The Cowboys missed out on adding to their wide receiver room via trade, but they’re still very much in the mix to land the biggest fish in all of free agency, according to headlines made on a Sunday when the team isn’t even playing.
With three-time Pro Bowler Odell Beckham Jr. set to be medically cleared after a torn ACL suffered in Super Bowl LVI, NFL insiders Ian Rapoport and Mike Garafolo gave an update on the free agent’s 2022 playing status during the network’s Week 9 pregame show. The pair reported that the Cowboys have Beckham “in their sights” and “firmly on their radar,” adding that the team has “done regular check-ins on his health” during the latter stages of his rehab.
But Beckham isn’t the only marquee receiver to be linked to Dallas lately. The Cowboys made an attempt to acquire Brandin Cooks just before last week’s trade deadline, but were unable to come to terms with the Houston Texans. NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero now says the Cowboys also went after Broncos star Jerry Jeudy but were unwilling to part with a second-round draft pick as payment.
Perhaps the team’s ongoing interest in the free agent Beckham- supposedly mutual, if Cowboys legend Michael Irvin is to be believed– made it easier to walk away from the bargaining table in both instances.
Jay Glazer of Fox Sports reports that the 30-year-old could be medically cleared next week, though Rapoport claimed his sources thought “early December” was a likely timeframe for Beckham to actually sign a deal with a receiver-needy team.
Beckham began last season in Cleveland, where he had been since the 2019 season (after his first five years with the Giants). But he was waived on Nov. 8 following an ugly (and public) spat over his usage in the Browns offense. He signed with the Los Angeles Rams three days later and was a solid contributor over the Rams’ final eight regular season games.
He posted a decent 27 receptions for 305 yards and five touchdowns over those eight games, but turned into a key piece of the passing game during the postseason. In L.A.’s four postseason contests, Beckham caught another 25 balls for 316 yards and two touchdowns, including one in their Super Bowl win.
Beckham owns a career per-reception average of 13.9 yards. But even if he were to do no better than the numbers he amassed with the Rams- 11.3 yards per catch- he would currently rank third among Cowboys pass-catchers, trailing Noah Brown and CeeDee Lamb and placing just ahead of Michael Gallup.
Dallas is not the only club who could benefit from adding Beckham for an end-of-season run. The Bills, Giants, Rams, Packers, and Chiefs have all been linked to the 2014 first-rounder out of LSU.
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