As Pro Football Network’s Anthony DiBona writes, Cowboys defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence should be considered Dallas’ “top” trade candidate this season. Lawrence — who has been a member of the Cowboys since 2014 — is entering the final year of his three-year, $40 million contract, as DiBona mentions.
“While Micah Parsons is clearly a foundational piece on the edge for the Dallas Cowboys, DeMarcus Lawrence isn’t getting any younger and is heading into the final year of his three-year contract with the team,” writes DiBona. “Dallas could actually save $10 million by trading Lawrence, which would free up more snaps for the Cowboys’ young pass rushers. Dallas selected Marshawn Kneeland in the second round of the 2024 NFL Draft, potentially signaling the end of Lawrence’s tenure.”
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
According to Pro Football Focus, Lawrence posted a career-high 91.3 defensive grade and 92.4 run defensive grade last season. Among all edge rushers, Lawrence ranked seventh in defensive grade and second in run defensive grade.
The idea of the Cowboys trading Lawrence from a salary cap standpoint makes sense because the Cowboys would save $10 million. However, they’d also absorb a dead money cap hit of nearly $10.5 million.
It would make sense to recoup some value from one of their top players by unloading him before the trade deadline if the Cowboys had plenty of depth on the edge. The problem is, the unit is now lacking depth following Sam Williams’ season-ending ACL injury.
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