Denver Broncos: 5 non-Aaron Rodgers trades the team should make

3. LB Leighton Vander Esch, Dallas Cowboys

The Dallas Cowboys declined Leighton Vander Esch’s fifth-year contract option, and if you had predicted that after his rookie 2018 season, people probably would have thought you were a complete moron.

Vander Esch made the Pro Bowl in 2018 after racking up 140 total tackles, seven passes broken up, and a pair of interceptions.

Since that awesome rookie season, Vander Esch has struggled somewhat to stay on the field.

He has missed 13 games over the last two seasons, and as a result of his missed time, Dallas decided not to bank on his fifth season.

Not only that, they went out and signed former first-round pick Keanu Neal in free agency, converting him to the linebacker position in the process. They also drafted Micah Parsons and one of the favorite 2021 NFL Draft prospects in Broncos Country — LSU linebacker Jabril Cox.

The contract of Jaylon Smith makes Vander Esch potentially the odd-man-out for the Cowboys. Vander Esch has a base salary this season of just over $2 million. The Cowboys clearly do not have him in the future plans at this point.

Why would you not try to make a deal for the former first-round pick and athletic freak, attempting to resurrect what looked like a perennial Pro Bowl type of career early on?

It’s hard to know what Dallas would ask for in return here, but if you could get Vander Esch for a day three draft pick, that could be a steal.