Dallas Cowboys’ Post Trade Deadline NFL Mock Draft Lands Massive DT To Reset Line

FRISCO, Texas — The NFL trade deadline came and went Tuesday afternoon without a whisper of a deal from the Dallas Cowboys. No splash. No blockbuster. No late-night phone call from Jerry Jones to a desperate general manager.

And yet, the most consequential move for the Cowboys’ defensive future may have already been mapped out—not in a trade, but in a mock draft that landed Dallas a massive defensive tackle tasked with resetting a line that has been the team’s most glaring weakness all season.

According to Brent Sobleski of Bleacher Report’s latest 2027 NFL mock draft, the Cowboys are projected to select Oregon defensive tackle A’Mauri Washington with the No. 21 overall pick—a selection acquired via the Green Bay Packers in the Quinnen Williams trade .

The rationale is as brutal as it is accurate.

“The Dallas Cowboys have made so many moves to improve their defense and the group simply hasn’t responded. Dallas is still counted among the NFL’s worst units,” Sobleski wrote. “The Cowboys have been particularly bad at the point of attack. Aside from Quinnen Williams, the defensive interior could use a reset. Oregon’s A’Mauri Washington brings an impressive athletic profile and the size/strength combination to serve as an ideal complement alongside Williams” .

At 6-foot-3 and 325 pounds, Washington represents exactly what Dallas has lacked: a legitimate interior disruptor capable of collapsing the pocket and holding the line of scrimmage. The fit is tantalizing—pairing Washington with Williams would give the Cowboys a defensive tackle duo with the potential to transform a unit that currently allows 372 yards and 26 points per game .

The mock draft also considered Texas safety Jelani McDonald and Alabama edge rusher Yhonzae Pierre, but Washington’s combination of size, versatility, and upside won out .

Why the Cowboys Stood Pat

The decision not to make a deadline move was not born of contentment. It was born of arithmetic.

Dallas currently holds just four picks in the 2027 NFL Draft: the lower of their own or Green Bay’s first-rounder, their own second-round selection, Pittsburgh’s fourth-rounder from the Broderick Jones trade, and New England’s seventh-round pick . The cupboard is not bare, but it is decidedly thin.

Jerry Jones made no secret of his reluctance to mortgage more future capital.

“It’s really not ringing, which you’ve heard me say numerous times,” Jones said on 105.3 The Fan before the deadline. “But don’t count it out, a lot of things happen on this last day. But I don’t look for us to make a significant trade today” .

The Cowboys’ inactivity stands in stark contrast to their aggressive recent history. In the past year alone, Dallas acquired Williams, cornerback Joey Porter Jr., and safety Caleb Downs—three significant defensive additions that have yet to produce the desired results . At 4-5, with a defense that ranks among the league’s most generous, the front office apparently concluded that no single deadline acquisition could fix what ails this roster.

The Washington Gamble

There is a caveat, and it is significant.

Washington’s 2026 season at Oregon has been underwhelming. The Ducks have disappointed as a team, and Washington’s individual production has regressed. He has recorded just 24 total tackles, six passes defensed, and half a tackle for loss this season . For a player projected as a first-round pick, those numbers are modest at best.

Sobleski acknowledged as much: “He still hasn’t shown significant improvement as a pass-rusher or been nearly as impactful against the run as last season. However, the 6’3″, 325-pound defensive tackle still presents the natural traits and versatility to play from multiple alignments, thus keeping him in the first-round discussion” .

The selection would be a bet on traits over production—a gamble that the Cowboys’ coaching staff can unlock the player Washington was projected to become rather than the one he has been this fall. It is the kind of pick that either vindicates a front office or gets one fired.

What It Means for the Current Roster

The most immediate implication of drafting Washington would be the end of Kenny Clark’s tenure in Dallas. Clark, acquired as part of the Micah Parsons trade, has been serviceable but unspectacular. Pairing Washington with Williams on rookie-contract control would give the Cowboys cost certainty and schematic flexibility—two things they have desperately lacked.

Williams, for his part, has been one of the few bright spots. Since a slow start, he has 14 tackles for loss in nine games, surpassing his total from his All-Pro season in 2022 . Against the Colts on Sunday, Williams forced a fumble and blew up a critical late-game run that gave Dallas one final chance to win . He is the cornerstone. Washington would be the complement.

The Verdict

Mock drafts in November are exercises in projection, not prophecy. The Cowboys could trade up. They could trade down. They could fall in love with a different defensive tackle—Florida’s Caleb Banks, perhaps, or Ohio State’s Kayden McDonald—depending on how the draft order shakes out .

But the logic of the Washington selection is difficult to argue with. Dallas has spent draft capital and salary cap space trying to fix its defense through trades and free agency. The results have been mediocre at best. A reset requires foundation, not patchwork.

The Cowboys will have eight games to prove they are closer than their record suggests. If they cannot, the offseason will arrive quickly, and the focus will shift to a draft that could define the next era of Dallas defense.

A’Mauri Washington may not be a household name yet. But if the Cowboys’ post-deadline path holds, he could become the massive anchor this line has been missing for years.