Dallas Cowboys 2020 balance sheet: 3 losses vs. gains

We take a look at three losses and gains for the Dallas Cowboys heading into the 2020 season.

Each year, NFL teams including the Dallas Cowboys suffer significant losses to their rosters. The team responds by trying to fill those voids through the promotion of current players, free agency signings, and the NFL draft.

This offseason, the Cowboys suffered three major losses to their roster, all to free agency. Let’s take a look at those departures and how Dallas choose to address each one.

Loss: Randall Cobb – Gain: CeeDee Lamb

Last season, the Cowboys nearly had three wide receivers post over 1,000 yards each. While wideouts Amari Cooper and Michael Gallup both reached that milestone, Randall Cobb recorded 828 receiving yards and three touchdowns off of 55 catches.

Cobb’s resurgence in Dallas earned him a lucrative three-year, $27 million contract with the Houston Texans this offseason. In his place, the Cowboys landed Oklahoma’s CeeDee Lamb in the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft as his replacement. Potentially the top wide receiver of his entire draft class, Lamb represents a significant upgrade at the position who is only 21-years old.

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Loss: Robert Quinn – Gain: Aldon Smith

After landing in Dallas via a trade with the Miami Dolphins last year, defensive end Robert Quinn had a breakout season for the Cowboys. Leading the team with 11.5 sacks in 2019, the 30-year old Quinn inked a massive five-year, $70 million deal to join the Chicago Bears as a free agent.

As a potential replacement for Quinn, the Cowboys took a flier on former All-Pro Aldon Smith, signing him to a modest one-year deal worth potentially as much as $4 million. Being out of football since 2015 due to suspension, the 30-year old Smith was recently reinstated by the NFL and will now attempt to make his professional comeback in Dallas.

Loss: Byron Jones – Gain: Trevon Diggs

A former first-rounder who spent most of his first three seasons with the Cowboys at safety, Byron Jones earned his first Pro Bowl nomination in 2018 following a move to cornerback. Arguably the best cover corner in the NFL the past two seasons despite a severe lack of interceptions, Jones inked a five-year, $82.5 million contract to join the Dolphins in March.

Although several veteran players like Chidobe Awuzie, Jourdan Lewis, and Anthony Brown could replace Jones as the Cowboys’ top cornerback in 2020, the true replacement for the former Pro Bowler is likely Trevon Diggs. The Alabama prospect was selected in the second round of this year’s draft and could earn a spot on the starting lineup this summer. Fortunately, the Cowboys have enough depth and experience at the position to afford Diggs time to develop into the role.