3 trades the Cowboys must make to salvage their season
By Mike Luciano
No. 2: Dallas adds another stud defensive end
The Bills might hold on to Murphy, as he has been a solid rotational defensive end for an excellent defensive team that has their eyes set on the playoffs. However much like Easton in New Orleans, Murphy is the least-valued member of Buffalo’s edge rush rotation. The presence of Mario Addison, the continued solid play of Jerry Hughes, and the selection of former Iowa star AJ Epenesa in the draft mean if Sean McDermott had to get rid of one of his rushers, Murphy would be the one.
It’s weird to claim that a team with a $100 million pass rusher in Demarcus Lawrence and the league’s leading sack artist entering Week 4 in Aldon Smith is struggling to get to the quarterback, but that’s the weird reality Mike Nolan has created. Dallas is just 19th in sack percentage, and their pressure rate is even worse.
Adding Murphy wouldn’t solve that problem in full, but it would certainly give them a much-needed shot in the arm. Murphy is slated to hit free agency at the end of this season, so it is entirely possible Dallas only parts with a fifth-round pick to bring him down to AT&T Stadium. Riding with Lawrence and Griffin clearly isn’t working, but trading for Murphy could shake things up and revitalize the Dallas defense.