Cowboys Are So Good ... They Should Make One of These NFL Trades
The Dallas Cowboys have a bye after their thrilling 35-29 overtime win over the New England Patriots. Two weeks to contemplate what’s next.
Wait, what’s next? I mean, the Cowboys are 5-1, relatively healthy, humming like a machine and they just survived everything Patriots coach Bill Belichick could throw at them.
In fact, Belichick told reporters going into the game said this about the Cowboys: “There’s not really a lot of weaknesses on this team.”
Belichick has beaten teams with fewer weaknesses than the Cowboys during his time in New England. The fact that Dallas survived and found a way to win on Sunday is a testament to their emergence as Super Bowl contenders.
In fact, Cowboys' quarterback Dak Prescott threw for 445 yards Sunday - the most ever by an opposing quarterback against a Belichick-coached team.
Yes, the Cowboys are Super Bowl contenders, that much is evident. And there’s only a handful of teams in the NFC that can say that. Tampa Bay. Arizona (yes, the Cardinals are undefeated). The Los Angeles Rams. Green Bay. That may be the entire list right now.
What separates the Cowboys from these teams? Prescott’s burgeoning MVP campaign? Trevon Diggs’ defensive player of the year campaign? The thunder and lightning backfield of Ezekiel Elliott and Tony Pollard? The explosive pass rush of Randy Gregory?
This is a fortuitous time for the Cowboys to get their bye week, and not just because their injury report was the largest of the season entering the New England game.
No, the NFL trade deadline is on Nov. 2. The Cowboys get two full weeks to evaluate the NFL landscape and determine what they need — if anything — to ensure they have everything they need for a postseason run.
The Cowboys are all-in on this season. They have to be. Owner Jerry Jones and his football biological clock are ticking. He wants to hoist a Lombardi Trophy one more time. The stars have aligned in 2021. He has a team that can get it done.
So, what do the Cowboys need? Funny you ask. Every Cowboys fans’ favorite personnel guy, former Cowboys personnel director and NFL Hall of Famer Gil Brandt, has a shopping list. Not for the Cowboys directly, of course. But a couple of days ago, he dropped a list of nine players that could be dealt at the deadline.
Feeling uneasy at receiver? The Cowboys probably shouldn’t be with CeeDee Lamb, Amari Cooper and Cedrick Wilson, with injured Michael Gallup waiting in the wings. But, if the Cowboys wanted to be EXTRA sure about depth, Brandt believes that Odell Beckham Jr. and Allen Robinson should be on the trade block.
Want to bolster the safety position? Brandt recommends Marcus Maye of the New York Jets, and the beauty of this move would be that Maye is not under contract next year. He’s banged up, but the Cowboys have the talent to wait a bit on him.
Feel like the offensive line could use some veteran depth? Brandt believes the Jacksonville Jaguars would be sellers at the deadline, and that guard Andrew Norwell and tackle Cam Robinson could be had. (Interestingly, Fish has the breakdown of a "La'el Collins vs. Terence Steele'' trade angle here, and here, the truth about the rumors of Dallas and Steelers corner Joe Haden.)
Want to snag a versatile linebacker who can play outside or rush the passer? Brandt thinks Detroit’s Trey Flowers could be had. Now, Flowers comes with a BIG price tag. But he could fill multiple roles in the Dallas defense as a backup.
Want to make extra-sure that Prescott has competent help behind him? Don’t forget about Chicago’s Nick Foles. He wasn’t on Brandt’s list. But chances are he’ll be a target of contenders too. And with Prescott's foot in a boot after Sunday's game, well, the Cowboys have to think about that, even if the injury is minor.
Now, none of this is to say that the Cowboys should acquire ANY of these players. But it’s the evaluation that matters right now, these next 14 days. By the time the Cowboys play the Vikings on Halloween, the Cowboys should know the path they’re going to chart, whether it’s worth it for them to deal players or picks for one final piece that might take them to another level.
I mean, Jerry has some yacht time coming this week, right? Sounds like he and the boys have some homework.
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