3 contract decisions that will haunt the Dallas Cowboys
• Tyron Smith is too unreliable at this point
• Michael Gallup needed to prove his worth before the deal
By Randy Gurzi
1. Michael Gallup's contract was never a wise move
2022 was a frustrating offseason to sit through. Due to the enormous cap hit Ezekiel Elliott had, the Cowboys elected to trade Amari Cooper for practically nothing. What really made that move infuriating was the fact that it didn't have to happen.
Dallas took a $6 million hit to trade Cooper, so they practically had to pay $6 million not to have him. Then, they went out and signed Michael Gallup to a five-year deal worth $57 million. They also hit Dalton Schultz with the franchise tag, which was roughly $10 million.
So Dallas said they needed to make these moves in order to keep their offense together and in the end, they didn't do that. Schultz is out this season and while Gallup remained, he hasn't been close to the same player.
Last year, Gallup had just 39 receptions on 74 targets with 424 yards and four touchdowns. His performance was so worrisome, they had to go out and trade for Brandin Cooks. It's true that Cooks is an upgrade but they made a terrible decision to move on from a durable veteran in favor of a player coming off a serious knee injury.
Add to it the fact that Dallas can't move on from his deal with ease until 2025 and it makes this investment look even worse — unless he suddenly returns to form.
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