Schefter: Rams and Cowboys to Swap Offensive Tackle for Linebacker

According to Adam Schefter and his Twitter feed, the Dallas Cowboys and St. Louis Rams are coming together on a trade that would send offensive tackle Alex Barron to Dallas in exchange for linebacker Bobby Carpenter. Both were first-round picks once upon a time, but neither has played up to their billing.

However, outside of the Rams also getting a pick from the Cowboys, this seems like a lopsided trade. Barron hasn’t been great at left tackle, but he’s been a more-than-serviceable right tackle and has started 74 games since entering the NFL in 2005.

Carpenter, on the other hand, has only started three games while mostly contributing on special teams.

Steve Spagnuolo, now the head coach of the Rams and a former defensive coordinator, could be looking at Carpenter’s size (6’3″, 255) and think he can turn him into a starter in the 4-3, but that doesn’t mean they should give away Barron.

Outside of the Cowboys throwing in a fifth-round pick, or perhaps a conditional seventh, the Rams should hold strong and make sure they don’t get fleeced in this move. Spagnuolo’s ego could get them in trouble if he’s over-valuing Carpenter because of what he believes he can do with him.

Wade Phillips isn’t exactly a scrub when it comes to running a defense and molding his players, and even he couldn’t get anything productive from Carpenter.

Schefter says the deal is “not official yet, but (it’s) going that way.”

There are some issues to work out with both players’ contracts as Barron is a restricted free agent and Carpenter is in the final year of his deal, but once those are worked out the deal will probably go through.