Dallas Cowboys 2019 free agency primer: Secondary

In the final installment of my free agency primer series, we will look at the which free agents in the secondary could end up with the Dallas Cowboys.

Over the last month, I have dissected each position for the Dallas Cowboys and the chances they might address depth or improvement on their roster via free agency. Today, we will wrap up this series by looking at free agent defensive backs.

In the last couple of drafts, the Cowboys have made it a point to get younger in their secondary. Six major components of the Dallas Cowboys secondary are 25 years old or younger.

Of course, there are pros and cons to this. One pro is that only three guys on the roster will be making $1M or more in 2019. Another is that defensive back is one of the most important positions to be younger. The major drawback to all this youth, however is the lack of experience.

The Dallas Cowboys have not produced more than 10 interceptions as a team since 2014. No individual player has had more than three interceptions since that time.

Heading into 2019, now more than ever, this should be the time the Dallas Cowboys attack free agency, given how much talent is available. Before we look at who is available, let’s take a look at who will be back next season

The depth chart

Byron Jones signed through 2019
Chidobe Awuzie signed through 2020
Jourdan Lewis signed through 2020
Anthony Brown signed through 2019
Donovan Olumba signed through 2020
Jeff Heath signed through 2019
Marqueston Huff signed through 2019
Xavier Woods signed through 2020
Kavon Frazier signed through 2019
C.J. Goodwin signed through 2019
Treston Decoud signed through 2020

Notable free agents

Kareem Jackson
E.J. Gaines
Justin Coleman
Kevin Johnson
Kayvon Webster
Darqueze Dennard
Jason Verrett
Bryce Callahan
Justin Bethel
Bradley Roby
Marcus Sherels
Eric Rowe
Ronald Darby
Davon House
Sam Shields
Bashaud Breeland
P.J. Williams

Lamarcus Joyner
Earl Thomas
Tyrann Mathieu
Glover Quin
John Cyprien
Kurt Coleman
Marcus Gilchrist
Ha Ha Clinton-Dix
Landon Collins
Tre Boston
Kenny Vaccaro
George Iloka

Could the Dallas Cowboys be in the market for a cornerback AND a safety? With two of their three starters set to be free agents next year, it is possible, but not likely. If the Cowboys choose to dip their toes in the cornerback market, I would expect it to be on someone like P.J. Williams or Eric Rowe.

The safety position is the one that Dallas is most likely to spend major money to upgrade.

With the talent available, they are not pigeon-holed into the one name everyone expects, however.

Yes, it would be great to bring Earl Thomas “home” to Texas. Currently the Thomas camp is putting it out there that he wants $15M per year. At that rate, if he plans to play in Texas, he better hope Houston is ponying up the dough.

Hopefully, that pie-in-the-sky figure is just a bluff or maybe even a tactic to reduce the number of suitors for his services.

Still Collins, Clinton-Dix or Boston would all be huge upgrades this team so desperately needs.

The Cowboys cannot enter the 2019 season with Jeff Heath as a starter at safety. This is especially true with the names available in free agency. Even a signing like George Iloka or Glover Quin would represent an upgrade over the status quo.

Dallas has the money to re-sign or extend their own guys AND sign a big-time free agent or two. Choosing to pass on doing so would indicate that the Joneses are more about lip service instead of actually making a run at the sixth ring in franchise history.

Going back through this free agent primer series, here are the moves I believe the Dallas Cowboys should make.

• Backup QB: Sign Tyrod Taylor (veteran’s minimum or slightly higher on a one-year deal).
• Receiver: Bring back Tavon Austin for a slight increase over last year’s $1M salary.
• Tight end: Sign Tyler Eifert to a three-year, heavily incentive-laden deal with low base salaries.
• Offensive line: Bring in a veteran like Joe Barksdale to play swing tackle.
• Defensive line: Sign Markus Golden to a three-year deal worth $15M, mostly related to incentives.
• Linebacker: Go after Preston Smith, offering a two-year deal worth $12M.
• Safety: Sign either Earl Thomas or Landon Collins for four years and $45M.

There is your realistic, productive shopping list that immediate addresses a few needs and allows for you to use the draft to fill in the rest such as a backup running back and even more depth along the defensive line.