The Dallas Cowboys have a new head coach and many new faces. But which players could the make this a better team this season?
Will he or won’t he? Will free-agent quarterback Dak Prescott return to the Dallas Cowboys this season? It seems like a somewhat silly question but four-year pro has yet to agree to terms on a new contract or sign his franchise tender. And it’s even more difficult to ascertain what his asking price is given so many conflicting reports, almost on a daily basis.
Of course, one player does not a football team make. The club is looking to rebound from a disappointing 8-8 showing in 2019, one that featured a 3-0 start. There was plenty of blame to go around for the eventual collapse but when it was all said and done, head coach Jason Garrett was dismissed after nine-plus seasons.
The new man at the controls is Mike McCarthy, out of the NFL in ’19 but most recently the longtime sideline leader of the Green Bay Packers. The Cowboys’ offseason has seen a number of players move on via free agency. But the club has done a respectable job filling those holes and April’s draft brought some young talent as well.
Still, the ‘Boys are chasing the Eagles in the NFC East. So which five veterans could help Jerry Jones’ franchise return to the playoffs for the fourth time in seven seasons?
5 free agents the Dallas Cowboys should sign
5. OLB Mychal Kendricks
He’s been a solid performer when available. But the “when available” part has been issue for far too long for 33-year-old linebacker Sean Lee. He’s missed his share of games over his solid career but his veteran savvy is an asset. Ironically, 2019 wound up being the first season in which the former Penn State Nittany Lion played in all 16 games. He finished the year with 86 tackles, one interception, one sack and four passes defensed.
But nine NFL seasons (he missed all of 2014 with a torn ACL) is a lot of wear and tear. So why not add a little insurance in the form of outside linebacker Mychal Kendricks, who spent the past two seasons with the Seattle Seahawks. He finished ’19 with 71 tackles, three sacks, one pick and knocked down four passes.
Dallas Cowboys free agency target: Cordy Glenn, T
He was a first-round pick in 2011 and the No. 9 overall selection in the draft that year. And for many seasons, he appeared to be the best left tackle in the league and if you didn’t agree, it was a short list. During the first five years of his NFL career, Tyron Smith missed one game – playing and starting 79 regular-season contests over that span.
In each of the past four years, the 6-foot-5, 320-pound performer has played and started exactly 13 games and once again, been a major factor when available. All told, the talented Smith has been named to the last seven Pro Bowls and earned All-Pro honors in both 2014 and ‘16. But the fact that he has been unable to complete a season as of late has to be a little concerning.
Dealt to the Cincinnati Bengals in 2018, former Buffalo Bills’ tackle Cordy Glenn was a disappointment in the Queen City for any number of reasons. A steady force early in his career, the eight-year veteran has been plagued by injuries the last four years. But he could come cheap and would give new head coach Mike McCarthy an experienced option should Smith go down for a spell once again.
Dallas Cowboys free agency target: Charles Clay, TE
He played in a total of 239 regular-season contests over 15 campaigns from 2003-17. And then after a year in the broadcast booth, he returned to the franchise that made him a third-round draft choice 17 years courtesy of Bill Parcells.
Jason Witten played in all 16 contests in 2019 and snared 63 passes for 529 yards and four scores – finishing third on the club in receptions. But this offseason, the ageless performer headed west and signed with the Las Vegas Raiders.
Veteran tight end Charles Clay will never be confused with Witten when it comes to his blocking ability. But during his various stops around the NFL, he’s been a fairly productive player when it comes to hauling in the football.
This past season, he finished with 18 catches for 237 yards and one score in 15 games with the Cardinals. During his nine-year career with Miami, Buffalo and Arizona, he’s accumulated 357 receptions for 3,868 yards and 24 touchdowns.
The team’s tight end depth chart includes Blake Jarwin, second-year pro Dalton Schultz and 2019 free-agent addition Blake Bell (Chiefs). But Clay could prove to be a productive addition and one that could give Mike McCarthy’s team – with a wide receiving corps that includes Amari Cooper, Michael Gallup and rookie CeeDee Lamb – a downfield threat at the position.
Dallas Cowboys free agency target: Vinny Curry, DE
There were two stints with the reigning NFC East champions and a one-year stay with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Vinny Curry was a second-round pick by the Birds in 2012. The former Marshall University hasn’t exactly put up eye-opening numbers during his eight-year NFL career in terms of sacks.
There was 2014, when he played in all 16 games, did not start one contest but finished with nine quarterback traps and four forced fumbles. The 31-year old performer has logged only 29.5 career sacks. But he’s been pretty reliable, playing in at least 12 games each of the past seven years.
This offseason, a Dallas’ defense that lost plenty of performers to free agency has been rebuilt to a degree with veteran pickups such as Gerald McCoy, Dontari Poe, Ha Ha Clinton Dix and reclamation project Aldon Smith.
The latter was recently reinstated by the league (via ESPN’s Ed Werder) and hopes to see the field this season for the first time since 2015. Curry has played in 112 regular-season games since entering the league and his addition would not only give the club a proven performer but it enable them to ease Smith back into football shape. And the latter could be a major find if he can recapture the electrifying form of his early NFL days.
Dallas Cowboys free agency target: Tremon Williams, CB
Mike McCarthy was the head coach of the Green Bay Packers from 200x until December of 2018, when he was released that season with four games to play. He was out of the league a year ago but was hired by Jerry Jones this offseason due in part to the success that his teams had against the Dallas Cowboys, most notably at AT&T Stadium.
In ’07, the Packers signed undrafted free-agent defensive back Tramon Williams. In eight seasons with the club, there were 28 interceptions and eight fumble recoveries. He would move onto the Browns and Cardinals but returned to Green Bay in ’18 and the past two seasons he played in every game for the team and added five more takeaways.
Williams also played in 15 postseason games with the Pack and added four interceptions and three fumble recoveries. That nose for the football is something that’s hard to teach. In 199 regular-season outings with three teams, there were 34 picks and 13 fumble recoveries, as well as the seven postseason takeaways.
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This past season, you could find the Cowboys near the bottom of the league’s list when it came to takeaways (17). A ball hawk like Williams would be a solid pick up for a new-look defensive unit now under the command of coordinator Mike Nolan.