I know both Stephen and Jerry gave emphatic support to Dak for the future, but does the team's standing after the second half of the season affect their decision? Finishing with a mid-round pick makes the choice more clear. I would think you extend Dak and draft defense. However, with a top 5 pick, wouldn't you have to consider taking a QB and using the savings from Dak's extension to rebuild the defense? – ROBERT LECLERC / PRINCE GEORGE, BC
David: I'm not trying to sound controversial here, but that's exactly why I take everything with a grain of salt until the big picture looks a little clearer. It was just two years ago that Arizona swore up and down that Josh Rosen was their guy – only to draft Kyler Murray No. 1 overall a few months later. I'm a firm believer in Dak Prescott, and I think he'll get an extension here in Dallas. But the Cowboys are going to have a lot of angles to consider here in the next six months, depending on where they finish in the draft order.
Rob: What Dave said makes a lot of sense. It's just way too early to be going down this road. But I do buy what the front office is saying. The most logical decision here, and what I expect to happen in the offseason, is let the offense get healthy at quarterback and offensive tackle and tight end and run it back in 2021. Let's be honest: if everyone's healthy it's a really good group. (And yes, I still think the Dak deal will get done next year.) There's still almost half the season to make progress on defense, but I would expect a heavier emphasis there in the draft, if for no other reason than several players have expiring deals on that side of the ball.
While this year has been a huge disappointment, one glowing bright spot is this year's draft class. While we will limp through the remainder of the season, fighting the ever present injury bug, it now appears that this year's draft class, at the very least, will produce four future starters with Lamb, Biadasz, Gallimore & Diggs and at best two, three or all may have Pro Bowl potential. With that said and as we enter this bye week, how do you rank or how would you grade this class versus drafts in the past? – JOHN WALKER / AUSTIN, TX
David: You never want to judge too soon with draft classes, but yes this one certainly looks like it might be special. The Cowboys draft pretty well just as a general rule. People don't realize it, but that 2018 class is looking pretty nice right now, with Leighton Vander Esch, Connor Williams, Michael Gallup, Dalton Schultz and Cedrick Wilson all playing important roles for this team. But if this current class keeps producing at the level we're seeing, it might be the best group since the 2016 class that brought us Dak and Zeke.
Rob: The 2018 draft produced three starters with the first three picks (Leighton Vander Esch, Connor Williams, Michael Gallup) and three more players who have earned rotation spots (Dorance Armstrong, Dalton Schultz, Cedrick Wilson). If this year's class can match that, they'll be in good shape. CeeDee Lamb has a chance to be a star, obviously, and getting him at 17 will always boost the overall grade. It's way too early to draw conclusions about the entire class, but yeah, it's definitely got some potential.
