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Cowboys Not Eyeing RB Addition

September 20th, 2024 at 2:42pm CST by Adam La Rose

The running back position was a major talking point for the Cowboys this offseason, one in which Tony Pollard departed as a free agent. The team’s moves since then have not quelled debate about whether more is required, but further additions are not a priority at the moment.

“A few of the media have gotten out here and written some stories early about how we needed a running back in the draft or how we need a running back, and they’re trying to cover their you-know-what as we go through the season,” owner Jerry Jones said during a Friday appearance on 105.3 The Fan (via Nick Harris of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram).

Dallas reunited with Ezekiel Elliott on a one-year deal, although the team did so with a committee approach in mind. Elliott logged at least 231 carries during each of his first seven seasons as a Cowboy before ceding time to Pollard and being released after the 2022 season. That paved the way for a one-and-done campaign in New England during which the 29-year-old set a new career low in yards per carry (3.5). Elliott has matched that figure through two games while logging a 45% snap share.

The Cowboys retained Rico Dowdle in the offseason after he served in a depth capacity with the team for several years. The former UDFA took on an increased role in 2023 with a 22% snap share; that mark has doubled in the early portion of the current campaign. Dowdle received 106 total touches last year, but he is well on track to surpass that figure with 20 through two weeks in 2024.

Not long before the start of the campaign, the Cowboys added Dalvin Cook to their practice squad. The four-time Pro Bowler had a forgettable 2023 season split between the Jets and Ravens, but Dallas represents an opportunity to rebound. Cook, 29, has yet to be promoted to the active roster. Doing so would be a feasible move from the team’s perspective before seeking out any additions.

Dallas has averaged just 85 rushing yards per game this year, which ranks 26th in the league. Frequently linked to Jonathon Brooks in particular leading up to the draft, the team did not add any rookies in the backfield. Reliance on Elliott, Dowdle, 2023 sixth-rounder Deuce Vaughn and (at some point) Cook will remain the case until a move is deemed necessary. With Kareem Hunt having returned to the Chiefs this week, though, the free agent pool has thinned.

Cowboys To Place DT Jordan Phillips On IR

September 18th, 2024 at 11:16am CST by Sam Robinson

One of two 30-something defensive tackles the Cowboys acquired just before the season, Jordan Phillips will not make it to Week 3 on the team’s active roster. The team is placing the veteran D-lineman on IR, per the Dallas Morning News’ Calvin Watkins.

A wrist injury will move Phillips off the roster. This is familiar territory for the well-traveled veteran, who finished last season on IR due to a wrist ailment. The Giants traded Phillips to the Cowboys in mid-August, with that transaction preceding the team’s Linval Joseph addition.

The Cowboys are planning to sign Carlos Watkins to take Phillips’ roster spot, All City DLLS’ Clarence Hill tweets. Watkins is currently on the Commanders’ practice squad, meaning he must spend at least three weeks on the Cowboys’ 53-man roster due to this poaching. Watkins played the 2021 and ’22 seasons in Dallas before moving on.

Offering an interesting take on this development, Phillips said Wednesday (via Hill) nothing is wrong with his wrist. As such, his status with the organization will be worth monitoring after two games in uniform. The Cowboys are, however, calling this a sprained wrist and are exercising caution, Calvin Watkins adds. Phillips underwent surgery following his 2023 injury, per the Dallas Morning News’ David Moore, but is not expected to need another procedure. This is an interesting back-and-forth, though Phillips’ place on the backup tier reduces its relevance.

Phillips, who will turn 32 this week, must miss at least four games. He has played in both Cowboys contests as a backup, recording two tackles on 34 defensive snaps. The Cowboys brought in Phillips and Joseph to help shore up their run defense. That effort has not gone especially well, with the Saints rampaging for 190 yards on the ground in their stunning Week 2 romp. Joseph has logged 37 snaps as a backup DT.

The Giants signed Phillips, whose Bills tenure overlapped with Joe Schoen and Brian Daboll, this offseason but dealt him to their division rivals in a low-end pick-swap agreement. The Cowboys sent a 2026 sixth-round pick to the Giants for Phillips and a 2026 seventh-rounder. By playing in two games, Phillips has already satisfied the conditions of the trade in order for the picks to transfer.

Buffalo turned back to Phillips as a starter following DaQuan Jones‘ pec tear last season, and the multi-stint Bill started nine games with the team. Pro Football Focus rated Phillips as one of the league’s worst interior D-linemen in 2023. Phillips’ best work came in 2019, when he led the Bills with 9.5 sacks ahead of a nice Cardinals contract. Arizona bailed on that deal after two seasons, leading the former Dolphins second-round pick back to Buffalo in 2022.

Watkins, 30, also brings extensive experience to the equation. One of a few ex-Cowboys to rejoin Dan Quinn in Washington, Watkins landed in the nation’s capital after the Rams cut him late last month. Watkins joined Washington’s practice squad soon after. Watkins started 18 Cowboys games from 2021-22. He played in one Commanders game this season but will now be set to join Joseph, Mazi Smith and Osa Odighizuwa on Dallas’ DT depth chart.

Minor NFL Transactions: 9/16/24

September 16th, 2024 at 8:35pm CST by Ben Levine

Today’s minor moves:

Kansas City Chiefs

New England Patriots

Philadelphia Eagles

Peyton Hendershot made headlines in Week 1, with the tight end earning a fine after participating in a shoving match in defense of QB Patrick Mahomes. Hendershot wasn’t even active for that contest, but he made his Chiefs debut yesterday and got into seven special teams snaps. The former UDFA out of Indiana was traded by the Cowboys to the Chiefs at the end of August. As DLLS’s Clarence Hill Jr. notes, today’s move means the Cowboys won’t receive the 2026 conditional seventh-round pick from the Chiefs.

Latest On Micah Parsons’ Approach To Cowboys Extension

September 15th, 2024 at 5:30pm CST by Adam La Rose

Both Dak Prescott and CeeDee Lamb landed monster Cowboys extensions ahead of Week 1. Micah Parsons was eligible for a second contract during the offseason, but to little surprise he did not engage in serious contract talks during the summer.

Parsons has made it clear to the Cowboys’ front office that no extension talks will take place during the regular season. The 2021 Defensive Rookie of the Year’s attention is focused on another campaign with standout production, something which would help his bargaining power. Parsons is also well aware of where the edge market as a whole currently stands, though.

Ian Rapoport of NFL Network confirms Parsons is prepared for a lengthy wait to secure his second contract. Part of the negotiating process will depend on what happens with the league’s other contracts at the top of the position’s market. As Rapoport notes, both T.J. Watt and Myles Garrett could hammer out new deals with their respective teams next offseason; Watt’s Steelers pact runs through 2025 and does not include guaranteed salary for its final year. Garrett is on the books though 2026, and he too does not have guaranteed salaries beyond the current year.

Watt and Garrett have seen their deals surpassed in terms of annual average value over the past two years. Nick Bosa inked a 49ers extension averaging $34MM per year in 2023, while this past offseason saw Josh Hines-Allen (Jaguars) and Brian Burns (Giants) slot second and third in terms of AAV. If market corrections are made for some of the top veterans seeking to adjust their deals next spring – coupled with an increase in the salary cap ceiling, of course – Parsons could be positioned to command a massive raise.

To little surprise, Rapoport notes Parsons is expected to surpass Bosa as the league’s top earner amongst edge rushers once his deal is in place. Bosa took the title of the NFL’s highest-paid non-quarterback with his deal and held it until Justin Jefferson landed a Vikings pact with a $35MM AAV. Parsons, 25, was tied in June to an asking price which would move him to the top of the pecking order for non-QBs. It would not surprise if he angled for such a pact, although the Cowboys’ deals for Prescott and Lamb met their desired terms in both cases.

Dallas’ ability to handle the cap implications of Prescott, Lamb and Parsons on monster pacts will be challenging moving forward. The likes of Zack Martin and DeMarcus Lawrence are pending free agents, so they too will need new commitments if they are to be retained beyond the current season. Needless to say, the Parsons negotiating process will be an interesting storyline for the Cowboys in particular and the league as a whole once it begins.

Minor NFL Transactions: 9/14/24

September 14th, 2024 at 8:06pm CST by Ely Allen

Saturday’s minor transactions and gameday practice squad callups:

Arizona Cardinals

Baltimore Ravens

Carolina Panthers

Dallas Cowboys

Denver Broncos

Detroit Lions

Green Bay Packers

Houston Texans

Indianapolis Colts

Jacksonville Jaguars

Las Vegas Raiders

Los Angeles Chargers

Minnesota Vikings

New Orleans Saints

New York Giants

New York Jets

San Francisco 49ers

Seattle Seahawks

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Tennessee Titans

Washington Commanders

Patrick was among the Broncos’ final roster cuts after a Saints trade was discussed. The 30-year-old missed the 2022 and ’23 campaigns due to ACL and Achilles tears, respectively. Patrick did not need to wait long to find a new opportunity, though, quickly landing a practice squad deal with the Lions. He is now positioned make his season debut tomorrow as a complementary option in Detroit’s passing attack.

Olszewski is dealing with a groin injury and he was known to be facing a long-term absence. Today’s move thus comes as no surprise, but it ensures at least a four-week absence. The former All-Pro scored a punt return touchdown with Pittsburgh early last season and added another during his 10-game Giants stretch to close out the year. The team will need to rely on other options in the return game for the time being.

Dak Prescott Was Likely To Up Price If Cowboys Negotiated In-Season

September 12th, 2024 at 10:19pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Cowboys completed a rare instance of an extension being finalized the morning of Week 1 Sunday. While the other teams who completed pre-Week 1 extensions hammered them out in the days leading up to their respective openers, the Cowboys were still negotiating the morning of their Browns matchup.

A Saturday report suggested a small chance existed the Cowboys could come to terms with their ninth-year quarterback, but they ended up doing so just before noon CT — around four hours before their Browns tilt. As the Cowboys and Dak’s agent negotiated before COO Stephen Jones left for Cleveland, ESPN.com’s Dan Graziano indicates the team was motivated by the soft deadline Week 1 brought.

Prescott, 30, had said he was OK continuing talks into the season; though, he seemed less thrilled about the prospect when he broached it again late last month. Had Prescott begun a contract year, he was likely to keep upping his price as free agency would have loomed closer and closer as the season progressed, per Graziano. Considering where the Cowboys ended up, it is understandable they were leery of where the numbers could go if their staredown with the QB dragged into the fall.

These negotiations ended with Prescott becoming the NFL’s first $60MM-per-year player, representing remarkable growth on a market that stood at $30MM (Matt Ryan‘s second Falcons extension) barely six years ago. Dak’s $60MM AAV checks in $5MM north of where the market’s ceiling previously resided, but the likes of Joe Burrow, Trevor Lawrence and Jordan Love did not possess the leverage Prescott did.

The Cowboys again bent on term length (four years), as they did for Prescott in 2021 and CeeDee Lamb this year, and again gave their quarterback no-trade and no-tag clauses. Not that a no-tag clause would have mattered much, as no player has received a third tag in nearly 20 years — since the 2006 CBA made doing so punitive — but the Cowboys showed the results of negotiating without leverage.

Still, they were able to keep Prescott away from free agency. Guaranteed money brought the final stage of these talks, Graziano adds, and Dak indeed secured more in guarantees than Deshaun Watson did on a five-year deal. That said, Watson — for now, at least — is tied to $230MM fully guaranteed; Prescott’s $231MM number represents the total guarantee. Though, the Cowboys will have a difficult time escaping this contract due to the above-referenced clauses and the financial penalties that come via the guarantee structure.

Dallas gave Prescott $129MM guaranteed at signing. That is not a top-market number, as it checks in seventh among QBs. But Prescott, as should be expected, secured a player-friendly cash flow. His 2024 and 2025 base salaries are guaranteed at signing, and Graziano adds the $40MM 2026 base salary shifts from guaranteed for injury to a full guarantee in March 2025. That same structure applies for Prescott’s $45MM 2027 base, which locks in as of March 2026. Prescott is due $55MM in 2028 base salary; $17MM of that amount will become fully guaranteed in March 2027. Dak’s one-, two-, three- and four-year cash flows lead the NFL, SI.com’s Andrew Brandt tweets.

No-tag and no-trade clauses being present in Prescott’s 2021 extension (4/160), coupled with his previous 2024 cap number ($55.13MM) and potential 2025 dead money penalty if not extended by March ($40.13MM), made it a lock he would secure whopping terms from the Cowboys if he agreed to avoid testing free agency.

This extension includes four void years, with the Cowboys having the option of restructuring the deal down the road as well, but still includes a high 2024 cap number. Dak’s extension dropped his cap hit by less than $11MM, with the new ’24 number settling at $44.61MM. With the Browns restructuring Watson’s deal a second time, the Rams reworking Matthew Stafford‘s contract and the Cowboys paying Prescott, Kyler Murray‘s $49.12MM leads all players and represents the highest single-player cap hit in NFL history.

This nixes what would have been a historic free agency sweepstakes and ties Prescott to the Cowboys through 2028. This will put Dak in line to become the longest-tenured QB1 in team history, surpassing Troy Aikman‘s 12-season run.

Cowboys, Micah Parsons Will Discuss Extension After 2024 Season

September 10th, 2024 at 10:15pm CST by Adam La Rose

With mere hours to spare, the Cowboys managed to take care of their top two extensions in time for the start of the regular season. Both Dak Prescott and CeeDee Lamb have four-year extensions in hand, and they will not face questions about potential free agent departures during the 2024 campaign.

[Offseason In Review: Dallas Cowboys]

Throughout the offseason, the Cowboys’ negotiations on the Prescott and Lamb fronts were made against the backdrop of Micah Parsons also being eligible for a new deal this year. With two years remaining on his rookie contract, it came as no surprise the All-Pro edge rusher was third on the priority list regarding an extension. With the current season underway, talks on a monster second pact between Parsons and the team will be delayed until the spring.

“Right now, it’s certainly not anything that’s on the table,” Cowboys EVP Stephen Jones said during an appearance on 105.3 The Fan regarding Parsons extension talks (via Jon Machota of The Athletic). “Micah made a conscientious decision that he thinks he can put together an even better year. I think he got off to a great start against the Browns. I think his play speaks louder than words.

“I think he expects to have a great year under [defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer]. And then probably feel comfortable to talk about it then. Each individual is different. Opportunities come and when they are and the player feels good about something then we’ll certainly will move to do something. At the same time, sometimes players just aren’t ready yet. They don’t feel like their situation is in the right situation to start the process.”

Parsons will collect just under $3MM this season, and Dallas’ decision to pick up his fifth-year option has him on track to earn $21.32MM in 2025. A long-term extension will of course check in at a much higher rate given the nature of the edge market and the three-time Pro Bowler’s production to date. Parsons amassed 40.5 sacks in his first three years, and he added another during the Cowboys’ Week 1 win on Sunday. Remaining healthy and delivering another double-digit sack campaign would position him well for a major payday next offseason.

Nick Bosa‘s 2023 49ers extension carries an annual average value of $34MM. That figure briefly allowed him to hold the title of the league’s highest-paid non-quarterback before being surpassed by Justin Jefferson. Bosa is still the top earner for defensive players, though, and his contract could be a target for Parsons once negotiations take place. The 25-year-old said in June he was onboard with waiting out the 2024 offseason and allowing the Prescott and Lamb deals to be worked out (while also letting the salary cap jump once more before working on an extension).

Parsons has been connected to an asking price which would move him to the top of the pecking order for edge rushers, although the same was true of Lamb at one point and his Cowboys deal falls short of Jefferson’s in terms of value and guarantees. Prescott, on the other hand, secured an AAV of $60MM, moving the bar in terms of quarterback compensation by $5MM. It will be interesting to see how the Cowboys handle negotiations knowing Prescott and Lamb are set to carry major cap hits for the foreseeable future while also trying to afford a massive Parsons commitment.

On his Off the Edge podcast, the Penn State product confirmed his desire to remain a Cowboy well after the 2024 and ’25 seasons (video link). Whether or not Parsons and the team can meet that goal via a long-term deal will not be known until the current campaign comes to an end, however.

NFC East Notes: Bland, Eagles, Giants

September 10th, 2024 at 1:56pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Cowboys managed fine without DaRon Bland in Week 1, smothering Deshaun Watson‘s comeback effort. But the team has not gotten a chance to play Bland and Trevon Diggs together since September of last season. Bland’s IR-return designation leaves the 2023 All-Pro out of the picture until at least Week 5. While a late-August report suggested Bland could miss eight games due to the foot stress fracture he suffered, ESPN.com’s Jeremy Fowler notes the Cowboys are optimistic Bland will be ready to return when first eligible.

This would be welcome news for a Cowboys team that has seen each of its preferred top three corners sustain a significant injury since 2022. Jourdan Lewis suffered a career-threatening Lisfranc injury that season, and Diggs tore an ACL in September. The latter issue moved Bland from the slot to the boundary, leading to his record-breaking five-pick-six performance last season. The Cowboys used fifth-round rookie Caelen Carson as their starter alongside Diggs in Cleveland.

Here is the latest from the NFC East:

  • Devin White‘s role will be one to monitor when he debuts for the Eagles. The free agency addition missed Week 1, with Nakobe Dean starting alongside Zack Baun. Dean and Baun served as Vic Fangio‘s LB regulars in the Brazil game, and while White should still have a role upon debuting, the Philadelphia Inquirer’s Jeff McLane notes Dean beat out the former Buccaneers top-five pick for a starting job. White was believed to be on track for a starting role before camp. The Eagles had planned for Dean to be their top linebacker last season, but two IR stints — because of a foot issue — changed that plan. Dean’s injury-plagued second season, after he backed up Kyzir White and T.J. Edwards as a rookie, led to the White and Baun signings. White is coming off a disappointing Bucs season, which ended with a reduced role. After previously aiming for a top-five ILB deal in 2023, White is on a one-year, $4MM contract.
  • The Eagles lost four front office execs to assistant GM roles in 2022, leading Howie Roseman to rebuild his power structure. This resulted in both Alec Halaby and Jon Ferrari being elevated to the assistant GM role that had previously stood vacant despite the front office talent Roseman had stockpiled. Halaby interviewed for the Commanders and Panthers’ GM jobs during this year’s cycle, meeting about the Carolina gig twice. Ferrari should be expected to be summoned for GM meetings soon as well, The Athletic’s Jeff Howe notes (subscription required). Ferrari has been with the Eagles since 2016. Prior to the AGM bump, he worked mainly in the team’s compliance department.
  • Both Nick McCloud and Gunner Olszewski are expected to miss time for the Giants. McCloud, who pushed for a starting cornerback spot in training camp, sustained a knee injury that could keep him out weeks, Fox Sports’ Ralph Vacchiano notes. Olszewski sustained a groin injury and will miss extensive time. Both players re-signed on one-year deals this offseason.
  • Staying with the Giants, the team used 2023 third-rounder Jalin Hyatt as its No. 4 wide receiver in Week 1. Hyatt played only 16 snaps against the Vikings, with Vacchiano indicating the Tennessee alum is “clearly behind” the Malik Nabers–Wan’Dale Robinson–Darius Slayton trio. This could certainly change if the Giants considered a Slayton trade — which they did not during the offseason — but the deep threat played at least 16 snaps in 15 of his 17 rookie-year games.
  • The Cowboys were among the teams to create cap space recently. They restructured Terence Steele‘s contract, per ESPN.com’s Field Yates. This update creates $4.5MM in cap space for the team, one that just agreed to the most lucrative deal in NFL history (Dak Prescott‘s four-year, $240MM extension).
  • Josh Harris will work with Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment CEO Tad Brown in running the search for the team’s next president, the Washington Post’s Nicki Jhabvala tweets. The Commanders are searching for a successor to Jason Wright, who announced he will leave the post after the season.

Extra Points: Hill, Watson, Prescott

September 9th, 2024 at 9:12pm CST by Ben Levine

Following Tyreek Hill‘s detainment before yesterday’ game, Andy Slater of Fox Sports 640 South Florida released the bodycam footage from Miami-Dade Police. The release of the video follows a statement by the Miami-Dade Police earlier today in which they said that Hill was not immediately cooperative with officers (per Charean Williams of ProFootballTalk.com).

The video shows that Hill was initially pulled over for speeding while approaching Hard Rock Stadium. After the Dolphins wide receiver was pulled over, he was asked to keep his window down. As ESPN’s Marcel Louis-Jacques and Xuan Thai detail, the “incident escalated when Hill didn’t comply.”

After exiting his vehicle, Hill was grabbed “by the back of the head and neck area” and forced to the pavement before being placed in handcuffs. After being walked to the sidewalk, Hill was forced to the ground again after not immediately complying to an officer’s demand to sit down, with the wideout citing recent knee surgery.

The footage also shows the police tensely interacting with tight end Jonnu Smith, who parked about 25 feet away from Hill. Smith “was ultimately given a citation.” Defensive lineman Calais Campbell can also be seen in the footage approaching police with his arms raised.

Following the release of the footage, the Miami Dolphins released a statement. While the organization lauded the release of the video and acknowledged their relationship with the Miami-Dade Police, they also requested “swift and strong action against the officers who engaged in such despicable behavior.” Per Armando Salguero of Outkick.com, the officer at the center of the video “was placed on administrative duties” and has hired a lawyer.

More notes from around the NFL…

  • Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson is facing a new civil lawsuit claiming him of sexual assault and battery during an incident in October 2020, per ESPN’s Daniel Oyefusi. Watson “sexually assaulted the woman for several minutes” before storming out of her apartment. Watson was previously accused of sexual assault and inappropriate conduct by more than two dozen women. He avoided criminal charges but was served an 11-game suspension after the league and the NFL Players Association reached a settlement. Watson settled 23 of his 24 civil lawsuits, and this latest suit joins the one remaining civil suit from 2022. An NFL spokesperson declined comment when asked about the matter, per Jonathan Jones of NFL on CBS.
  • Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com has the details on Dak Prescott‘s new contract with the Cowboys. The four-year, $240MM extension features an $80MM signing bonus and $129MM guaranteed at signing. The quarterback will have another $40MM guaranteed next March, and another $45MM will be guaranteed the following March. The deal also includes a no-trade clause, a no-franchise tag clause, and a no-transition tag clause.
  • The NFL sent a memo to more than 20 players and their respective teams before Week 1, warning the players that they could face suspensions if they violated the safety and sportsmanship policies. While the players’ identities weren’t revealed, ESPN’s Adam Schefter notes that the individuals “have been penalized and scrutinized in the past,” with all of the players having been suspended over the past two years for on-the-field incidents.

Cowboys TE Jake Ferguson Suffers MCL Sprain

September 9th, 2024 at 11:26am CST by Adam La Rose

Jake Ferguson exited the Cowboys’ season-opening win on Sunday, but he has avoided the worst-case scenario on the injury front. The third-year tight end is not expected to miss considerable time (if any), as first reported by WFAA’s Ed Werder.

[RELATED: Recapping Cowboys’ Offseason]

Ferguson – who offered an encouraging update on his status Monday – is nevertheless in danger of being sidelined for a brief stretch. Tests revealed he is dealing with an MCL sprain as well as a bone bruise, per Ian Rapoport of NFL Network. He is therefore considered week-to-week at this point, although ESPN’s Todd Archer confirms Ferguson is still a candidate to play in Week 2.

After a relatively quiet rookie season, Ferguson took a notable step forward in production last year. Dalton Schultz‘s successor posted 761 yards and five touchdowns on 71 receptions in 2023. Expectations are high for a repeat of that output this campaign, one in which CeeDee Lamb and Brandin Cooks remain atop the receiver depth chart. Quarterback Dak Prescott will stay in place for years to come, but one of his top targets may be temporarily unavailable.

Dallas beat Cleveland 33-17 on Sunday, with Ferguson registering three catches on five targets. The 25-year-old earned a Pro Bowl nod for his production last year, and a similar showing in 2024 would set him up well for an extension in March. Two years remain on his rookie contract, though, and Micah Parsons headlines the list of Cowboys in line for a new deal during the 2025 offseason.

If Ferguson misses time, Lamb and Cooks will be positioned to remain focal points in the passing game. At the tight end spot in particular, Dallas will turn to Luke Schoonmaker and Brevyn Spann-Ford for an increased offensive workload if required. In relatively short order, though, Ferguson should be back to full health.

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