looking at mock drafts, reading mock drafts. And there's been a lot of these where I see you got David Bailey going two to the Jets, Arvell Reese going three to the, to the, to the Cardinals, and then let's say it's Jeremiah Love goes forward to the Titans and then Sonny Stiles goes five to the Giants. Well, that's, well that's 60 of the names that we are considering. And now you've got this range from 6 to 11. And it's a minefield of teams that need defensive talent like the Commanders, like the Saints, like the Chiefs, like the Dolphins, like the Bengals. And it just feels like the odds of one of those players slipping through all those cracks is getting pretty low. And that's where I think if you're the Cowboys, I don't think you can wait until there's only one player left on the board to try to go up and make a trade. Because let's say, let's say it picks seven. It's Monsor Delane to the Commanders. Well, all of a sudden now Caleb Downs is, you know, a target for the Saints. And maybe they, maybe the Saints have a monster grade on him and they have no interest in trading away from him. Same thing can be said for the, the, the Chiefs or the Bengals. I think the Cowboys need to be. If they're going to make a trade. They got to be proactive rather than hoping that one of these guys is going to fall to them.
Landon McCool
Yeah, I mean, I think it was probably maybe 50, 50 bet at best before and now the, the odds have plummeted. I mean, I think there is a world where, you know, the fact that you're not taking Reuben Bane may help you where like if a team above you actually just takes Reuben Bain and maybe it pushes another one of these players down. But the truth of the matter is is that there's at least one or two other teams that have a general defensive talent need like not even just like a specific position just like you, where you're just looking for the most talented players player on defense. So I, I think that it's not likely to help you enough to, to stick and stay at 12. And I think the good news for the Cowboys fans, this feels like a lot of doom and gloom, but the truth is I think the good news of the Cowboys is they're going to have options. Like I think that there's going to be teams that are going to be looking to trade. So I, I think, you know, it's not like the Cowboys are necessarily doomed to stay at 12.
Marcus Mosher
Yeah, and honestly that's one of the, the big takeaways that we saw from Monday is that I think there was some, several different outlets reporting that the Cardinals, Giants, Browns, Commanders and Saints would all love to trade down in this draft. And it's like okay, that means it's a buyer's market. And I wanted to, to give a little bit of data here before we move on Landon because I went back and looked at some of the non quarterback trades inside the top 12 over recent years just to see what the price tag would be on some of these trades because I mean some of the whispers are that you're gonna have to pay a fortune for these picks and I just don't necessarily think that's true. So a couple recent trades that I wanted to go over. The Eagles traded from 10 to nine to go get Jalen Carter in 2023 and they gave up a future fourth round pick. So that's, I mean that's, that's equivalent to what a like a this year 5th round pick. Is that right?
Landon McCool
Yeah, that sounds right. Yeah.
Marcus Mosher
So cost you, it cost you a fifth round pick to move up one spot. Okay. That's attainable. The Eagles went from 12 to 10 to go get Devonte Smith. This is the year the Cowboys traded back and got Micah and it cost them pick 84. So a late third round pick to go from 12 to 10. I think if you're the Cowboys you're probably looking at the, at going up to six. But if you could go up to seven, eight, nine, maybe it only cost you a third round pick. A couple others that I wanted to go through really quickly. Pittsburgh, when they went up to get Devin Bush, they traded picks 20, 52 and a future third round pick to jump up 10 spots inside the top 10, which. That one's cheap. Here's another one. Yeah. The Tampa Bay in 2016 traded, excuse me, Chicago traded picks 11 and 106. So that's a fourth round pick to go from 11 to nine. And I think that's honestly probably the most comparable, maybe all, like for the Cowboys to get up to that Chiefs pick, maybe all it would cost them is pick 112 and a little sweetener. All this to say, I think they're going to have options.
Landon McCool
Yeah, I mean, again, like, I think it's a, like, like we've been talking about. It's, it's a buyer's market. And I think that there's a, there's a good chance that the Cowboys not only will have an option to trade back, but maybe multiple options to trade back or trade up if they wanted to or do one of these elevator trades. So I think that there's going to be opportunity for them to even kind of get a good deal on this trade. And this is what we've maintained this whole time. And this is why you're seeing more and more of these teams looking to trade out. That's not surprising. So the Cowboys, you know, if they're looking to trade, they're looking to leverage that. They might sit a little bit in the catbird seat if they want. Because I think that again, they. 12 is a good spot to still pick a tackle or a wide receiver player, right? Yeah, exactly.
Marcus Mosher
A great spot for a defensive player. Yeah.
Landon McCool
So it, it, it. Again, these are the kind of trades that actually make sense that they actually get done. Right. The ones that actually have mutual benefit to both teams.
Marcus Mosher
I could see Kansas City moving from 9 to 12, picking up a third round pick and drafting Kenyon Siddiq, maybe a guy that they wanted to draft at 9. Anyways, they move back a couple spots, pick up another top 100 pick. The Cowboys get Caleb Downs at that spot, they keep pick 20, and that's how both teams win this trade. That seems very realistic to me.
Landon McCool
Yeah, I don't love, you know, again, losing the top 100 pick, but if that's the option rather than reaching downs. Yeah, I'm good with that.
Marcus Mosher
All right, let's talk about some fallback options. If the Cowboys are unable to get a trade done at 12, who might they pick at that spot? We'll get to that. Next,
Landon McCool
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Marcus Mosher
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Landon McCool
I mean, they're probably going to take a name that we're not going to love at 12. You know, I mean, is there, let
Marcus Mosher
me ask you this, we rephrase this. Is there a name outside of the ones that we mentioned that you would love at 12?
Landon McCool
Yeah, I mean, phenomenon, I think I would be okay with. I, I think there are some names that, that of guys that would be, you know, okay, we've talked about The. I know how you feel about Keldrick Falk, but I would feel like in this situation, I would pick Keldrick Falk probably. Or I, I mean, again, like, I would probably pick Thienaman, but if Thienaman wasn't an option, it would be Keldrick Falk. I think I wouldn't love the value I'm getting, but I would feel good about the fact that I felt like I was getting a good football player who would at least probably earn that pick at some point. But I mean, again, it's. It's hard to kind of look at these names and look, the name that, That's. That is on everyone's lips here is. Is obviously a key messador. Like, just because we've seen that name marked @12. And I'm not saying that I would necessarily love that Mark is about to fall over dead. I'm just saying that it's. It's the name that we're seeing here and there's probably. This may be the reason that we're seeing his name there. So I don't love it. But. But again, I like the player, so I would. I wouldn't be upset about having the player. It's just drafting him that high, that would be a problem.
Marcus Mosher
Can I tell you some names for me that I would like? I mean, I, I, yeah, I was. Probably won't draft them. And again, these are. These are not my preferred options, but these are the guys that, like, if they surprise, surprise us with a Tyler Booker pick, I could get behind. I think Cade McDonald is like a superstar. Like, I think he is an unbelievable defensive tackle, and I know the Cowboys invested a ton there, but he's just an awesome player. If you drafted it, go ahead.
Landon McCool
Well, I was gonna say if you're gonna screw, if you're gonna like, reach or whatever, right? Like, reach on a good player and, and just cost, you know, like, if the problem is gonna be positional value, that's an acceptable problem versus, I don't know if this guy's a good enough player, you know? So I, I don't disagree with your
Marcus Mosher
argument here A couple more. I. I like Emmanuel McNeil Warren. I know he's not for everybody. I think he would be a strong fit. I also like, like Chris Johnson more than most people. I have him as a top 20 player on my board. But the problem is, is after those names, pretty bleak. Like, there's just. There's just not a lot of names that you would want to consider at that spot, which is why I want the Cowboys if they're at 12. If you have to lose a trade, if you've got to take 75 cents on the dollar to move from 12 to 17, I would do that in a heartbeat. Because I promise you the names at 17 aren't going to be any different than the names you're considering at 12.
Landon McCool
And honestly, you're more likely to Even if you're taking a little bit of a loss on the trade back, this is one of those drafts where you're more than likely to get, you're more likely, I should say, to get a a decent player in the third and fourth round. Because even though this, this draft isn't great up top, I do think it does extend in those middle rounds. So even if you're not, if you're getting a early fourth instead of a late third or whatever it is, I still think you're probably going to end up getting another good player, which isn't a loss. That.
Marcus Mosher
Exactly. That's, that's my whole thing is I just, I don't want to they're going to get in Trade offer at 12. Now, maybe it's not the trade offer that you want, but I'm telling you, it's still better than sticking at 12 and taking a player that's a tier or two tiers lower than everybody else. We'll see what happens on draft day. That is it for today's show. We'd like to thank you for making Locked on Cowboys your first listen of the day. Make sure you subscribe and follow the podcast so you get all of the latest episodes. And if you never miss an episode, the Everydayer Club is built for you. Get Loton Cowboys ad free plus members only, Discord Access and so much more. Head over to Loton Cowboys Supercast.com to join the club. And for those of you on video, we can send you the first ever 24. 7 national NBA YouTube channel. And on audio, make your second listen the lockdown NFL Draft podcast. Follow Landon on Twitter @McCool BCB. I'm @Marcus Moser and we will see you right back here tomorrow.
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Podcast: Locked On Cowboys
Episode: RISK: Cowboys Likely To AVOID Rueben Bain, Jermod McCoy at No. 12 | Is Dallas OVERTHINKING It?
Date: April 14, 2026
Hosts: Marcus Mosher, Landon McCool
This episode dives deep into the Dallas Cowboys' approach to the 2026 NFL Draft, specifically focusing on the growing likelihood that they will avoid drafting top defensive prospects Rueben Bain and Jermod McCoy at #12 overall. Marcus and Landon break down insider reports, discuss the implications of passing on both players, the shrinking pool of realistic options at #12, and examine the risks of overthinking scouting decisions. Trade scenarios, fallback options, and broader draft strategy are also explored as the hosts try to predict Dallas' next move.
Insider Information on Bain: Multiple sources, including Brian Broaddus and another unnamed source familiar to the hosts, suggest the Cowboys are unlikely to select Rueben Bain if he falls to #12.
Landon’s Stance: “If you don't think that he's an edge player and you're trying to play him…maybe three-tech[nique], it's just not a great fit…I could see this as being…out of the range of where you would feel the Cowboys would be comfortable taking a player like that.” (02:22)
Marcus’ Counterpoint: Wonders aloud if the Cowboys are "overthinking it" since Bain was so productive and disruptive at the highest college level. (03:53)
McCoy’s Medical Red Flags: Consensus among national and local reporters, including The Athletic’s Dane Brugler, that teams (including Dallas) have medical concerns about McCoy’s knee and a probable second surgery. After a 30-visit, Cowboys’ interest appears to have cooled. (05:44)
For anyone following the Cowboys’ draft journey, this episode robustly frames the dilemma at #12 and offers insight into both the front office’s thinking and the draft’s fluid landscape. The tone is pragmatic, critical, and honest—providing clarity for fans anxiously awaiting Dallas’ move on draft night.