DALLAS (105.3 The Fan) - The Cowboys were criticized this offseason for cutting offensive lineman La'el Collins, and fumbling contract negotiations with pass rusher Randy Gregory in free agency, only to not make any significant free-agent signings or trades to replace them.
Those decisions haven't proven as costly this season as the one they made with their top receiver Amari Cooper, whom they dealt to Cleveland for a fifth-round pick.
Cooper has responded by racking up back-to-back 101-yard receiving performances for the Browns, to go along with a pair of touchdowns. Meanwhile, the Cowboys deployed a receiving group consisting of CeeDee Lamb and unproven players such as Noah Brown, Simi Fehoko, Dennis Houston and KaVontae Turpin in the first two games while Michael Gallup and James Washington remained sidelined.
The group struggled in the Week 1 loss to Tampa Bay, failing to create separation for quarterback Dak Prescott. They did improve in the Week 2 win over the Bengals, and Gallup is a sure bet to return for their Monday Night Football matchup with the Giants.
But while the loss of Cooper is paying dividends for the Browns, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones says it will work itself out in the long run for his organization.
“The issue with Amari Cooper was how much we were paying him and what we could do with that money, completely. Amari Cooper is a real good player. Top player," Jones said on the K&C Masterpiece on 105.3 The Fan. "But do you want to allocate that much money to him ($22 million cap hit), or would you rather have a better offensive line or a better pass rush? You can't have it all."
By trading Cooper, the Cowboys saved $16 million on the salary cap.
In training camp, the Joneses revealed the team's reasoning for parting ways with those players, citing 'availability' as their primary concern. They also defended their decision to fill the vacated positions with lesser proven players, despite having salary cap space to spend on players.
According to OverTheCap, the Cowboys have just over $11 million in salary cap space, but according to Stephen Jones, the team will eventually spend all of it on their roster.
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