Dallas Cowboys: Allen Hurns possible Cole Beasley replacement

After a disappointing first season with the Dallas Cowboys, wide receiver Allen Hurns figured to be a cap causality. Now, that doesn’t appear to be the case.

Last offseason, all the headlines concerning the Dallas Cowboys were focused on the future of wide receiver Dez Bryant. After three disappointing seasons in which Bryant was paid as a top player at his position, there was speculation the team would move on from their number one wideout.

In the midst of these rumors, the Cowboys signed wide receiver Allen Hurns. Spending his first four seasons with the Jacksonville Jaguars after being undrafted out of Miami (FL.) back in 2014, Hurns was suddenly released by the Jags after two injury-plagued seasons allowing the team to get out of his bloated five-year, $41 million contract he signed in 2016.

Hurns signed a two-year, $12 million last offseason to join the Cowboys. And although the four-year veteran believed he was going to play with Bryant in Dallas, many saw him as a potential Dez replacement. Those assumptions were only cemented when the Cowboys released Bryant a month later and did not address the wide receiver position in the draft until the third round.

Unfortunately, Hurns was unable to live up to the hype, posting just eight total receptions in the team’s first six games. The poor performance by the entire receiving corps eventually forced the Cowboys to trade away their 2019 first round pick to the Oakland Raiders for Pro Bowl wideout Amari Cooper.

Hurns became a footnote for the Cowboys in 2018, ending the season recording 20 catches for 295 yards and two touchdowns. In the playoffs, the 27-year old suffered a horrific leg injury (broken fibula, dislocated ankle) which was expected to keep him off the field until August.

With his poor production in mind and with a cap hit of $6.25 million set for 2019, Hurns was expected to be a cap causality this offseason. But according to DallasCowboys.com’s David Helman, Cowboys’ executive vice president Stephen Jones believes Hurns might actually be a replacement for Cole Beasley. The diminutive slot receiver is scheduled to hit free agency next month.

According to these recent statements, the Dallas Cowboys are not planning on moving on from Allen Hurns in 2019. And they are actually willing to pay a premium price to keep Hurns around.