Remember Anthony Barr.
The Dallas Cowboys brought him in for a few different reasons.
First, depth was a concern last year as it is a potential wart this year.
Jabril Cox was recovering from an injury, and Damone Clark was still on the injured reserve list.
Second, having a linebacker on the roster that spoke the same language as the linebacker's coach (George Edwards) was critical.
Lastly, inserting a leader in the room to pair with Leighton Vander Esch helped solidify the middle of the defense.
While all of those reasons are valid, having that veteran leadership is transferable to any position on the team.
What about the tight-end room? There is one particular free agent who comes to mind that could bring a presence to this unit.
Marcedes Lewis Will bring A skillset to Dallas
Marcedes Lewis is long in the tooth. He is no longer a spring chicken and years from being the Jacksonville Jaguars' first-round pick.
You can argue that he would be a progress-stopper.
Why would you bring in a guy for one year to take snaps away from the young guns?
It's simple. There is too much of an unknown with the tight ends on the roster.
By all accounts, Jake Ferguson will be the Day 1 starter unless something weird or unforeseen happens in training camp.
The combination of Peyton Hendershot and Luke Schoonmaker will wrestle for the backup role.
That leaves us with Sean McKeon. McKeon is an average prospect at this early stage of his career.
He is the potential opportunity cost.
Signing someone like Lewis would seal the fate for the 3rd year tight end from Michigan.
Marcedes Lewis provides this team with so much more than McKeon could even hope to bring.
It all starts with having a voice in the room who has been through the battles and came out on the other side.
His ability to still block cannot be denied
Last year with Green Bay, Lewis grabbed 256 snaps, and Pro Football Focus graded him a 66.6 in run blocking.
For someone at his age, that is outstanding.
Granted, this isn't apples to apples from a snap count perspective, but McKeon saw 99 snaps last season. His run-blocking grade was 46.4.
Numbers are not everything. It is only a piece of the puzzle.
However, it would be tough for me to hang my hat on those results.
Having Lewis on the team would give Ferguson someone to learn from, take the pressure off Hendershot from having to block at a high level, and allow Schoonmaker more time to develop.
There were fans happy, sad, and indifferent when Dalton Schultz made his way down Interstate 45. However, he packed five years of experience with him.
Head Coach Mike McCarthy has some history with Marcedes. Lewis signed with Green Bay in 2018, which was McCarthy's last season there.
Maybe it won't happen, but Mike should push for this.
He wants and needs to run the football. I expect a good helping of 12-personnel with two tight ends.
Dallas liked to be creative by bringing in an extra lineman in their goal-line packages.
Could you envision a 6'6″ 270lb player who isn't the athlete he once was but is still better than most reserve linemen coming downhill to block?
I can see it. The personnel move would be a culture signing and should point Dallas in the right direction.
Yes, he's old, but all the chips are on the table for this year.
Why not take a flier on him to help the cause?
