The Cowboys were able to take care of Job 1 in this NFL offseason, have a coach, hiring new guy Brian Schottenheimer in what was largely viewed as an uninspiring pick to replace Mike McCarthy. Realistically, though, the new coach won’t matter much if they don’t significantly upgrade the roster heading into 2025.
That will mean a much more aggressive and serious approach to free agency than we’ve seen from the Cowboys in recent years. The front office will need to be creative with handling the payroll, for current and new players, and imaginative with filling critical roles.
This will especially be true for the offense and the team’s utter lack of weapons available to quarterback Dak Prescott. The Cowboys are too reliant on star receiver CeeDee Lamb .
As it stands, Brandin Cooks is the Cowboys’ No. 2, and is heading into free agency. It’s hard to imagine that Cooks will be back, at age 31 and coming off an injury-racked season. The team has given chances to Jalen Tolbert, who is useful, but not a No. 2. And there is a chance that Jonathan Mingo, acquired at last year’s trade deadline, could snap out of his career-long funk and become productive.
Stefon Diggs Joining Trevon in Big D?
With that in mind, the folks at the Cowboys analysis site Blogging the Boys have an ideal target in free agency, and it is a guy who would, no doubt, like to come to Dallas: star receiver Stefon Diggs, who spent last season with the Texans before suffering a torn ACL in late October.
Diggs, of course, is the brother of Trevon Diggs, the Cowboys’ star defensive back who is also coming off of knee surgery, and probably won’t be ready for the start of the season. Still, the Diggs brothers have long wanted to play together, and with Stefon Diggs hitting free agency, now is the time.
The site’s Brian Martin writes in an article titled, “Dallas Cowboys 2025 free agent wishlist: Offensive edition”:
“Together at last in Dallas? Stefon and Trevon Diggs would love nothing more than to play together with the Cowboys and as fate would have it it could be mutually beneficial for all parties concerned. Dallas needs to upgrade the WR2 position behind CeeDee Lamb and Stefon has the talent to do just that.
“He is coming off a season-ending knee injury, but is expected to be back to 100% for training camp. His ability to be a threat in the passing game at all three levels of the field would be a significant upgrade to Dallas’ aerial attack.”
Cowboys Would Need to Be Creative
The question, of course, is whether the Cowboys can create the cap space by restructuring and reconfiguring deals before free agency hits. That has not, to put it mildly, been a strong suit of this organization.
Diggs signed a one-year, $22 million contract with Houston last year. Pro Football Focus projects Diggs to warrant a one-year deal worth $16 million, while Spotrac has him at a bit more of a value, worthy of a one-year, $13.5 million deal.
Diggs is just two years removed from a run of six straight 1,000-yard seasons and four straight years with 100-plus catches. He’s made four Pro Bowls and two All-Pro teams. The injury is a concern, but given his upside if he comes back healthy, he could be a major value in Dallas.
