Despite the expected return to health of Pro Bowler Sean Lee, the resigning of Rolando McClain and the unexpectedly positive contributions of Anthony Hitchens, the Dallas Cowboys are reportedly targeting a couple of top inside linebacker prospects in the first-round of the looming 2015 NFL Draft.
Assuming of course, that cornerback Kevin Johnson is already gone.
"Today I'm told if Kevin Johnson is unavailable when the Cowboys are on the clock in round one they will strongly consider either Benardrick McKinney or Eric Kendricks. I've heard so much chatter connecting the Cowboys and McKinney the past three weeks I've got to believe where there's smoke there's fire," reports Tony Pauline of Draft Insider.
While Orlando Scandrick has become a steady contributor, both Morris Claiborne and Brandon Carr have proven expensive mistakes for Dallas, meaning cornerback is certainly a top need for the Cowboys as they enter the 2015 NFL Draft.
Beyond the top guy, Trae Waynes, Johnson seems the best corner prospect available. After those two though, beauty resides very much in the eye of the beholder with any number of players from UCONN's Byron Jones, to LSU's Jalen Collins, to Washington's Marcus Peters and Florida State's Ronald Darby possibly set to go in the draft's initial round.
Johnson is likely to be gone by the time the Cowboys pick at No. 27 actually rolls around, so it seems Dallas and GM Jerry Jones may turn their attention to inside linebacker and one of either McKinney or Kendricks.
McKinney, 6-foot-4, 246-pounds, has great size and length, but failed to post good agility numbers at the NFL rookie scouting combine, potentially hindering his draft stock. Still, he was a productive, steady player and the leader for the Mississippi State defense the past three seasons. Like McClain, if the Cowboys can put him in the right situations, he can be extremely effective.
Kendricks, 6-foot, 232-pounds, is much smaller than McKinney, but is very similar in terms of playing style. He's a downhill, attacking 'backer with high intelligence and instincts who posted consistently high collegiate production. Kendricks will be hurt by his lack of size - were he taller he'd likely be a top-10 pick - but he's not wanting in terms of work ethic or desire to succeed.
If Pauline's report is accurate and the board fall the way it's expected to, the Cowboys should wind up with a quality contributor no matter which of the two linebackers they select in the first-round later this week.
That is, of course, unless all of this is simply a smokescreen aimed at obfuscating Jones' real focus on one of the 2015 NFL Draft's top running backs.
