Cowboys’ $40 Million Star Considered ‘Top’ Trade Candidate

Getty Cowboys DE DeMarcus Lawrence could emerge as a trade candidate.

The Dallas Cowboys‘ longest-tenured player may be a possible trade candidate.

As Pro Football Network’s Anthony DiBona writes, Cowboys defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence should be considered Dallas’ “top” trade candidate this season. Lawrence — who has been a member of the Cowboys since 2014 — is entering the final year of his three-year, $40 million contract, as DiBona mentions.

“While Micah Parsons is clearly a foundational piece on the edge for the Dallas Cowboys, DeMarcus Lawrence isn’t getting any younger and is heading into the final year of his three-year contract with the team,” writes DiBona. “Dallas could actually save $10 million by trading Lawrence, which would free up more snaps for the Cowboys’ young pass rushers. Dallas selected Marshawn Kneeland in the second round of the 2024 NFL Draft, potentially signaling the end of Lawrence’s tenure.”

DeMarcus Lawrence Remains Elite Defensive End

The 32-year-old Lawrence is actually still playing at a high level, coming off of his fourth overall Pro Bowl appearance and his second consecutive berth after posting 50 tackles, four sacks and a career-high six pass deflections. While the individual statistics don’t look overly impressive, the advanced analytics paint a different picture.

According to Pro Football Focus, Lawrence posted a career-high 91.3 defensive grade and 92.4 run defensive grade last season. Among all edge rushers, Lawrence ranked seventh in defensive grade and second in run defensive grade.

The idea of the Cowboys trading Lawrence from a salary cap standpoint makes sense because the Cowboys would save $10 million. However, they’d also absorb a dead money cap hit of nearly $10.5 million.

Why Sam Williams Injury Negates Potential DeMarcus Lawrence Trade

It would make sense to recoup some value from one of their top players by unloading him before the trade deadline if the Cowboys had plenty of depth on the edge. The problem is, the unit is now lacking depth following Sam Williams’ season-ending ACL injury.

A big factor in whether or not the Cowboys actually eventually pursue a trade featuring Lawrence is whether or not rookie Marshawn Kneeland shows he’s ready to take on that role in his rookie season. Kneeland was selected with a second-round pick (No. 56 overall) in this year’s draft and Dallas has high hopes for him — especially following Williams’ injury.

“We had big plans for [Williams]. He was going to play an awful lot, probably I’m guessing, 70-75 percent of the time,” Cowboys defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer said. “We’ll just have to move some chess pieces around and try to figure out other ways to do things. … With us moving (Micah) Parsons around a little bit, (Williams) was going to be out there with Parsons and (DeMarcus Lawrence). Marshawn Kneeland has done a really nice job. He would’ve played anyway but I think he’s gonna end up having to play a lot now.”

Considering Lawrence is still playing at a high level and when factoring in Williams’ season-ending injury, it’s hard to envision the Cowboys trading the 32-year-old veteran — especially when they have hopes of winning a Super Bowl this year.

As tempting as it may be to trade Lawrence for draft picks before his prime is completely over, the more logical scenario sees the Cowboys retain the veteran defensive end through the end of the 2024 season.