Notable headlines surrounding America’s team.
Cowboys HC says newly-signed $52 million player’s down year was ‘more of a fluke’ – Ali Jawad, Cowboys Wire
Dallas believes in their newly signed tight end.
The Dallas Cowboys extended Pro Bowl tight end Jake Ferguson with a four-year, $52 million contract extension, which includes $30 million guaranteed. The deal makes the former 2022 fourth-round pick the highest-paid TE in franchise history.
The 26-year-old is coming off an injury-riddled season which included an injured knee and a concussion, and saw a decline in his production, finishing with 59 receptions for 494 yards and failing to find the end zone throughout the season. Head coach Brian Schottenheimer made it clear the call to extend Ferguson wasn’t about the production, but instead about what the former Wisconsin Badger brings to the team.
“He’s a great leader. He’s lighter (this season). He’s moving around really, really well,” Schottenheimer said. “I think last year, you look at the first game against Cleveland, and he gets his knee pretty banged up. And then he’s got a concussion mid-season at some point. That’s so uncharacteristic of (Ferguson).
It was just a year prior, in 2023, when following the departure of Dalton Schultz, the Cowboys moved Ferguson int the role of the full-time starter. In his first season leading th group, Ferguson recorded 71 receptions for 761 yards and five touchdowns and was named a Pro Bowl selection.
BREAKING NEWS: Cowboys extend Jake Ferguson to 4-year deal – Mark Heaney, Inside The Star
#87 is locked down for the foreseeable future.
Jake Ferguson: Cowboys Buy Low, Bet Big On Tight End
The new deal keeps Ferguson in Dallas until 2030 and places him sixth among NFL tight ends in total contract value, just behind Cleveland Brown, David Njoku, and slightly ahead of Chicago Bear, Cole Kmet.
In short, $52M is nothing to scoff at, and his $30M in guaranteed money isn’t either. The thing is, had Dallas waited until next offseason, that price tag could have ballooned.
Ferguson caught fire in 2023, alongside the near-MVP Dak Prescott, but his numbers fell off a cliff last season with his QB1 sidelined.
12 fewer receptions, over 250 fewer receiving yards, and a five-touchdown drop to zero.
I can promise you that, if he had repeated his 2023 success in 2024 or if he returned to that level this season, Jake Ferguson would have asked for a $65M+ extension. This is a smart buy-low, bet big move on a young weapon with a ton of potential.
Brian Schottenheimer may have revealed Joe Milton’s Cowboys role by accident – Jerry Trotta, The Landry Hat
Schottenheimer is planning on using his QB2.
While Milton isn’t taking Dak Prescott’s job anytime soon, head coach Brian Schottenheimer may have accidentally revealed the 25-year-old’s role for this season (other than backing up Prescott): the wildcat quarterback.
“We’re gonna be multiple. We’re gonna be under center. We’re gonna be in shotgun. We’re gonna run the pistol. We’re gonna run some wildcat. We’re gonna be very difficult to defend,” Schottenheimer said, via Clarence Hill of All-City DLLS.
As fun as it is to daydream about CeeDee Lamb or KaVontae Turpin taking snaps from the wildcat, Milton has the perfect build and athleticism for it. While Lamb is as dynamic as any player in football, do the Cowboys really want to subject him to more hits? He’s going to get plenty of touches in the offense.
In terms of the quarterback position, Milton ranked at or above the 85th percentile in height, weight, vertical jump and broad jump before the 2024 NFL Draft. He is a better scrambler than outright sprinter, but he still clocked an impressive 4.56 40-yard dash at his Tennessee pro day. That is tied for the fifth-best time among quarterbacks in the last three years.
All-UFL standout gets first-team reps after shining at Cowboys camp – Josh Sanchez, Sports Illustrated
Dallas has seen success pulling players up from the USFL, maybe history is set to repeat itself.
Running backs and the men up front in the trenches had the most excitement about bringing the contact, including former UFL standout Perrion Winfrey, who could develop into a force along the Cowboys’ interior defensive line.
The 6-foot-4, 291-pound Winfrey, a former Cleveland Browns fourth-round NFL Draft pick, starred for the Birmingham Stallions during the 2025 season and earned All-UFL honors.
Winfrey recorded 29 total tackles, nine tackles for a loss, four pass breakups, a forced fumble, and a sack in 10 games. Throughout the first week of training camp with the Cowboys, Winfrey is already impressing the coaching staff and has earned first-team reps.
Dallas has some serious questions at defensive tackle, especially with former first-round pick Mazi Smith struggling with consistency throughout the start of his NFL career, so Winfrey is an intriguing player.
Cowboys 2025 training camp Day 4: CBs ramping up, WR goes down- Jess Haynie, Blogging The Boys
A summary of Sunday’s action.
Heading into Oxnard, we knew that corners Trevon Diggs, Josh Butler, and Shavon Revel would all be missing from action with various injuries. But Saturday offered some encouraging news for two of them.
Obviously, Revel getting in as much work as possible ahead of his rookie season is a positive. But even back during the draft, when a college knee injury caused him to fall to the third round, it was generally expected that Revel could be ready by Week 1. So while we’re delighted to see that his recovery seems to be going well, it’s not that shocking.
Getting Butler back this quickly would be more of a surprise. Getting hurt last Thanksgiving, the 28-year-old was doubtful to return for the start of the regular season. Butler was an emerging role-player last year, starting three games due to injuries and looking like he could hold his own. Dallas would love to have the veteran competing before the end of preseason, with CB depth still a critical concern for 2025.
