What would an all-in Cowboys offseason look like? We go through the moves

David Helman

Dallas Cowboys Insider

The Dallas Cowboys are headed for a crossroads. It’s time for bold decisions.

That’s the prevailing conversation around the team these days, anyway. Call it a byproduct of massive playoff disappointment — not to mention fan frustration at the news that the Cowboys are running it back for the fifth and final year of head coach Mike McCarthy’s contract.

It’s a logical place to be. Retaining McCarthy sends a message that three straight years of playoff disappointments are acceptable to the decision-makers. But declining to extend the coach’s deal implies that things will have to improve in 2024.

You’re forgiven if you remain unconvinced by that case. The Cowboys have stood firm by their team-building philosophy for a decade.

But if ever there was a year to go big, this may be it. McCarthy needs results, and this window of opportunity is closing — if it hasn’t closed already. Patience is a virtue, but not when you’re heading into Year 29 without a Super Bowl, much less an NFC Championship Game appearance.

None of this is to say they will go all-in, but for the sake of conversation, let’s do some research. What might happen if the Cowboys push their chips in for 2024?

Challenges

Let’s start with the salary cap. The Cowboys are currently projected to be about $20 million above the salary cap for the coming year, but they can easily improve their immediate books.

The Cowboys can shave roughly $25 million off their cap by flipping a few levers on their contracts with Zack Martin, Trevon Diggs, DeMarcus Lawrence, Donovan Wilson and Malik Hooker. They can designate Michael Gallup a post-June 1 cut, saving $9.5 million in 2024 in the process. If they’ve got the stomach to trust such an unproven player, they can also save $2 million by cutting Cooper Rush and rolling with Trey Lance as their backup quarterback.

That would put them roughly $20 million above the cap in time for the new league…

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Publish date : 2024-01-29 13:00:41

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