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We are two weeks away from the 2021 NFL Draft which means that free agency has been going on for quite some time now. Overall, the Dallas Cowboys have done just about everything that we expected them to do. They signed lower-level players with some interesting upside and let a number of people walk away to new opportunities with different teams.
In the final weeks of the 2020 regular season, the Cowboys were giving fewer reps to Aldon Smith, perhaps a harbinger of the future. Smith joined them last season after five years out of the National Football League. There was a bit of confusion as to whether or not the team was out on him a few weeks ago, but when it was reported on Wednesday that Smith would be visiting the Seattle Seahawks it seemed like the door was closing for him at The Star.
According to NFL Network, Aldon Smith is going to be joining the Seattle Seahawks. It is a one-year deal.
Another one: The #Seahawks and Aldon Smith have agreed to terms on a one-year deal, sources tell me and @RapSheet.
— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) April 15, 2021
It goes without saying that the Cowboys should have traded Aldon to Seattle when they had the chance to. The compensation wouldn’t have been much in all likelihood, but something is better than nothing. Ultimately, it is what it is at this point.
Aldon Smith had his best game of his Cowboys career against his new team as he notched three sacks and made Dallas look pretty wise for bringing him back to the NFL. We will see if he is able to have that kind of production on a more consistent basis in his second year back.
Update: 11:55am
There was an initial point of confusion with this signing regarding a potential future compensatory pick that the Dallas Cowboys could receive.
According to The Dallas Morning News the Cowboys will not be receiving a compensatory pick of any kind for Aldon Smith.
Cowboys won’t receive a 2022 compensatory draft pick for DE Aldon Smith, who signed a one-year contract today with Seahawks.
— Michael Gehlken (@GehlkenNFL) April 15, 2021
Understanding that we are only talking about what likely would have been a late-round pick, it only makes the report that Seattle was interested in trading for Aldon during the season a bit more frustrating in hindsight.