The Tennessee Titans have worked hard this offseason to surround new coach Robert Saleh with players he knows, and Tennessee found another on Wednesday, as it is trading for Dallas Cowboys defensive lineman Solomon Thomas, per CBS Sports NFL insider Jonathan Jones. The two teams are swapping late-round picks in this deal.
The Cowboys traded away two defensive tackles in the span of minutes Wednesday evening, as Dallas also sent Osa Odighizuwa to the San Francisco 49ers for a third-round pick. As for Thomas, he’s coming off a season in which he recorded 27 tackles and one pass deflection in 16 games played with two starts. He signed a two-year, $6 million contract with the Cowboys last offseason, and is set to make $2.5 million in cash in 2026, per Spotrac.
Thomas spent two-and-a-half seasons with Saleh when he was the head coach of the New York Jets, and also played under new Titans defensive run game coordinator/defensive line coach Aaron Whitecotton. In 2023 with the Jets, Thomas recorded a career-high five sacks to go along with 31 tackles while working as a rotational defensive lineman.
Thomas was a No. 3 overall pick of the 49ers back in 2017. In 131 career games played, he’s recorded 239 tackles, 18.5 sacks and 36 tackles for loss. Thomas is just the most recent addition to a new-look Titans defensive line, as they traded for pass rusher Jermaine Johnson II prior to free agency, then agreed to terms with defensive linemen John Franklin-Myers and Jordan Elliott.
Titans: C+
This is a depth trade, as Jeffery Simmons and JFM figure to be the two starters on the inside of the defensive line with Elliott contributing as well. Thomas is not going to be a difference-maker at 31-years-old, but Saleh clearly holds him in high enough regard to welcome him into the fold.
You have to wonder what this trade means for the futures of Sebastian Joseph-Day and James Lynch, who are free agents searching for new deals. Joseph-Day was quietly one of the more underrated players on the Titans defense over the last two seasons, recording 85 tackles and 4.5 sacks in 34 games played. But Saleh is going with the player he’s coached before — a common theme in Tennessee this offseason.
Cowboys: C
The Cowboys neither clear cap space nor acquire draft capital with this move. Dallas has Kenny Clark, Quinnen Williams and free-agent addition Otito Ogbonnia to play on the inside of the defensive line, while the coaching staff clearly did not view Thomas as an important depth piece.
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