Dallas Cowboys focus on defense on Day 2 of NFL draft
FRISCO, Texas (AP) The Cowboys doubled down on their plan to add cornerbacks, using both picks at that spot on the second night of the NFL draft Friday while again wading into the uncertainty of a domestic violence case.
Dallas selected Colorado cornerback Chidobe Awuzie 60th overall in the second round, not a surprising move after losing two starters in free agency in Brandon Carr and Morris Claiborne.
Then the Cowboys went cornerback again with the 92nd overall pick in the third round, taking Jourdan Lewis, a Michigan teammate of Dallas’ first-round choice, defensive end Taco Charlton.
Lewis is facing a misdemeanor domestic violence charge in Ann Arbor over an incident with his live-in girlfriend and currently has a trial date of July 24, the day of the first practice at Cowboys training camp in Oxnard, California.
Two years ago, Dallas added Greg Hardy in free agency and endured a tumultuous year that in some instances revolved around a domestic case in North Carolina.
Last year’s fourth overall pick, 2016 NFL rushing champion Ezekiel Elliott, was investigated over a domestic complaint not long before his first training camp. He still hasn’t been cleared by the NFL even though no charges were brought.
The Cowboys were comfortable picking Lewis because their second-year safeties coach, Greg Jackson, was Lewis’ position coach with the Wolverines in 2015.
”Our guys did a tremendous job researching this situation, doing our due diligence,” coach Jason Garrett said. ”(Jackson) knows him well. We know the coaches up there well. All the due diligence we did made us feel very comfortable with the situation.”
Lewis…