Many around the Dallas Cowboys are approaching the 2026 NFL draft with one thing in mind: upgrade the defense. With a No. 5 ranked offense and No. 32 ranked defense, Dallas had the most unbalanced team in the NFL last year. Their historically poor defense was too much to overcome as the Cowboys floundered to a 7-9-1 record in 2025.
From the moment the offseason began it was all about fixing the defense in Dallas. The Cowboys reworked their defensive coaching staff and schemes, moved players into different positions and trimmed the fat on their depth chart. They took a keen interest in free agency, scouting and courting multiple veterans throughout the process, even making abnormally large offers along the way. And where did it get the Cowboys? Right back to where they’ve been so many times before.
Aside from signing veteran safety Jalen Thompson to a three-year, $33 million deal, the Cowboys largely struck out. They made efforts to address their issues at linebacker, offering a competitive offer to free agent Nakobe Dean, but he spurned that offer and went elsewhere. In the end, Dallas ended up right where they started, and that’s in dire need of defensive upgrades.
Years of free agent failures have taken their toll on the Cowboys defense. Whether it’s ill-advised internal extensions or lackluster external attempts, Dallas has brought this on themselves. With two first-round picks in the coming draft, it’s essentially “defense or bust” for Dallas.
.@AdamSchefter also mentions WR Jordyn Tyson as a name to watch for the #Cowboys in Round 1.“…So let’s keep our eyes on Dallas figuring out a way to get up the board for [Sonny] Styles or [Arvell] Reese, and let’s see which defensive hole they decide to fill…but I do think… https://t.co/Q6Ke8bdyrq pic.twitter.com/rbCyJBueBa
To even suggest they should pick the best player available in the draft (BPA) is like a call to arms throughout fan circles. BPA is apparently a luxury the NFL’s last ranked defense doesn’t get to enjoy. With reports the Cowboys are high on receivers Jordyn Tyson and Omar Cooper Jr., some fans and media are crashing out at the idea of drafting offense this Thursday even if offense is the BPA at the time of the pick.
If 2026 really is a win-now season and the Cowboys really are trying to take advantage of the current window, then BPA might indeed be foolish. But what actions have the Cowboys taken this offseason that suggest they are all-in on the window and are dedicated to win-now in a way they haven’t been before? Sure, the Cowboys invested a little more in free agency, but it wasn’t massive. It wasn’t even league average. It was one guy and a bunch of role players.
The Cowboys' front office knows the situation they are in because they put themselves here. Dallas’ defensive needs seem dire because, for the wellbeing of the incoming season, the immediate needs are dire. But if the front office isn’t as all-in on 2026 as they may have implied earlier in the offseason, maybe there is room for an offensive player under some BPA-like conditions.
Everyone’s about to get a really good idea of what the front office wants this season because they are exactly where their actions, or lack thereof, put them.
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This article originally appeared on Cowboys Wire: Repeated FA failures placed Cowboys in 'draft defensive or die' mode