1647748628 Mike McCarthy Amari Cooper and Lael Collins trade was a

Mike McCarthy: Amari Cooper and Lael Collins trade was a difficult decision

Dallas Cowboys - Philadelphia Eagles

Getty Images

Cowboy fans are ready to be tied up. They saw Aaron Rodgers return to the Packers, Tom Brady back to the Buccaneers, and the Rams added Allen Robinson. Not to mention all the moves that several AFC teams have made.

Their team didn’t make many moves and essentially lost Randy Gregory and Cedric Wilson in free agency and Amari Cooper in the trade, cutting Lael Collins. The Cowboys finally signed outside free agents later this week, acquiring wide receiver James Washington and Dante Fowler.

“We’re still in the first 15 minutes of the offseason,” Cowboys coach Mike McCarthy said Saturday through David. Moore of the Dallas Morning News. “The first quarter is not even over yet. If people are frustrated, well, sometimes games are a little frustrating. We definitely came out with the ball and took care of your own mindset. Outside of our own lineup, we have a mindset where we’re not going to throw the ball deep with every snap.

“What do you think of the football analogy?”

So are the Cowboys better now than they were when they ended the season with a wild card loss to the 49ers? It’s hard to argue that they are.

The Cowboys waived a 2019 first-round pick to receive Cooper at the 2018 trade deadline. They traded the wide receiver and a sixth round pick to Cleveland in exchange for a fifth and sixth round pick. They got nothing for Collins, who started 71 games in seven seasons.

“I mean, Amari Cooper is a fantastic player,” McCarthy said. “It clearly does some of the things that make it the best, in particular its side release speed is about the same as what I’ve ever worked with. It was a difficult, difficult decision.

“It’s the same with La’el. You don’t want to lose those players. But when you talk about competition, there is also competition and challenge in the financial arena. You have to make business decisions that match the dynamics of your cap.”

McCarthy’s explanation won’t make Cowboy fans feel better about how the offseason has started. All that will satisfy the Cowboys Nation is the acquisition of some players to make the team better.