A peek around at the Cowboys, Giants, and Commanders – and the Deebo Samuel trade – ahead of free agency

A week away from NFL free agency, the Philadelphia Eagles' NFC East rivals have been active in the trade market. Let's take a peek around at the Washington Commanders, New York Giants, and Dallas Cowboys.

The Commanders traded a fifth-round pick to the 49ers for WR Deebo Samuel

First, let's examine Samuel's career receiving stats:

The 49ers have also used Samuel as a running back at times, beginning in 2021. His career rushing stats:

Samuel was a legitimate star player in 2021. He had 77 catches for 1405 yards (a lofty 18.2 YPC), and 6 TDs as a receiver, and added 365 yards and 8 TDs on 59 carries (6.2 YPC) on the ground as a runner. You can watch an impressive highlight reel from Samuel's 2021 season here. He was named First-Team All-Pro, and he asked to be traded the following offseason, but instead signed a contract extension to stay in San Francisco.

In 2022 and 2023, Samuel was still an effective runner out of the backfield, averaging 5.8 yards per carry over those two seasons, but his numbers as a receiver were way down.

In 2024, Samuel had perhaps the worst season of his career, with just 670 receiving yards (45 yards per game), and a yards per carry average of 3.2. He also yelled at kicker Jake Moody and took a swing at long snapper Taybor Pepper after Moody missed three field goals in a game. Video via Ollie Connolly:

But the low point for the season for Samuel was the 49ers' Week 15 matchup against the Rams. Leading up to that game, Samuel complained to the media about getting more targets, and when Brock Purdy obliged… mmmmmmmm… drrrrrop.

That was a huge play in a game the Niners lost, all but eliminating them from playoff contention.

It wasn't the first time Samuel came up small in the 49ers' most important games. In the last three games that sealed the Niners' fate for the season — the NFC Championship Game vs. the Eagles in 2022, the Super Bowl vs. the Chiefs in 2023, and the aforementioned Week 15 game vs. the Rams in 2024 — Samuel had a combined 9 catches on 24 targets for 72 yards (3.0 yards per target), and 11 carries for 2 yards (0.18 YPC), and a fumble.

After the season, Samuel asked to be traded for the second time in four offseasons, this time getting his wish.

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As noted above, the cost for the Commanders was a mere fifth-round pick. And surely, if you look at folks grading this trade, the Commanders are going to get high marks. I mean… Deebo Samuel for a fifth-round pick?! Sure, do it!

Except, the fifth-round pick matters much less than the $17.5 million the Commanders are going to pay Samuel this season. If Samuel were a free agent and the Commanders signed him to a one-year deal worth $17.5 million, many of the same people praising the trade would probably call that an overpay.

Is Samuel better than 2024 Commanders receivers like Dyami Brown and Olamide Zaccheaus? Sure, I guess. And certainly the Commanders are loaded up with cap space. This move won't prohibit them from making other big moves in free agency as they try to narrow the gap between themselves and the Eagles.

But it's also not a move that is worthy of praise. The Commanders are an ascending team and they used a healthy chunk of their spending money on a whiny, declining 29-year-old receiver who had one great season four years ago.

The Giants whiffed on trading for Matthew Stafford

It's been widely reported — and accepted — that the Giants are looking to bring in a veteran quarterback this offseason, and that their initial target was Matthew Stafford, who ultimately re-signed with the Los Angeles Rams.

Head coach Brian Daboll and general manager Joe Schoen somehow kept their jobs after the Giants' debacle of a season in 2024. They desperately need wins in 2025 to keep their jobs a little longer. Stafford represented the easiest path to achieving that end.

The Giants recognized that they weren't close to contention a year ago, so they let Saquon Barkley walk without much of an effort to try to re-sign him, but a 5-12 season later they now think that trading for a 37-year-old Stafford is their missing piece? Really?

Anyway, the Giants would have been better in 2025 with Stafford, but he'd do very little for their long-term growth, which is where they're priorities should be, but, you know, aren't.

They are now reportedly turning their attention to washed quarterbacks like Aaron Rodgers, Kirk Cousins, Russell Wilson, etc.

It's a bad quarterback draft class and even if the Giants like one of them they're not guaranteed to land him because they're picking third. Meanwhile, there isn't anything appealing in free agency, and the decision makers are almost certainly operating in the interest of saving their jobs over what is best for the long-term health of the franchise. If this were happening in Philly, the owner would be getting absolutely lambasted every day in print and over the air.

The Cowboys are… quiet

Jerry Jones did not speak with reporters at the 2025 NFL Combine, breaking his annual Indianapolis tradition of meeting with invited media aboard his luxury bus.

A year ago at the Senior Bowl, Jones said that the Cowboys were "all in" on the 2024 season, and then they proceeded to lose a lot players, add almost nobody of note, and let contract negotiations with Dak Prescott and CeeDee Lamb drag on all offseason until just before the start of the regular season.

Their 2025 offseason is off to a bad start, with nine-time Pro Bowl RG Zack Martin announcing his retirement.

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