Latest Dallas Cowboys free agency news surprises no one but furthers suspicion about NFL Draft plans

Though it's true the Dallas Cowboys could still make additional moves in this year's NFL free agency, it seems like we pretty much have seen the most of their activity. 

This front office loves to go bargain shopping in the later market waves but as far as impact players go, I wouldn't expect them to pull off any moves until April's NFL Draft. That includes their former players that hit free agency earlier in the month. Some 2024 contributors remain available, including Eric Kendricks and Trey Lance.

But on Friday, one of the biggest names officially headed in a new direction: Wide receiver Brandin Cooks is signing with the New Orleans Saints. 

The news is far from surprising, as Cooks wasn't expected to return to the Cowboys for the 2025 NFL season. Though the project to bring the veteran had some flashes of success, it was starting to look like the team, and maybe the player too, wanted to head in separate directions. 

However, at this point of free agency, Cooks was beginning to look like a feasible target considering the overwhelming lack of a No. 2 wide receiver in Dallas. If the Cowboys had to play a game today, they would probably need to line up Jalen Tolbert and KaVontae Turpin as starters. That's no bueno. At least not good enough for a team that wants to win in the playoffs. 

Suspicions about Cowboys being set to draft a wide receiver in the first round keep growing

There's been a growing suspicion that the Cowboys will be picking a wide receiver with the No. 12 overall pick and Cooks leaving for New Orleans only furthers that. The current free agency market doesn't have much to offer and the players that might be worth a shot are likely out of the price range the Joneses are willing to pay for. 

Amari Cooper and Stefon Diggs might wind up being cheaper than expected given their injury circumstances but the question is how low will their prices go?

Ultimately, it seems like the Draft is the likeliest route for the Cowboys to address their pressing need. Emeka Egbuka (Ohio State), Matthew Golden (Texas), Tetairoa McMillan (Arizona), and Luther Burden III (Missouri) are all solid first-round options Dallas could be looking at. 

At this point, I'd be willing to bet this is the position they end up addressing next April.