The Cowboys have had starters emerge from the ranks of their late-round picks in the past. In fact, since Will McClay took over as Director of Player Personnel after the 2013 draft, the Cowboys have had five late-round picks (Rounds 5-7) emerge as eventual starters in the NFL (nine starts or more in one season), as the table below shows.
| Cowboys Late-rounders since 2014 | |||
| Drafted | Round | Player | Starter |
| 2014 | 7th | CB Terrance Mitchell | 2016 (3rd season, with KC) |
| 2015 | 7th | TE Geoff Swaim | 2018 (4th season) |
| 2016 | 6th | CB Anthony Brown | 2016 (1st season) |
| 2017 | 6th | S Xavier Woods | 2018 (2nd season) |
| 2019 | 6th | S Donovan Wilson | 2020 (2nd season) |
Most late-round picks need two or three years before they finally emerge as starters in the NFL, and Anthony Brown looks like the exception that proves the rule - and he’s an even rarer exception in Dallas: a late-round pick signed to a contract extension.