Now that the Cowboys have begun their offseason and White Terrance Williams Jersey , for all intents and purposes, finished reconstructing their coaching staff, the team shifts its focus to free agency and the draft. While Dallas will certainly look to keep several of their own free agents, there are other players they could look to sign, and this series will focus on potential free agent targets at each position of need for the Cowboys. Today’s focus is on the need at safety.Earl ThomasTroy Wayrynen-USA TODAY SportsLet’s go ahead and get this one out of the way first. The Cowboys almost traded for ET a couple times last year, but Seattle reportedly asked for too much in return. Thomas, a lifelong Cowboys fan, went on to pick off Dak Prescott twice in Week 3 and take a bow in front of the Dallas bench. The next week, he fractured his left leg and was placed on the injured reserve. Now, Thomas enters free agency and seems unlikely to return to Seattle. Back when Dallas was engaged in trade talks, they were unsure of Xavier Woods’ ability to play the center field kind of role Thomas did in Seattle for so long, but Woods used the 2018 season to prove himself. Still, adding a guy like Thomas would give Dallas a lot of versatility with their safeties, as Woods has good experience in the box, having switched out with Jeff Heath often this year. The biggest question with Thomas would be about his value. Thomas has carried a cap hit of $10 million or more for the last three years, so he might ask for more money than Dallas is willing to offer. There’s also the issue that ET will turn 30 before training camp begins and he’s coming off his second season-ending leg injury in three years. There are certainly younger options out there. Landon CollinsBrad Penner-USA TODAY SportsCowboys fans are certainly familiar with Landon Collins, as he’s been with the rival Giants the last four years. At six feet and 222 pounds, Collins fits the bill of a box safety with the coverage skills to also contribute as a free safety, giving the Cowboys versatility on the back end with Woods. Collins brings many of the same traits as Thomas, and he played at Alabama so his connection to Nick Saban probably makes him even more appealing to Jason Garrett. But Collins has one downside as a free agent prospect. Just coming off of his rookie contract, Collins will be looking for a big contract, and he’ll certainly get offers from other teams. Dallas may not be looking for a bidding war after the big contract they’ll give DeMarcus Lawrence. Add to it that Collins has been put on the injured reserve the last two years in a row, and his durability may be called into question. Kenny VaccaroChristopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY SportsKenny Vaccaro is a player the Cowboys have expressed interest in before. In the 2013 draft, Dallas was reportedly targeting the Longhorn, but when Vaccaro got picked up by New Orleans the Cowboys traded back and selected Travis Frederick. And this past offseason when Vaccaro entered free agency, Dallas was rumored to be interested in signing him before opting to stick with Woods and Heath. Maybe the third time can be the charm. Coming out of college, Vaccaro was considered an ideal strong safety type. His first three years with the Saints showed that Terrance Williams Jersey 2019 , and in 2015 Vaccaro’s 104 tackles was second best on the team. But over the next two years, nagging injuries limited him to just 23 games total and his production dropped as a result. He joined the Titans during the regular season but will be back on the market this offseason. It should be noted that his best year came after New Orleans switched to a 4-3 scheme that used Vaccaro more as a traditional box safety, and he would fill a very similar role in Dallas. The biggest question with him would revolve around health. HaHa Clinton-DixDouglas DeFelice-USA TODAY SportsHaHa Clinton-Dix is more than just a funny name, he’s a highly underrated safety. Clinton-Dix possesses rare playmaking abilities, and has notched 14 interceptions in his five years in the NFL. More than that, Clinton-Dix has never missed a game, and started 74 of the 80 games he’s played in. As they say, availability is the best ability. While Clinton-Dix has traditionally played a free safety role in Green Bay and Washington, he’s exhibited the traits that Dallas wants in a strong safety too, and is willing to go up and make tackles. He had over 100 tackles each of his first two years in Green Bay, and had 93 in 2018 while playing for two different teams. It came as a surprise when the Packers traded him away as many think highly of Clinton-Dix. Much like Thomas, Clinton-Dix would give Dallas a coverage ace who’s unafraid of playing in the box. However, at just 26-years-old, Clinton-Dix might be too costly for the Cowboys. DeShawn SheadMark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY SportsDeShawn Shead may be the most realistic free agent safety for the Cowboys, not counting any camp bodies that Dallas will inevitably sign. Undrafted out of Portland State, Shead spent the first six years of his career in Seattle under Kris Richard, and he was cut only after Richard left the team. He had a short and minimal stint with Detroit in 2018, but is a free agent again. In Seattle, Shead was initially brought in as a backup safety but later moved to cornerback out of necessity. He was never the best in deep coverage situations, but Shead’s size (6’2” and 212 lbs) gave him advantages over smaller receivers. Shead thrived the most in run defense, though, and he used his big frame and strength to carve out a productive tackling role. Shead seems intent on staying at corner, but for a reunion with his former position coach he may be willing to play in the box as a safety. It would certainly fit his skill set, and his familiarity with Richard’s tendencies is a big plus. For the first five weeks of this season, Scott Linehan was scapegoated by some for the offensive malaise the Dallas Cowboys were suffering. His play-calling was seen as unimaginative by some of the fanbase who claimed he was simply unable to get the team on track. But things looked radically different in the win over the Jacksonville Jaguars. Any time an NFL team puts up 40 points on anyone it is significant, and when the defense in question is as highly ranked as the Jaguars were coming into that game, it is even more significant. We now have to see if things continue against Washington.All this year White Tony Romo Jersey , there has been a serious question of just what the problem was on offense. Actually, it seemed to be a combination of things. Dak Prescott was not throwing the ball well, the receivers weren’t giving him as much help as it seemed they should, and the offensive line was still struggling a bit with trying to meld Connor Williams and Joe Looney into the mix, while Tyron Smith and La’el Collins were having their own struggles at tackle. That in turn made the running game not as effective at times as needed. All that led to the larger question of whether it was Linehan’s game plan and play selection, or the failure to execute by the players. Last Sunday seemed to tilt things toward the latter. So there is certainly an argument to be made for the condemnation of Linehan to have been a bit premature. Even though I kept asking about just where the problem really was, including the Brews and the Boys podcast following the disappointing loss to the Houston Texans, I was also starting to lose faith in Linehan. But now, I am back to believing that he is capable of finding a way to win with Prescott’s strengths and weaknesses, combined with the players around him. He certainly had all the answers the team needed last game. We still need to see that elusive consistency and a lot more competence on the road, but hammering Linehan just ignores the latest evidence we have. But that is my opinion. I threw the question out to my fellow writers here at BTB, and here are the responses I got.DannyPhantom: My opinion hasn’t changed about Linehan. I believed he was a good play caller and I still believe that. I’ve seen too many good things from him to suddenly start thinking the game has passed him up. The Cowboys have three seasons in franchise history with 13 wins and he’s a part of that. And that doesn’t even include his first year as the OC in 2014 where the Cowboys put up the second most points in franchise history (467). When I watch the film closely, I see a lot of clever things going on. There are many times where the defense goes the wrong way and that’s attributed to how Linehan uses the threat of Ezekiel Elliott in his game plan. From motioning to bootlegs, from fake pitches to reverses - he’s got them all turned around. These things have led to very successful plays for the Cowboys offense when the plays are executed correctly. And that’s what it really comes down to - execution . . . not the lack of creativity from Linehan. When it works, people love him, when it doesn’t - people want him fired. That doesn’t seem like a Linehan problem to me. Don’t get me wrong, there are always things that can improve and the coaching staff will be the first to tell you that, but when you see them calm and collective with no panic in their face, don’t interpret that as them being clueless and reluctant to change. Instead, recognize that as a measure of the belief they have in themselves and what this offense can do. The Cowboys always seem to have some position group that requires more time before it gets rolling. Last year, it was their secondary with all the new guys. This season, it’s both the wide receivers and tight ends. There is going to be a learning curve with these new changes and that’s a lot to put on the offense. So while it will be tough at times, it still feels good to see what this group is capable of doing. With Linehan, it’s there and it’s always been there.Dave Halprin: I’ve been pretty vocal in my beliefs that the Cowboys poor offensive showing has been roughly 75% on the players not executing and 25% on Jason Garrett/Scott Linehan. I would like to see the Cowboys use more rub routes at the point of release, and crossing routes that end up as natural pick plays, but that just doesn’t seem to be in Linehan’s plans. Using Prescott’s legs more would also be a good thing, some more read-options or draws. But as I’ve watched the film week after week Tony Romo Jersey 2019 , it’s pretty obvious plays are there to be had, the Cowboys players are just failing to execute. The majority of that falls on the shoulders of Dak Prescott. It almost always falls on the QB. He has to be more accurate which means better mechanics which means not being so jumpy and anxious in the pocket. He also needs to get past his tendency to lock on one side of the field, something he was better at in the Jaguars game when he scanned the field much better. The offensive line also needs to tighten up, something they seem to be doing as it looks like they are playing a little better as the season rolls on. Linehan can be better, but he’s certainly not the overriding problem. It’s on the players, and much of that is on Prescott. When he plays better, the offense can flow, and they can put up a 40-burger on a tough defense.One Cool Customer: I think people get caught up in semantics too much, and confuse creativity with effectiveness. As my fellow writers point out, Linehan’s offense was perfectly fine in 2016, and nobody at that time was complaining about a lack of creativity. But now that the offense is struggling to be effective, suddenly the narrative is all about the lack of creativity.Then again, when the offense got going against the Jaguars, it didn’t take long for Tony Romo to marvel at the creativity of Linehan’s offense, when in fact the offense hadn’t changed, it was just working more effectively.The Cowboys’ option offense doesn’t have a lot of complex schemes. But when those schemes are executed properly, the offense can be highly effective. It doesn’t often look like many of the Arena Football-type offenses currently en vogue, but executed properly, this offense can be nearly unstoppable.It’s on Linehan to ensure that his offense works effectively and the players execute properly, so we can’t simply say it’s all on the players, but there’s no reason to doubt that Linehan’s scheme can work. And as far as predictability and lack of creativeness goes, the Cowboys in the 90s were one of the most predictable and least creative offenses. Didn’t stop them from winning.Michael Sisemore: I’m not going to ding Scott Linehan for creativity but the troubling thing about he and Jason Garrett to an extent is the stubbornness. I’m not sure that these guys always have a grasp on their personnel and it’s not all just poor execution from the players themselves. With these receivers especially, the coaches have often called plays that rely on these receivers to win their matchups and that’s not conducive to the talent on the roster. At best, none of these receivers are more than complementary players. They may have fixed a few things with the Jaguars by using Cole Beasley all over the field but it’s also a product of how preoccupied the Jaguars were with stopping the running game.So there you have our takes. Let us know what you think in the comments - politely, of course.