When you think of the Dallas Cowboys and the San Francisco 49ers, you probably think of some iconic moments. From “The Catch” to the ‘90s conference championship battles, to even a couple of playoff games in recent years, these two teams always seem to find a way to cross paths when there’s a lot on the line.
While those moments can be intense, things are a lot more relaxed between the Cowboys’ Chief Operating Officer, Stephen Jones and the 49ers’ GM, John Lynch. In fact, they have gotten rather acquainted
with each other in recent months as they have become good trading buddies. These historic rivals have found time to put aside their differences for a common goal, and that goal is making their team better. That’s what each of them has attempted to do, making not one, but two trades over the past two months.
Things kicked off in March when the Cowboys traded away defensive tackle Osa Odighizuwa to San Francisco in exchange for the 49ers’ third-round pick, 92nd overall. Why would Dallas ship away a talented player like Odighizuwa? Well, the Cowboys’ defensive tackle room got a bit crowded after the team acquired heavy hitters Quinnen Williams and Kenny Clark last year. With those stars locking down the interior, Odighizuwa became a bit of a luxury that was expensive to keep on the roster.
And it wasn’t just the added reinforcements that made Odighizuwa expendable. In the scheme of new defensive coordinator Christian Parker, the need for a gap penetrating 3-tech is not as important as the new coach prefers more gap-and-a-half 4i technique that can anchor down and hold his ground. In short, Odighizuwa just didn’t have a natural home in Dallas, and his price tag was way too much to just be a rotational piece. Something had to give, and the Cowboys did what they could to recoup some value while getting out from under that $20 million annual cost.
On Friday, the Cowboys used pick 92 to draft Michigan outside linebacker Jaishawn Barham, giving the team some much-needed help in the middle of the defense. Barham is a firecracker who brings a physical, aggressive style that Parker is going to love. The new DC relies on linebackers who can fly around the field and fill gaps with authority, and that is exactly what Barham does.
But before the Cowboys called Barham’s name on Friday, the phone lines between Dallas and San Francisco were buzzing once again as another trade went down. This time, it was the 49ers who were shipping off a player, sending linebacker Dee Winters to the Cowboys in exchange for a fifth-round pick, 152nd overall. Much like the Barham pick, Winters is another fast-flying asset that fits beautifully into the new defensive philosophy in Dallas.
From the 49ers’ perspective, letting a talented young player like Winters go was purely a numbers game. San Francisco simply has an abundance of talent at the linebacker position. With the return of Dre Greenlaw alongside Fred Warner, the 49ers have the band back together, lessening the need for Winters, who would be relegated to a bench role back in Santa Clara. Moving Winters allowed them to get a return on a player who might have had a hard time seeing the field in their loaded rotation.
The 49ers took the pick they got from the Cowboys and packaged it with their own second-round pick and shipped both to the Cleveland Browns in exchange for a third-round and a fourth-round pick. San Francisco then used those picks to acquire two defensive players to replenish their front. They landed edge rusher Romello Height to boost their pass rush and defensive tackle Gracen Halton to plug up the middle.
When you take a step back and look at the whole picture, it is pretty wild to see how these two rivals essentially traded resources from one position to another. Through a series of moves, the Cowboys got much-needed help by adding two exciting new linebackers to their roster. Meanwhile, the 49ers addressed their own needs, which included adding two new defensive tackles to their defensive front.
Ultimately, these moves look like a win-win scenario for both franchises. By putting their historic rivalry aside for a few phone calls, both teams successfully exchanged surplus talent at positions of strength to help address positions of much greater need. It just goes to show that even the fiercest of rivals can find common ground when they believe they are making a move to help their football team get better.
