Your Sunday morning Cowboys news.
3 positions that could be vastly different for the Cowboys in 2025 – Mario Herrera Jr., Inside the Star
For the Cowboys, some key changes could be right around the corner next season.
Quarterback
It sounds crazy to say that the Cowboys could have a completely new quarterback room in 2025, but it’s a real possibility. Dak Prescott and Cooper Rush are in the final year of their deals, and Dallas has already stated they would not exercise the 5th-year option on Trey Lance’s contract.
The Cowboys don’t even have a quarterback on the practice squad so 2025 free agency could deplete their quarterback room completely. It makes for a difficult situation in this draft because you don’t want to upset contract negotiations with Prescott by drafting a quarterback earlier than a late-round pick.
At the same time, it’s difficult to justify taking a quarterback at all after essentially drafting Lance with this year’s 4th-round pick. Rush certainly isn’t the answer so drafting a quarterback in the 2024 draft almost seems like a critical need to avoid a 2025 season with a rookie starting quarterback.
Wide Receiver
Like Prescott, star WR CeeDee Lamb is also in a contract year after the Cowboys picked up his 5th-year option. Lamb is set to count just over $17 million against the salary cap this season but could cost less if the Cowboys could get him to agree to an extension before Justin Jefferson and Jamarr Chase.
On top of the stress of Lamb being on a one-year deal, there is very little security behind him on the depth chart. Brandin Cooks is also in the final year of his contract, and behind him is a still-developing Jalen Tolbert followed by several developmental prospects. Jalen Brooks is among those prospects, and he even got playing time in 2023 in mop-up duty after several Cowboys blowout games.
Although they don’t share the same agent, I feel like Prescott and Lamb’s contracts are somewhat contingent on one another so failed negotiations with one could mean double failure. In preparation for disaster, the Cowboys need to address wide receiver in this draft with an earlier pick than most think is necessary.
Cowboys QB Dak Prescott on lack of contract talks: ‘I don’t fear’ playing with another team after 2024 – Coral Smith, nfl.com
Speaking of what could be a shakeup at the quarterback position, Dak Prescott discusses his future with the Cowboys.
“I’m not going to say I fear being here or not. I don’t fear either situation, to be candid with you,” Prescott said Friday from the Children’s Cancer Fund Gala, via The Athletic’s Jon Machota. “I love this game and love to play and love to better myself as a player and my teammates around me. Right now it’s with the Dallas Cowboys, it’s where I want to be, and that’s where I am, and that’s the focus. And after the season we’ll see where we’re at and if the future holds that. And if not, we’ll go from there.”
Prescott has one year remaining on his current contract, a four-year, $160 million deal signed in 2021, and had said early in March that he was “definitely confident” that he and the Cowboys would be able to get an extension done. But that confidence was thrown into question over the course of the month. Owner Jerry Jones said, “I don’t fear that,” when asked about this season possibly being Prescott’s last in Dallas, followed by reports that the team had a mutual understanding with the quarterback that they would not adjust his contract before the 2024 season.
Prescott confirmed Friday that he and Jones had not had contract discussions at this point, though he said they had conversations on the situation and were “aligned” with where things stand at the moment. But he did not rule out the possibility of the sides talking in the future, even as he tries to keep his attention on preparing for the season ahead. “Honestly, I’m focused on the moment, on the now,” Prescott said.
“If the talks begin and real talks get to happen, sure, we can talk about getting that done, but in this case right now I’m worried about getting better, being better than I am at this moment. So leaving that up to my agent and Jerry at this point.”
2024 NFL mock draft: QBs, WRs go 1-through-6, Cowboys take DT in new first-round projections – K.D. Drummond, Cowboys Wire
Less than a week from the NFL Draft, we got a mock draft to raise eyebrows in the NFC East.
2. Washington Commanders: QB Drake Maye, North Carolina
The smoke continues to follow Jayden Daniels to the Commanders. However, we continue to stick Maye here. Perhaps some of the smoke surrounding Daniels to Washington is done on purpose. GM Adam Peters is here for the long haul and he’s going to take the prospect with the best long-term ceiling and that’s Maye.
6. New York Giants: WR Rome Odunze, Washington
Michigan quarterback J.J. McCarthy was an option here but perhaps the sun is beginning to set on his pre-draft hype. Instead, the Giants go with wide receiver Rome Odunze, who immediately provides Daniel Jones a true No. 1 – a player who many feel is the best receiver in the draft and an ideal fit for the Giants’ offense. The Giants will still have QB options in Round 2 should they desire to go that route.
22. Philadelphia Eagles: OT Amarius Mims, Georgia
With the No. 22 overall pick, Howie Roseman selects Amarius Mims as the next great student at Stoutland University. Mims has a massive 86¾-inch wingspan and is a raw offensive tackle with just eight career starts and over 800 career snaps. The 6-foot-7, 340-pound right tackle allowed only one pressure and zero sacks in more than 150 pass-blocking plays last season, according to ESPN Stats & Information.
24. Dallas Cowboys: DT Byron Murphy II, Texas
The Cowboys are in need of depth on the interior of the defensive line. Johnathan Hankins was the starting nose tackle, who didn’t make much impact and is now in Seattle. The team drafted Michigan’s Mazi Smith in the first round of 2023, but he didn’t make much impact after losing a ridiculous amount of weight and not fitting Dan Quinn’s defensive gameplan.
Neville Gallimore left in free agency as well and three-tech Osa Odighizuwa is on the final year of his rookie contract with just 11 career sacks. Getting Murphy in the building would be ideal, as despite his shorter arms he has the athleticism and motor to play at either DT spot and significantly increase the run-blocking and pressure packages to complement Micah Parsons.
Cowboys Stephen Jones speaks about QB Trey Lance: ‘We’re very pleased’-Jess Haynie, Blogging the Boys
Quarterbacks are the focus of critical conversations around the Cowboys and reviews of Trey Lance have been glowing from Stephen Jones.
Appearing on 105.3 The Fan on Friday, Jones discussed the impression that Lance has made on the front office since joining the team in late August of 2023. The Cowboys traded their fourth-round pick in this year’s draft to acquire Lance, a former third-overall pick by the San Francisco 49ers in 2021, and the last 2-3 years of his rookie contract.
Depending on what you believe, you could take these comments in a few different ways. Let’s consider the two most likely angles: (1) the Cowboys are trying to entice someone to trade for Lance this year, and (2) they’re trying to sell their own fans on Lance taking over for Prescott next year. Speaking of Lance’s traits as being worthy of a top-5 pick could be deliberate bait for the current QB-needy teams in the league. Not that Dallas expects someone to send them their first-rounder, but what about something on Day 2? Then the Cowboys can feel good about flipping Lance for some profit in the draft, which may have been their hope all along when they added him.
Undoubtedly, Lance’s three years in the league will scare some off given his lack of production. But despite that, he’s still just 23 years old. He’s actually younger than 2024 prospects Bo Nix and Michael Penix, who are potential first-round selections. For a team seeking immediate change, a guy with Lance’s low mileage but years of experience learning in the NFL could have merit.
On the other hand, Dallas might appreciate those same things about Lance. What if their goal is to keep Lance through this final year of his rookie deal and then make him the starter in 2025? The idea sounded crazy a year ago, but it’s becoming saner as we move through this strange offseason.
The Cowboys’ much-discussed inactivity in free agency points to a team thinking more about the future than the present. If that’s true, how much does Prescott, who turns 31 in July, factor into those plans? Could Dallas be planning to suffer through this year’s $55.4 million cap hit, take the compensatory pick when he signs elsewhere next March, and toss the keys to Lance?
Let’s go back to Jones’ comments, specifically selling Lance like an elite draft prospect. Imagine if the Cowboys had one of the early picks Thursday night. How many would be clamoring for the team to take a quarterback, even if it meant sitting behind Prescott for a few years of grooming? Well, Jones is trying to tell you that they already have a young guy with major upside, who will now have two years of development in Dallas’ system before 2025.
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