IRVING, Texas -- The Dallas Cowboys' main goal this offseason was to improve their pass rush in 2015.

The signing of Greg Hardy should certainly do that even if he might miss some games with a possible suspension.

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By signing Hardy, the Cowboys have covered one of their major draft needs, but those needs have not disappeared. A draft isn't just about this year. It's about the next four years.

But what the signing of Hardy has done is to allow the Cowboys to put together a more pure draft board. Without the addition of Hardy, the Cowboys' need for a pass-rusher would have been through the roof, and the natural inclination is to inflate a player's ability at a position of need.

This has been the Cowboys' philosophy the last few years. They use free agency to fill holes and then follow their board -- mostly -- when it comes to the draft.

At No. 27 in the first round, the Cowboys likely would not have been in position to find an impactful pass-rusher and certainly not a pass-rusher the quality of Hardy. But they could still go with a pass-rusher in the first round, especially since Hardy is signed only for 2015.

The addition of Darren McFadden falls in line with the Hardy signing, although the expectations for him are far less than the expectations for Hardy. In a running back-heavy draft, the Cowboys could be in position to take the best runners available (Todd Gurley or Melvin Gordon) or the wave of runners who will go in the early rounds (Tevin Coleman, Jay Ajayi, T.J. Yeldon) who could form a solid combo with McFadden, Joseph Randle, Lance Dunbar and/or Ryan Williams.

The other spot of need is cornerback, where Brandon Carr's status is up in the air because of a $12.7 million salary-cap figure. The Cowboys want to keep Carr, but not at his $8 million base salary. Based on the size of the contracts some corners have signed in free agency, the Cowboys would be wise to sit back on Carr's deal and wait for the money to dry up. That's how they dealt with right tackle Doug Free two years ago.

The Cowboys claimed cornerback Corey White off waivers from the New Orleans Saints and hope that getting him in a simpler system will allow his athletic ability to shine. But banking solely on White wouldn't be wise.

At the 27th pick, the Cowboys could have a chance at a corner such as Wake Forest's Kevin Johnson.

By signing Hardy, the Cowboys have put themselves in position to do something every team professes to want to do but sometimes just can't: take the best player.