The latest in Dallas Cowboys news heading into the weekend.
Micah Parsons ends all speculation on possible holdout, future with Cowboys – Patrik Walker, DallasCowboys.com
Micah Parsons still plans to attend offseason practices with the team, regardless of his contract extension status.
“I’ve got to be around the guys,” he said. “There’s going to be rookies, there’s going to be free agents — guys that come here — you don’t know who’s going to be there, so there’s a chemistry part and people know what you can do, but people also got to see it from a leader aspect. So I still gotta be there for that part.”
It’s a more evolved side of Parsons that’s emerged over the version that chose to sidestep voluntary workouts (then again, “what do voluntary mean?”) to this point, as the drive to become one of the definitive leaders of the team continues to dig itself deeper into the heart and mindset of the former first-round pick.
“I definitely think I need to be here in camp because, honestly, when so much of the defense is surrounded by your play and your presence, and others are getting lined up based off of you, I need to be here so that way I can get these guys accordingly,” said Parsons. “We can rush together, build that chemistry.
“So I think it’s of extreme importance that I’m back at OTAs, minicamp [etc.].”
[…]
“It would just be nice to be surrounded by good players, you know what I mean?” he said. “Players that are going to help you win championships. To me, having $40 million and being chipped every play and slid two with three, four people — I don’t think that sounds too fun. So, to me, it’s about people that can keep making a difference and, obviously, we’re going to get Sam [Williams] back; and we’re going get some of [others] back.
“We’ll see how it breaks down, but I want to keep as many guys as possible, however they’re going to make the cap work.”
Cowboys Today: The growing relationship between Micah Parsons and Mike Zimmer – Jon Machota, The Athletic
Micah Parsons has been vocal in his support for Mike Zimmer and is campaigning for him to return in 2025.
“We do have a good relationship,” Zimmer said. “He came up to me during the game (Sunday) and said, ‘We need to run this.’ And I said, ‘Dude, it’s the two-minute drill. Can you just relax? It’s starred on the sheet right here. You see it?’ And he was like, ‘OK, OK, OK.’ He means well. And he’s very smart. He’s brilliant.”
How has Parsons shown that brilliance?
“A lot of different ways,” Zimmer said. “Not just football. It’s the things we talk about. We went to dinner one night over here (by The Star) just me and him. Just talking about life and his background and my background, things like that. He’s very smart. He’ll come up to me, and he’ll say, ‘This would be a good thing to do.’ (A play) where he can get a free shot somewhere.”
The Cowboys’ front office has been pleased with the job Zimmer has done taking over a defense that was called by Washington Commanders head coach Dan Quinn the previous three seasons. Like with Quinn, Zimmer has been finding ways to move Parsons around and maximize his abilities.
What does the Cowboys’ 2025 salary cap really look like? – Todd Archer, ESPN
The question surrounding the Cowboys and their participation in free agency acquisition isn’t a matter of can they do it, but will they do it.
For fans, the fear is that 2025 free agency will be approached the same way as last offseason, when the Cowboys opted against adding key players to a roster in need of help.
Will it be another offseason like 2024, when they didn’t consider adding star free agent running back Derrick Henry, opting to bring back an aging veteran Ezekiel Elliott instead? Will they wait to get their highest-priced extension done with Micah Parsons, the way they did with Dak Prescott and CeeDee Lamb last offseason? Will it be another spring of letting key free agents, such as Osa Odighizuwa and Chauncey Golston walk, the way Tony Pollard, Dorance Armstrong and Tyler Biadasz did last offseason?
The Cowboys’ offseason plan — whom to keep, whom to extend, whom to let walk — is not finalized by any stretch. The focus remains on the final three regular-season games, but it’s not as if the Cowboys can’t multitask.
“We’re always working behind the curtain, thinking about those type of things — everything we’re doing right now, how it affects next year,” Jones said.
Some projections expect the 2025 salary cap to be approximately $275 million. Teams aren’t planning for the $30 million jump it took in 2024, but it will still go up. According to Roster Management System, the Cowboys have 40 players signed for 2025 at a cost of $263 million.
Cap space is — to steal a term from owner and general manager Jerry Jones — fungible…
…But it will remain true that if the Cowboys want to be active in free agency — if not at the top of the market — they can be.
So the major question of their approach to the 2025 offseason is: Will they?
Cooper Rush on tough Tampa Bay defense, fixing fumble issues – Tommy Yarrish, DallasCowboys.com
Cooper Rush faces another challenge this week going against the Buccaneers’ defense while cleaning up some of his mistakes.
The Buccaneers’ defense has turned up the heat against their opponents in the last three game, allowing just 286.3 yards per game over that time span, the fifth best rate in the league. Part of that has come with the success Bowles’ units have with disguising coverage on the backend, something that Rush knows the Cowboys will have to figure out if they want to put up points.
“They’ve been a good defense for a long time doing that everywhere he’s been,” Rush said on the disguised looks from the Buccaneers secondary. “They make you work on every play, kind of a lot like we do here, so I think a lot of training camp stuff of just trusting your eyes, trusting your communication, trust your rules, it allows you to try to play fast.”
The upside of Rush being Dallas’ backup quarterback has been his experience, dating all the way back to his days at Central Michigan. With reading all kinds of different defenses over the course of his time with the Chippewas and seven seasons in the NFL, eventually everything comes together and slows down.
“I’m fortunate to get a lot of starts in college, you still use a lot of those instincts that you got from that, all those games,” Rush said. “And then each year in the league you just consume, and consume and consume, and it’s almost like you wake up one day like ‘I get it.’”
And while the game has slowed down for Rush, there are still things to clean up, notably the issues he’s had in recent weeks with fumbles. Usually one of the more even-keeled players on the team, his frustrations on the sideline were clear after a redzone fumble led to an 83-yard touchdown pass to finish the first half one play later.
“If you look at it, I think I’m just a little quick out of it probably,” Rush said of his evaluation of fumbles. “I keep hitting the back’s hip, something you work on in practice and both us and the running backs have been working on it.”
Undrafted OL Brock Hoffman seizing opportunity with Cowboys: ‘He is the alpha in there’ – Calvin Watkins, Dallas Morning News
Brock Hoffman is taking advantage of his opportunities and helping shape the mindset for the offensive line.
Injuries to the Cowboys’ offensive line pushed Hoffman into a starting role where he’s earned the praise of his teammates and coaches for his work.
“Man, super consistent,” coach Mike McCarthy said. “His attitude and energy, what he brings to the workplace has just been on point since he’s been here. Super professional, so well-prepared. He’s got a connective personality and he definitely deserves a lot of credit for the mindset and play style that he’s really pushed along up front.”…
…“Brock has that underdog mentality,” Golston said. “That being one of those undrafted guys that’s always having to scratch and crawl for stuff. He has a little extra chip on his shoulder.”
It’s prompted offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer to say Hoffman is the alpha of the offensive line. Hoffman, despite not being a starter when 2024 began, isn’t afraid to speak up. He will talk in the huddle to pump up his teammates. In last week’s game against Carolina, the Cowboys’ defense started the second half with a takeaway.
In the huddle, Hoffman told his teammates they could put the game away with a scoring drive.
Quarterback Cooper Rush connected with receiver Jalen Tolbert with a touchdown pass to give the Cowboys a 17-7 lead. At that stage, it was still a game, yet, Hoffman was right. Getting an early score in the second half set the tone.
“There’s certain moments in a game where you can break their will,” Hoffman recalled telling his teammates in the huddle.
Hoffman is also a player that will talk trash. He can’t repeat what’s said between players. But whatever is said, it’s something his teammates embrace.
Ranking worst mistakes for all 32 NFL teams since 2020 – Bill Barnwell, ESPN
According to Bill Barnwell, trading Amari Cooper to the Browns has been the biggest Cowboys mistake over the past five years.
25. Dallas Cowboys
Biggest mistake: Choosing Michael Gallup over Amari Cooper (2022)
The last time the Cowboys found themselves approaching a salary crunch, they made a distinct choice between two wide receivers. With Gallup about to hit free agency and Cooper coming off an 865-yard season when he played through injuries, they decided to save money by spreading the more expensive player’s salary throughout the roster.
Initial reports suggested the Cowboys would cut Cooper, but they eventually found a trade partner and sent him to the Browns for a fifth-round pick and a swap of sixth-rounders. The move freed up $20 million, which they used to sign Gallup to a five-year, $62.5 million deal and franchise tag tight end Dalton Schultz, whose one-year deal cost $10.9 million. They spent about as much per year on Gallup and Schultz ($22.4 million) as they would have on Cooper ($20 million).
It didn’t pan out. Schultz struggled with injuries early in 2022 and then left the team after the season to join the Texans. Gallup, coming off of a torn ACL, never returned to his old form. After putting up 843 receiving yards in his final full season before the injury, he totaled 842 receiving yards between 2022 and 2023 before being released. The 28-year-old then retired over the summer.
Cooper, meanwhile, posted back-to-back 1,150-yard seasons for the Browns while catching passes from six different quarterbacks. When the Browns traded Cooper before the midseason deadline this season, they landed a 2025 third-round pick from the Bills in return, meaning they got two prime seasons from Cooper and got a better pick for him than the one they sent to Dallas. The Cowboys have struggled to fill the spot across from CeeDee Lamb since, with a Day 2 pick on Jalen Tolbert and a trade for Brandin Cooks failing to match Cooper’s production.