Quinn visits Cowboys to test possible deal
The Miami Dolphins are working on a trade that would send defensive end Robert Quinn to Dallas for an undisclosed draft pick, or player.
According to a league source, Quinn met with the Cowboys on Tuesday to see if he’s potentially a good fit in Dallas, and possibly work out a new contract, which would be needed to facilitate the trade. His meeting with the Cowboys was first reported by the NFL Network.
According to multiple reports, the New Orleans Saints are also interested in acquiring Quinn from Miami.
The Dolphins have been openly shopping Quinn for weeks, and are so confident they’ll find a trade partner Miami paid his $1.1 million roster bonus last week, which was due on the third day of the league’s new year.
Quinn, who was acquired by the Dolphins for a 2018 fourth-round pick and swapping of sixthrounders with the Los Angeles Rams last offseason, contributed 38 tackles, 6.5 sacks and forced two fumbles last season. The 28 year old has 256 tackles, 69 sacks and forced 22 fumbles during his eight NFL seasons, which were mostly spent with the Rams.
The Cowboys have to address the defensive end spot because Demarcus Lawrence was given the franchise tag for the second straight season, and hasn’t signed it. That means there’s a chance he could sit out the season while pushing for a multiyear deal. The Cowboys also lost Randy Gregory to another year-long drug suspension, and Taco Charlton is coming off a shoulder surgery he had in late January.
The Cowboys or Saints could easily land Quinn for a late-round pick, or a swap of draft picks, and it is likely that Dolphins owner Steve Ross is willing to pay some of Quinn’s 2019 salary if it improves the draft pick Miami gets back.
Last week, Miami paid $5 million of Ryan Tannehill’s $7 million base salary to sweeten a deal with the Tennessee Titans, which produced a 2020 fourth-round pick for the veteran quarterback, and featured the Dolphins and Titans swapping sixth and seventh-round picks in the 2019 draft. As a result, the Dolphins now own two seventh-round picks and no longer possess a sixthround selection in next month’s draft.
Trading Tannehill not only cleared $13.4 million in cap space for the Dolphins, but produced an asset the team can use in next year’s draft.
That is likely what Miami is trying to achieve by trading Quinn, who accounts for $12.9 million against this year’s cap. He’s owed $11.8 million this season in base salary under his existing contract.
NFL teams are aware the Dolphins are rebuilding, pushing towards a youth movement, and therefore are willing to move most, if not all of the team’s high-priced veterans like receiver Kenny Stills, linebacker Kiko Alonso, safeties Reshad Jones and T.J. McDonald for the right price, which is likely a 2019 or 2020 draft pick.
The Cowboys don’t possess a first-round pick in this draft because Dallas used it to acquire Amari Cooper in a trade that paid off handsomely, helping Dallas win the NFC East.
Their sixth-round pick was conditionally traded to the Cincinnati Bengals in 2017 for Bene Benwikere, but Dallas could send Miami a pick from every other round. Miami and Dallas could also swap picks to consummate a trade, likely potentially send the Cowboys pick No. 151 (Miami’s fifth-round selection) for Dallas’ pick No. 136 (fourth round).
The Saints don’t own a first-, third- our fourthround pick in the 2019 draft because of trades made to acquire Marcus Davenport, Teddy Bridgewater and Eli Apple last season.
The Dolphins are hoping to acquire multiple picks in the next two drafts to restock the team’s depleted roster with youngsters that can be developed.