The Dallas Cowboys tried and failed to trade for Las Vegas Raiders edge rusher Maxx Crosby, but weren’t willing to pay the high price of 2 1st round draft picks — which may have turned out to be a blessing in disguise.
What the Cowboys got, as a consolation prize, was a trade for Green Bay Packers edge rusher and former 1st round pick Rashan Gary in the hours before the free agency cycle officially opened on Monday.
That might not end up being such a great deal, either.
ESPN’s Seth Walder handed out one of his worst offseason grades to the Cowboys over the trade for Gary — a “D+” — while giving the Packers an “A” grade for getting back a 2027 4th round pick.
“The cost for Dallas is steep relative to the player they are getting,” Walder wrote. “Gary was once viewed as a very promising young pass rusher. And in 2022, he looked like a player who was ready to fulfill that potential, delivering a 23% pass rush win rate at edge and 6.0 sacks in nine games before tearing his ACL. His numbers since then have never reached the same pace. And last season, despite playing with Micah Parsons, Gary recorded just an 8% pass rush win rate at edge (18th percentile) and a 9% pressure rate (37th percentile), along with 7.5 sacks. His run stop win rate at edge was in the 60th percentile.”
Gary About to Receive King’s Ransom From Dallas
Gary isn’t just unproductive. He’s also making a mint — due $19.5 million in 2026 and another $22.5 million as part of the 4-year, $96 million contract extension he signed midway through the 2023 season.
Gary, 6-foot-5 and 277 pounds, was the No. 12 overall pick in the 2019 NFL draft and earned his lone Pro Bowl selection in 2024. He’s had at least 7.5 sacks each of the last 3 seasons.
On the Friday before the trade, he posted and then deleted a “goodbye” post to the Packers on his Instagram account, then claimed he’d been hacked.
“This is a big piece,” NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport said on Monday. ” … the Green Bay Packers and Cowboys were in talks the last 24 hours, figuring out the right price for the Cowboys to get a big-time pass rusher. He certainly didn’t play up to his capabilities last year. The Cowboys continue to buy low ahead of free agency, just like they did last year. They’ve been in the edge market trying to sign 1 … and I wouldn’t be surprised, actually, if they sign 2 edge rushers.”
The financial hit might not be as bad right away, in terms of cap space, as it might appear on the surface — the Cowboys will likely ask Gary to restructure his contract in some way, shape or form.
Big Moves on Defense Might Come Via Draft
The Cowboys’ biggest moves might still be on the way and could come via the NFL draft, where they hold the upper hand with 2 1st round picks at No. 12 and No. 20 overall.
The Cowboys could use 1 of those picks to get a high-profile defensive starter from another team via a trade or they could package the 2 picks in exchange for a much higher pick in the 1st round and take a player projected to be a bona fide NFL star — someone like Ohio State edge rusher/linebacker Arvell Reese or Texas Tech edge rusher David Bailey.
Cowboys Called Out Over ‘D+’ Trade for $96 Million Former 1st Round Pick