3 players the Cowboys should put on trade block during 2024 NFL Draft

This is shaping up to be an interesting season for the Dallas Cowboys. They have several key players entering the final year of their contracts — as well as head coach Mike McCarthy. There's a chance they won't extend anyone and blow things up in 2025 if it doesn't work out.

That strategy is flawed since lame-duck coaches hardly work out. It's also not as easy to rebuild if players walk and you have to wait a year to get a mid-round comp pick (which isn't guaranteed either).

With that being the case, the Cowboys need to decide on these three players now, rather than later. If they don't plan on extending them, it would make sense to put them on the trade block to add more firepower now, rather than down the road.

3. Chauncey Golston, DL

A third-round pick from Iowa, Chauncey Golston was added with the selection the Cowboys acquired in 2021 when they traded down with the Philadelphia Eagles. In three seasons, he's proven to be a valuable rotation player who can play defensive end and defensive tackle.

Golston enters the final year of his deal with 79 tackles, 3.5 sacks, and 20 quarterback pressures. Over the past two seasons, he's played in fewer than 30 percent of the defensive snaps but has always held his own.

This could lead to him getting more money on the open market than expected, meaning the Cowboys need to decide what they would like to do. If they plan on keeping their starting 3-tech, Osa Odighizuwa, they could see what Golston's value is on the trading block. This would be contingent on their belief that Viliami Fehoko is ready to step into Golston's shoes.

They could also let Odighizuwa walk and re-sign Golston in the 2025 offseason to pair with Fehoko in a rotation at the 3-tech. If that's the plan, this brings us to the second player they could potentially trade before the NFL Draft.