Dallas Cowboys: What kind of defensive line options do they have now?

Dallas Cowboys (Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports)
Dallas Cowboys (Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports) /
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Dallas Cowboys (Mandatory Credit: Steve Roberts-USA TODAY Sports) /

Dallas Cowboys: Trade candidates

The Cowboys have mixed results when it comes to trades in the Jerry Jones era. Who can forget the Joey Galloway and Roy Williams experiments? There was a trade Jerry Jones made that vaulted his young inexperienced team on the cusp of stardom into perennial Champions.

Of course, I am talking about the acquisition of defensive end Charles Haley from a bitter rival and I wonder if Jerry can pull another move like that again for his defense. I am talking about standout but disgruntled Arizona pass rusher Chandler Jones.

On Wednesday, Jones himself admitted that he asked for a trade in the offseason as he is entering the last year of his deal. Jones was in the headlines in Week 1 after his five-sack performance against the Tennesee Titans. His dismantling of left tackle Taylor Lewan was so masterful that Lewan took to social media and thanked Jones for kicking his rear end.

As a player, that is the most respectful gesture you can receive. There were some fans who said they would have loved to have paid Pittsburgh’s T.J. Watt the money he got last week. For those of you who did not get the reference, Watt was available to draft yet the team selected Taco Charlton in the 2018 NFL draft.

Watt just broke the bank on his new contract and Taco is currently looking for work. The Cowboys would have to give up at least two first-round picks in order to land Jones and also have to pay him the massive contract he wants. That is a steep price to pay but after watching this defense for the past few years, I think I might be in.

Jones has a $20 million cap hit this season but the Arizona Cardinals can gain $15.5 million in cap space by trading him leaving them with just over $4.6 million in dead money. That has to be appealing knowing they are going to have to pay quarterback Kyler Murray soon and Jones can walk away after the season unless he is given the franchise tag.

The Cowboys can use this year to tuck some guaranteed money to help alleviate any future dilemmas on an extension. Jones does not have any guaranteed money left on his current deal. If you are looking for a smaller trade, there are some that could be had. The Las Vegas Raiders surprised everyone when they selected Clelin Ferrell from Clemson with the fourth overall pick in the 2019 NFL draft. Ferrell was a healthy scratch on Monday night.

Ferrell was thought to be a safe draft pick entering the draft but was clearly over-drafted by first-time general manager Mike Mayock. Ferrell has only recorded 6.5 sacks in his first two seasons and a change of scenery could refresh his career.