Michael Gallup signs with Commanders as WR attempts comeback after retiring in 2024

Michael Gallup is back in the NFL. The Washington Commanders announced on Thursday that they’ve signed Gallup to a contract.

Gallup is attempting a comeback after retiring from the NFL last offseason. He spent the first six years of his career with the Dallas Cowboys before being released in March 2024. He signed with the Las Vegas Raiders in April but decided early in training camp to retire rather than play during the 2024 season. The Raiders released him from the reserve/retired list earlier this offseason, freeing him to sign with Washington.

The move to Washington reunites Gallup with several former Dallas teammates and coaches, as Commanders head coach Dan Quinn was the Cowboys’ defensive coordinator during Gallup’s final three years with the team. Other former Cowboys such as center Tyler Biadasz and defensive end Dorance Armstrong followed Quinn to Washington, and now Gallup has done the same.

A third-round pick back in 2018, Gallup spent most of his career operating as the No. 2 or 3 option for Dak Prescott in Dallas. His best season came in 2019, when he caught 66 passes for 1,107 yards and 6 touchdowns. A torn ACL in 2021 derailed his career, as he was never the same player after returning from that injury. 

Though the Cowboys signed him to a new contract despite the knee issue, Gallup was ineffective in his role. In the two seasons following the ACL tear, Gallup caught just 73 of 131 targets across 31 games, totaling 842 yards and 6 scores. His 27.2 yards-per-game average during that span was just over half the mark he had his through his first four NFL seasons (52.8 per game). As a result, Dallas cut ties with him last offseason in a salary-cap clearing move. 

At his peak, Gallup was a high-level deep threat and contested-catch specialist. If he is healthy, he could perhaps fill a part-time role in a similar vein for a Washington team that already has Terry McLaurin and Deebo Samuel locked in as its top two receiving options. In the event that Gallup can’t recapture his prior form (or something close to it), there’s no harm done. It’s likely a low-cost, low-risk, moderate-reward shot on a player with whom the staff has familiarity and who at his best can bring something different to the table.