What Could Cowboys Ex Michael Gallup Bring to Ravens Offense?
Former Dallas Cowboys receiver Michael Gallup is slated to have a visit with the Baltimore Ravens on Thursday, per ESPN's Adam Schefter.
The six-year NFL veteran is looking to kickstart his career over a year after his ACL injury. Gallup, in his early years in the league, showed that he could be a viable No. 2 receiver, totaling 1,107 yards and six touchdowns in 2019 and 843 yards and five touchdowns in 2020.
But his ACL injury set him back, and his production has dropped each year since, to the point that the Cowboys couldn't justify his $13.8 million cap hit along with his $8.5 million salary for the 2024 season and decided to cut ties.
Now, with a visit scheduled in Baltimore, Gallup, like Odell Beckham Jr. last season, could be looking for an NFL lifeline to kickstart his career again. While the big contract is no longer out there, Gallup could simply be looking for a place to get his feet underneath him again.
If the Ravens were to sign Gallup, what would Todd Monken's offense be getting?
In short, a physical receiver whose strength is his contested catching and his ability to gain a lot of yards after the catch.
Matt Kartozian-USA TODAY Sports
Gallup played nine games last season in which he averaged at least 10.0 yards per catch, his best output ironically being 17.2 in the Cowboys' playoff loss to the Green Bay Packers, where he hauled in all six catches for 103 yards.
Additionally, Gallup had receptions of 27, 29, 41, 39, and 42 throughout the year, so the ability to get downfield was still evident; he just lacked consistent targets (just six times he had five or more in a game).
Gallup has shown he could consistently produce before his ACL injury, and despite his production falling with each passing season, Baltimore is perhaps the right landing spot.
With only Zay Flowers and Mark Andrews as Lamar Jackson's top targets, coupled with a running game that now has Derrick Henry, Gallup could see some favorable matchups, and he has a quarterback who can exploit them.
Gallup might not be the player he once was, but he still has the physicality and ability to be a viable contributor to Monken's offense - he just needs the chance and in Baltimore, he might just get it.
