IRVING -- The Cowboys' draft class is complete, with nine new additions -- but the analysis and angst, celebration and confusion endure.
Two players from the first three rounds could be expected to start this season in running back Ezekiel Elliott, the No. 4 overall pick, and perhaps defensive tackle Maliek Collins, selected in the third round.
Only time will provide a definitive grade, which will be weighted heavily on the fortunes of Notre Dame linebacker Jaylon Smith, Dallas' second-round pick coming off major knee surgery and a long shot to play this season.
"Realistically you have to put an 'if' in front of everybody's first two picks," owner Jerry Jones said as the draft concluded Saturday evening at Valley Ranch.
But with rookie minicamp ahead Friday through Sunday, we sort through the details of Dallas' latest draft decisions.
Defense
Dallas picked five defensive players in its first seven picks. It sounds good for a unit short of playmakers, yet the Cowboys didn't address one of their biggest needs entering the draft until the fourth round, when they secured defensive end Charles Tapper of Oklahoma. He was the 13th defensive end drafted. The Cowboys gave fourth-round grades to cornerback Anthony Brown and safety Kavon Frazier, who they secured in the sixth round.
Collins' play inside could allow Dallas to use Tyrone Crawford at end while Randy Gregory and DeMarcus Lawrence are suspended for the first four games of the season for violating the NFL's drug policy. Dallas believes the upside on Smith is worth the risk, though spending its second pick on a player who isn't likely to contribute until at least 2017 is hard to reconcile with the Cowboys' supposed win-now mode.
Offense
The Cowboys picked up four offensive players. In going with Elliott at No. 4, they used the highest pick on a running back since taking Tony Dorsett at No. 2 in 1977. In picking Dak Prescott in the fourth round, they drafted a quarterback for the first time since Stephen McGee in 2009. Prescott was the eighth QB taken of 15 selected in the draft. Jones hopes Prescott can learn - even if it's through "osmosis" from being around Tony Romo, which he termed "a whale of an opportunity."
Running back Darius Jackson and tight end Rico Gathers, taken with Dallas' last picks, are developmental projects.
What has gotten into Jerry Jones?
The Cowboys didn't pull off a draft-day trade. They've been involved in 18 involving first-round picks alone under Jones said 1990. But Jones said it wasn't for lack of trying. Dallas made efforts to trade back up into the first round for quarterback Paxton Lynch, wanted to secure Oklahoma State defensive end Emmanuel Ogbah in the second round and then trade up back into the second round to draft Smith as well. They would've taken Michigan State quarterback Connor Cook ahead of Prescott if they could've moved up.
"We spent a lot of time trading in there," Jones said. "Now, did we get a trade? No. But that's the way that stuff goes."
Overlooked nugget
Collins' personal makeup and relationship with Gregory, his former teammate on the Nebraska defensive line, contributed to the Cowboys pulling the trigger on the defensive tackle. Jones applauded Collins' leadership and influence. "He'll be a positive," Jones said.
Biggest reach?
This one is literal. The 6-8, 275-pound Gathers, a basketball power forward making the transition to tight end, hasn't played football since he was 13. The Cowboys were intrigued by his physical gifts and power. "Long arms, big hands," executive vice president Stephen Jones said. "He's just a big man." But Gathers understands it's going to be a bit different than it was in middle school. "It's going to be much harder than the eighth grade was," he said.
College conferences
Where do the Cowboys turn for players on draft day? These are the conferences they tapped into for players this year:
Big Ten: Ohio State, Nebraska, Purdue
Big 12: Oklahoma, Baylor
MAC: Eastern Michigan, Central Michigan
Independent: Notre Dame
SEC: Mississippi State
Cowboys 2016 draft choices
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Cowboys draft coverage
Overall: Gosselin: Where's the D? | Moore: Prescott gets a shot |Cowlishaw: That's entertainment | Experts grades | Your turn | NFC East grades | UFA watch
RB Ezekiel Elliott (Rd. 1): Gosselin: Don't like fit | Moore: DeMarco 2.0 |Sturm: No weaknesses | 10 things to know | Bad fashion? | Smartest back ever? | Dez mixed | National reaction
LB Jaylon Smith (Rd. 2): Gosselin: Doesn't fit need | Smith: I'll play this year | Sturm: Star upside | Analysis | National reaction | 10 things to know| Photos
DT Maliek Collins (Rd. 3): Gosselin: Baby steps move | Analysis |National reaction | 10 things to know | Photos
DE Charles Tapper (Rd. 4): McDonald's meeting changed him | Analysis| 10 things to know | Photos
QB Dak Prescott (Rd. 4): Analysis | National Reaction | Once critiqued Romo | Sturm: He's Tebow-esque
CB Anthony Brown (Rd. 6): More | S Kavon Frazier (Rd. 6) : More | RB Darius Jackson (Rd. 6): More | TE Rick Gathers (Rd. 6): More
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Twitter: @khairopoulos