Dallas City News

Michael Gallup won’t be continuing his career beyond the Dallas Cowboys after all. The veteran wide receiver, who signed with the Las Vegas Raiders in late April, has surprisingly retired.

Gallup was released by Dallas last March. He struggled to recover from a 2021 ACL injury, with the real issue being the $57 million contract he was given during the 2022 offseason. After two years of hoping Gallup would bounce back, the Cowboys made him a salary cap casualty this offseason. He signed with the Raiders on April 30th just after the NFL draft.

Las Vegas opened training camp today with the first practice set for Wednesday. Gallup was considered a likely roster member, perhaps even the third receiver, for the Raiders this season. But now he won’t even see the practice field this summer. It also means Gallup won’t be there for the Cowboys-Raiders preseason game on August 17th.

A third-round pick for Dallas in 2018, Gallup made an immediate impact as a rookie with 33 catches for 507 yards. His second year was his best; 1,107 yards and six touchdowns as a full-time starter. While he took a backseat when CeeDee Lamb arrived in 2020, Gallup still remained a key target for Dak Prescott and especially in clutch moments. For not having a high volume of receptions, Gallup’s career highlight reel of acrobatic, contested catches rivals many top NFL receivers.

In six seasons with the Cowboys, Gallup’s 3,744 receiving yards puts him 11th on the all-time franchise list. He also finished 18th in catches (266) and 19th in touchdowns (21), benefitting some from the modern era but mostly due to his immediate production and role with the team. Unfortunately, the knee injury not only ruined his last two years with Dallas but seems to have cut his entire career short.

Even with this untimely end, Michael Gallup proved his worth as an NFL player. He more than rewarded the Cowboys for that third-round pick and was an important part of one of the NFL’s most productive offenses over the last several years.