The 2018 Dallas Cowboys’ Draft Needs & the Best Picks from 2017

The NFL Draft is one of my favorite sports times of the year. Aside from December and January, which hold the NFL Playoffs and the College Bowl season, the NFL Draft weekend rivals opening weekend of college football for the best weekend in sports.

Every team is full of hope that they find the diamond in the rough that transforms their franchise. It's a time where even the historically bad teams are just as important, if not more important, than the great teams. The coverage of the draft has skyrocketed in the last few seasons. Now that it's a traveling road show with past and current stars announcing early picks, it's gotten even more exciting.

The best moment in the 2017 draft, held in Philadelphia, was when Dallas Cowboys legend Drew Pearson got up and delivered this epic pick announcement:

The 2018 NFL Draft being held in Dallas, Texas is sure to be electric, and will no doubt feature an Eagle trying to top Pearson's delivery.

The 2017 draft was not as flashy as the 2016 draft that yielded Dak Prescott and Ezekiel Elliott on offense and Maliek Collins on defense, but there are arguably five players from the 2017 draft that will be big contributors on this year's team.

The secondary was completely revamped with Jourdan Lewis, Chido Awuzie and Xavier Woods providing valuable snaps as rookies and are firmly entrenched in plans for 2018. Noah Brown took a big step in the right direction as a wide receiver who was drafted in the 7th round and played in multiple games as a rookie. Brown arguably had a better season than 3rd round pick Ryan Switzer, who was a dud in year one.

Moving into 2018, wide receiver remains a huge need for the Dallas Cowboys, especially after losing Dez Bryant and Brice Butler.

On offense, the second biggest need is left guard, where the Cowboys could potentially draft a starter in round 3 or 4 and left tackle. Tyron Smith looked old and injured in 2017 during his 7th season in the league and second straight year missing three starts. He's only 27, but his back and leg injuries don't allow him to be as dominant as he once was.

On the defensive side of the ball, the corner position and defensive end position that have been huge holes the last few drafts won't be the emphasis this year. The linebacker unit is depleted, and there are no real answers at safety right now with Byron Jones moving back into a corner role.

Along with linebacker and safety, this Rod Marinelli front seven needs an anchor in the middle of the defensive line to play the one technique beside 2016 draftee Maliek Collins.

As far as what order those needs get filled is a complete mystery. If the Cowboys can get a trade worked out with the Seattle Seahawks for Earl Thomas, who desperately wants to be a Cowboy, then that eliminates the need to draft a safety and probably limits what else you can draft.

The first round pick could fill the DT spot. There are three receiver names floating around for a 1st round Cowboys pick. There are also two linebacker selections that I have seen in the first round for the Cowboys.

The Cowboys drafts, contrary to popular opinion, have been very safe and calculated since 2012, and that's why the Cowboys have one of the best roster in the NFL. That said, for the Cowboys to compete for a Super Bowl in 2018, they need to find at least three day one starters at DT, LB and WR.