Cowboys: 3 worst moves of the 2023 offseason

Worst Cowboys moves of the offseason: 2. Drafting Mazi Smith in Round 1

It’s easy to understand why Dallas went shopping for a space-eating defensive tackle in this year’s draft. Their defense struggled against the run last year and Mazi Smith is a guy who can help fix that problem right away.

The flaw in the Cowboys’ strategy was using a first-round pick to fill a need at a non-premium position. Smart teams around the league only pay big money to interior linemen who can rush the passer. Run-stuffers get squeezed on the open market on an annual basis.

Smith was the best space-eating defensive tackle in this year’s draft class but Dallas could have found a solid starter in the middle rounds. That would have allowed them to select a player with more positional value in Round 1.

Expect the Cowboys’ public relations machine to tout Smith as a big success when he emerges as a Week 1 starter. That shouldn’t distract anyone from the reality that he was an overdraft based on his lack of positional value. Some Cowboys fans might see this as a small quibble with their team’s offseason, but it could cost them millions on their cap sheet for years to come.