Dallas Cowboys: Brice Butler announces his return, but why?

According to wide receiver Brice Butler, he’s returning to play for the Dallas Cowboys. But with a full receiver corps already in Big D, the question is why?

The Dallas Cowboys committed to making significant changes to their wide receiver corps in 2018. The biggest move being the release of longtime number one wideout Dez Bryant in April. Dallas also lost receiver Brice Butler, who signed with the Arizona Cardinals that very same month.

In response, the Cowboys brought in a ton of new faces like Tavon Austin, Allen Hurns, Deonte Thompson, and rookie Michael Gallup. Combined with veteran receivers Cole Beasley and Terrance Williams, the depth chart in Dallas is full.

At least it appeared to be. Over the weekend, the Cowboys were linked in possible trade talks for troubled Cleveland Browns’ Pro Bowl wide receiver Josh Gordon. Instead, Dallas opted to workout Butler, who became a free agent on September 1st when he was unable to make it past final cuts with the Cardinals.

On Tuesday, Butler took to social media and announced his return to Dallas.

Although there has been no official word Butler from the Cowboys about a signing, rumors of his return have been floating around for a couple days. But the biggest question has to be why?

According to the Dallas Morning News’ Kate Hairopoulos, Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott said Butler is a player whom he is very comfortable with. And he can provide the team with another deep threat.

Butler spent his first two seasons with the Oakland Raiders after being a seventh-round pick out of San Diego State in 2013. He was traded to Dallas in 2015 after Bryant was injured in Week One. Since then, Butler has recorded a total of 43 receptions for 794 yards and six touchdowns with the Cowboys.

The 28-year old receiver posted 15 catches for 317 yards and three scores last season. More importantly, Butler emerged as a deep threat averaging a whopping 21.1 yards per catch for Prescott and the Cowboys in 2017. But as a free agent earlier in the offseason, Brice refused to return to Dallas if he wasn’t promised a starting job.

Now that Brice Butler has returned, the question is who is on the outs? The Dallas Cowboys passing game has many mouths to feed, and it seems somewhat unlikely they would opt to keep seven receivers on their active roster. But clearly, the team believes Butler can add an element to the passing game that they don’t already possess.

Update: The Cowboys waived safety Tyree Robinson per ESPN’s Todd Archer.