If the Cowboys want offensive continuity, re-signing Cooper Rush may be an offseason goal.
While not the biggest name among the Cowboys’ scheduled 2025 free agents, backup QB Cooper Rush serves valuable roles. Given the front office’s recent admiration for continuity on offense, could Rush be a priority re-signing for Dallas this spring?
If the projected departures of Zack Martin and DeMarcus Lawrence happen, Dak Prescott will become the Cowboys’ longest-tenured player at 10 seasons. Right behind him, both entering their ninth years in Dallas, will be Rush and CB Jourdan Lewis. While Rush did briefly leave in 2020, signing as a free agent with the Giants, he was available that October and signed following Prescott’s season-ending injury.
What nobody could’ve expected at that time was that Rush would eventually reclaim his spot as QB2 and eventually post a 9-5 record in starts from 2021-2024. Now a proven commodity and one of the best-known backups in football, Rush should have a market with plenty of teams looking for a reliable veteran on their QB depth chart.
Not only does Rush bring consistent competence on the field but has been praised for assisting the coaches and the starter with game preparation during the week. He’s even been projected as a future QB coach once his playing career ends. That only increases his value as a roster member, even if there are legitimate complaints about his upside when he actually plays.
No team better understands Rush’s lesser-seen qualities than the Cowboys. While Kellen Moore may try to get him over to New Orleans, assuming Moore even gets that head coaching job, Dallas should have the deepest appreciation of Rush’s value. So if that’s the case, why is there even a question of Rush getting a new contract?
With Brian Schottenheimer’s promotion and Klayton Adams’ arrival as offensive coordinator, plus a new quarterbacks coach still TBD, there are lots of new opinions and perceptions in the coaching staff. But if a degree of continuity is what the front office valued in making Schottenheimer head coach, keeping Rush could help take that further. Still, the new guys may have strong feelings about the type of backup they want.
If mobility is something they particularly desire, re-signing Trey Lance might become preferable to Rush. For that matter, Dallas might let both walk and just go with Will Grier as a cheaper backup, or bring in other guys who have worked with Schottenheimer or Adams at previous stops. The coaching staff changes create more variables for the offseason, particularly when it comes to free agency.
Dak Prescott may also have a say in this. It’s clear that he influenced the promotion of Schottenheimer, so what if he also throws his support behind Rush? They’ve worked together for the better part of a decade, with Rush being the primary backup for at least six full seasons. With a new OC and position coach coming, Prescott may want a guy he trusts to help him digest the changes.
There will be a large number of experienced passers in this year’s free agent crop; many with far more skins on the wall than Cooper Rush. But none of them offer the familiarity and chemistry that he would bring to the offense as Dak Prescott’s backup, and that could be enough to help Rush earn at least one more year with the Cowboys.
