Many will be quick to point out that it's not how the Dallas Cowboys do things. Not how they operate. Won't happen. Nope.

But WR DeAndre Hopkins could very well be in play for the Cowboys in an offseason in which they've proven expectations wrong at every turn. We didn't expect major coaching changes yet several assistants, most notably OC Kellen Moore, were let go. The team also pulled off a couple of uncharacteristic trades for CB Stephon Gilmore and WR Brandin Cooks.

And even when we all thought the team was about to draft a tight end in the first round of the 2023 NFL Draft, they threw a curveball at us by grabbing nose tackle Mazi Smith.

I get it though. The Cowboys are never really in play when it comes to high-priced players in free agency. Even Gilmore and Cooks were relatively inexpensive acquisitions.

However, that's the thing: D-Hop might not even sign for that much money.

DeAndre Hopkins' estimated asking price

In a recent article for Sports Illustrated, NFL Insider Albert Breer quotes several executives around the league and takes a guess at what Hopkins will end up costing now that his recent release from the Arizona Cardinals means his $19.45 million salary is nothing but a memory.

“My guess would be that the market bears something around half of what he would’ve made on his now terminated deal in 2023, with some incentives to get him closer to being whole. But at this juncture of the offseason, even getting there could be a challenge.” — Albert Breer, Sports Illustrated

Exactly half of $19.45M is $9.73M. Let's keep it simple and say somewhere around the 9-10 million dollar range feels like a safe estimation.

According to Breer's report, the Cardinals weren't able to trade him in big part because of Hopkins' original salary combined with Odell Beckham Jr.'s deal with the Baltimore Ravens. The $15M contract for OBJ made D-Hop "feel like he should land at least that much, given that Beckham didn’t play last year."

Things have changed though. June is a day away and teams have set up their rosters how they want to. Adding D-Hop is an attractive proposition but the price is likely to be knocked down. Here's what Breer concludes from the whole situation:

“And if you add all that up, I think we get one of two conclusions. Either Hopkins finds someone to pay up and takes the bag. Or, he takes less to chase a ring with Kansas City or Buffalo, with the idea that putting together a full, healthy 2023 could burnish his legacy and perhaps set up one last payday next March.” — Albert Breer, Sports Illustrated

Can the Cowboys sign Hopkins? 

I don't see why not. As of right now, the Cowboys have $10.5 million in available salary cap space, per Over the Cap. They're about to receive another $10.9 million on June 1st when Ezekiel Elliott's cap relief comes through.

As for roster construction, I don't believe it would be an issue. Sure, you want wide receivers that can play special teams but KaVontae Turpin was the only wideout to play more than 15% of the snaps on special teams last year and that was as a returner.

Maybe it would be a challenge but I don't see how adding a weapon like Hopkins to the offense doesn't outweigh that.

But that's one thing. The even more important question is if they even want to. We'll find out soon enough.

Featured image via Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports