Cowboys get a 2020 free agent signed - but not any of the ones you were hoping for

You have to start somewhere. The Dallas Cowboys are expected to make some major contract moves this week as various (and frequently changing) deadlines bear down. Monday brought the first signing, but it is not going to create a wave of excitement.

Adam Redmond is not a player who had any noticeable impact last season, largely because he didn’t play in any games. He was active for 10 games in 2018 as the team worked through various injuries along the offensive line and the illness of Travis Frederick.

This may actually have more significance for what it may signal elsewhere. Both Joe Looney and Xavier Su’a-Filo are free agents. There is a good chance both want to try the market this year to see if they can get a better job. Both are backups in O-line rich Dallas, and Looney in particular could probably start for about half the teams in the league. Su’a-Filo also started four games last year for the Cowboys, so he may be attractive to some needy teams as well. That may have made Redmond more appealing to Dallas, especially since he was very easy to wrap up as an ERFA.

That does not mean that the Cowboys are suddenly desperate for interior line depth, since they also have Connor McGovern who is hopefully going to be able to play after missing his rookie season with a pectoral injury suffered in the offseason. Looney and Su’a-Filo both could have been worth keeping, but with so many free agents to sort through, Dallas clearly can’t sign them all.

This is just the start, of course. Just like with Dak Prescott and Amari Cooper, Redmond is a domino that will affect other moves. It is just a magnitude of order or two less crucial.