NFL Free Agency: 3 players the Dallas Cowboys can sign to replace DeMarcus Lawrence
Just when things were looking up for the Dallas Cowboys, they lost a star defender that will hurt them in the long run with DE DeMarcus Lawrence.
DeMarcus Lawrence suffered a broken foot during Wednesday's practice and will be on the shelf for six to eight weeks. His potential return would be around Week 9 vs the Denver Broncos. Losing DeMarcus Lawrence will have a major impact on the defense, which failed to record a sack in Week 1 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The Dallas Cowboys could also be without DE Randy Gregory for Sunday's game against the LA Chargers.
The #Cowboys best pass-rusher, Demarcus Lawrence is now out for the better part of the season. A broken foot, suffered in practice. Just terrible luck for Lawrence and the Dallas D.
With DeMarcus Lawrence and Randy Gregory both out for Sunday, Doracne Armstrong and Tarrell Basham will step up as starters with Bradlee Anae and Chauncey Golston on deck. For a team in need of more pressure on the QB, that's not a great group to face Justin Herbert. With limited options currently on the roster, who could the Dallas Cowboys pick to replace DeMarcus Lawrence?
Three players who could replace DeMarcus Lawrence
#1 - Olivier Vernon
#Cowboys currently have 4.5 mil in cap space. Hopefully they will use that now on a guy like Olivier Vernon who can help bring us depth, at least for the first few weeks of the season.
As soon as DeMarcus Lawrence was ruled out for almost half of the season, Olivier Vernon's name began trending on Twitter. It makes sense, though. Olivier Vernon had nine sacks in 2020 with the Cleveland Browns before a torn Achilles ended his season. However, Vernon is still available to sign because he seems to still be recovering from his surgery.
Several teams seem to be waiting for confirmation on his health before battling it out to be the first to sign him. Dallas should be one of those teams at the front of the line.
#2 - Ifeadi Odenigbo
Ifeadi Odenigbo is currently on the Cleveland Browns' practice squad and is available to be signed. The former 2017 seventh-round pick had seven sacks in 2019 with the Minnesota Vikings. He has the second-most sacks in Northwestern school history with 23.5.
The Dallas Cowboys need someone with a proven track record of getting to the QB to replace DeMarcus Lawrence. Odenigbo has potential, but would need to be brought in sooner rather than later.
#3 - Kamalei Correa
Here is a young man who still has plenty left in the tank and is still a free agent. He was a second-round pick in 2016 but never lived up to his expectations. He last played in 2019 with the Tennessee Titans and had five sacks. He was traded to the Jacksonville Jaguars, left to deal with personal issues, and was signed and released this offseason by the Kansas City Chiefs.
Correa is one of the few under-30 options at DE available and the Dallas Cowboys could give him the time of day. DeMarcus Lawrence should return late in the season, but Correa could possibly fill in and maybe even rotate with Tarrell Basham as he gets up to speed. Unfortunately, there are only a few options out there.
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