The player is uncertain, but history suggests the Dallas Cowboys will hit with first pick

With the 26th pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, the Dallas Cowboys select . . .

As of now, owner Jerry Jones, vice president Stephen Jones, coach Mike McCarthy and scouting chief Will McClay don’t know whose name they will turn into NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell on Thursday when the first round commences.

With the 26th pick, the Cowboys are at the liberty of the team’s picking in front of them.

And considering the expecting volatility of what is expected to be one of the most uncertain first rounds in years, it’s anybody’s guess as to who will be on the board when it’s the Cowboys turn to pick.

“You’re not going to know anything close to what we might do because I don’t,” Jerry Jones aptly said during a pre-draft press conference on Monday.

Said Stephen Jones: “I just feel like where we’re picking at No. 26, it’s so difficult to know right now. You’ve got to let the draft play out, and that takes hours. It will be, if you will, a game-day decision in terms of how that things fall.”

Depending on what happens before them, that game-day decision could include the Cowboys playing a little option quarterback.

The work the team did in free agency and offseason, highlighted by the trades for cornerback Stephon Gilmore and Brandin Cooks, has allowed the Cowboys to take a pure approach to the first round. They don’t have to force a need and thus can take the best available player with a running back, tight end, offensive lineman, edge rusher or cornerback as the most likely options.

It also could result in the Cowboys trading up for a player like Texas star running back Bijan Robinson, or they could trade back to acquire more picks.

“I do catch myself thinking about trade,” Jerry Jones said. “When you catch yourself at the bottom of that draft, it’s only natural to think about might there be something up there. We may be interested in going down, or, maybe up. Or we might sit there, but keep us on your mind.”

If the Cowboys do stand pat or trade down, among the potential options are tight ends Michael Mayer and Dalton Kincaid, receivers Quentin Johnson and Zay Flowers, cornerbacks Emmanuel Forbes and Cam Smith and edge rusher Nolan Smith, Derick Hall and Will McDonald and offensive linemen Steve Ovila and O’Cyrus Torrence.

Stephen Jones said the Cowboys will have a group of players they hope to hone in on Thursday.

“It’s tough to crystal ball it,” Stephen Jones said. “We’re projecting right here. We don’t even know who’s going to take what, but we’d like to think there’s going to be a group of guys that we’re going to be pleased with.”

“Being down there at 26, I’m an optimist,” McCarthy added. “I have great confidence that there will be a helluva football player there.”

History suggests that whatever happens on Thursday, the Cowboys come away with a good prospect.

Since 2014 when McClay took control of the team’s scouting department, every Cowboys first-round pick but one has made the Pro Bowl. Six have been named first-team All-Pro.

That list includes cornerback Byron Jones, guard Zack Martin, running back Ezekiel Elliott, linebacker Leighton Vander Esch, receiver CeeDee Lamb and linebacker Micah Parsons.

And that doesn’t include 2022 top pick Tyler Smith, who started 17 games as a rookie last season and projected to be the anchor at left tackle for years to come.

Who’s next?