The Dallas Cowboys are in need of a new offensive weapon and should look to Green Bay to find him, according to Bleacher Report’s Alex Ballentine.
Ballentine suggested that Dallas consider signing 27-year-old wide receiver Allen Lazard, who will become a free agent in March, as a complement for Cowboys WR CeeDee Lamb.
“[The Cowboys] would just need him to be a big-bodied No. 2 receiver who can offer another red-zone threat and give Dak Prescott someone else to come down with 50-50 balls,” Ballentine wrote in an opinion piece published March 1. “Lazard has scored 14 touchdowns over the last two seasons. He was still one of the most consistent downfield threats for Aaron Rodgers in 2022.”
There’s no question that Lazard is a starter-quality receiver, but it’s his specific toolset rather than his stats that should entice Dallas in 2023.
Allan Lazard Produced with the Green Bay Packers
The transition from Iowa State to the NFL was a slow one for Lazard, who was initially signed by the Jacksonville Jaguars after going undrafted in 2018. He didn’t make their 53-man roster and was eventually picked up by Green Bay later that year.
Lazard was called into a bigger role in 2019, earning his first NFL starts and becoming a useful downfield target for Rodgers. The receiver’s towering 6-foot-5, 227-pound frame makes him a nightmare for defenders, and the Packers QB tapped into his size quickly.
From 2019 through 2021, Lazard put up at least 451 receiving yards or more in each season, racking up 513 receiving yards and scoring eight touchdowns in 2021.
The former Cyclone was given the lead role after Davante Adams left Green Bay for the Las Vegas Raiders, but it did not translate to a monster season. Lazard totaled 788 receiving yards and six touchdowns in 2022.
Ballentine noted that the Cowboys don’t need Lazard in the lead role. In fact, a season comparable to his 2021 campaign would be perfect: a dominant red zone threat who can also help stretch opposing defenses thanks to his long-field ability to beat defenders in the air.
Costing the Cowboys
A player of Lazard’s quality isn’t cheap, and Ballentine projects that Lazard will command a three-year, $38 million contract. That would be about $12.6 million a season, a serious price for a second receiver. Dallas already has that kind of money committed to wide receiver Michael Gallup, who had only 424 receiving yards and four touchdowns in 14 games in 2022.
Conceivably, the Cowboys could backload a contract for Lazard in order to sync up with Gallup’s contract, which has an out for the Cowboys after the 2023 season. For example, they could pay Lazard something close to $8 million in 2023 to keep his cap hit low and then pay him $15 million a year in 2024 and 2025.
According to Spotrac, Gallup can be cut with a reasonable $6 million in dead cap in 2024, freeing up $8.5 million for that season and upwards of $10.5 million the following years.
There would be risk involved, but signing Lazard could make sense given his skillset and because he’s tall, powerful and has played with an elite quarterback for the past four seasons.
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Cowboys Encouraged to Give $38 Million Contract to Towering Packers WR