Getty The Dallas Cowboys may need to trade for a receiver this offseason.
The Dallas Cowboys approval rating is low and the team may need to make a significant trade to gain back the excitement of fans. With Mike McCarthy returning as head coach, frustration continues to mount as the franchise runs things back despite little playoff success.
Bleacher Report’s RJ Ochoa suggests Buffalo Bills receiver Stefon Diggs as a potential trade target this offseason. The move would pair the playmaker with his brother lockdown corner Trevon Diggs.
“It’s tough to figure out a trade [with Cowboys’ lack of day-three draft picks],” Ochoa noted during a January 19, 2024 Bleacher Report live video session. “And that’s where maybe it is a matter of you send Brandin Cooks and something to [the] Buffalo Bills for Stefon Diggs.
“Again, we’re getting funny with these trades. We’re just talking about random hypothetical things. So, you might have to involve more assets that aren’t necessarily draft picks. You might have to dip your toe, as uncomfortable as this has made the Cowboys in the past, into your 2025 assets. Like they did this past year, obviously, when they traded for Trey Lance.”
Diggs represents a significant upgrade over Brandin Cooks, and Dallas would likely still need to include multiple picks in order to make a deal work. This is also assuming the Bills would be willing to move Diggs, something Buffalo has not been in the past.
Pairing Diggs with CeeDee Lamb would give Dallas arguably the most lethal one-two receiving punch in the NFL. The move would not come without its challenges.
Diggs is about to begin a four-year, $96 million contract that runs through 2027. Lamb is slated to play on a fifth-year option in 2024 and is headed for a lucrative new contract. The receiver could become a free agent in 2025 if no new deal is reached.
Spotrac projects Lamb’s market value to be a four-year, $115 million contract. Trading for Diggs would commit a significant amount of financial resources to the receiver position for the foreseeable future.
Cooks is slated to have a $10 million cap hit in 2024 compared to Diggs’ massive $27.8 million cap number for next season. Diggs’ deal does have an out during the 2025 offseason but comes with a $22.2 million dead cap hit if the team moves on.
If Dallas expects different results next January, the front office is going to need to make aggressive moves this offseason. Diggs has had six straight seasons topping 1,000 yards.
The Bills star notched 107 receptions for 1,183 yards and 8 touchdowns while starting in all 17 games this season. It marked Diggs’ fourth consecutive season with more than 100 catches.
“You need a shiny new toy, that’s where the fan base is at right now,” Ochoa noted. “You need a shiny new toy, and if it’s not going to be on your coaching staff. It’s obviously not going to be your quarterback. Maybe you sign Derrick Henry in free agency or something like that. I don’t know. … And what better shiny new toy is there than Stefon Diggs?”
