After weeks of recruitment, the Odell Beckham Jr. free agency saga hit a bit of a speed bump last week when news broke that the veteran wide receiver is unlikely to be available before the end of the regular season. Jerry Jones has said that the Cowboys are still in on Beckham, but NFL Network reporter and ex-DFW radio personality Jane Slater hinted Monday afternoon that a new contender for the job may have entered the fray: T.Y. Hilton.
Sure enough, Hilton is joining the Cowboys on a one-year deal, Slater and Ian Rapaport reported hours later. The Cowboys confirmed the signing.
The initial exchange earlier Monday came after dallascowboys.com writer Patrik Walker tweeted that the Cowboys might be better off looking for other free agent wide receivers, throwing Hilton's name out as an option. Slater quoted Walker's tweet with a tongue-in-cheek hint that he might be onto something.
“Keep an eye on this one,” Slater said about the notion Walker raised.
Slater also talked about the prospect of Dallas adding Hilton in an Instagram live post on Monday.
“[To] Cowboys fans who are sad about OBJ: [I] got a little tip today,” Slater said. “Keep your eyes on T.Y. Hilton. That's all I'll say.”
Hilton's last game action was with the Indianapolis Colts last season. The veteran wide receiver sat out the first half of the season but made seven straight starts to finish it, hauling in 16 receptions for 230 yards with three touchdowns over that period. He caught 23 passes for 331 yards in 10 total games in 2021.
While Hilton will likely need some kind of ramp-up period, it seems he should be ready to go faster than Beckham, though we shouldn't rule out OBJ to Dallas just yet.
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