As expected, the Dallas Cowboys have endured some major losses in free agency. Jourdan Lewis, DeMarcus Lawrence and Rico Dowdle headlined the first wave of departures.
The Jaguars made Lewis the NFL's highest-paid nickel cornerback, while Lawrence got a three-year, $42 million deal with $18 million guaranteed from the Seahawks. Dowdle's market wasn't as big as expected, but he got to go home to Carolina with a contract worth up to $6.25 million.
The exodus continued into the weekend when the Ravens inked quarterback Cooper Rush to a two-year deal worth up to $12.2 million. It's a great deal for Rush, who is 9-5 as a starter in his career with a 2:1 touchdown-to-interception ratio, but it creates a major hole on the roster.
Rush served as the Cowboys' QB2 for the last seven seasons. While Will Grier is under contract, he's played just two regular-season games in his career. Even if for competition purposes, Dallas needs to add a new QB this offseason.
Needles to say Dallas will add a new quarterback. If they wait too long, though, the Giants may steal their ideal Rush replacement.
Giants are plotting to steal potential Cowboys backup QB Jameis Winston in free agency
The Giants will meet with free-agent Jameis Winston on Tuesday, per Tom Pelissero of NFL Network. With Aaron Rodgers keeping suitors like the NFC East bottom-feeders in limbo, the Giants have already visited with veterans Russell Wilson and Joe Flacco.
Rodgers is reportedly waiting for the Vikings to make their quarterback decision. It seems more likely than not that they'll roll with 2024 No. 10 overall pick J.J. McCarthy, but anything is possible.
Being Rodgers' clear second or third choice, it makes sense why the Giants are doing their due diligence on other free agents. With Rush off the market, Winston is arguably the best of the available QBs. If nothing else, he has the highest ceiling.
Winston is the definition of a gunslinger. He famously threw 33 touchdowns and 30 interceptions in 2019 with the Buccaneers. He unironically led the league in passing yards that season, which also happened to be his last with Tampa Bay.With that said,, he's had serviceable campaigns with the Saints in 2021 and last year he revived a previously-anemic Browns offense.
The former No. 1 overall pick has never learned to reel it in - he's as careless as any quarterback when dropping back to pass - but he'd give the Cowboys' offense a relatively high floor if Prescott were to miss time relative to Rush's conservative, game-manager style of play.
Of course, the major caveat with Winston is salary. Rush and Jacoby Brissett both got over $6 million per year as backups. It stands to reason the 31-year-old Winston could fetch more on the open market.
It's a long shot but Winston would make a lot of sense for Dallas, both from a competitive and entertainment standpoint.
