Missing out on Maxx Crosby is actually a great sign for Cowboys’ new approach

The Maxx Crosby trade saga came to an end Friday night. The Raiders agreed to trade their star edge rusher to the Ravens in exchange for two first-round picks over the next two years. According to multiple reports, the Cowboys were heavily involved in trade talks, but they ultimately drew the line at sending two first-rounders to Baltimore.

Naturally, there will be some disappointment here. Just like Earl Thomas and Jamal Adams, the Cowboys were heavily connected to a difference-making defensive star in trade talks, but ultimately fell short. However, this one is notably different.

In the cases of Thomas and Adams, the Cowboys were (by all accounts) just being too stingy in negotiations. They wanted to get an impact player without giving up anything of real value, which is simply not how business is done these days.

In the Crosby situation, Dallas was willing to make an aggressive offer. Reports indicate they offered the 12th overall pick this year, next year’s second-round pick, and a significant player for Crosby. That would easily be the biggest haul this organization has given up in a trade in quite some time.

That’s one reason these events should feel encouraging: the Cowboys appear to actually be serious about pursuing difference-makers this offseason.

The other reason it’s a positive is because Dallas seemingly conducted themselves with a clear process, one that they stuck to. According to Jane Slater, they had established their line in the sand ahead of time: they weren’t going to give up multiple first round picks to land Crosby.

It’s a fair sticking point. They just gave up Micah Parsons – who’s had more pressures than Crosby in each of the last four years – for two first-rounders. It makes sense that they wouldn’t want to give up the same amount of capital for a player two years older. Crosby is undoubtedly in the same tier as Parsons, but the Cowboys would effectively be breaking even in that scenario, all things considered.

Fans can quibble with the logic, and they surely will, but the Cowboys outlined their process for negotiating on a trade for Crosby. They drew a line in the sand on how much they’d give up, and worked every angle to make a deal work within those parameters. In the end, when the only way to top the Ravens’ offer was to break those parameters, they held true to their process.

Even though it meant losing out on Crosby.

Brian Schottenheimer has spoken often about being a process-oriented head coach. That approach paid off with the way he built his offensive staff last year, and it’s looking promising for the defensive staff now, with Christian Parker drawing rave reviews early on.

With this move – or, rather, lack thereof – the Cowboys seem to have embodied their head coach’s philosophy on the personnel side, too. How often in the Mike McCarthy, Jason Garrett, or Wade Phillips years would the coach preach a certain way of doing things only for Jerry Jones to cut corners in pursuit of a big name?

The Ezekiel Elliott reunion comes to mind, even as McCarthy was singing Rico Dowdle’s praises. Greg Hardy wasn’t exactly a fit for Garrett’s “right kind of guy” player profile. And there’s certainly no need to relitigate the Roy Williams trade that Phillips wasn’t exactly on board with.

Of course, none of this is to say that Schottenheimer has usurped control of the organization and is running the whole building now. But the willingness to stick to their guns while negotiating with the Raiders is reflective of the exact mindset Schottenheimer has espoused, and it’s a very good sign for the way this organization is functioning right now.