Name me all the #2 receivers for a team that another team gave up a 1st and a 4th for? Teams work very hard to get the best players they can and when they finally get them and get in the position the Cowboys are in with 3 really good receivers, to then weaken what they worked so hard to get to, is not a smart decision. What that does is saying the Cowboys wasted time and effort building up the receiver squad. A big part of what makes the Cowboys offense what it is and so hard for defenses to defend against them is having those 3 receivers. It's impossible to double cover all three so one is going to be open. That was proven many times this season. Teams can't get into the notion that when players they draft turn out to be really good that they then trade them off before that rookie contract is up or they will forever be in a rebuilding mode.
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I'd argue we actually have 3 number 1 WRs on this squad between Coop, Gallup, and CD. I think that teams like the Chargers, Dolphins, and Patriots who are in need for a WR would be willing to part with picks like that. Roy Williams, I might add, would be an example of a number 2 WR (at the time, TO was the number 1 WR) that has was traded by the Lions to us for a haul of picks. They got our 1st and 3 that trade, and Gallup is, I think it's safe to say, a MUCH better WR than Roy Williams ever was. Brandon Marshall (also a WR that I think Gallup is better than in the same point of their careers) fetched 2 2nd round picks. Percy Harvin, a number 2 WR if I recall correctly, was traded to Seattle by Minnesota for a 1 and a 3. Brandin Cooks was traded from New Orleans to New England for a 1st round pick, and was then traded to the Rams a few seasons later for another 1st round pick. I'd hardly call him a number 1 WR. So, it's not out of the realm of history or possibility for a number 2 or a weak number 1 WR to be dealt for a haul of picks.
Yes, we have 3 excellent WRs. Yes, it is nearly impossible to cover them all. However, I'd argue that if we can replace Gallup with another good WR such as Stewart, then we should. Plus, a WR like Stewart would benefit from having Coop and CD. Team's focuses would be diverted to Coop and CD, leaving Stewart plenty of one on one opportunities. If I'm Dak, I like my chances there. If I'm Stewart, I love it because it gives me the best chance to develop. If I'm Jerry, I love the fact that I can see a massive WR in the mix with 2 already excellent WRs. If I'm Stephen, I love the cost savings. As the adage in football goes, the NFL is a business. Sometimes, you have to make business decisions that you may not want to make, but can provide the best outcome for your team. Furthermore, teams do trade players before their rookie contract is up often. That's nothing new or special. Amari Cooper is an example of this along with Khalil Mack. Their rookie contracts were a year or two away from expiring. The Raiders had exercised the 5th year option on Cooper and traded him to us midseason. The usage of the 5th year option meant that we had 2 years to get a deal done to retain him, which we did of course. Khalil Mack was dealt on his rookie contract. Deforest Buckner was traded on his rookie contract to the Colts by the 49ers. Those are a few examples of players on rookie contracts that have been dealt before their contracts expired.
