FRISCO, Texas — The Dallas Cowboys claimed they were going to take “the best player on the board” with the 12th overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, and they decided to fill a need along their offensive line with the selection of Alabama Crimson Tide All-American guard Tyler Booker.
Dallas took the best true guard prospect in this draft class. He only allowed two sacks on 979 career pass-blocking snaps in college at Alabama, and he’s also young, having just turned 21 years old on April 12. However, the Cowboys will be attempting to flip an offensive lineman to the opposite side of the line for the second year in a row. In 2024, they took Tyler Guyton in the opening round and moved him to left tackle despite him being a right tackle for Oklahoma. In Booker, they’ll flip a left guard to right guard to replace the recently retired, seven-time first-team All-Pro Zack Martin.
Cowboys owner and general manager Jerry Jones did say at his pre-draft press conference on Tuesday that he believes the offensive line matters more than the person carrying the football in the run game, and he certainly doubled down on that notion with the selection of Booker at pick No. 12.
Dallas likely looked at quarterback Dak Prescott tearing his hamstring in Week 9 at the Atlanta Falcons and vowed to never let that happen again. Its projected offensive line now reads as follows: Guyton at left tackle, two-time Pro Bowler Tyler Smith at left guard, 2024 third-round pick Cooper Beebe at center, Booker at right guard and Terence Steele at right tackle. NFC East rival and Super Bowl LIX champion Philadelphia Eagles have built themselves through the trenches, and the Cowboys are apparently doing the same.
Tyler Booker NFL Draft grade: B-
“He is one of my favorite offensive linemen in this draft. He’s a mauler. He is a little limited in terms of athletic ability, but he works for the Cowboys as they try and get better up front. But why not receiver here?” — Pete Prisco
Join us for live 2025 NFL Draft analysis from CBS Sports and an updating NFL Draft tracker. Also check out Pete Prisco’s NFL Draft grades for every first-round pick and subscribe to the “With the First Pick” podcast for nightly recaps, winners and losers and more from Green Bay.
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