Dallas Cowboys fans are waiting in earnest for the post-June 1 signings that the front office promised amid the team's dormant free agency. Fortunately, there are several players still available that could fill a need.
Accomplished vets Stephon Gilmore and Calais Campbell would be great pickups, but it remains to be seen how much the Cowboys are willing to spend. After all, they have to set aside some money for contract extensions for CeeDee Lamb and Dak Prescott.
Until then, the Cowboys have to be diligent with their cap space. If they are to make signings before training camp next month, expect them to be of the low-profile variety. Well, former head coach Wade Phillips, now head coach of the UFL's San Antonio Brahmas, has proposed a genius idea for Dallas.
After Phillips led the Brahmas to an upset win over the St. Louis Battlehawks in the conference title game this past weekend, he caught up with Battlehawks wide receiver Hakeem Butler and told him that he belongs in the NFL.
Wade Phillips thinks WR Hakeem Butler belongs in NFL and the Cowboys should listen
"I’m going to tell everybody in the NFL that I talk to that you need to be playing,” Phillips told Butler. "You deserve it."
The Cowboys should take Phillips' words to heart and host Butler for a workout. The team is on summer break following the conclusion of minicamp last week, but there's no rule stating they can't give Butler a tryout.
Butler was recently named UFL Offensive Player of the Year. He posted 45 catches for a league-high 652 receiving yards and five touchdowns for the Battlehawks. While impressive numbers, it shouldn't come as a surprise that Butler dominated the spring league.
Now 28 years old, Butler is a former fourth-round pick of the Arizona Cardinals in 2019. Unfortunately, he never caught on in the NFL.
A broken hand cost him his entire rookie season and he never played for the Cardinals. He appeared in two games for the Philadelphia Eagles in 2020, but was cut the following summer. He then bounced between the BC Lions and Edmonton Elks of the CFL before joining St. Louis (then in the XFL) last year.
It goes without saying that Phillips still has connections to the Cowboys. While Dallas is bullish on Jalen Tolbert, Jalen Brooks and rookie Ryan Flournoy to fill out the WR depth chart behind CeeDee Lamb and Brandin Cooks, it couldn't hurt to take a flier on Butler, who's in the form of his life.
If the Cowboys do kick the tires on Butler they better get a move on as Phillips' viral moment has already helped Butler land a minicamp workout with the Carolina Panthers. More teams are sure to follow suit.
