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Dontari Poe

Cowboys To Cut Dontari Poe, Daryl Worley

October 28th, 2020 at 3:02pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Cowboys continue to cut bait on veteran defenders. After failing in efforts to trade Dontari Poe and Daryl Worley, the Cowboys will release both, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. Owner Jerry Jones said that Poe’s release was due to his weight and lack of performance, and he declined to say whether Poe’s decision to kneel during the playing of the national anthem before games was a consideration (via Chris Mortensen of ESPN.com).

These moves come a day after the team shipped Everson Griffen to the Lions for a conditional draft pick. While the Cowboys are a half-game out of first place in the woeful NFC East, they are coming off one of their worst performances in many years. And Dallas’ defense will feature less experience because of it.

Poe and Worley signed with the Cowboys this offseason. A former Pro Bowl defensive tackle, Poe signed a two-year deal worth $4.5MM. This release will tag the Cowboys with more than $1MM in dead money. The Cowboys added Worley on a one-year, $3MM pact and will be hit with over $1MM in dead money from this transaction as well.

A former Chiefs first-round pick, Poe has started all seven of the Cowboys’ games this season. Worley has been a first-unit player in four contests, with the Cowboys dealing with injuries at cornerback. Dallas’ defense ranks 30th in DVOA, setting the stage for one of the most disappointing seasons in modern NFL history.

While Worley has allowed 10 receptions on 12 targets, he has graded as the Cowboys’ second-best corner — in the view of Pro Football Focus. Though, that assessment still places the journeyman outside the top 80 at the position. Worley spent two seasons with the Panthers and two with the Raiders prior to his Cowboys agreement.

Poe has been on four teams now, and his two Pro Bowl appearances came early during his Chiefs tenure. The Panthers declined his 2020 option, sending the 30-year-old back to free agency. The Cowboys signed Poe and Gerald McCoy this offseason. Prior to the midway point, they will be without both and Trysten Hill from their defensive tackle rotation.

Cowboys To Trade Or Cut Dontari Poe, Daryl Worley

October 28th, 2020 at 9:39am CST by Zachary Links

The Cowboys told defensive tackle Dontari Poe and cornerback Daryl Worley they’ll be released if a trade cannot be completed today, according to Tom Pelissero of NFL.com (on Twitter).

Poe, a 346-pound force, spent 2018 and 2019 with the Panthers before his 2020 option was declined. That led him to Dallas, where he scored a two-year deal worth up to $10.5MM. Since then, Poe has started seven games with just seven total stops. According to Pro Football Focus, he has just one hurry to his credit this year. It’s a far cry from what Dallas expected of Poe, who made the Pro Bowl in 2013 and 2014 while he was with the Chiefs. And, last year, he managed four sacks from the interior, despite being limited to just eleven regular season games.

Worley, meanwhile, has allowed ten catches on 12 targets. Prior to his one-year deal with the Cowboys, Worley started in most of his 25 games across two seasons. Last year, in 15 contests, he notched 58 tackles, one interception, and one fumble recovery.

The trade deadline won’t come until Nov. 3, but the Cowboys are looking to get an early jump on things by moving — or dropping — the duo. So far this year, the Cowboys have averaged 34.7 points allowed per game, positioning them as the worst defense in the league.

NFC Contract Details: Zuerlein, Poe, Shell, Vikings

March 28th, 2020 at 11:37am CST by Ben Levine

We’ve got a bunch of contract details to pass along, all out of the NFC:

Cowboys To Sign Dontari Poe

March 25th, 2020 at 11:11am CST by Zachary Links

Dontari Poe is coming to Dallas. On Wednesday, the Cowboys agreed to sign the defensive tackle, as Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. 

[RELATED: Cowboys’ Travis Frederick Announces Retirement]

Exact terms of the deal are not yet known and the two sides are still hashing out the fine print, but a (virtual) handshake agreement is in place. Poe figures to play a key role for the Cowboys, who are looking to remake their defensive line this offseason.

Poe, a 346-pound force, spent the last two seasons with the Panthers. This year, the club declined his option for the 2020 season, placing him on the free agent pile.

The Cowboys cast a wide net for defensive line help after losing Robert Quinn and Maliek Collins in free agency. Earlier this month, they landed fellow ex-Panthers notable Gerald McCoy, but they also did their homework on Ndamukong Suh, Damon Harrison, Mike Pennel, and others.

Poe made the Pro Bowl in 2013 and 2014 while he was with the Chiefs. Last year, he managed four sacks from the interior, despite being limited to just eleven regular season games. Historically, he’s been durable – before 2019, he never missed more than one contest in any campaign.

Cowboys, Dontari Poe Discussing Deal

March 23rd, 2020 at 11:00am CST by Sam Robinson

Dontari Poe may have a landing spot soon. The veteran defensive tackle is in discussions with the Cowboys on a deal, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets, adding that a contract could be finalized by the end of the day.

In their hunt for defensive tackle help, the Cowboys are also examining the likes of Ndamukong Suh, Damon Harrison and Mike Pennel, NFL.com’s Jane Slater adds (on Twitter). The Cowboys lost Maliek Collins in free agency last week but already made a deal to sign Gerald McCoy. A Poe addition would make this a high-profile interior line and make for an interesting reunion for players who spent last season on Carolina’s defensive front.

The Panthers did not pick up Poe’s 2020 option, sending him to free agency. This Cowboys are the first team to surface as interested in the former first-round pick. A Pro Bowler with the Chiefs back in the 2013-14 seasons, Poe played the past two seasons with the Panthers.

The mammoth nose tackle registered four sacks last season — his most since 2014 — but only played in 11 games. He is recovering from quadriceps surgery. Before 2019, however, Poe had never missed more than one game in a season. He’s been one of the league’s most durable defenders since coming into the league.

It appears the Cowboys are serious about upgrading inside. The McCoy deal and the Poe talks come a year after Dallas drafted Trysten Hill in the second round. Poe played five seasons with the Chiefs before catching on with the Falcons in 2017, and his Atlanta season resulted in a three-year Carolina deal worth nearly $30MM. It will not cost the Cowboys that much to bring in Poe.

Panthers Expected To Decline Dontari Poe’s Option

March 2nd, 2020 at 9:17am CST by Zachary Links

The Panthers are expected to decline Dontari Poe’s $9.8MM option for 2020, sources tell Jourdan Rodrigue and Joseph Person of The Athletic. With that, the nose tackle is now on course for free agency later this month.

Poe managed four sacks from the interior last year and played well, but he’s also coming up on his 30th birthday in August and recovering from quadriceps surgery. The Panthers, who are in the midst of a rebuild, seem intent on overhauling their defensive line, and Poe is not part of their plan.

Seven defensive linemen are ticketed for the open market and, according to Rodrigue and Person, the only DL they want to retain is Mario Addison, assuming he’d be willing to sign a short-term and team-friendly deal. Gerald McCoy, Bruce Irvin, and Vernon Butler are among the other Panthers linemen that will be changing unis in 2020.

The unit will look drastically different in 2020, though Kawann Short will return after losing much of 2019 to rotator cuff surgery. With Poe out of the picture, they’re on the hunt for a starting nose tackle. That search that could draw them to Auburn’s Derrick Brown or South Carolina’s Javon Kinlaw, as Person and Rodrigue write.

Panthers Sign Stacy McGee and Woodrow Hamilton

November 27th, 2019 at 11:58am CST by Marc Delucchi

The Panthers made a flurry of roster moves on Wednesday morning. Carolina officially moved defensive tackle Dontari Poe and guard Greg Van Roten to the injured reserve and signed defensive linemen Stacy McGee and Woodrow Hamilton, according to Joe Person of The Athletic.

The move to injured reserve was expected for Poe after it was reported earlier this week that he had to undergo surgery for a torn quad. Van Roten, however, left Sunday’s game against the Saints with a toe injury and the severity was not yet known. Now, both are officially out for the season.

McGee is the more well-known of the two new additions. A six-year veteran, McGee played the first four seasons of his career with the Raiders where he served as a swingman, playing nearly every position along the defensive line. After his tenure in Oakland, Washington signed him to a two-year contract that spanned the 2017-18 seasons. Over his career, McGee has appeared in 75 games (29 starts), recorded 116 tackles, and 4 sacks.

Hamilton has bounced between a number of NFL organizations and has appeared in two games since turning pro in 2016. While he does not come with McGee’s resume, he also signed a futures/reserve contract with the Panthers in December of 2018 and was with the organization until final roster cuts on August 30th. His familiarity should help him quickly integrate himself into the rotation.

Panthers’ Dontari Poe Done For Season

November 25th, 2019 at 3:14pm CST by Zachary Links

3:14pm: Poe’s season will indeed end early. The veteran defensive tackle has elected to undergo surgery on his quad injury, according to ESPN.com’s Josina Anderson (on Twitter). The former first-round pick will undergo the procedure Tuesday morning.

12:53pm: The Panthers fear that Dontari Poe suffered a torn quadriceps muscle in Sunday’s loss to the Saints (Twitter link via NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport). Poe is having an MRI to confirm the injury, but the club thinks they already know the result, which will end Poe’s season. 

The Panthers’ thin playoff hopes took a major blow on Sunday with the loss to New Orleans and it figures to be rough sledding the rest of the way without Poe, who was an anchor for the defensive line. Through eleven games (ten starts), Poe notched 4.0 sacks from the interior, plus 22 tackles and seven tackles for a loss. For his work, Pro Football Focus has Poe rated as the No. 40 interior defensive lineman in the league.

The Panthers can be expected to look into DT help between now and Sunday’s game against the Redskins. While they’re at it, they may also shake up the kicker spot by replacing Joey Slye with another leg.

NFC Notes: Cowboys, 49ers, Bucs, Panthers

November 14th, 2018 at 9:27pm CST by Dallas Robinson

The Cowboys don’t intend to fire head coach Jason Garrett during the season, but that doesn’t mean they won’t part ways with their head coach after the campaign is concluded, especially if Dallas doesn’t earn a postseason berth (something the team has a 26% chance to do, per FiveThirtyEight.com). Oklahoma head coach Lincoln Riley has already been mentioned as a potential candidate for the Cowboys if Garrett is shown the door, but owner Jerry Jones, predictably, isn’t tipping his hand on any possible contenders for the head coaching job. “That would be total drawing it out of the air,” Jones said of Riley, per Jon Machota of the Dallas Morning News (Twitter link). “Totally speculation.” Riley has also been mentioned as a target for the Browns, especially given that he coached Baker Mayfield with the Sooners.

Here’s more from around the league:

  • Given how Nick Mullens has played through two starts, he’ll remain the 49ers‘ starting quarterback on an open-ended basis, head coach Kyle Shanahan told reporters, including Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle (Twitter link). Mullens, who started in place on an injured C.J. Beathard in Week 9, completed 73% of his passes and tossed three touchdowns in his first career NFL action. While he came back to Earth a bit in Week 10 (250 yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions), he still nearly led San Francisco to a victory over the Giants on Monday night. In the midst of what’s become a lost season, the 49ers might be well-served to get a full look at Mullens, who went undrafted out of Southern Mississippi in 2017.
  • Buccaneers linebacker Lavonte David is likely to miss time with a sprained MCL, sources tell Jenna Laine of ESPN.com. While David has yet to be officially ruled out for Sunday’s game against the Giants, the nature of his injury usually dictates a two-to-four weeks absence, per Laine, meaning David could conceivably be sidelined through mid-December. Tampa Bay can ill afford another injury at the linebacker position, as the club has already placed starter Kwon Alexander and reserve Jack Cichy on injured reserve, while 2017 draft choice Kendell Beckwith is still on the non-football injury list.
  • Panthers defensive tackle Dontari Poe collected a $125K bonus today by weighing in at less than 330 pounds, as Field Yates of ESPN.com tweets. Poe inked a three-year, $28MM contract with Carolina this offseason, and the deal provides the opportunity for the interior defender to collect up to $500K per season via weight bonuses. The former Chief and Falcon is playing far fewer snaps in 2018 than he has in years prior — whereas he typically played in 75%+ of his team’s snaps from 2012-16, he’s now sitting at the 50% mark with Carolina.

NFC Contract Details: Cousins, Bradford, Poe

March 19th, 2018 at 6:23pm CST by Ben Levine

Here are figures on some of the recent contracts signed around the NFL, with all links going to Twitter unless noted otherwise.

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