We now sit approximately five weeks away from one of the most anticipated events of the NFL offseason: the 2024 NFL Draft.
Scouts have been running on little sleep for a few weeks now, but come draft day, the hard work will pay off.
Will McClay & Co. will make sure of that, at least in the first round. We hope…
There's that word: hope. It's become something of a bad word in Cowboys Nation because of the current offseason strategy.
We all know Stephen Jones' famous line, “we like our guys”, but this season it feels like they like their guys a little too much.
Dallas lost 14 players in free agency that either were starters or contributed a significant amount of snaps.
Here is the list, and the players' current status:
- DE Dorance Armstrong (Washington)
- C Tyler Biadasz (Washington)
- RB Tony Pollard (Tennessee)
- LT Tyron Smith (New York Jets)
- DT Neville Gallimore (Miami)
- LS Trent Sieg (Dallas)
- CB Jourdan Lewis (Dallas)
- ST CJ Goodwin (Dallas)
- DE Dante Fowler Jr. (Washington)
- WR Michael Gallup (free agent)
- CB Stephon Gilmore (free agent)
- S Jayron Kearse (free agent)
- LB Leighton Vander Esch (retirement)
- DT Johnathan Hankins (free agent)
As you can see above, the Cowboys were able to return Sieg, Lewis, and Goodwin; two special teams players and one “starter” at Nickel cornerback.
Aside from that, what's the plan?
The Cowboys have lost a starting defensive end, starting center, starting running back, starting left tackle, their third wide receiver, starting cornerback, starting strong safety, starting linebacker, and a run-stuffing defensive tackle.
Not counting rotational players, that's nine starting-caliber players who will not be on the roster for the 2024 season.
Could the Cowboys' strongest offseason strategy be hope? Let's talk about it.
Hope Is A Hell Of a Drug
Hope, or hopium, as it's being called on social media, appears to be the main strategy for the Cowboys in all aspects of the offseason.
Personally, I don't think it's a reliable tool in the kit for a team that considers itself to be in the Super Bowl conversation in 2024.
Despite losing all those players, Dallas has only managed to retain three of them (Sieg, Goodwin, Lewis), and has already lost six of those players to other teams and a seventh to retirement.
I know it's still early in free agency, but most of the impact players available have already been signed by other teams, including division rivals Philadelphia, New York, and Washington.
Dallas stole LB Eric Kendricks from under the 49ers' noses, but there haven't even been conversations of them meeting with other players.
Let's take a look at how their implementation of this hope has spread to the current roster.
Returning Players
The largest batch of hopium is being brewed for the returning players in positions weakened by expiring contracts or injuries.
Mazi Smith
Heading into his second season, the first-round pick's biggest questions to answer will be why his weight dropped, and if he's improved his explosion off the snap.
Mazi Smith struggled in his rookie season, often allowing opposing linemen to turn his body and drive him out of the hole.
His impact was minimal, and Dallas' rush defense would have been even worse without the presence of the departed Johnathan Hankins.
Hankins is still a free agent, but if he isn't re-signed, the Cowboys will simply hope that Mazi improves in year two.
Eric Kendricks and DeMarvion Overshown
Hand in hand with defensive tackle, the Cowboys appear content to use hope for their linebacker corps as well.
Even though they stole Eric Kendricks after he had already agreed to terms with San Francisco, he is still a 32-year-old linebacker with nine seasons of wear on his body.
There are rare specimens like Ray Lewis, but most linebackers' shelf life is way shorter than other positions thanks to the beating they take weekly.
Kendricks is always in the mix, as evidenced by his eight straight seasons recording over 100 tackles.
Dallas hopes he can retain his youthful form in Zimmer's new defense.
DeMarvion Overshown played well before a preseason ACL tear sidelined him for the entire season in 2023.
However, we've been down this road with players coming off of injury to play the very next season.
One of those players was Michael Gallup, and he never returned to form, eventually being released this past Saturday.
The other player is Terence Steele. Steele tore his ACL in Week 13 of the 2022 season and looked a shell of himself in 2023.
There is no precedent to give the Cowboys confidence that Overshown will fully recover after surgery and return to form in time for 2024.
The Cowboys hope that he does.
Trevon Diggs
Like Steele and Gallup before him, Trevon Diggs is recovering from a torn ACL suffered during a Week 3 practice in the 2023 season.
Dallas lost veteran Stephon Gilmore, and although he is still a free agent, I believe the Cowboys think they will be just fine without him.
Diggs' game depends on quick-twitch movements to mirror wide receivers, and his particular style of play requires explosion to break on the football.
Both of those traits will be affected by a torn ACL, and if he isn't ready for Week 1 of the season, Dallas will start DaRon Bland on one boundary with Jourdan Lewis in the slot.
Who will man the other boundary? Your guess is as good as mine, but if next-man-up is in play here, that spot will go to Nahshon Wright.
They hope Diggs will be fully recovered, but if he isn't they hope Wright will miraculously turn into a good coverage cornerback.
Quick Hits
There are other positions where players are expected to step up in the absence of departed starters.
Dallas currently only has Deuce Vaughn and Hunter Luepke available in the running back room, but the diminutive dasher can't be expected to fill Pollard's shoes.
They will turn to the draft for running back, but that's also hoping the guy they want will be there.
The Cowboys also quietly need defensive end help.
Sam Williams is entering year three and the Cowboys are hoping for a big jump from their former 2nd-round pick.
Hope isn't a viable strategy, but it appears that's the direction the Dallas Cowboys will be headed in 2024.
