common descendent podcast

When looking at fossil records, if no homologous samples are available and you must rely just on analogies samples how accurate can this be in predicting the species' sexual dimorphism? This is confusing me to because if there is nothing similar to the extinct species currently,  then how can it be accurately compared?

One interesting concept discussed in the podcast was that scientists do not completely know or understand why females prefer a specific trait over another. This concept is still heavily debated but consist of indirect or direct benefits that the female may gain from the males.