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The safety position may be a need for the Dallas Cowboys this offseason, but it doesn’t appear the team will make a run at any of the spot’s top free agents, according to Calvin Watkins of The Athletic on Wednesday:
Calvin Watkins @calvinwatkins
Let’s clear this up now. A source tells @TheAthleticDFW Cowboys have no interest in Earl Thomas or Landon Collins. The financial price is too steep. This isn’t new news. Now Cowboys also have no interest in Eric Weddle either. Price is everything.
That jibed with a report from ESPN’s Dan Graziano on Tuesday:
Dan Graziano @DanGrazianoESPN
I’m sure their top choice is Earl, but I don’t get the sense the Cowboys are planning on a huge spend at the safety position. Could be wrong. https://t.co/h1NYLAgTkg
Of course, the high-profile trio aren’t the only free-agent safeties the Cowboys could target on the market. Lamarcus Joyner, Ha Ha Clinton-Dix, Tyrann Mathieu, Marcus Gilchrist and Tre Boston, among others, will also be available in a stacked group.
The Cowboys should be looking for an upgrade to Jeff Heath, who Pro Football Focus graded just 81st among safeties for the 2018 season. Xavier Woods, meanwhile, was solid for the Cowboys last year in his second season in the league (46th at the position) and is versatile enough that the team can cast a wide net in its search for an upgrade.
Thomas has long felt like a match for the Cowboys, though his desire to be the highest-paid safety in football has made it likely he and the team will be at an impasse, per Clarence E. Hill Jr. of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram:
“Thomas wants to come to the Cowboys and the Cowboys would like to add him to the back end of the defense. But Thomas is not budging on his demands. And the Cowboys, as of now, have no interest in paying that much, given Thomas’ age and recent injury history, per source.
“Thomas, who turns 30 in May, missed three games in 2016, two games in 2017 and 12 games in 2018. The Cowboys like free safety Xavier Woods and would rather target a strong safety in the draft.”
Given the free-agent safety class, the Cowboys can afford to be patient and let it unfold, allowing another team to set the market. That may mean missing out on the top players at the position, but if the Cowboys truly don’t want to spend big money there—even at the expense of productivity on the field—they will have other options.
from Declare News https://ift.tt/2IThrSr
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