As the Commanders' rival Dallas Cowboys clear cap space, don't expect big moves

The Washington Commanders have already made a splash and free agency hasn't even started.

While receiver Deebo Samuel is going to cost the Commanders a little draft compensation and plenty of money, the team has plenty of both to spend as they choose.

On the other side of the division, the Washington rival Dallas Cowboys didn't have as much money to spend after giving big deals to quarterback Dak Prescott and receiver CeeDee Lamb last year, but have doing work to clear some spending room while re-signing defensive tackle Osa Odighizuwa. And it turns out, that space they've cleared may be more geared toward keeping current Cowboys than signing new ones.

Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones. | Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images

"I'm not looking at free agency as a place to fill voids," Dallas owner Jerry Jones told ESPN's Todd Archer recently.

instead, it appears that Jones is getting a jump on potential new deals for other Commanders rivals like All-Pro Micha Parsons. Something he was criticized for not doing early enough when it came to Lamb's contract specifically last season.

"We get criticized because we wait until the end or what you would call the end, and that is lining up for the first game," said Jones. "It just happens that way. I've been one of the earliest out there on several contracts in my 35 years."

It didn't take as long to get Odighizuwa's contract done, signing him to a new deal with several days left until the deadline and the defensive tackle would have been free to discuss terms with other teams.

To fill the several needs the Cowboys have on their roster Jones says they'll look to the NFL Draft, not an uncommon method for trying to build and then sustain a successful roster.

However, with all the money needed to keep current players under their roof, Dallas is going to have to make some hard decisions. After watching several free agents including center Tyler Biadasz and edge players Dorance Armstrong Jr. and Dante Fowler Jr. leave last year for Washington, the Cowboys may have to do the same this year as cornerback Jourdan Lewis, running back Rico Dowdle, and even defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence hit the open market as potential targets of the Commanders this season.

Its always a hard pill to swallow when one fan base has to watch its players jump from one side of a rivalry to the other, but Washington fans certainly enjoyed being on the winning side of those flips last year as their team rose to second in the NFC East Division while Dallas fell to third.

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