With the signing of Defensive Tackle Christian Covington from the Houston Texans, the Dallas Cowboys finally stepped into free agency to sign a player that wasn’t in their 2018 roster. Though the Cowboys had been connected to several free agents, Covington was the first to actually sign in the dotted line.
So far this offseason, the Cowboys have seemingly found their swing tackle, slot receiver, defensive line depth, and their fullback position. Cameron Fleming, Tavon Austin, Covington, and Jamize Olawale make up the only activity for the Cowboys.
While each of their division rivals have plunged head first into trades and free agency, the Cowboys have sat back and watched through the initial stages of the new league year.
With several holes still to fill, what’s next for the Dallas Cowboys?
Defensive End
DeMarcus Lawrence is going to return to the Cowboys. Be certain of that. Over the years, it’s generally taken the team and the player they’ve used the franchise tag on months before they could come to an agreement on a long-term contract. The complicating factor with Lawrence is that he needs offseason shoulder surgery.
On the other side of the line is the uncertainty surrounding Randy’s Gregory and his indefinite suspension.
That leaves Tyrone Crawford, Taco Charlton, and Dorance Armstrong as the only players available along the defensive line.
The Cowboys need to make a move to solidify their depth and perhaps even find a starter. Whether it’s a player like Justin Houston or Emmanuel Ogbah, the Cowboys could bring in a veteran to add to their defensive end rotation.
Obviously, the main goal is to get a contract finalized with Lawrence, but the longer that goes on, the more uncertain his status for 2019 will be.
Wide Receiver
The Cowboys look to have their wide receiver depth chart pretty well filled out until they go to the draft, but there’s still room for improvement.
Amari Cooper, Michael Gallup, Tavon Austin, and Noah Brown look to be locks for the 53 man roster come September. The front office has talked up Allen Hurns as an option for the Cowboys in the slot and Tavon Austin could be an option there as well. However, given their contract situations, the Cowboys don’t see Hurns or Austin as the future for them at slot wide receiver.
It’s unlikely that Hurns and Austin are long-term answers in the slot for the Dallas Cowboys, so they’ll look to the draft to fill the long-term void left by Wide Receiver Cole Beasley. The NFL Draft provides several intriguing options throughout that could help the Cowboys in 2019 and the future.
Safety
After flirting with Earl Thomas for more than a year, the Dallas Cowboys ultimately stayed true to who they are.
Bargain free agent shoppers.
Though they were priced out of the Earl Thomas chase, as he eventually signed with the Baltimore Ravens, the Cowboys could look into several interesting safety options to pair with Xavier Woods in 2019.
Tre Boston and Adrian Phillips are the names to be watched in the next wave of free agency if the Cowboys are wanting to upgrade their secondary. Both players are 27 and both have had good seasons over the last couple of years with their respective teams.
The Cowboys defense is very good and has the potential to be an elite unit, but they could use more playmaking from the safety position. Pairing Xavier Woods with an upgrade at safety will help him and the defense to shine.
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Though the spending has slowed to a snail’s pace, free agency remains alive and well. The Cowboys, who won’t be big spenders, will continue to look for ways to improve their roster with the hopes of being the first repeat NFC East Champion since the early 2000’s.
