Dallas Cowboys select Kentucky CB Kelvin Joseph with second-round pick in NFL Draft
After drafting an instant-impact performer in Penn State linebacker Micah Parsons with the 12th pick in the first round on Thursday, the Dallas Cowboys headed into the second round Friday hoping to continue to bolster a defense that was one of the worst in franchise history in 2020.
It proved to be mission accomplished as they filled their biggest need by taking Kentucky cornerback Kelvin Joseph in the second round, 44th overall.
The Cowboys had initially targeted South Carolina Jaycee Horn and Alabama’s Patrick Surtain II in the first round, but the team was forced to pivot when they were no longer available.
TCU safety Trevon Moehrig was also an option, but he was selected one slot earlier by the Las Vegas Raiders.
The 6-foot-1, 197-pound Joseph is also an explosive player who fits what defensive coordinator Dan Quinn wants in size, length and athleticism at cornerback to both man and zone coverages.
He has considerable upside potential, but there remains a question of whether he can come in and start immediately opposite Trevon Diggs.
Joseph transferred to Kentucky from LSU and sat out the 2019 season. He played only nine games in 2020, opting out of the final two contests.
Still, his ball skills are undeniable as he tallied four interceptions and five pass deflections in just the nine games.
The Cowboys got a cornerback, but they also got rapper who goes by the name YKDV Bossman Fat.
Joseph said he was a chubby baby and his family affectionately dubbed him “Fat.” He added “Bossman” when he was in middle school.
Joseph has released several albums and singles as YKDV Bossman Fat. He said rapping is just a hobby, and that it doesn’t take away from his focus on football.
“Football is what I have been doing my whole life,” Joseph said. “I haven’t been practicing and sweating and bleeding for no reason. This is what I’m going to do to feed my family, feed my son and change my future.”
The Cowboys will need him all in.
Defense has been a huge priority since the end of the 2020 season when they set a franchise record for points allowed and gave more yards and rushing yards than any unit ever.
They signed seven defensive players in free agency.
And after used their first two draft picks on defense, they made it five for five by taking UCLA defensive tackle Osa Odighiwuza 75th overall followed by Iowa DE Chauncey Golston with the 84th and Oregon State cornerbaack Nahshon Wright 99th.
It was the first time the Cowboys took five straight defenders to start the draft since 1982 when they nabbed cornerback Rod Hill in the first round, linebackers Jeff Rohrer and Jim Eliopulos in the second and third rounds and defensive backs Brian Carpenter and Monty Hunter in the fourth.
They have never done it since Jerry Jones bought the team in 1989.
Odighiwuza, a three-year starter for UCLA, has explosive inside pass-rush ability. He had four sacks in 2020.
In four seasons at UCLA, he had 120 tackles, 27.5 tackles for losses and 11.5 sacks.
The 6-foot-5, 268-pound Golston projects as an ideal 4-3 defensive end. He had 45 tackles, 8.5 tackles for losses, 5.5 sacks and an interception in eight games last season.
At 6-4, 183, Wright is another scheme fit for Quinn, who prefers long and athletic cornerbacks.
Wright was projected to go later in the draft by most draft pundits but Quinn knows what he is looking for and wants in his defense. He had the 6-3 Richard Sherman and the 6-4 Brandon Browner at cornerback during his time with the Seattle Seahawks.
Wright considers himself more athletic and more agile than Sherman, a perennial Pro Bowler and leader of the Legion of Boom secondary that led the Seahawks to a Super Bowl championship.
The Cowboys have six more selections in the final four rounds on Saturday.
Will they continue to target defenders?
This story was originally published April 30, 2021 at 7:21 PM.
