The Dallas Cowboys were able to both pick for depth and fill a hole at No. 76with East Carolina cornerback Shavon Revel Jr.
Revel fell to the third round due to an ACL injury sustained in September; otherwise, the consensus is that he would have been a first-round pick.
The 6-3, 193-pounder posted three interceptions in two years as a starter in college and added 12 pass deflections in 2023.
USA Today's Bucs Wire predicted each team's biggest surprise from this year's draft, and picked Revel for the Dallas Cowboys.
"The team was ecstatic to see Revel fall to the second round in April’s draft, but didn’t pull the trigger. Somehow, he made it to the third round," K.D. Drummond with Cowboys Wire wrote. "With Dallas clearly looking to end their investment in Trevon Diggs, Revel will be given every possible chance to prove he’s a capable boundary corner once he’s given the green light following his ACL recovery, that might delay his debut until October.
"Once he makes it to the field, though, fans shouldn’t be surprised if he’s one of the better rookie DBs in the game."
Dallas lost Jourdan Lewis in free agency and Trevon Diggs has his own injury questions after suffering an ACL injury for the second season in a row.
DaRon Bland is entering the final year of his contract also making his future in Dallas uncertain.
Across three seasons at East Carolina, Revel posted 70 combined tackles with 37 solo and five for loss. He added a sack, three interceptions, including a pick-6, and a fumble recovery for a touchdown.