drill. On March 24, 2014, Hitchens opted to participate at Iowa's pro day, along with C. J. Fiedorowicz, Christian Kirksey, James Morris, and nine other prospects. He improved upon his 40-yard dash (4.65), 20-yard dash (2.72), and ran positional drills for the scouts and team representatives from 28 NFL teams. At the conclusion of the pre-draft process, Hitchens was projected to be a seventh round pick or priority undrafted free agent by the majority of NFL draft experts and scouts. He was ranked the 31st best outside linebacker prospect in the draft by DraftScout.com. Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys selected Hitchens in the fourth round with the 119th overall pick the 2014 NFL Draft. The Cowboys were heavily criticized regarding his selection, due to many evaluators projecting him to be a seventh round pick or go undrafted. Dallas Cowboys' owner Jerry Jones explained that they chose him to provide depth behind Sean Lee after experiencing the loss of Lee the year prior. Jones also stated they planned on selecting Hitchens in the fourth round ahead of time and his speed, athleticism, and tackling ability were key factors. 2014 On June 1, 2014, the Dallas Cowboys signed Hitchens to a four-year, $2.65 million contract that includes a signing bonus of $434,864. When Sean Lee was lost for the season during organized team activities, and the team traded for Rolando McClain, it was decided to make Hitchens learn all three linebacker positions. He began organized team activities taking reps with the first-team defense, but was soon moved to the backup middle linebacker after Justin Durant returned from a hamstring injury. He spent the bulk of training camp at outside linebacker, competing with Justin Durant and Kyle Wilber, before being moved back to middle linebacker. The Dallas Cowboys opted to trade for Rolando McClain and have Hitchens compete with him in training camp. Head coach Jason Garrett named Hitchens the back up middle linebacker to McClain to begin the Season. He made his professional regular season debut in the Dallas Cowboys' season-opener against the San Francisco 49ers and assisted on one tackle in the 28–17 loss. He made his first career tackle in the closing seconds of the game, helping safety Barry Church tackle 49ers' running back Frank Gore who gained five-yards on a short run to seal the win for the 49ers. The following week, Hitchens earned his first career start at