News broke yesterday that Cowboys offensive guard Ronald Leary, stuck in a backup role in Dallas, has requested a trade. In Tennessee, starting offensive lineman Byron Bell was lost for the season to a severe ankle injury. The two events have naturally brought the Cowboys and Titans into the same conversation.
We have no idea if the Titans have any interest in Leary. Not only does he have the well-known degenerative issue in his knees but he may be viewed as a system product. Other teams may feel that Leary benefited from playing between Tyron Smith and Travis Frederick and wouldn’t be the same player for them. There is plenty of logic behind that opinion.
However, necessity is the mother of invention. The Titans spent a first-round pick on Jack Conklin because they need offensive lineman. Losing Bell, who started all 16 games last year, is a big blow. With no dominant team in the AFC South right now the Titans have to be thinking about staying competitive. They could be motivated to make a deal.
If Dallas and Tennessee get into trade talks, what are some possible deals they might consider? Let’s hypothesize.
Draft Picks
Dallas gave Leary the second-round Restricted Free Agent tender earlier this year, meaning another would’ve had to surrender their second-round pick if they signed Leary to a contract. Dallas would likely try to start there in any negotiation.
The Titans would likely counter that no team thought Leary was worth that high of a pick and try and get Dallas to back down. A third-round pick is far more easy to surrender for the Titans but still a very nice get for the Cowboys for a former undrafted free agent. That could be the sweet spot.
Defensive End Help
I’ve already seen some proposing that Dallas request pass rusher Brian Orakpo from the Titans. That won’t happen, folks. Orakpo has three years left on a $31 million contract. Dallas isn’t paying that for a guy who’d have to convert from a 3-4 outside linebacker to a defensive end and who turns 30 in July.
A guy who makes way more sense is veteran Karl Klug. He reminds me of Jeremy Mincey as a versatile player able to play the strongside end or some inside tackle. He’s 28-year-old and has an expiring contract with a $2.25 million cap hit in 2016, about the same as Leary’s one-year deal. That’s about as even a trade as you could ask for.
Now, if Dallas really wanted to swing for the fences they could try and grab rookie Kevin Dodd. Tennessee used their second-round pick on the defensive end, just one pick before Dallas took linebacker Jaylon Smith. The Cowboys would likely have to give up a mid-round pick to pry Dodd away, but it’s definitely worth an attempt.
Wide Receiver Help
The Titans top three receivers appear to be set with free agent addition Rishard Matthews, second-year prospect Dorial Green-Beckham, and veteran Kendall Wright. The odd man out is 25-year-old Justin Hunter, who could be an interesting addition to the Cowboys receiver corps.
Like Terrance Williams and Brice Butler, Hunter is entering the final year of his rookie deal. He was in their same 2013 draft class and was taken higher than either in the second round. At 6’4″ and with 4.4 speed, Hunter has always been an intriguing physical prospect but has had consistency issues on the field.
It’s worth nothing that Hunter is recovering from an ankle injury that ended his season last November. He has been limited in offseason workouts but was reportedly on pace to return for mini-camps and be fully ready for 2016.
A very interesting wrinkle here is that Cowboys wide receiver coach Derek Dooley was Hunter’s head coach for all three of his season at the University of Tennessee. That could certainly push Hunter into the conversation for Dallas, but only if they feel he has a legitimate shot at beating out Williams or Butler for a starting job.
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There are certainly other Titans players and 30 other NFL teams we could talk trade possibilities about. Please comment below with your own ideas and thoughts about the proposals I’ve made.
I’m thinking the Titans 3rd rounder next year
Makes sense to me. I think that’s what it would take for Dallas to part with him.
I think a draft pick would be the most likely to occur from these scenarios but I’m intrigued with Krug. He’s a scrapper and would love to see a guy like that here but how would he fit in a 4-3 after playing in a 3-4? I don’t see them parting with Dodd but who knows. And no thanks to Hunter. He’s a JAG.
The Titans only switched to the 3-4 two years ago. Klug based the majority of his career as a 4-3 DE/DT.
I think I would be good with swapping a third rounder for Leary at this point. If he doesn’t want to be here then why make a disgruntled player stay when you could get something valuable back for him. But I am starting to get a little worried about the backups on the o-line. After the great front five comes a lot of question marks. Hopefully Chaz Green can show us something.
I don't think it's a huge difference from where we've been. Looney is basically another Bernadeau and you have the same swing tackle in Charles Brown.
Hunter sounds a lot better than T will , but Dodd would be great acquisition but that’s wishful thinking.,
Williams has probably shown more over the last three season than Hunter, but you never know what a new environment, coaches, and quarterback can do for a receiver. Just look at Laurent Robinson. I know the Dodd idea was more fantasy than possibility, but it's certainly something I'd at least ask about if I was calling Tennessee.
I always wonder what trade value Ronald Leary honestly has.
He's a good lineman, right? We've seen that. Then again, he was recognized as a good lineman the year he went undrafted. He went undrafted because of a degenerative knee problem where teams just weren't sure how long he would be able to play. Now, by my count, he's played three seasons on that knee so I would think any good will he's earned by being a good NFL lineman might be offset by the fact that the "biological clock" on that knee has ticked down about 1,095 days since everyone passed on him 7 times in the draft.
Purely on ability, I think you want 3rd round value all day out of Leary. I'm just guessing the reason they didn't get him traded during the draft was because teams were offering up 6th or 7th rounders based on those same knee concerns.
New Titans GM is a smart negotiator and has shown off his skills netting the Titans the best draft they've had in many years. He's rebuilding the team from top to bottom and early reviews on what he's done are very good. There is little chance he's going to trade anyone of value or a second rounder for an OG with a questionable knee.Third rounder or later is possible perhaps Justin Hunter has not shown much since he's been there but they don't have WR depth so that won't happen till they replace him. One other note here on Cowboys-Titans …the Titans have pieces to run with power so Cowboy fans will be likely be watching Murray return to form with Henry in relief to continue to punish defenders. That run game could be destructive!