The Dallas Cowboys have been quite active in the trade market recently, making seven trades in the past two years.

Most want to focus on the blockbuster trades when teams are swapping high-value assets, like exchanging a first-round draft pick for Amari Cooper in 2018. But there’s a lot of value in the less noteworthy trades that help round out a roster, like swapping a sixth-round pick for Robert Quinn in 2019.

If there’s one type of trade the Cowboys have struggled with recently, it’s player-for-player deals. In 2018, they made two player-for-player trades during the offseason. First, the Cowboys traded wide receiver Ryan Switzer for defensive tackle Jihad Ward, who didn’t even make the 53-man roster. Then they exchanged cornerback Charvarius Ward for offensive guard Parker Ehinger, who was placed on injured reserve before the season and waived in 2019.

It’s safe to say the Cowboys did their best Brett Maher impression by missing badly on both of their most recent player-for-player trades.

This offseason, they could conceivably be in the market for all three types of trades, as there are numerous opportunities that could tickle their fancy. With that in mind, let’s dive into three realistic trade opportunities the Cowboys could consider this offseason.

Blockbuster : Trade pick No. 17 for Jamal Adams

Since we’ve discussed this trade scenario recently, we are going to keep this one brief. Safety Jamal Adams is a player whose presence can truly change a defense for the better.

Through all of the New York Jets’ struggles, Adams has been a proven leader who plays with maximum effort in nearly every situation, which is hard to do for a team that is often out of the playoff race by midseason.

Adams is a playmaker both against the run and pass, as evidenced by him finishing first among safeties in total pressures (25) and fourth in stops (36) to go along with his four passes defended and one interception in 14 games.

He can make plays from any alignment, but there’s no doubt he’s most comfortable in and around the box, where he can consistently make an impact against the run and pass. Adams is outstanding at attacking his run fits and knifing his way into the backfield to make plays as a blitzer. In coverage, he has the rare ability to provide tight-man coverage against tight ends while possessing the football intelligence and instincts to succeed in zone coverage. Also, Adams is a much more reliable tackler than the Cowboys’ previous strong safety, Jeff Heath.

The only argument against trading a first-rounder for Adams is that it sacrifices some future financial flexibility at a time when the Cowboys’ cap space is likely to shrink heavily if and when they sign Dak Prescott and Amari Cooper to mega contracts.

A player selected in the first round comes on a relatively cheap contract while being under team control for at least four years. Adams, on the other hand, is entering the final years of his rookie deal, so if the Cowboys wanted to keep him long-term, they’d have to re-sign yet another player to a big contract in the immediate future, shrinking the money pool they would use to improve the rest of the roster.

If the Cowboys can come to terms with the financial side of the deal, it would be hard to pass up an elite talent in Adams at a position of need.

Less noteworthy : Trade a mid-round pick for Solomon Thomas

Selected No. 3 overall in 2017, Solomon Thomas has been a huge disappointment for a San Francisco 49ers team that’s reached the Super Bowl thanks, in large part, to the efforts of its defensive line.

With the amount of talent the 49ers have on the defensive line, it’s not hard to understand why they would be willing trade Thomas -- it would help them recoup some of their capital loss.

In three years, Thomas has failed to record more than 30 total pressures as a pass rusher, managing just 14 in 2019. For comparison’s sake, Christian Covington, a nose tackle, had 18 total pressures in 2019 -- four more pressures on 24 fewer pass-rush snaps than Thomas.

So why should Dallas be interested in someone whose production doesn’t match up with his draft status?

Glad you asked.

While he’s yet to put it all together, Thomas does have the type of player profile worth taking a chance on. He’s still very young, having turned 24 in August, and has one of the most impressive athletic profiles in the NFL:

Listed at 6-2, 280 pounds, Thomas would project best as a defensive end on base downs who moves inside to defensive tackle in sub-packages. His athleticism makes him a mismatch as a defensive tackle for interior offensive linemen in pass protection, while his size enables him to set a strong edge against the run game when at defensive end.

While he’s far from consistent, Thomas does flash high-level ability on occasion, showcasing impressive quickness and powerful hands on his way toward making a positive contribution. It’s just that those instances are few and far between. Here’s an example:

On this play, Thomas is aligned in the play-side A-gap with a slight inside shade over the left guard. Despite his interior alignment, he showcases impressive athletic ability to run down this pin-and-pull sweep outside of the numbers. On top of that, Thomas does an excellent job of tracking the running back’s inside hip to be in good position to make a tackle whether the ball carrier tries to outrun him to the edge or cut upfield.

With Jim Tomsula’s knack for developing defensive linemen and his reputation as a teacher, it would be great to see what he could do if he got his hands on a talent like Thomas, whose position flexibility would be a boon to the Cowboys as they transition to Mike Nolan’s multiple defense.

Thomas also just seemed to never fit in with the 49ers’ defense. A big part of that could be the personal trauma he has had to endure since entering the NFL, having lost his sister to suicide before the 2018 season, so a change of scenery and a move back home (Thomas attended Coppell High School) could be beneficial to him.

For the Cowboys, trading for Thomas carries little risk. They can simply choose to not pick up his fifth-year option if he doesn’t live up to their expectations, making him an unrestricted free agent next offseason. But if he does show improvement, then the Cowboys have added a young, potentially dynamic piece who could improve the depth and overall play of the defensive line.

Player for player : Trade Trysten Hill for P.J. Hall

Although the Cowboys haven’t had the best luck in player-for-player trades, their regime change does introduce a potential trade opportunity.

With Rod Marinelli signing on to coach the Las Vegas Raiders’ defensive line, maybe the Cowboys could convince them to jettison backup nose tackle P.J. Hall in an effort to reunite Marinelli with his pet cat from the 2019 draft: Trysten Hill.

It’s still much too early to label Hill a bust, but there’s no doubt he was a major disappointment in his rookie year. He was inactive for most of the season and largely ineffective when he did play, although he did show some improvement toward the end.

That improvement could be enough for Marinelli to sell the Raiders on trading for Hill. However, it’s unlikely the Cowboys would be able to fetch anything close to the second-round pick they spent on Hill, which is why a player-for-player swap makes sense here. And since they have a need inside on the defensive line, it makes even more sense that the player would play defensive tackle.

Hall would be the perfect target in a potential player-for-player swap because he’s been solid in his two seasons but has yet to live up to his second-round draft status. In 2019, he finished 37th among defensive tackles in total pressures and 67th in stops, according to Pro Football Focus. He’s more of a complementary piece than a playmaker at this point in his career.

Having said that, Hall does possess a likable skill set that’s built on his linear athleticism and inherent play strength. While his block recognition and footwork need to be improved, his play strength and upfield burst can be difficult for an interior offensive lineman to handle.

He won’t provide much as a pass rusher, but he can play the nose (1-technique defensive tackle) and under tackle (3-technique defensive tackle) positions and would improve the depth of the interior defensive line as a whole.

Hall’s skill set is a much better fit with Tomsula than Hill’s, as Tomsula typically does his best work with strong defensive tackles who possess powerful hands.

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