Cowboys considered among the league’s losers on day one of legal tampering period

The Cowboys did what they always do in early free agency… nothing.

The Dallas Cowboys have a reputation of being cheap spenders in free agency. It’s no secret that the front office has mainly built their roster from succeeding in the draft and extending their own players. However, the Cowboys are also off to a poor start in retaining their own. They lost three key starter/role players on Monday with C Tyler Biadasz, DE Dorance Armstrong, and RB Tony Pollard all agreeing to deals with new teams. With previous reports that the Cowboys could lose long-time LT Tyron Smith, it could get even worse for the team.

For many fans, it was frustrating to watch the most valuable team in professional sports be the only team in the NFL to not make a single move on Monday. This comes months after fans hoped Jerry Jones’ ‘all-in’ comments meant the team would operate in a manner which the fanbase hasn’t seen in recent time.

As usual, Philadelphia Eagles GM Howie Roseman did what fans hoped the Cowboys would do, and made what Philadelphia hopes will be ‘all-in’ caliber moves. They signed RB Saquon Barkley to a three-year, $37.5M deal, in a shocking move that instantly elevated their offense. They didn’t stop there, the team also added DE Bryce Huff, who is fresh off a 10-sack season with the New York Jets.

The other three NFC East teams were aggressive in making their team better on Monday, as the Washington Commanders signed several key defenders as well as RB Austin Ekeler. Dan Quinn signed Biadasz and Armstrong from the Cowboys, giving them both a nice contract. While the New York Giants did lose Barkley, they traded for star pass rusher Brian Burns, giving them one of the most imposing defensive lines across the NFL.

The Cowboys continue to use the same formula they have been using over the past several years, and they continue to have the same results in the playoffs. At some point, the front office should understand that they are falling behind. They are not just falling behind across the NFL, but they are falling behind in the NFC East. There are a lot more questions and holes on this roster than in previous years, and there is no reason to believe the Cowboys are in any better of a situation to contend in 2024 than they have been in recent years.