3 potential salary cap casualties the Cowboys should sign this offseason

2. Adam Thielen, Wide Receiver

After tagging Tony Pollard, the latest rumors is that the Cowboys will be moving on from Ezekiel Elliott. Doing so would be tough for Jerry Jones because it would be proof he made a mistake in 2019 by giving Elliott so many years on his extension.

Having said that, Jones needs to look past his pride and realize the money they save could be used to put some talent around Dak Prescott. Perhaps he could even stop blaming the quarterback — who is actually earning his money — for their roster holes.

With the money they could save from Elliott, they’ll be able to address their wide receiving corps which was depleted last year when they traded Amari Cooper and lost Cedrick Wilson in free agency. CeeDee Lamb was fantastic but he was often all on his own.

That’s why it would make sense to kick the tires on Adam Thielen should he become available. Thielen and the Minnesota Vikings appear to be ready to move on from one another and while he’s not the player he was in his prime, he can still provide an excellent No. 2 or 3 option while working with Lamb and Michael Gallup.

Last year, Thielen played in all 17 games and had 70 receptions for 716 yards and six touchdowns. That would have been a huge benefit in Dallas and even if he comes in with lower numbers than that, it would be great to have a savvy veteran that is in the right place at the right time. T.Y. Hilton provided that at the end of the season and it made quite a difference.

Another benefit from Thielen is that his signing doesn’t mean they have to give up on Jalen Tolbert. Mike McCarthy still believes he can turn it around, so a one-year rental affords him and the team some more time to figure it all out.