NFL Draft: Are Cowboys Zeroing In On CB Henderson at 17?

NFL Draft Experts With A Good Feel For the Dallas Cowboys' Thinking at No. 17 Pinpoint This Cornerback As The Possible Pick. Here's Why ...

FRISCO - A couple of NFL Draft experts with good ears to the ground when it comes to gauging the thoughts of the Dallas Cowboys have attached this team, picking at No. 17 in April, to cornerback C.J. Henderson. Here's the thinking behind that ...

*As much we talk in this space about "not drafting for need,'' the Cowboys are losing Byron Jones to free agency (to Miami) as for a. One thing the top-paid guy at the position at $16.5 mil APY. Anthony Brown is back on a three-year deal but next spring, Chidobe Awuzie and Jourdan Lewis are free.

So, Dallas has a "need'' to start re-loading at the position, somehow.

*Enter C.J. Henderson, who according to the buzz around him certainly wouldn't be a reach at 17. From NFL Draft expert Dane Brugler:

"He’s big, long, he’s fast, should run in the low 4.4’s (in the 40-yard dash). He has excellent speed. The worries with him are tackling. He’s an inconsistent tackler. He just needs to be a better finisher, in terms of that he’s in position but he needs to make more plays on the football. That’s also why we’re talking about him as a possibility with the 17th pick and not a top-10 pick. 

"But I think he’s a terrific athlete. All of his coaches in high school thought he was a better track athlete, just because he was so fast. He’s such a ridiculous athlete. Henderson is a guy at this point that I would lean to as being that next-best corner.''

*"Next-best,'' that is, behind Jeff Okudah of Ohio State. Assuming the Cowboys agree with the idea of Henderson high, there will be no need to move around in the draft, to sacrifice capital to chase Okudah.

*Bryan Broaddus, the long-time NFL scout now with 105.3 The Fan, tells me teams will likely put a "first-round grade'' on Henderson, another solid endorsement.

*Would Henderson step right in and be the No. 1 corner? Maybe not. More likely: Awuzie would have that job (assuming Jones leaves), and Lewis would be the other starting corner. But in Nickel, Lewis would move inside and Henderson would play the corner.

It's an affordable way to work a roster; figure the No. 17 pick will be slotted in at a salary that pays him $3.5 million annually. If that guy is "the next Byron,'' you've hit the jackpot.

If he's not? Well, that's the dart-throw that is NFL scouting. Again, though, it's such a viable way of operating that if you're the Cowboys you wish you had two cracks at this so.

But Henderson replacing Byron? That's an easy guess here.