Cooper Neill/Getty ImagesAfter being acquired in a trade by the Dallas Cowboys, Brandin Cooks has restructured his contract to lower his cap hit for the 2023 season.
Per ESPN's Todd Archer, the Cowboys converted $8 million of Cooks' $12 million base salary into a signing bonus.
Todd Archer @toddarcherBrandin Cooks contract:<br>2 years, $20 million, $12 million guaranteed<br><br>Bonus: $8 million<br>2023 base salary: $4m (guaranteed)<br>2024 base salary: $8m<br>2025: voidable<br>2026: voidable<br><br>2023 cap number: $6m<br><br>Houston paid $6 million to Cooks, giving him $18m guaranteed this year.
Dallas sent a 2023 fifth-round draft pick and 2024 sixth-round pick to the Houston Texans in exchange for the 29-year-old wide receiver.
Cooks' restructure leaves the Cowboys with $19.5 million in cap space, per Spotrac, allowing them to potentially add another significant starter via trade or free agency.
Adding Cooks also gives Dallas' front office more flexibility with what it can do the rest of this offseason.
ESPN's Jeremy Fowler said on SportsCenter after the Cooks trade went down he wouldn't eliminate the Cowboys from doing anything, including signing Odell Beckham Jr., but it would be difficult to fit his salary onto their roster given the other needs they might look to fill.
The Cowboys have had a strong offseason. Cooks fills their need for a No. 2 wide receiver next to CeeDee Lamb. Michael Gallup was a disappointment in 2022, though he could improve next season now that he is more than one full year removed from a torn ACL.
Even before they brought in Cooks, the Cowboys made one of the best trades of the offseason by acquiring Stephon Gilmore from the Indianapolis Colts for a 2023 fifth-round draft pick.
Gilmore and Trevon Diggs give Dallas' secondary two high-end starting cornerbacks for defensive coordinator Dan Quinn to utilize alongside a pass rush led by Micah Parsons.
The Philadelphia Eagles won the NFC East last season with a 14-3 record, but there's an argument to be made they have gotten worse this offseason. Javon Hargrave, C.J. Gardner-Johnson, T.J. Edwards, Miles Sanders, Isaac Seumalo and Kyzir White are among the key players they have lost in free agency.
The Cowboys haven't lost anyone of great significance and brought in two starters at premium positions in Cooks and Gilmore. They are certainly well set up to challenge the Eagles for the top spot in the division in 2023.
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