1 player Cowboys would love to steal from each NFC East rival
Even if the Dallas Cowboys have no chance of trading for them, they’d love to be able to steal these players from the Eagles, Giants and Commanders.
Talent has rarely ever been an issue for the Dallas Cowboys, which is one of the biggest reasons that the lack of playoff success over the past three decades has been so frustrating for fans to watch. The roster is often capable of winning a Super Bowl but a combination of bad coaching, bad luck, and poorly timed bad performances have doomed them.
Fans are obviously hoping that isn’t the case again in the 2023 season, because the roster looks made to contend. Having said that, the Cowboys aren’t without some potential holes on the roster. And while they could still fill them, it’s always fun to dream. It’s even more fun to dream about stealing players to fill those holes from rivals.
It will never happen that the Dallas Cowboys would be able to pick off big names from their NFC East rivals in the New York Giants, Washington Commanders and Philadelphia Eagles. But if it were possible, who would Jerry Jones swoop up? Let’s take a look at one player from each of those division rivals that America’s Team would love to have while trying not to double up on any positions as well (mostly because they all have defensive tackles who are stars).
Dallas Cowboys: 1 player Jerry Jones would love to steal from each NFC East rival
Cowboys would love to steal DT Dexter Lawrence from the New York Giants
Even though Mazi Smith wasn’t productive in terms of the box score while at Michigan, the Cowboys had two primary reasons for using their first-round pick on the defensive tackle in this year’s draft. For one, Smith is an athletic phenom would has loads of untapped potential. But the other reason is perhaps more important: Smith reaching his potential would give them a game-wrecking interior presence they haven’t had in quite some time.
If we’re looking at division rivals who would make sense for Dallas, though, then you have to think that Dexter Lawrence, even in an NFC East where the Cowboys are the outlier in not having a force on the interior of the defensive line, stands above the rest.
A Giants’ first-round pick in 2017, Lawrence has been a monster that has truly blossomed fully over the past couple of years. The 2022 season was by far his best as he registered 7.5 sacks, seven tackles for loss, 68 combined tackles and two forced fumbles, all of which were career highs.
Still just 25 years old, Lawrence is reaching star territory and may not have even reached his prime as a professional yet. He’s a game-wrecking with elite size and movement skills for a player that big that would, in essence, be an already established presence that the Cowboys are currently hoping Smith develops into.