Dallas Cowboys free agency 2019: Top 5 targets
By Joe Romano
Jesse James, TE
The late and seemingly unexpected retirement of Jason Witten led the Cowboys to enter the season without a starting caliber tight end on the roster. They made due with what they had, including rookie Dalton Schultz. However it is evident for this offense to be at their best, and Prescott to reach a new height, a better tight end is needed.
The draft will offer plenty in this position. Tight end is one of, if not the, deepest position in the 2019 NFL draft. Dallas is without a first round pick but a potential starter could be grabbed at pick 58 in the second round. The Cowboys though may opt to grab a “young veteran” to fill that role and hope Schultz pans out.
A player to target would be Pittsburgh Steelers’ free agent Jesse James. He may not be capable of being an elite starter in the league but he is a solid pass catching tight end who can exploit mismatches. On Dallas’ offense that is all they need. James is also not adverse to blocking, though it is not his strong suit. Pittsburgh may deem him expendable with the role Vance McDonald played in the offense last year.
This is the type of middle of the road, young free agent that Dallas realistically likes to target. At the end of the offseason it is more likely though that any new tight ends come via the draft than free agency. James would be an excellent case study on the value of low-end starting tight ends.