Cowboys Finalize 2014 Draft Order And Opponents

With their 2013 finish decided, the Cowboys finalized their 2014 draft position and opposition on Monday afternoon.

Sunday night’s 24-22 loss to Philadelphia dropped the Cowboys to 8-8 on the season, making them one of six NFL clubs to finish the 2013 season with a .500 record. As a result, Dallas will draft either No. 16 or No. 17 in the 2014 NFL Draft, pending a coin flip with Baltimore.

According to NFL rules, ties in the draft order are settled by strength of schedule – if that is also even, the tie is settled by comparing conference and divisional record. The Ravens and Cowboys have the same strength of schedule, and they reside in different conferences, necessitating the need for a coin flip.
Regardless of the result of the coin flip, this year’s draft position will fall between the Cowboys’ 2012 and 2013 spots. Dallas held the No. 14 pick in the 2012 draft before trading up to No. 6 for Morris Claiborne. In 2013 they sat at No. 18 before trading back to the No. 31 spot.

The Cowboys’ second-place finish to Philadelphia also filled the last two spots in next season’s schedule.

As the second-place finisher in the NFC East, the Cowboys are slated to host the second-place team in the NFC South and travel to play the second-place finisher in the NFC North. After yesterday’s games, that means Dallas will have a 2014 home game against New Orleans and a road trip to play Chicago.

The dates and times for next season’s schedule won’t be announced until later this spring, but the Cowboys now know all 16 opponents for the 2014 season.

The Cowboys will host Arizona, Houston, Indianapolis, New Orleans, New York, Philadelphia, San Francisco and Washington next season at AT&T Stadium.

They will travel to play Chicago, Jacksonville, New York, Philadelphia, St. Louis, Seattle, Tennessee and Washington.

As was announced earlier this fall, the road game against Jacksonville will be played at Wembley Stadium in London.