Top-5 Free Agent Safeties: Options aplenty for the Dallas Cowboys
By Reid Hanson
Free agent safeties for the Dallas Cowboys
George Odum
Age: 28
A dark horse in this is Indianapolis Colts safety, George Odum. The rotational defensive back is an on-the-cusp player in free agency this year and could be ultimate bargain buy of the offseason.
From a snap perspective, Odum is the closest things to Jayron Kearse on this list. He played snaps on the D-line, in the slot, on the boundary, in the box and at free safety for Matt Eberflus’ squad. While he’s versatile to be used in different roles, he’s at his best at free safety where I see him fitting in Dallas.
And if those big steps aren’t taken and all he becomes is a career SAF3, then so be it because George Odum is also an elite special teamer. At the end of the day, Odum has top athletic traits and has stood out in the opportunities given to him. He’s exactly the kind of guy you want to target in free agency.
Or, we just re-sign the guys we know…
At the end of the day I’d just rather keep a couple of the guys we have. Jayron Kearse established himself as a team leader on this Dallas Cowboys team. The five-year veteran is coming off the best season of his career and served as jack-of-all-trades for Dan Quinn.
How valuable was Jayron Kearse for the #Cowboys? Not only was he their top SAF but per @PFF he took 215 snaps at slot, 54 at boundary CB, 32 on ST & 176 on D-Line, while finishing top-5 in the NFL in MTkl% He was Dan Quinn’s “Master Key” on defense #DC4L pic.twitter.com/7ZxC3pa5C3
— Reid D Hanson (@ReidDHanson) January 29, 2022
He may never be as good as he was last season (2021 was a significant outlier) but his leadership and versatility alone make him a player worth re-signing.
Malik Hooker is a player on the ascent. The former first rounder had a string of bad luck which stifled his development and undercut his stock. But after a relatively healthy 2021 where he improved his play as the season progressed, Hooker may be on the track to redemption.
Dallas won’t want to bank on him being a starter but to signed him as a top-3 guy (behind Dono and Kearse) he could be a real asset for the Cowboys with some serious upside.
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Even though free agency is loaded, I’d rather re-sign Kearse and Hooker as long as the money is right) and draft a mid-to-late round safety to develop in the background than go all-in on a high-priced free agent.