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Signing Eric Weddle would change some things for the Cowboys' secondary.
In recent years, the Dallas Cowboys have shied away from adding a big, yet deteriorating names in free agency. In this offseason, the Cowboys' plan was to add talent to the right positions for this team to get over the top and finally become worthy of a championship-winning caliber type of franchise. So far in free agency, the Cowboys have remained relatively quiet, adding a solid piece in Cedric Thornton and retaining a ton of their own as well.
Making splash signings has hurt the Cowboys in the past and recent history has shown that the Cowboys have learned from their previous mistakes. But that still hasn't kept their name away rumors linking to free agent safety Eric Weddle. A rocky ending with the San Diego Chargers is leading to his departure. And while he isn't the player he once was, Weddle can still make an impact for a football team at age 31. NFL Network's Ian Rapoport tweeted this about what the future will hold for Weddle in the next few days.
What's on tap for Eric Weddle? He has offers from 4 teams. He'll evaluate the city, roster, schools, levels of the deal & respond Monday. — Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) March 12, 2016
Dallas has talked with Weddle. However, the key deterrent holding the two sides back from agreeing upon a deal is, you guessed it, money. Dallas has some cap space to work with, but they're not going to use that on Weddle if they feel like he is not worth a ton of money. Signing Weddle would have the look of an old Jerry Jones move, a big name that gets the fans excited. In contrast, signing Weddle wouldn't be a move that would appeal to Stephen Jones and Will McClay. Ultimately, Jerry has the final say over which decisions are made and if Jerry wants Weddle, then Jerry may just get him.
If Weddle were added by the Cowboys in the coming days, it could mean a ton of interesting of different things for the defense. Entering his second year, Byron Jones should be making the full-time switch to the free safety position. But for Dallas to do that, they will need to feel comfortable with what they have at the cornerback position. Sure Orlando Scandrick will return from that painful ACL injury in 2016 and Morris Claiborne is back for another year in what looks to be a prove-it type of deal. But the decision of Brandon Carr and his contract are still up in the air.
Dallas has been in talks with Nolan Carroll, but with the former Eagle leaving Valley Ranch without a deal, the Cowboys may need to rethink their situation at the cornerback position. If the Cowboys improve the cornerback position in the next couple of months, Jones will switch to free safety and bringing in a guy like Weddle to help develop Jones and play a role in the back-end could do wonders for this secondary.
The combination of Barry Church and J.J. Wilcox has been sub-par in the past couple of seasons. Some of that is attributed to the lack of pass rush the Cowboys get on the opposing quarterback, but things need to and will change in that regard. Weddle can still bring something to go along with experience to the Cowboys.
Follow me on Twitter: RyanRattyNFL
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