The Dallas Cowboys could dangle these three players as trade bait.
After spending 13 seasons as the head coach of the Green Bay Packers, Mike McCarthy now takes over the Dallas Cowboys. For Dallas, it will be their first head coaching change since back in 2010 when they replaced Wade Phillips with Jason Garrett.
For McCarthy, who spent 2019 out of the NFL, this is a huge opportunity as he’s inherited a solid roster — one that got even better with a good draft. With quarterback Dak Prescott finally signing his franchise tender, they’re now set at the majority of the major positions
However, there are still some spots that could be up for grabs. And with that being the case, the Cowboys could look to trade some players who might not be in line to win their respective jobs. Here we examine three players who could be moved to add extra draft picks while also clearing up a little cap space in the 2020 NFL season.
Honorable mention: Kai Forbath, K
Back in 2018, the Cowboys shocked everyone when they released Dan Bailey. Arguably one of the best kickers they have ever had in Big D, Bailey was let go to save money as they went with the unknown Brett Maher instead.
Maher wasn’t bad as a rookie going 29-of-36, while also showing off his power as he knocked in a 62-yarder. He continued to show off his strong leg in 2019, knocking in a franchise-best 63-yarder. Unfortunately, he was much more inconsistent overall as he was good on just 20-of-30 kicks before being released.
In his place was Kai Forbath, who was 10-of-10 on field goals and 10-of-10 on extra points in three games. Forbath was re-signed this offseason, but then the Cowboys also picked up Greg Zuerlein in free agency.
Zuerlein has been one of the better kickers in the league but was slowed due to injury and connected on a career-low 72.7 percent of his kicks. If healthy, it wouldn’t be surprising to see him back to his regular form which saw him kicking in the 80-percent range — although he did have two seasons where he topped 90-percent.
Also, if he is healthy, it would likely end Forbath’s tenure in Dallas. If that’s the case, they might be able to find some team with kicking woes willing to part with a late draft pick. Kickers aren’t traded often, but it does happen.