Dallas lands Quinnen Williams in a massive trade, surrendering first and second-round picks, plus Mazi Smith, instantly bolstering their defensive line.
While this current season seems somewhat lost, there was some thought that the Dallas Cowboys could still add players that are under team control. This was put to practice in the team’s acquisition of Logan Wilson from the Cincinnati Bengals earlier in the day.
That was apparently an appetizer for what is a fantastic main course as, years after his infamous quote, it appears that Jerry Jones is all in. As reported by multiple outlets, the team has acquired All-Pro defensive tackle Quinnen Williams from the New York Jets.
Ian Rappoport of NFL Network is reporting that Dallas is sending a first-round pick (their own as opposed to the one they acquired from the Green Bay Packers for Micah Parsons), a second-round pick, and former first round pick Mazi Smith.
Williams immediately becomes the best player on the defensive side of the ball for the Cowboys, as evidenced not only by his 79.7 grade so far this year, but his back-to-back seasons of 90.0 or higher in 2022 and 2023. While his impact won’t be quite as dramatic as that of Parsons, he immediately raises both the floor and ceiling of the defense.
What makes Williams especially appealing and worth the compensation, aside from his play, is the fact that he just signed a four-year contract extension in 2023. He’ll be a large part of this defense for at least the next few seasons.
As for Smith, it closes a disappointing chapter for the team and player that never quite got off the ground, as his 47.9 grade as a rookie proved to be the best work he’d do in Dallas. Perhaps a fresh start will benefit him, but it was never going to work in Dallas.
Looking forward, this will make things interesting for Kenny Clark in the offseason. He has struggled immensely this year after coming over in the Parsons trade, and there were talks that he could be a cap casualty.
Now, the team gets eight games to see how he looks while playing next to an All-Pro level player. If he can feed off of Williams well, he could stick around for 2026.
This will also benefit the linebackers, as they’ll have more help from the defensive front filling gaps and eating space. That may sound simple, but it’s something that the defensive line has struggled to do consistently all year.
It’s likely too little too late for this season, but a move like this gives reason for optimism and more than that, something that fans haven’t had in quite a while: hope.