FRISCO, Texas – It must be that time of year.
With the NFL's free agency dominoes continuing to fall, all eyes have been on social media this past week to keep track of who's signing when and where.
One of the Cowboys' targets, veteran safety Malik Hooker, created a stir on Wednesday when he put out an update of his own – albeit cryptically.
Vague as it might have been, that simple tweet set off a wave of speculation – understandably, given that Hooker was slated to visit the Cowboys' facility as part of his free agency decision-making process.
Hooker seemed a bit taken aback by the amount of interest he generated, because he soon followed up with a more thorough update on the visit.
That's not a lot to go on, but it's at least interesting that Hooker's visit was a positive one. The Cowboys are also expected to visit with fellow veteran safety Damontae Kazee, so they may want to cover all their bases before making a decision.
Hooker would undoubtedly be an intriguing addition to this secondary. Originally drafted No. 15 overall by Indianapolis in 2017, he appeared in 37 career games for the Colts, tallying 124 tackles and seven interceptions. Unfortunately, injuries cut short two of his four seasons in Indy – including 2020, which saw him tear his Achilles in just the second week of the season.
Kazee is also recovering from an Achilles injury, which he suffered just two weeks after Hooker, during a Week 4 game against Green Bay. Evaluating those injuries is undoubtedly a big part of why the Cowboys are hosting both players at their headquarters this week.
Safety has clearly been a position of interest this offseason. The front office signed fellow veteran Keanu Neal – a teammate of Kazee's with the Atlanta Falcons – over the weekend. Neal comes to Dallas with 53 career starts and 338 total tackles.
Pairing him with a similarly accomplished veteran, whether it's Hooker or another, could be an awfully intriguing situation for first-year defensive coordinator Dan Quinn.
