Blogging The Boys
We already know that the Cowboys will be picking 12th in the 2026 NFL Draft, but their other first-round pick is still up in the air. With the Packers facing the Bears tonight in the Wild Card round, we could have clarity on that pick very soon.
As part of the Micah Parsons trade, Green Bay’s first pick in April belongs to Dallas. But while the 18 non-playoff teams already know the order for their picks, the next 14 depend partially on playoff results. The losers of the six games this weekend will get picks 19-24, with the order being determined by regular-season records and any relevant tiebreakers.
Thankfully, there’s little complexity to where the Packers’ pick will fall. Their 9-7-1 record, thanks to the Week 4 tie with Dallas, removes them from any murky tiebreaking process. They will clearly have a better or worse record than whoever else is in the mix.
Naturally, the Cowboys want the Packers in this first crop of playoff losers. And because Green Bay has the second-worst record of all playoff teams in either conference, that means the lowest the pick can go would be 20th overall. Only the 8-9 Carolina Panthers, who made the playoffs by barely winning the NFC South, had a worse regular season. Every other playoff team, AFC or NFC, had at least 10 wins.
Saturday is really the big day in terms of the Packers’ pick and the Cowboys’ interests. Not only do we get Green Bay-Chicago in the night game, but Carolina is hosting the Rams this afternoon. If the Panthers can somehow upset Los Angeles, that opens the door to the Green Bay pick being 19th overall: the best-case scenario for Dallas.
If the Packers pull off their own upset in Chicago, they’ll advance to the second round and significantly hurt the potential value of the pick. At that point, the best we could hope for is 25th overall.
The good news is that Green Bay is still reeling from Parsons’ injury and a four-game losing streak going into the playoffs. Meanwhile, the Bears bring a far different momentum into tonight. You just know they’re motivated to put down a division rival, especially one who’s bullied them for most of the last 15 years. On paper, this is Chicago’s game to lose.
Hopefully, these two games will provide certainty on both of Dallas’ 2026 first-round picks. Rooting against the Packers is never hard for Cowboys Nation, and we’ve rarely had as much reason to do so as we do tonight.
