The Dallas Cowboys have been a huge disappointment on the field this season, but what they've done off the field in terms of roster building and causing distractions has been more difficult to stomach.
Dak Prescott's likely season-ending injury is beyond demoralizing, but the trade deadline was the last straw for many fans after Dallas traded a fourth-round pick to the Carolina Panthers for wide receiver Jonathan Mingo.
Whether it be NFL general managers and talent evaluators, as well as prominent insiders, everyone is in agreement that the Cowboys overpaid for Mingo. The trade likely needs a full season for a proper evaluation, but the early returns are terrible.
Not only is Mingo inactive for today's game against the Philadelphia Eagles, but Mike Williams, a player whom Dallas could've had at the deadline for a lesser price, caught the game-winning touchdown for the Steelers against the Commanders.
It only took five days for Cowboys' Jonathan Mingo trade to age poorly
RUSSELL WILSON TO MIKE WILLIAMS! @STEELERS LEAD!
— NFL (@NFL) November 10, 2024
📺: #PITvsWAS on CBS/Paramount+
📱: https://t.co/waVpO909ge pic.twitter.com/zM3oWDIj95
The Jets traded Williams to the Steelers for a 2025 fifth-round pick. It was considered a steal from New York's perspective given Williams' lack of production and that he's on an expiring contract, but he helped Pittsburgh pick up a huge win in the AFC playoff race.
Many Cowboys fans are lamenting the fact that Mingo is inactive. Yes, Mingo has only been on the roster for five days and practiced for the first time on Thursday, but the same can be said about Williams.
READ MORE: Jonathan Mingo had perfect reaction after being traded to Cowboys
While Williams is an eight-year veteran, it looks bad for Dallas that Williams is already making big plays for the Steelers while Mingo didn't even dress.
It's not an apples-to-apples comparison being that Mingo has two years left on his contract and Williams will be a free agent, but the Cowboys still spent a fourth-round pick on Mingo while knowing Prescott could miss the rest of the season.
Trading for Williams would have been reckless, but giving up a fourth for Mingo looks just as bad and the trade isn't even a week old.
Not only did more accomplished receivers like DeAndre Hopkins and Diontae Johnson cost around the same (less in Johnson's case!), but Mingo's career resume screams of a player that shouldn't have cost anything more than a sixth- or seventh-round pick.
We're not dying on the hill that Dallas should've traded for Williams. However, his immediate heroics for his new team only add more questions about why the Cowboys thought a fourth-round pick for Mingo was good value.