5 landing spots for Dalton Schultz in 2022 NFL free agency

1. Top landing spots for Dalton Schultz – Dallas Cowboys

The best landing spot for Schultz in free agency is the only team that he has ever known. The Dallas Cowboys do have a lot of salary cap issues to solve this winter but Schultz is one of their most important pending free agents to retain.

An injury to Michael Gallup and subpar production from Amari Cooper made Schultz a more important part of the Dallas passing attack and he thrived. The depth chart behind Schultz is also thin as Blake Jarwin would be a significant drop-off from Schultz if the Cowboys let him walk.

There is no easy answer to this question for the Cowboys, who could consider using the franchise tag on Schultz if they can’t strike a long-term deal before the start of free agency. The franchise tag value for tight ends is a shade under $11 million, which is not unreasonable value for an ascending young player just entering his prime.

The question that Dallas has to answer is whether it is worth making other big moves, such as trading Cooper, to create the cap room necessary to keep Schultz around. There is no better fit for Schultz than the Cowboys but Jerry Jones will have to do some heavy lifting on the cap front to retain him while also upgrading a defense that still needs some serious work.