The Dallas Cowboys have the cap space and time to add in free agency. Additionally, the team is still linked to a former Tampa Bay Buccaneers player.
Dallas is in search of a linebacker Jason Pierre-Paul, an ex-Buccaneer, has stood out in terms of free-agent defensive line additions.
ESPN insider Jeremy Fowler linked Pierre-Paul to Cowboys in March. Sports Illustrated’s Mike Fisher addresses the latest links. Fisher claims that the Cowboys don’t really care and that the agent for the former Tampa Bay defensive lineman is the one who generated the news.
“At some point, once the same national reporter continually beats the same drum,” Fisher wrote on May 25. “It begins to feel less like a concept gurgling out of The Star and more like the idea of a persistently texting agent. That doesn’t make [signing Pierre-Paul] a bad idea.”
Fisher is correct. Pierre-Paul is still available even though his contract has expired and there has been approximately two months of free agency. The fact that the three-time Pro Bowler is available for Dallas to sign him is a good thing. However, it also shows that JPP will not be paid in a hurry in 2022.
Pierre-Paul is one of the most well-known NFL players due to his consistent and long-lasting production. According to Pro Football Reference, Pierre-Paul has played 165 games in 12 years since being drafted by New York Giants in round one of the 2010 NFL Draft.
Pierre-Paul’s 16.5 tackles during the Giants’ Super Bowl 2011 campaign earned him the All-Pro title and instantly made him a leading pass-rusher in NFL. However, his New York production was inconsistent. He had only seven sacks in four seasons from 2012 to 2017.
The former South Florida star turned professional football player was reintroduced to the spotlight in 2018 when he moved to Tampa Bay. JPP played 42 games in his first three seasons and racked up 30.5 sacks. He also recorded 12.5 in 2018. He also won his second Super Bowl ring in 2020 with the Buccaneers.
His output fell significantly in 2022. Pierre-Paul played 12 games with the Buccaneers and earned 2.5 sacks. He also forced one fumble. His slowdown is a warning sign. However, it’s still evident that JPP can still contribute at this age.
The Cowboys are in the mix for big-name-free agents like Pierre-Paul. This is not just Fisher’s report, but the Cowboys have declared openly that they would be willing to add to the team before the fall.
“I will say this, free agency’s not over,” Cowboys CEO Stephen Jones said in a April 26 pre-draft press conference. “There’s different waves of it and there’s still going to be opportunities to improve different areas of our team other than the draft or college free agency. I think that still can happen and probably will happen.”
After Jones’ statement, The Cowboys has not signed any prominent free agents to their team. They only signed a UDFA Class along with 2022 NFL draft picks.