The Dallas Cowboys are not done adding to a roster that is still one or two ticks below becoming a high-end contender, which means that Jerry Jones should be surveying the minicam landcape and taking a look at anyone who decided to skip out in the name of a new deal.
The Miami Dolphins must deal with two big-name holdouts, as tight end Jonnu Smith and future Hall of Fame cornerback Jalen Ramsey have both decided to forego minicamp. Smith wants a new contract, while Ramsey wants to play for seemingly any team that is not wearing aqua and orange.
Ramsey, who missed the Pro Bowl for the first time since his rookie season way back in 2016, is still a quality starting cornerback who could help any team out there begging for more secondary talent. Unsurprisingly, Dallas could easily fit that bill after some offseason roster-shaking.
The Cowboys have gotten away from their roots of pursuing big stars via trade for quite a while, and Jones is clearly chomping at the bit to bring in a splashy name that can prevent them from falling too far behind the likes of Washington and Philadelphia in the NFC East.
Cowboys could trade for Jalen Ramsey after missing mandatory minicamp
Ramsey has taken a bit of a step backward, but he is still one of the better cornerbacks in the AFC. His 76.9 PFF grade bears that out, as his grade ranked 16th among all cornerbacks in the league. Not bad for someone on the wrong side of 30, which is often the death knell for cornerbacks
Ramsey has a ton of money owed to him in the next few years, which may not be ideal for a Cowboys team that is already weighed down by the Dak Prescott and CeeDee Lamb contracts (on top of the whole Micah Parsons situation). However, cornerback is a huge need, and no player (not even Stephon Gilmore) fills that need better than Ramsey.
With multiple years left on his contract, the Cowboys won’t be able to get away with flicking a draft pick over to Miami and calling it a day. This will require some major investment, but Jones is not above making moves like this in the name of keeping the Cowboys in the national zeitgeist.
If the Cowboys don’t trade for Ramsey, some other contender will. This roster needs a system shock, and Ramsey can provide just that.
