After trade speculation that was all over the map, the Dallas Cowboys ended up with a Pro Bowler in Quinnen Williams, who didn’t appear to be on the market until the Cowboys got him.
They traded a bunch of draft capital to the New York Jets for him, which raised some eyebrows given that the Cowboys went to 3-5-1 with their loss to the Arizona Cardinals. In fact, one grade of the trades gave Dallas an F and the Jets an A.
And is Matt Eberflus still employed? He is, and Jerry Jones has decided he doesn’t like changing defensive coordinators, so get used to Eberflus. What’s up?
Dallas Cowboys trade grades: Quinnen Williams and Logan Wilson
The Cowboys made their big swing to shore up their defense, acquiring New York Jets Pro Bowl tackle Quinnen Williams, who is under contract through 2027, and also getting Cincinnati linebacker Logan Wilson on the cheap.
The issue with Wilson wasn’t the seventh-round pick for a player who was benched a defense almost as bad as Dallas, as he seems like he can help and a seventh-round pick is a long shot, but the knock is on taking on the rest of his contract.
The issue with Williams was giving up a first-round pick (2027) and a second-round pick (2026), plus Mazi Smith (bust).
So how did the grades come out? ESPN’s Seth Walder didn’t much like either trade, particularly the Williams deal. He gave Dallas an F and the Jets an A.
His screed begins: “There’s no other way to put it: This is a horrific trade for the Cowboys. It is completely unfathomable for a team like Dallas to be trading away major draft resources for a soon-to-be-28-year-old defensive tackle on a salary-heavy contract in a season when it has a 7% chance to make the playoffs, per ESPN’s Football Power Index. And yet here we are.”
He pointed out that Williams is owed $21.75 million in cash next year and $25.5 million in cash in 2027. Walder’s bigger point is that Dallas is getting short-term help at a huge cost.
Walder was less critical about the Wilson deal, giving Dallas a B- and Cincinnati a B+.
He wrote: “There is something a little amusing about the Cowboys, desperate for help on defense, turning to one of the only teams with a worse defense than their own and trading for a linebacker that team benched. Yet that’s the situation.”
His issue was that Dallas didn’t get Cincinnati to eat some of the salary.
“What I am surprised about is that Dallas had to pick up all of the remaining $2.7 million of Wilson’s salary,” Walder wrote. “The Bengals had benched Wilson, they are equally long shots to make the playoffs, and they almost certainly would have cut him at the end of the season. Given that, I would have guessed they’d be willing to eat some of the 2025 salary in order to earn a seventh-round pick.”
It should be noted that Dallas graded out better elsewhere. USA Today and Sports Illustrated gave the Cowboys B+ grades, while CBS Sports gave them a B-.
Osa Odighizuwa
Osa Odighizuwa was Dallas’ third-round pick in 2021, and with the acquisition of Williams to pair with Kenny Clark, he could be the third tackle. But he gave a thumbs-up to the trade, which, when he’s on the field, could give him more one-on-one matchups as Williams absorbs double teams.
At any rate, he said the right things, and this came not long after getting a contract extension in the offseason.
“He’s going to add more play-making ability to the D-line, another bullet in the gun,” Odighizuwa told to The Athletic’s Jon Machota. “Another very strong and talented guy. … I respect his game a lot. The dude’s a baller. I’m excited to have him on the team.”
Trevon Diggs contract
Trevon Diggs signed a five-year, $97 million contract extension with the Dallas Cowboys in 2023 that keeps him under contract until 2028. He is on injured reserve at the moment, and given his growing injury history, his future in Dallas is far from assured.
Budda Baker
The big rumor on the eve of the trade deadline was that the Arizona Cardinals’ All-Pro safety was headed to Dallas, then he recovered a fumble against the Cowboys as part of his four-tackle night.
At any rate, rumors should be treated with delicacy and this rumor appeared to be wrong. He was not traded from Arizona.
Asante Samuel Jr.
The 26-year-old cornerback, who last played with the Chargers last year before an injury, has been cleared to begin his comeback after he underwent spinal fusion surgery in April.
He is going to begin free agent visits and Dallas could use another cornerback. A second-round pick in 2021, he has played 50 games with 47 starts in four seasons. Samuel totaled 176 tackles, six interceptions and 37 pass breakups.
His father was a superstar cornerback for 11 years, where he won two Super Bowls with the New England Patriots.
Matt Eberflus
Dallas’ beleaguered defensive coordinator got another vote of confidence from Jerry Jones, and at this point, it looks like the Cowboys are committed to him, and maybe beyond this year.
“I see a guy that’s very pragmatic,” Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said of Eberflus on his Tuesday morning radio show (105.3 The Fan). “He’s got his eye on the ball. He knows the things, in my mind, where we need to make adjustments. “
Here is what might scare Dallas fans: “I’ve erred over the last three years with the changing of defensive coordinators, When I look back, if I see one thing that I had to do over again, I would have tried to not change out our coordinator every year over the last three years. Continuity; I know better. Continuity in football is important.”
Jaelan Phillips
The Miami edge rusher was linked to the Cowboys in trade rumors, but not only did that not happen, now he’s headed to Dallas’ NFC East rivals, the Philadelphia Eagles. The Eagles got him for a third-round pick.
On those ESPN rankings, Philadelphia got an A and the Dolphins got a C-.
Dallas Cowboys game
The Dallas Cowboys will not lose this week. They are on bye with their next game coming Nov. 17 against the Las Vegas Raiders.
Bret Bloomquist can be reached at bbloomquist@elpasotimes.com; @Bretbloomquist on X.
This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: How did Dallas’ big trades grade out? Does Matt Eberflus still have a job? Cowboys news
Reporting by Bret Bloomquist, El Paso Times / El Paso Times
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