What if the Dallas Cowboys signed Antonio Brown instead of Amari Cooper

Jerry Jones is known to make gambles and given the high price Amari Cooper is demanding, could the Dallas Cowboys save a buck and sign Antonio Brown instead?

Once again, the Dallas Cowboys are having a drama filled offseason – largely because of quarterback Dak Prescott not accepting the Cowboys recent contract of $33 million annually back in September. Dak is so frustrated that he’s vaguely threatened to sit out if his contract demands aren’t met.

But it’s not just the QB1 that’s causing drama around Cowboys Nation. It’s the WR1, CB1, two starting defensive linemen, and a handful of other players with uncertain contract situations. It’s going to be impossible for them to come to terms with everyone and a certain level of creativity will be needed just to keep the best of them. But if Jerry Jones is willing to roll the dice…

The Dallas Cowboys current course

The rumor is Dak and his agents want close to $40 million per season on the next deal – which will definitely make Dak the highest paid quarterback on an annual basis. Let’s hope that’s not he case because it will limit what the team can do elsewhere.

Naturally, if the Dallas Cowboys can sign Dak to a long term contract, their next order of business is take care of wide receiver Amari Cooper either with a tag or a long-term deal. If one or both of them is signed long-term, then Jerry and Stephen Jones can take care of their best defensive back on the team, Byron Jones. But if they can’t sign either Coop or Dak long-term, they will have to wave good bye to Byron.

As we’ve discussed before, Byron is much more valuable than his INT numbers indicate. And if Dallas wants to avoid taking a major step back at CB, they may choose to gamble at WR.

Getting Creative

You see there’s a lot of offseason drama for the Cowboys. However, I can see the plot thickening with Jerry making a major move at receiver. And when I say major move, I’m talking about Jerry signing the troublesome but ultra-talented wide receiver Antonio Brown.

Trust me, I already know most of Cowboys Nation think this would be ludicrous on Jerry’s part, but Jerry has been ludicrous on all types of levels since he retired two-time Super Bowl winning head coach Jimmy Johnson after winning the Super Bowl in 1994.

Yep, but what if Jerry decided to sign Brown and, for sake of discussion, let’s say Jerry doesn’t want to pay Coop what he’s worth and lets him walk – taking a low-cost risk on Brown instead?

It’s not too far fetch for a few reasons. Let’s take a look and see why.

Michael Gallup and Blake Jarwin

Michael Gallup took a big step last season as Dallas’ No. 2 receiver, and in some games he was Dallas’ best wide receiver. Gallup recorded 66 receptions, for 1,107 receiving yards, 16.8 receiving yards per reception, 79.1 receiving yards per game, six touchdowns, with his longest reception going for 62 yards.

Gallup had several big plays to go with his acrobatic catches-especially in the last game against the Washington Redskins. One can make an argument that Gallup is a budding No. 1 receiver who is on the rise.

If that’s the case, Dallas can let Coop walk and pair the third year player with Antonio Brown who will sign for cheap since he’s trying to rebuild his image. With Gallup coming into his own and Brown receiving double teams, Gallup will simply destroy one on one match ups and continue what he started in his sophomore season.

And when you add in Blake Jarwin’s ascent and overall development as a tight end, Dallas has enough weapons to offset the loss of Coop’s production and justify the signing of Brown. Combine a slot receiver like Cobb to the mix, and Dallas’ receiving corps is just as potent as it was last season.