Rookie Chauncey Golston Will Give Cowboys 'Everything I've Got' - NFL Draft
The Dallas Cowboys selected Iowa defensive end, Chauncey Golston, with the No. 84 overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft on Friday. Below we provide our instant grade on the selection.
Golston, projected as a 3-4 defensive end by some scouts, was an honorable mention All-America selection, and an All-Big Ten First-Team pick by the Associated Press. Golston started all eight games, recording 24 solo tackles and 21 assists, along with 8.5 tackles for loss, 5.5 sacks, one interception, one forced fumble, one pass break-up, and three pressures.
What will he give Dallas?
“I just know this team is going to get everything I got,” he tells the DFW media. “Everything out of me. Inside or outside, it doesn’t matter where. I’m just trying to provide when I can.”
Golston joins a 2021 Cowboys draft class that now features three other defensive players — Penn State linebacker Micah Parsons, Kentucky cornerback Kelvin Joseph, and UCLA defensive lineman Osa Odighizuwa.
DE Chauncey Golston, Iowa, 6-foot-5, 270 pounds
NFL Draft Bible Scouting Overview: Continuing the Hawkeye tradition of physically imposing defensive stalwarts, Golston has the type of high-effort presence we have come to expect from this unit. With outstanding length and power through his hips and upper body, Golston sets a firm edge in the run game to shut down runs off tackle. He is your typical Iowa Hawkeye football player who brings his lunch pail to work every single day. His motor is nonstop, working to the echo of the whistle in pursuit. With this type of length and physicality, he offers rush versatility to work inside on obvious passing situations, using his ability to convert speed to power inside-out. With his style and projectable frame, Golston’s best football may be inside as he continues to fill out his frame. Golston is an ordinary athlete on the edge, lacking that quick twitch that you prefer working on the outside track. He is routinely slow off the line, lacking that early-down explosiveness to consistently threaten around the arc on top of showing some hip tightness in transition. There just isn’t much of a dynamic element to Golston’s game. It is his physicality, length, and versatility that will be his biggest sells. With his skill set and nonstop effort, Golston should be looked at as a depth piece early on in his career.
READ MORE: 'This Is All I Ever Wanted!' Micah Parsons To Cowboys In NFL Draft
How he fits: In the analysis of the Odighizuwa pick, I noted that I was uncertain about where they would use him. There is less uncertainty about Golston, who projects as an edge rusher in this defense. While NFL Draft Bible projected him as a 3-4 defensive end, we know the NFL is less about the traditional schemes and more about putting players in the right places to succeed. But, at 270 pounds, Golston can be of help on the edge right away, complementing DeMarcus Lawrence and Randy Gregory and playing on either side of the football.
What the Cowboys passed on: The Cowboys could have helped themselves on the offensive line by taking either Ohio State’s Wyatt Davis or Illinois’ Kendrick Green, who happened to be the next two selections.
READ MORE: Did Cowboys Draft 'Kick-Ass' Starter In CB Kelvin Joseph?
Grade: B. I like this selection a bit better than Odighizuwa, but it also illustrates why ‘instant grades’ can be a bit misleading. With the full context of these two picks, you can see the Cowboys assembling players that can provide immediate help up front. Bringing in Golston, who is most assuredly an edge rusher, not only helps the Cowboys but helps clarify that Odighizuwa should be more of an inside rusher, though it doesn’t preclude the Cowboys from using him outside. Setting aside potential roles, Golston was a productive Power 5 player who should fit into a rotation on the outside for the Cowboys this season.
You can follow Matthew Postins on Twitter @PostinsPostcard.
