Minkah Fitzpatrick could help the Dallas Cowboys tremendously, but they cannot afford to give the Miami Dolphins a first-round pick for him
The Dallas Cowboys haven’t been afraid of making big moves when it comes to trades, although they have been a lot smarter about it in recent seasons than they were in the heyday of Jerry Jones’s wheeling and dealing days.
Thankfully, they no longer make the two first-round pick deals we saw in the past with Joey Galloway or Roy Williams. That doesn’t mean they won’t pull the trigger when they think a move is worth it.
Last season was a perfect example as they went all-in on a new wideout, giving up a first-round pick for Amari Cooper. Now, rumors have them once again looking at a high-profile player at a position of need.
More from NFL Spin Zone
- Dallas Cowboys made the trade everyone else should have made
- Pittsburgh Steelers rookie sleeper everyone should be talking about
- Anthony Richardson putting jaw-dropping talent on display immediately
- Denver Broncos’ stud wide receiver might be out for a while
- Washington Commanders: Three takeaways from win over Ravens
The reports are suggesting that Dallas is speaking with the Miami Dolphins about safety Minkah Fitzpatrick. Given permission by his team to seek a trade, Fitzpatrick is clearly available and the Cowboys all but confirmed their interest when director of player personnel Stephen Jones said they have had “conversations.”
"“You have conversations between myself, Jerry [Jones], Will [McClay]. We’re always checking around and seeing what’s going on. We have a pretty steady diet of visiting with other teams. We’re always trying to improve our roster.” — Jones said via Charean Williams of Pro Football Talk"
Dallas and Miami are familiar with one another as they did make a deal earlier this year when the Dolphins sent defensive end Robert Quinn to the Cowboys. In that trade, the Cowboys got an absolute steal as the pass rusher cost just a sixth-round pick.
Landing Fitzpatrick won’t be as easy as the powers that be in South Beach are reportedly seeking a first-round pick as compensation for the No. 11 pick in the 2011 NFL Draft.
While Dallas did secure Cooper for a first-round pick and looked brilliant for doing so, they simply can’t do this again with Miami. They even said themselves that they don’t ever want to sit out the first round again after having to do so in 2019 — even though they are thrilled with Cooper.
"“I don’t know about you,” Jerry Jones said, looking to his right at Stephen during the pre-draft news conference, “but I’m not interested in stacking up these one-less draft days. They’re no fun.” — Cowboys owner Jerry Jones cpnversation per Todd Archer of ESPN"
As for the 2019 Draft, the Cowboys ended up not picking until No. 58 overall and when they finally made their selection, it was defensive tackle Trysten Hill. Sadly, we have no indication of how good that pick is yet as Hill was a healthy scratch in the team’s opener.
With all this being said, there’s no way Dallas can go another draft without having a selection in Round 1. This team has been too good drafting in the first round (outside of Taco Charlton in 2017) to sit out once again.
They can use Fitzpatrick but they can’t mortgage their future for him. If Dallas can put together a package that includes a second-round pick and some other combination of future picks, that would be great.
What they can’t do is spend a second season in a row watching the first round of the draft.