The Dallas Cowboys could pursue a Super Bowl champion in free agency.
CBS Sports’ Cody Benjamin predicts the Cowboys will sign Kansas City Chiefs linebacker Willie Gay Jr.
to a two-year, $13 million contract.
Gay has been a starting linebacker since joining the NFL in 2020 as a second-round draft pick, and he has won back-to-back championships as the Chiefs’ starting weakside linebacker.
“A regular in the Chiefs’ linebacker corps for four years, Gay has now been a part of two title-winning defenses in K.C., even though his numbers have never been gaudy,” Benjamin writes in his article.
“He’ll probably be among the most affordable of their homegrown free agents on this side of the ball, but even then, re-signing Drue Tranquill or leaning on Nick Bolton is probably more likely.
” Despite his importance to Kansas City’s defense, Gay is an underappreciated player.
The four-year linebacker has 88 tackles in 2022, ranking third on the team.
While Gay didn’t have an outstanding 2023 season (58 tackles), he maintains a consistent presence.
Gay earned at least a 66.5 on Pro Football Focus during his first three seasons in the league.
During the 2021 season, he was placed 20th among all players at his position, and he finished 32nd in 2022.
His market value is estimated to be $7 million per year over four seasons, for a total of little more than $28.2 million.
Given the Cowboys’ expected salary cap space of $14 million in the negatives (26th in the league), and the fact that Dallas would prefer to sign Dak Prescott and CeeDee Lamb to contract extensions, Gay would be a great fit for a $7 million per year deal.
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():focal(749x0:751x2)/matt-ulrich-tout-110823-8450fc57d29748fb9ae021d70498f710.jpg)
With Leighton Vander Esch out with a potentially career-ending injury, the Cowboys will most certainly have an opening at weakside linebacker.
The former Pro Bowler has a long history of neck problems, including another season-ending one after only five games in 2023.
Vander Esch has had neck/collarbone injuries in three of his six NFL seasons and one as a sophomore at Boise State.
Team owner Jerry Jones reacted on Vander Esch’s latest neck injury in November.
“He’s an integral part of that defense out there,” Jones stated on 105.3 The Fan.
“We just wish him well, and the nature of his potential injury here makes me think about the long term, beyond what it means for next week or next month.” Everything revolves on what is best for him.
“Gay has already played on a team that finished second in the NFL in points allowed per game (17.3), and he has 10 postseason games under his belt To put things in perspective, the Cowboys’ starting linebackers at the end of the 2023 season — Micah Parsons, Damone Clark, and Markquese Bell — had a combined 10 games of postseason experience.
