With the Pro Football Hall of Fame shutting out Cowboys legend Darren Woodson once again, it’s time to look ahead to the Class of 2026. And several Cowboys could well be in the mix for legitimate gold jacket talk next year.
Players who played their last snap during the 2020 season will be eligible for nomination in 2026, and it’s a stacked class of superstars. Drew Brees, Larry Fitzgerald, Frank Gore, LeSean McCoy, Geno Atkins, Maurkice Pouncey, Stephen Gostkowski, Greg Olsen, Todd Gurley, Julian Edelman, and Philip Rivers are just some of the men who’ll be in their first year of eligibility.
It will mean tough competition for the three Cowboys who can now make the ballot. (Actually, Dontari Poe and Alfred Morris are also included in the first-year-eligible group, but their short Dallas stints are not what they’ll be best remembered for.) They’ll all be up against Woodson and the other finalists who didn’t quite make the Canton cut in 2025. And don’t forget the larger field of nominees who will be hoping that the committee reviews their careers in a more flattering light next time around.
Here’s a look at the Cowboys who could join the sport’s immortal heroes in 2026, starting with the three in their first year of eligibility and followed by those who were among the original 167 under Hall of Fame consideration this year.
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TE Jason Witten (first-year eligible)
Nov 6, 2016; Cleveland, OH, USA; Dallas Cowboys tight end Jason Witten (82) runs the ball into the end zone for a touchdown against the Cleveland Browns during the first quarter at FirstEnergy Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Scott R. Galvin-USA TODAY Sports
On the surface, the Cowboys’ all-time receptions and receiving yards leader would seem to be a lock for reaching Canton on the first ballot. The 11-time Pro Bowler missed exactly one game in his 17 seasons as a player and sits in 20th place all-time among the league’s pass-catchers (second among tight ends) in yards. To be fair, though, DeAndre Hopkins, Mike Evans, and maybe even Travis Kelce should all pass Witten by the time the 2026 Hall of Fame vote comes around. And with the committee permitted to name a maximum of just five modern-era players, it’s difficult to imagine them giving more than two of those spots to guys who are up for the very first time.
LB Sean Lee (first-year eligible)
PHILADELPHIA, PA – OCTOBER 30: Sean Lee #50 of the Dallas Cowboys tries to tackle Michael Vick #7 of the Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field on October 30, 2011 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Chris Trotman/Getty Images)
The story of Lee’s career will, unfortunately, always contain a healthy does of “what if” conjecture. While he ended his incredible 11-year run in Dallas with 802 tackles (in the franchise’s all-time top 10) and two Pro Bowl nods, Lee missed a third of the games played during his tenure due to injury. The cerebral second-round draft pick often acted as an unofficial coach on the sidelines while nursing many of those injuries, and his name still pops up any time there’s an opening on the Cowboys defensive staff. His name will pop up for Hall of Fame consideration for the first time in 2026.
WR Dez Bryant (first-year eligible)
Nov 20, 2016; Arlington, TX, USA; Dallas Cowboys receiver Dez Bryant (88) dives for the goal line in the fourth quarter for a touchdown against Baltimore Ravens cornerback Tavon Young (36) at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports
Bryant is the Cowboys’ all-time touchdown reception leader, top five in receiving yards, and top three in both catches and targets. And while the three-time Pro Bowler’s place among the franchise’s greats is secure, Bryant topped 1,000 yards in a season only three times in his career and currently ranks just 137th in career receiving yards leaguewide, down near Nat Moore, Michael Crabtree, and Ed McCaffrey. A serious look for a gold jacket may not happen for Bryant, and certainly not in his first year of eligibility.
Safety Darren Woodson
(Stephen Dunn /Allsport)
At this point, there’s nothing else to say about Woodson’s Hall of Fame credentials, which should have gotten him in years ago. The franchise’s all-time leading tackler. Three-time Super Bowl champ. Five-time Pro Bowler. Three-time first-team All-Pro. Cowboys Ring of Honor member since 2015. Woodson has been a finalist for Canton the last three years, but he now has just three years of consideration remaining as a modern-era player. Past that, he’d move to the seniors category, which is statistically an even tougher path to enshrinement.
OC Travis Frederick
Aug 24, 2019; Arlington, TX, USA; Dallas Cowboys center Travis Frederick (72) signals prior to a snap in the first half against the Houston Texans at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports
Frederick was first eligible for Hall discussion this past year. The first-round draft pick started every game over his first five seasons and earned a Pro Bowl nod in the last four of them. A diagnosis of Guillain-Barré Syndrome cost him the entire 2018 campaign, but he returned in 2019 to start every game and garner another Pro Bowl trip before announcing his retirement.
OT Erik Williams
Jan 30, 1994; Atlanta, GA, USA; FILE PHOTO; Dallas Cowboys offensive tackle Erik Williams (79) in action against the Buffalo Bills during Super Bowl XXVIII at the Georgia Dome. The Cowboys defeated the Bills 30-13. Mandatory Credit: James D. Smith-USA TODAY Sports
“Big E” was on track to be perhaps one of the greatest offensive linemen in Cowboys history until a serious automobile accident sidelined him for the back half of his fourth NFL season. He returned to the field in 1995 and played another six seasons. Williams helped Dallas’s dynasty teams of the ’90s win three Super Bowls, personally earning four Pro Bowl nods and first-team All-Pro accolades three times.
LB Ken Norton Jr.
Dec 16, 1989; E. Rutherford, NJ, USA; FILE PHOTO; Dallas Cowboys linebacker Ken Norton Jr. (51) tackles New York Giants running back Maurice Carthon (44) at Giants Stadium. Mandatory Credit: USA TODAY Sports
The son of a former heavyweight boxing champ, Norton was a second-round draft pick by the Cowboys in 1988. He proved to be an instrumental part of the team’s turnaround from 1-15 doormats to back-to-back Super Bowl winners, earning two rings with the Cowboys before moving to San Francisco to claim another. Norton went on to a second career in coaching.
QB Tony Romo
SAN FRANCISCO, CA – SEPTEMBER 18: Tony Romo #9 of the Dallas Cowboys throws a pass against the San Francisco 49ers in the fourth quarter of an NFL football game at Candlestick Park on September 18, 2011 in San Francisco, California. The Cowboys won the game in overtime 27-24. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)
Romo’s is one of the more unlikely NFL success stories. The undrafted free agent didn’t get a combine invite and did nothing more than serve as the holder for placekicks for his first three pro seasons. But after replacing an ineffective Drew Bledsoe one night in 2006, he quickly became one of the most beloved Cowboys ever. Over the next 11 seasons, he would amass more than 34,000 yards, throw for 248 touchdowns, and lead 28 fourth-quarter comebacks- all franchise records- en route to four Pro Bowl nods and six playoff appearances. But postseason victories eluded him (2-4 in his career); it could be the thing that keeps him out of Canton.
DT La’Roi Glover
HONOLULU – FEBRUARY 12: La’Roi Glover #97 of the NFC looks on during the 2006 NFL Pro Bowl against the AFC on February 12, 2006 at Aloha Stadium in Honolulu, Hawaii. The NFC won 23-17. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
A onetime fifth-round draft pick by the Raiders in 1996, Glover earned his reputation during a five-year stint in New Orleans before joining the Cowboys in 2002. He played for Dallas for four years- appearing in every single game over that time- and was named to the Pro Bowl in each of his seasons in Dallas.
