Cowboys Draft Guru Believes Team Landed Arvell Reese

The Dallas Cowboys walked into Day 2 of the NFL Draft with just one pick and walked out looking like they may have found a steal.

Dallas traded a fifth-round selection to San Francisco for linebacker Dee Winters, then used its third-round pick at No. 92 overall on Michigan's Jaishawn Barham — a player the organization believes could rival one of the draft's top defenders.

Cowboys vice president of player personnel Will McClay made the comparison explicit, telling reporters that Barham's skill set mirrors that of Ohio State All-American Arvell Reese, who went No. 5 overall to the New York Giants.

"He's been on our radar for a while, and when you look at Arvell Reese, there are things they do similarly," McClay said.

Head coach Brian Schottenheimer outlined a specific vision for Barham. The plan is to start him at inside linebacker, but his role will expand. Schottenheimer compared Barham's versatility to Zach Baun, the defensive captain who wore the green dot for coordinator Christian Parker's scheme in Philadelphia.

"We're going to try him at inside linebacker first," Schottenheimer said. "But we also know that we can move him as a rusher on third down, passing situations, and that's what we love about the guy."

If Barham develops into a Baun-caliber player, the No. 92 pick will be remembered as one of the biggest value selections of this draft class. That is a sizable "if" for a player who comes with the "raw prospect" label, but the Cowboys' brass clearly believes the ceiling is worth the bet.

Dallas now heads into Day 3 with three fourth-round selections and an opportunity to keep building on what has been a defense-heavy draft approach.

What This Means For You: If you're a Cowboys fan, the Barham pick represents the kind of swing that can reshape a defense — or serve as a reminder that Day 2 projections are inherently risky. For NFL watchers generally, it's another data point in how teams are valuing positional versatility over positional certainty in the modern draft.