Raiders Place Michael Gallup on Reserve/Retired List; WR Spent 6 Years with Cowboys

Timothy Rapp@@TRappaRTFeatured Columnist IVJuly 24, 2024

Cooper Neill/Getty Images

The Las Vegas Raiders announced Tuesday that veteran wideout Michael Gallup has been placed on the reserve/retired list.

Gallup, 28, was released by the Dallas Cowboys in March as as post-June 1 cut, saving the team $9.5 million in cap space for the 2024 season but still costing them $8.7 million against the cap in 2025. The Raiders signed him to a one-year deal worth up to $3 million in April.

Gallup was expected to compete for a receiving role this season behind starters Davante Adams and Jakobi Meyers and slot Tre Tucker, while tight ends Michael Mayer and rookie Brock Bowers will play a major role in the passing game.

His retirement was reportedly unexpected in Las Vegas, per ESPN’s Ed Werder:

Ed Werder @WerderEdESPNSource says Michael Gallup informing Raiders he decided to retire from the NFL was unexpected.

Gallup, a former third-round pick of the Cowboys who became a 1,000-yard receiver before tearing his ACL, explained “his heart was not 100 percent into it.”

In six seasons with the Cowboys, Gallup registered 266 catches, 3,744 yards and 21 touchdowns across 86 games. His best season came in 2019, when he set career highs in receptions (66), receiving yards (1,107) and receiving scores (six).

He had another solid showing in 2020 (59 catches, 843 yards, five touchdowns) before a calf injury and later a torn ACL limited him to just nine games in 2021. Nonetheless, Dallas signed him to a five-year, $57.5 million deal in 2022.

But he was never quite the same player after the 2021 campaign, with disappointing seasons in both 2022 and 2023. Given that Dallas had CeeDee Lamb and Brandin Cooks on the roster and was looking to trim payroll this offseason, moving on made sense.

The Raiders ended up being a surprise suitor for Gallup, though the relationship was short-lived.