The Bills were a little desperate for a quarterback in the spring, when they agreed to trade the Vikings for Matt Cassel.
The Cowboys were even more desperate for one this week, and gave up a similar package.
According to Todd Archer of ESPNDallas.com, the Cowboys acquired Cassel and the Bills’ 2017 seventh-rounder in exchange for their 2017 fifth-rounder.
In March, the Bills sent the Buccaneers’ 2015 fifth-round pick (acquired in a previous trade) and their own 2016 seventh-rounder for the Vikings’ 2015 sixth-round pick.
The Cowboys might have dealt a 2016 pick if they had more, after having given up next year’s fifth to Oakland for wide receiver Brice Butler, their sixth in a draft-day trade with the 49ers so they could pick seventh-round tight end Geoff Swaim and their own seventh to the Seahawks for running back Christine Michael.
And it seems the Cowboys were eager to part with whatever they needed to once they took a look around.
There was even some level of conversation with Kyle Orton (despite him doing them wrong last year), before the Cowboys tried out Matt Flynn, McLeod Bethel-Thompson, Josh Johnson and Christian Ponder.
Flynn and Bethel-Thompson were still hanging around in locker room when reporters entered in the afternoon, prior to the Cassel trade coming down, so they were likely deemed best of an odd lot.
Either way, the Cowboys made the boldest move available, one that cost them more in picks and cash, to get the closest thing to an established veteran on their roster in the wake of Tony Romo’s broken clavicle.