Cowboys trade deadline updates: Anonymous NFL GM claims Dallas wildly overpaid in Jonathan Mingo trade

Jonathan Mingo is now a member of the Dallas Cowboys. With Carolina reportedly letting go on the 2024 season, the team has been in a fire sale mode. Diontae Johnson was the first to be turned into trade capital and now it is Jonathan Mingo. Of course, as with every trade, many are giving their reviews from the outside looking in.

However, one general manager on the inside had his own thoughts. Here's what the anonymous general manager had to say, per Jane Slater on Twitter/X.

"Talented. A little raw. Comp is too much…like way too much. Basically a net 5th. Probably is most like [the] Tolbert of the guys there ... Just my opinion. Not a bad player but to include a 4th is rich.”

Of course, it is worth noting that most picks end up not working out, so the true value of the trade is yet to be known. However, the move did see several pieces transferred between the teams. Per Tom Pelissero, via the official Panthers website, Carolina received a 2025 fourth-round pick in exchange for Mingo and an additional seventh-round pick.

Why did Dallas Cowboys trade for Jonathan Mingo?

Jonathan Mingo at NFLPA Rookie Premiere Portrait Session - Source: Getty

Fans are speculating why the team traded for Jonathan Mingo, but one reporter got some reasoning straight from the horse's mouth or thereabouts. Taking to Twitter/X, reporter Jane Slater said she had asked a "Cowboys team source" about the reason for the trade. Here's what she said:

"Asked a Cowboys team source why Jonathan Mingo? I was told they are adding to the WR core for now and future. I was told they liked him coming out of college and he has the tools to be a productive NFL WR. Worth noting he was a 30 visit."

So, in fewer words, they liked him and had looked at him before, so they traded for him. However, this is only half of the story. The real reasoning is most likely due to the situation surrounding the team. CeeDee Lamb is obviously not 100% healthy as anyone who watched the Cowboys' 27-21 loss to the Atlanta Falcons would agree.

Plus, with Brandin Cooks dealing with his own injury troubles, the team needed ammunition. This, coupled with Jerry Jones potentially remembering how the Amari Cooper trade sparked a surge for the team overall, created a logical motive for the move.