Picture this: the Dallas Cowboys, fresh off a 7-10 season in 2024, are on the hunt for a game-changer to pair with CeeDee Lamb and give Dak Prescott some extra firepower. Enter Cooper Kupp, the Super Bowl LVI MVP and one of the NFL’s slickest wide receivers when he’s healthy.

According to a report from NBC Sports, the Cowboys were all in on snagging Kupp-until the price tag came into focus. Seems like Jerry Jones and crew got sticker shock, and now fans are left wondering what could’ve been.

Word is, the Cowboys “made a push” for Kupp last Thursday, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter on his podcast, via Clarence Hill of All City DLLS. “Dak Prescott and CeeDee Lamb, who I understand it, were on the phone with Cooper Kupp talking to him about the idea of coming to Dallas,” Schefter dished.

Imagine that-two of Dallas’ biggest stars pitching the dream of a Lamb-Kupp duo shredding defenses at AT&T Stadium. Kupp’s got deep ties to the Cowboys too-his dad, Craig, played QB for them in ’91, and his grandpa, Jake, was an offensive lineman in the ’60s. Plus, receivers coach Junior Adams coached Kupp at Eastern Washington. It felt like a match made in football heaven.

Kupp to Cowboys? Numbers killed the dream

Then came the numbers. “They were at numbers that the Cowboys weren’t going to get to,” Schefter added, hinting that Kupp’s asking price-rumored around $15 million a year-sent Dallas running. The Cowboys haven’t splashed big free-agent cash since Brandon Carr’s $50.1 million deal in 2012, and with Lamb locked in at $136 million over four years, a pricey No. 2 receiver might’ve been a stretch.

Kupp ended up signing with the Seattle Seahawks for a reported three-year, $45 million deal on Friday, leaving Dallas with Parris Campbell as their only outside WR addition so far. Kupp’s no slouch-67 catches, 710 yards, and six TDs in 12 games last season with the Rams show he’s still got it, even with injury hiccups. Posts on X lit up with fans dreaming of him snagging passes from Prescott, but reality hit hard.

“Cowboys weren’t about to pay Kupp 15M per year at this stage,” one user noted, echoing the sentiment that Dallas dodged a big bill. For a team that’s been busy in free agency-think Payton Turner and Kaiir Elam additions-this miss stings a little. Will they pivot to another vet like Amari Cooper or hit the draft for a Lamb sidekick? The clock’s ticking in Cowboys Nation.