Cowboys’ $40 Million Star Considered ‘Top’ Trade Candidate

Cowboys’ $40 Million Star Considered ‘Top’ Trade Candidate

The guy with the longest contract with the Dallas Cowboys could be a trade candidate. According to Anthony DiBona of Pro Football Network, DeMarcus Lawrence, a defensive end with the Cowboys, is Dallas’ “top” trade candidate for this season. As DiBona notes, Lawrence, a member of the Cowboys since 2014, is about to enter the last year of a three-year, $40 million contract.

“DeMarcus Lawrence is entering the last year of his three-year contract with the Dallas Cowboys, and while Micah Parsons is undoubtedly a foundational piece on the edge for the team,” writes DiBona. By moving Lawrence, Dallas might really save $10 million, giving their young pass rushers more opportunities. In the second round of the 2024 NFL Draft, Dallas selected Marshawn Kneeland, possibly indicating the end of Lawrence’s career.

DeMarcus Lawrence Remains Elite Defensive End
The 32-year-old Lawrence is actually still playing at a high level, coming off of his fourth overall Pro Bowl appearance and his second consecutive berth after posting 50 tackles, four sacks and a career-high six pass deflections. While the individual statistics don’t look overly impressive, the advanced analytics paint a different picture.

Lawrence had a career-high defensive rating of 91.3 and a run defensive grade of 92.4 last season, per Pro Football Focus. Lawrence placed second in run defense grade and sixth overall among edge rushers. From a salary cap perspective, dealing Lawrence makes sense for the Cowboys as it would save them $10 million. But they would also have to pay a nearly $10.5 million dead money cap hit.

If the Cowboys had plenty of depth on the edge, it would make sense to salvage some value from one of their best players by offloading him before to the trade deadline. The issue is that, as a result of Sam Williams’ ACL injury that ended the season, the team now lacks depth. How well rookie Marshawn Kneeland performs in his first season will play a significant influence in whether or not the Cowboys actually pursue a trade involving Lawrence. Dallas has high expectations for Kneeland, who was chosen with a second-round choice (No. 56 overall) in this year’s draft, particularly in light of Williams’ injury.
“We had big plans for [Williams]. He was going to play an awful lot, probably I’m guessing, 70-75 percent of the time,” Cowboys defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer said. “We’ll just have to move some chess pieces around and try to figure out other ways to do things. … With us moving (Micah) Parsons around a little bit, (Williams) was going to be out there with Parsons and (DeMarcus Lawrence). Marshawn Kneeland has done a really nice job. He would’ve played anyway but I think he’s gonna end up having to play a lot now.

It’s difficult to see the Cowboys trading the 32-year-old veteran, especially since Lawrence is still performing at a high level and in light of Williams’ season-ending injury. This is especially true given their chances of winning a Super Bowl this year. Even though it would be alluring to deal Lawrence for draft picks before he reaches the end of his playing days, it makes more sense for the Cowboys to hold onto the seasoned defensive end until the end of the 2024 campaign.

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