Dallas Cowboys get some help for the defense with star struck Alabama CB Trevon Diggs
After surprisingly going with an offensive player in wide receiver CeeDee Lamb in the first round on Thursday, the Dallas Cowboys got down to business of filling much needed holes on defense in the second round of the 2020 NFL Draft on Friday.
The Cowboys chose Alabama cornerback Trevon Diggs with the 51st overall pick.
It filled a huge need after the Cowboys lost Byron Jones to Miami Dolphins in free agency.
The Cowboys weighed trading up in the second round but ultimately stood pat and took the 6-foot-1, 205 pound Diggs, the brother of Buffalo Bills receiver Stefon Diggs. Ironically, Diggs was the players were trying to trade up to get.
“We started the day off and went right up until we drafted working with trades and trying to decide if we wanted to trade up,” owner Jerry Jones said. “That was a consideration. But the thing of course about this trading thing now is that you have to have someone to trade with. You’ve got to be ready and you’ve got to do all the work in case someone wants to make a trade with you.”
“Frankly, we really had some that we couldn’t get that would have caused us to move up to get the people we got (Diggs),” Jones said.
Jerry Jones said the board simply fell right for the Cowboys who estimated before the draft that they had a one percent chance of getting Diggs at 51.
Vice president Stephen Jones echoed that thought.
“You don’t want to say everything is a surprise, but obviously when you’re targeting guys and you got guys that you hope might be there, it’s nice to see them show up,’’ Stephen Jones said. “Certainly, to have Diggs there, candidly, was a surprise to us. That’s something that at the end of the day to get a player like that with that type of quality in the second round, you feel good about it.”
Diggs had a feeling that he was coming to the Cowboys after the virtual pre-draft interview in which he felt he hit off with the staff.
But he hoped to be going a lot earlier, like possibly in the first round.
The disappointment in his draft position dissipated with the phone call from owner Jerry Jones on Friday night.
“It was amazing. I was starstruck. That was Jerry Jones,” Diggs said when asked to describe his emotions. “I have always been a Cowboys fan. I am thankful I am happy to play for the Dallas Cowboys. The first round didn’t go how I wanted it to but I ended up where I wanted to go.”
Diggs is a big, physical cornerback who has a chance to develop into a shutdown cover guy. He was solid at Alabama but is considered an ascending player.
The team hoped one of three coveted safeties might be on the board but Alabama’s Xavier McKinney, LSU’s Grant Delpit and Minnesota’s Antoine Winfield Jr went to the New York Giants, Cleveland Browns and Tampa Bay Buccaneers before the Cowboys had a chance to pick.
But after taking Lamb on Thursday, the Cowboys felt the had several options to help the defense on Friday.
They got things started with Diggs, who had three interceptions and tied for Alabama’s team lead with eight pass breakups.
Diggs, a former wide receiver, hopes to help the Cowboys get interceptions.
“I can attack the ball,” Diggs said. “It’s like you have a wide receiver who is playing cornerback. I don’t want pass breakups. I want interceptions.”
The Cowboys tied for last in the NFL in interceptions last year and took a step back at cornerback following the loss of Jones. The team added developmental prospects in Maurice Canady and Saivion Smith in free agency to go with holdovers Chidobe Awuzie, Anthony Brown and Jourdan Lewis.
But they believe Diggs fills the need for a true playmaker.
“He’s so competitive at the breaking point of routes and does a great job of sitting on the breaking point of routes and then turns himself into a receiver,” coach Mike Mike McCarthy said. “I’ve had the opportunity to coach the quarterback position and be part of the offense for decades in this league. When you’re not as concerned about a Deion Sanders, or guys that will take the ball away from you, you play with a different mindset as a quarterback to the receivers.
“You’re a lot more aggressive with your back shoulder throws and you just play at a different level and confidence when you don’t fear the defensive coverage. Trevon brings that element to Dallas with his game, so I think he definitely has tremendous ball skills.”
This story was originally published April 24, 2020 at 7:37 PM.
