PFF’s 2020 redraft exercise leaves Cowboys thin

There’s no question that 2020 was, overall, a fantastic draft for the Cowboys. Of the team’s seven picks that year, two have already been to a Pro Bowl; CeeDee Lamb as a 1,100-yard receiver and Trevon Diggs as the league’s interception leader. Tyler Biadasz took over the starting center job a month into his rookie campaign, and Neville Gallimore has become a key contributor in the team’s interior defensive line rotation.

Reggie Robinson II and Bradlee Anae are playing for new teams now, and Ben DiNucci remains buried on the Cowboys depth chart at quarterback, but the hits definitely outweigh the misses when looking at 2020 in hindsight.

Not every team can say the same. Pro Football Focus has done a hypothetical redraft of 2020. Using what we know now, what should teams have done with their first-round picks that year?

Thankfully, it’s just a what-if exercise, because the Cowboys come away with far less in this alternate reality than they got in real life.

8. Arizona Cardinals: WR CeeDee Lamb

Oct 19, 2020; Arlington, Texas, USA; Dallas Cowboys wide receiver CeeDee Lamb (88) is tackled by Arizona Cardinals safety Deionte Thompson in the third quarter at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports

With the eighth pick in 2020, Arizona originally selected linebacker Isaiah Simmons. The Clemson product started all 17 games for the Cardinals last year and finished 2021 as the team’s third-leading tackler. He’s recorded 3.5 sacks, two interceptions, five forced fumbles, and eight TFLs in two seasons.

Solid, but he’s no CeeDee Lamb. But as PFF’s Ben Linsey points out:

“Wide receiver wasn’t a glaring need for Arizona entering the 2020 draft. The Cardinals had just added DeAndre Hopkins to a receiving corps that also featured Christian Kirk, Larry Fitzgerald, and 2019 second-round pick Andy Isabella. However, they would have been wise to target a receiver like Lamb rather than Simmons (49.7 PFF grade in…