The Dallas Cowboys finished a disastrous 2015 season as the eighth-worst team in terms of pass-rushing with a lowly 31.0 sacks. Regardless of injuries to key offensive personnel, you can draw a lot of Dallas' failures back to that key stat. It's no coincidence that the bottom eight teams in sacks all failed to finish above .500 this past year.
Fortunately for the Cowboys, the offseason is a time of optimism. A time when all needs can be addressed, all holes filled. Perhaps that is why ESPN NFL Draft Insider Mel Kiper Jr. projects Dallas to select Oregon defensive end DeForest Buckner with the No. 4 overall pick.
"It's rare to find a team picking No. 4 overall that can genuinely say, 'We're in win-now mode.' But the Cowboys get a healthy Tony Romo back, so that's a fair statement. If Greg Hardy isn't back, Buckner is a great fit. You get a 6-foot-7, 290-pound defensive end who can put a tackle on skates right into his own quarterback. The No. 1 think you love about Buckner: major motor. He plays hard. He could have been taken relatively early last year, but came back and put an exclamation point on it."
Buckner finished the 2015 season with 10.5 sacks, 83 total tackles and 17 tackles for a loss. His game is more power-based than speed, though he does have decent quickness. He's best-suited to line up as a 3-4 defensive end so that he can focus on setting the edge with his size and strength.
Though top-five is pretty early, there is a good chance that the Cowboys do not re-sign Greg Hardy and therefore have a need at the position heading into the draft.
"Jason Garrett's curt responses to any questions about Hardy after the season's end seem to indicate he will not be back," ESPN Cowboys reporter Todd Archer wrote recently.
