There's a strong argument that the NFC East boasts the fiercest rivalries in football, and those feuds don't take the offseason off. Dallas Cowboys fans care deeply about what happens in Philadelphia, Washington, and New York year-round.
Of course, caring deeply comes with a healthy dose of schadenfreude. Whether it's John Harbaugh raising Giants expectations to dangerous levels or the Commanders swinging and missing on multiple wide receivers in free agency, no perceived mistake escapes scrutiny.
That sentiment is shared around the division, but Commanders expert Dean Jones of Riggo's Rag missed the mark with his reaction to Cowboys WR Parris Campbell's sudden retirement this week, dubbing it a "surprising setback."
"Just as the Cowboys had some semblance of stability, wide receiver Parris Campbell was placed on the reserve/retired list," Jones wrote. "Instead of trying to force his way into Dallas' plans, the 2019 second-round selection has called time on his career after seven years."
We might be splitting hairs, but Campbell's retirement is hardly a "setback." If anything, it provides some much-needed clarity in a receiver room that has plenty of unanswered questions behind CeeDee Lamb, George Pickens, and Ryan Flournoy.
Parris Campbell wouldn't have made the Dallas Cowboys' roster anyway
While Dallas may have been counting on Campbell to provide competition and mentorship in OTAs and training camp, he was not going to make the team. He spent most of last season on the practice squad, appearing in one game, and the WR room only got deeper this offseason.
Jalen Tolbert's departure leaves an open spot on the 53-man roster, but the Cowboys drafted East Carolina standout Anthony Smith in Round 4, signed SMU's Jordan Hudson as an undrafted free agent, and added vets Marquez Valdes-Scantling and Tyler Johnson post-draft.
Campbell may have entered OTAs as WR8. That's not an exaggeration. All of the following players are hoping to make the team alongside Lamb, Pickens, and Flournoy:
- KaVontae TurpinÂ
- Jonathan MingoÂ
- Marquez Valdes-Scantling
- Traeshon Holden
- Tyler JohnsonÂ
- Anthony Smith (R)
- Jordan Hudson (R)
- Camden Brown (R)
Does that really look like a room that needed an injury-prone 28-year-old? Certainly not, and Jones acknowledged as much, saying the Cowboys "have enough to cope without Campbell."
However, Jones also said that, "there was nothing to suggest that Campbell couldn't have done enough to go through onto the 53-man roster."
You can't guarantee many things in this sport, but the practice squad was Campbell's ceiling. He has just 26 catches over the last three years, which is fewer than Mingo, Valdes-Scantling, and Johnson, who haven't exactly been tearing it up on Sundays.
Not to mention, the Cowboys are high on second-year pro Traeshon Holden, who starred in training camp as a rookie, and Jordan Hudson, a local UDFA who racked up 766 receiving yards in his final year at SMU.
We wish Campbell nothing but the best in retirement, but it's hard to view his departure as a setback for a team that has a logjam at his position. If anything, it clears the runway for Holden and Hudson to see more reps and make stronger cases for roster spots this summer.
That extra clarity and opportunity might be just what the Cowboys needed.
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