The Dallas Cowboys were not shy about their desire to land a top receiver in the draft, but in the end, the team opted not to trade up instead selecting Tulsa offensive lineman Tyler Smith at No. 24. Locked on Cowboys’ Marcus Mosher reported the team attempted to move up on draft night to land USC wideout Drake London, Ohio State receiver Chris Olave or Mississippi State’s offensive lineman Charles Cross.
“Again, some of this is based off what we’re hearing and behind-the-scenes stuff, but the Cowboys were looking to trade up for Drake London or Charles Cross,” Mosher explained on the April 28 edition of “Locked On Cowboys.” Drake London goes eight, it’s far too high to trade up. Charles Cross goes nine to Seattle, I believe, too far to trade up. At that point, at least it seemed like the Cowboys were going to be patient and wait.
“Again, this is a little bit of what I’ve heard, maybe it’s not completely true but they put in an offer to go up and try to get Chris Olave. They tried, didn’t get enough. The Saints ended up giving a better offer. I think they gave up a third and fourth from pick 16 to go and do that. The Cowboys couldn’t get it, and at that point, I think they just waited.”
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Olave: ‘I Feel Like Everybody Want to Go There & Play for the Dallas Cowboys’
Asked @chrisolave_ on #Cowboys: “That would be huge just to be along @_CeeDeeThree 🐑, one of the best young WRs in NFL. Then with @dak & that offense, @EzekielElliott. It’s America’s Team so I feel like everybody want to go there & play for the Dallas Cowboys.” #dc4l #NFLDraft
Ultimately, the Cowboys decided to stick and pick Smith at No. 24. On the eve of the draft, Heavy had an opportunity to speak with both London and Olave about the Cowboys’ rumored interest. Olave in particular sounded particularly high on playing for the Cowboys, but the Saints were able to top Dallas’ offer to move up to snag the Buckeyes receiver.
“That would be huge just to be along CeeDee Lamb, one of the best young wide receivers in NFL,” Olave told Heavy on April 27. “Then with Dak and that offense, Ezekiel Elliott. It’s America’s Team so I feel like everybody want to go there and play for the Dallas Cowboys.”
Days before the draft, there was a growing buzz the Cowboys could attempt to trade up to snag London. The star USC receiver was one of the team’s 30 pre-draft visits. Dallas’ 105.3 The Fan’s Bobby Belt reported that “the whole [Cowboys] room loves Drake London.” When asked about the rumors, London discussed the possibility of joining the Cowboys.
“To be honest, I went over there and had a visit with them [Cowboys], one of the 30-day visits,” London told Heavy on April 27. “That was pretty, pretty cool. Also too, I have some family out there [Dallas area]. I have a great-grandma that’s out there. I have a god-brother that’s out there. So, that’d be pretty cool if that happened.”
The Cowboys Selected WR Jalen Tolbert With the No. 88 Pick
The Cowboys may have missed out on Olave and London but later helped solidify their wide receiver depth chart by selecting Jalen Tolbert in the third round with the No. 88 pick. Cowboys vice president of player personnel Will McClay detailed why Tolbert was a great fit for the Dallas offense.
“With Jalen Tolbert, it’s a wide receiver that can play multiple spots,” McClay said during the team’s April 29 press conference. “He’s got size, he’s extremely intelligent and the type of player that you want to grow in that room because of his intelligence, his relationship that he’s formed already with the quarterback [Dak Prescott] from the conversation and those sort of things that you think that the upside is there because he’s an NFL style receiver, body style, size, ability to find space, to play inside and outside. So, that versatility made him very attractive to us.”
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Cowboys Attempted to Trade for Star Receiver: Report