Kaiir Elam could wind up as one of the more essential Dallas Cowboys acquisitions

Kaiir Elam could wind up as an incredibly important member of the Cowboys.

It is a bit difficult to choose the most important offseason acquisition that the Dallas Cowboys made. Part of the reason that this choice is somewhat tough is because the Cowboys made so many moves. Some may roll their eyes at a statement like that, but the reality is that the Cowboys pulled off a number of trades on top of signing more players than we are accustomed to seeing from a quantitative standpoint.

In terms of which acquisition could carry the biggest impact, the most logical answer is wide receiver George Pickens. But as we get into seeing a bit more of the team through snippets like OTAs you do have to wonder if there is someone else who we underestimated at first that could prove to be quite vital.

Kaiir Elam could be a prominent member of the secondary this season

Any time Cowboys brass has spoken since acquiring him, they have made sure to mention cornerback Kaiir Elam. We know that the Cowboys hold their scouting process very near and dear to their hearts. Given that they thought highly of Elam when he was entering the league and went to the Buffalo Bills in the first round, it is pretty chalk for them to fall in line with their own previous line of thought.

Nobody is in the business of overreacting to anything from OTAs at the end of May, but Thursday saw Elam draw a starting position on the outside. He seemed to make the most of it in the limited action that OTAs provide.

The cornerback room is one of those with extreme boom or bust qualities for the team as far as the 2025 season is concerned. Trevon Diggs is a question mark of sorts in terms of returning from injury. The same is true for Shavon Revel, although he is obviously new to the team in that he was just drafted. Bodies are in all likelihood going to be necessary across the attrition that is the season which means that Elam could play a critical role.

Beyond just being a literal necessity, it is also interesting to consider how important Elam’s presence could be from a what-the-Cowboys-want-to-do perspective. Again, these were just OTAs, but it is curious that DaRon Bland saw work primarily in the slot. If you recall this is where the Cowboys wanted to play him in 2023 before Trevon Diggs was lost to injury and they were forced to put Bland outside opposite of Stephon Gilmore at the time. Perhaps Elam’s presence can help allow the team to move Bland where they prefer, give Revel more time to recover and have insurance behind Diggs.

These are all questions that don’t have a particular answer at this point in time. We are still very early in the overall process and it is going to be a bit before these things begin to reveal themselves. But it seems as if Kaiir Elam is definitely going to have some notable responsibilities within the team across this season. Hopefully he is ready for them.