Should Cowboys Trade Leighton Vander Esch or Jaylon Smith?
FRISCO - In the blink of an eye, the Cowboys find themselves with an influx of talent at the linebacker position. They signed Dan Quinn favorite Keanu Neal as a free agent, who will be playing linebacker for Dallas, and grabbed Micah Parsons and Jabril Cox in the 2021 Draft.
Some consider Micah Parsons a top-five non-QB talent in the draft, and Cox might be the best coverage linebacker out of the entire class
READ MORE: Ezekiel Elliott vs. Tony Pollard in RB Battle For Cowboys?
That's a lot of talent on one roster at the linebacker position. On paper, anyway.
If we look at Jaylon Smith's contract for 2021 and his decline in play, plus the trade rumors, we can imagine this is most likely his last season for the Cowboys.
This brings us to maybe the biggest question mark at linebacker for the Cowboys in 2021, Leighton Vander Esch.
We already know the Cowboys have declined his fifth-year rookie option. So it's possible the last-year scenario stands true for him as well, with 2021 possibly being his final bow in a Dallas uniform.
We can assume the Cowboys would like to use both veterans in the upcoming campaign, but neither performed particularly well last season. We've seen Jaylon's struggles during games with our own eyes, but Vander Esch, by the numbers, has been even worse. In 2020, he saw career-worsts in missed tackles (16.7%), completion percentage allowed (86.4%), and snaps played (44%).
READ MORE: 'The Triplets': Where Does New Cowboys Trio Rank in NFL?
We've compared the Vander Esch saga to that of Sean Lee. But the difference is Sean Lee was good when he was healthy. Recently, we can't even say that about Leighton - though in his defense, maybe he's never really been quite healthy.
Keanu Neal is a Quinn guy, so it can be expected as long as he performs well, he'll see snaps. Parsons will get snaps as well, by virtue of being the team's first-overall pick in the draft.
So does the entire group find guys in rotation, substituting for each other? Will there be an 'odd man out' within the linebackers in 2021? That concept leads to trade gossip involving Leighton Vander Esch and Jaylon Smith. We can tell you this: The NFL Draft night buzz about Jaylon's name being discussed in trade is valid. But the ensuing talk of the Cowboys suddenly being "close to trading'' Vander Esch is not coming from inside The Star and carries no weight.
There is ample time to sort this all out. But first, in OTAs and in training camp? The Cowboys need to see if what they have on paper translates to the field ... and whether Jaylon or Leighton are truly as expendable as some critics prematurely believe.
