Dallas Cowboys Mock Draft: Complete Predictions, Post-Scouting Combine

With the NFL Scouting Combine now complete, the Dallas Cowboys can finally begin focusing on the 2013 NFL draft coming in April.

Like every other year, this upcoming draft class offers plenty of candidates to fill numerous holes on a Dallas roster that has more than a few to fill. Owner and general manager Jerry Jones has made sure of that, following bad trades and wasted draft picks over the past several seasons.

But Dallas has drafted better as of late and with the cupboard well stocked with most skill-position players, it will be time to focus on an area long ignored by Jones—the trenches, and you can choose either side of the ball.

Yes, free-agent talent, or lack thereof, was brought in last year to bolster an offensive line that showed no improvement from the year before. Only Jones could find a way to whiff on, not one, but two offensive guards.

But despite the fact that many fans and especially Dallas media believe that the Cowboys will spend numerous early picks on the offensive line, I don't believe it will be this drastic.

Dallas has not drafted a guard in the first round of the annual selection meeting since 1966 and it sure seems like it is due—but it will not.

Yes, the offensive line, along with the defensive front, will be addressed early and perhaps often. But with the salary-cap situation that Jones has dug himself into, it sure doesn't look like a ton of resources will be spent on more interior blockers for quarterback Tony Romo.

This is even more likely in the wake of Jones' recent comments about how Romo can handle running for his life, which he can.

But at what cost?

I suppose this will be answered once Romo's contract is extended which should secure his retirement with America's Team—and yes, the Cowboys are still America's Team.

Sorry, Pittsburgh fans.

So here's a look at how the draft could unfold post-scouting combine but prior to the free-agent signing period beginning March 12. Until there's a better perspective on contract restructuring or players released, this is what Dallas is looking like.

All combine results are courtesy of NFL.com.

Round 6: Sean Porter, OLB, Texas A&M

With the well-documented switch to the 4-3 defensive scheme heading into 2013, there has been much talk of the Cowboys eyeing defensive tackles in the draft. Next most discussed is who exactly will take over at defensive end with free-agent Anthony Spencer apparently on the way out.

But what about linebacker?

Yes, the 4-3 alignment will utilize, more often than not, smaller and quicker linebackers than the antiquated 3-4 scheme now resting in a dumpster somewhere outside Valley Ranch. The Cowboys do not have many linebackers for any scheme at the moment.

It's true that Dallas is off to a great start with Sean Lee and Bruce Carter, both linebackers who played the coming scheme in college.

But who else?

As of right now, there is nobody.

So enter Sean Porter of Texas A&M.

Porter has been in a similar situation that Dallas is in over the last couple of seasons.

Von Miller was the second player chosen in the 2011 NFL draft out of the same school and instantly became a volatile pass rusher in the NFL as an outside linebacker. But then the Aggies switched their scheme to the 4-3 last season and Miller's heir apparent, Porter, ended up playing outside linebacker in the new system.

Now, this move certainly put a dent in Porter´s anticipated sack total in 2012, but this has little to do with him as a player. Linebackers are not the sack artists in the 4-3 that they are expected to be in the 3-4.

Porter is quick, instinctive and athletic enough to cover running backs in the flat or tight ends down the middle. Assuming he plays the weak side, his experience rushing some in college will only give Dallas another linebacker that can cover and also apply some pressure on the quarterback.

Porter really can do it all, and the more playmakers the better.

Round 5: Tyrann Mathieu, S/CB, LSU

Okay, I'm not going to run down the off-the-field issues surrounding this highly visible player who was kicked of the LSU football team prior to the season. This has been done to death and the only focus here is what the player formerly known as the ''Honey Badger'' could bring to Dallas.

Tyrann Mathieu is a talent, especially when there is All-American talent in front of him creating havoc for the quarterback.

Cornerback Mike Jenkins is an unrestricted free-agent and it appears likely he will not be in Dallas in 2013. The current salary cap situation will probably prevent the Cowboys from retaining their former first-round selection.

Mathieu, should he fall this far, would be one of those risks that Jones likes to take. In other words, when the potential reward is high while combined with a relatively low risk, then you should do it.

Drafting Mathieu, especially in this position, would represent both the splash and the need that the Cowboys have—hardly the same as going to Vegas with your paycheck believing that if you hand it over, you'll get much more in return.

Further, Jones is probably not in position to make the kind of headlines that he did with cornerback Morris Claiborne last year.

Jones has never shied away from character concerns surrounding a player. Names like Terrell Owens, Dez Bryant and even Adam Jones speak to that truth.

Adding Mathieu would kill a few birds with one stone for the Cowboys.

It could also be a benefit adding him to a secondary that already includes a former teammate in Claiborne.

Round 4: Sylvester Williams, DT, UNC

Dallas defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin is likely to have more than a little input in the 2013 NFL draft. His track record of running successful defenses will be on center stage as the selection process begins.

The defensive line is a huge area of need and because I don't know for certain that the Cowboys take a tackle at the beginning, I have the Cowboys actually waiting to address this area until later—certainly doesn't mean that I'm right, though.

Sylvester Williams was off to a quick start last season, chalking up five sacks in the first six games. I would explain his lack of sacks in the second half of the season to both better competition and also more focus from opponents.

His combination of size and speed is likely to take him off the board before the fourth round but this is not a certainty by any means.

Williams posted a time of under five seconds in the 40-yard dash, and his strength is more than adequate to play in the NFL.

Dallas could certainly go in a few different directions in the draft where the defensive line is concerned. But given other areas that are just as important, if not more dire, getting a defensive tackle of Williams' quality this late would be a steal.

The Cowboys will not take a tackle just to have one. This player has to fit, and Williams absolutely does.

Round 3: Larry Warford, OG, Kentucky

The Cowboys have not taken an offensive guard in the first round of any NFL draft since 1966.

Do you really believe this will be the year that it changes?

I'm certainly not saying that Jones won't take this route, especially following last year's double-play at guard in free agency. But the odds suggest that this will not happen, and I don't necessarily think that it has to.

On the contrary, the interior of the Dallas offensive line needs improvement and the biggest area of concern isn't pass protection. The pink elephant in the room that few seem to recognize is that the Cowboys cannot run the football.

Larry Warford of Kentucky changes that problem as soon as he is selected. Warford is an old-school power blocker that the Cowboys have not had since Leonard Davis.

While he doesn't possess the same natural strength as Hall of Fame lineman Larry Allen—and nobody does—he is still a great technician on the inside and will only fall some because he doesn't look to be a tackle candidate in the future.

Kentucky was not a very good team last year, but Warford was a man among boys and his selection instantly changes the dynamic of a tepid and tired rushing attack which has plagued the Cowboys for far too long.

Absent the selection of Chance Warmack or Johnathan Cooper in the first round, Warford surpasses the upside of D.J. Fluker, whose disappointing 21 reps on the bench press at the combine will cause a serious fall.

Power and strength are two elements that opposing defensive can't do much about.

Dallas could use plenty of that up front—and so could running back DeMarco Murray.

Round 2: Margus Hunt, DE, SMU

I understand that the NFL Scouting Combine offers a unique perspective for NFL owners, scouts and fans. It's easy to get carried away with 40 times and all of the other stats and data accumulated.

But the term ''workout-warrior'' has to be taken with a grain of salt because there are players that will not have great numbers at the combine while moving on to great careers in the NFL.

On the contrary, you have prospects each year that tear the combine apart and then find themselves out of football in just a few years.

Margus Hunt of SMU had a stellar combine and this was to be expected. The native of Estonia is a well-accomplished track and field athlete who has the physical tools to show up a number of other prospects in a setting such as the combine.

But again, size and strength are two elements that are too critical to ignore in the NFL and when you find it, you take it.

Should Hunt, who stands 6'8'' and weighs 277 pounds, fall into the second round in April, he should not have to travel any distance from the SMU campus in Dallas to continue his football career.

Hunt blocks kicks like few ever have and his wingspan reminds me of a modern day Ed ''Too Tall'' Jones, of Doomsday legend.

Hunt is raw, having only played football for a few seasons, but I am not so sure that he does not sneak into the first round.

But if Dallas has a shot at this unique player, it has to grab a prospect with this kind of upside to man a defensive-end position that doesn't have an obvious candidate, especially with the likely departure of linebacker Spencer.

The Cowboys will move DeMarcus Ware from outside linebacker to defensive end, but Spencer won't be manning the opposite side despite the fact he was also an end in college at Purdue.

So who will?

I vote for Hunt.

Round 1: Lane Johnson, RT, Oklahoma

Doug Free struggled last season, and that is putting it mildly. It just wasn't expected that after two years at left tackle, he would experience such a drop off by simply shifting back to his natural position on the right.

This game of musical tackles that Jones has been playing for years stops in 2013. Romo cannot afford to keep on running for his life every week. While I do believe that the interior of the offensive line will be addressed, tackle is another area that has to become settled, once and for all.

With Tyron Smith, a natural right tackle heading into his second season on the left side, the Cowboys have to figure out who plays where and leave it alone.

I think that Dallas will be inclined to leave Smith where he is and seriously look for some insurance for the right side in the event that Free doesn't hold up. I'm not positive that Free is even on the roster without a significant restructuring of his ridiculous contract.

Lane Johnson is likely to be on the board when Dallas chooses first, presumably with the 18th selection. Johnson has been a solid blocker with the Sooners and has shown to help keep Oklahoma quarterback Landry Jones on his feet while these two played together in Norman.

Johnson projects as a right tackle despite his one year on the left in 2012. With prospects like Eric Fisher and Luke Joeckel already off the board, selecting Johnson would make a lot of sense. Fisher and Joeckel are considered NFL ready and that might not be the case with Johnson, but the ex-Sooner should not take long.

Like it or not, Free is a Cowboy still and until other offseason events suggest otherwise, I have to assume that he is in Dallas next season. If he is in Dallas, he'll be playing until somebody beats him out.

Johnson might need some time to do this, but I would invite him to give it a shot right away, seeing as how Free doesn't exactly bring a lot of confidence to the brass at Valley Ranch. Johnson has tremendous height for the position and has some room to get a little bigger.

Yes, the offensive line needs work but it is not the disaster that many think, including some that actually believe the Cowboys will use their first three selections on the offensive line.

This is simply not reality.

But Dallas will address the offensive line early, and a tackle will always have a higher positional value in the middle of Round 1 than a guard.

This is my story—but I'm not necessarily sticking to it!