Josh Butler has all the motivation to return strong from ACL tear

All the best to Josh Butler.

The Dallas Cowboys have caught a little fire as of late with two straight wins. They managed to do so while battling another opponent outside of the one on the field, and that’s the injury bug. In their win against the New York Giants on Thanksgiving, Dallas was dealt another blow, this time to the secondary, which just got All-Pro DaRon Bland back. Cornerback Josh Butler suffered a torn ACL, which will sideline him for the rest of the season.

With Bland missing the first 10 games and rookie Caelen Carson going through his growing pains, Butler was called upon to step up and give some assistance to All-Pro Trevon Diggs. After being inactive in the first seven games, Butler played in each the previous five before his injury. He logged 12 special teams snaps versus the Atlanta Falcons and played nine defensive plays against the Philadelphia Eagles. Butler then made consecutive starts the next two weeks and tallied 61 defensive snaps in each. He also started in the Cowboys win over the Giants and amassed 29 snaps before his injury.

Butler was productive in the limited time he got take the field in 2024 with 21 tackles, a sack, and five pass breakups. This is significant when getting to know Butler’s background, which is that of a guy that went undrafted in 2020 and then had stints in the developmental Spring League and the United States Football League before it closed operations in 2023. Butler was then signed to the Cowboys preseason roster that July and showed out with nine tackles and two pass breakups. He didn’t make the 53-man roster, but Butler inked a reserve/future contract. That August, he was waived but returned to the practice squad.

It’s clear that Butler belongs on an NFL roster, and more importantly, he showed himself that. However, not only will he have the motivation to have a successful recovery, but Butler will likely need a year to get back on the field, which will limit his opportunities again next season. Plus, he’ll be an exclusive rights free agent in 2026, meaning next season is a contract year. An exclusive rights free agent means that Butler has fewer than three accrued seasons. So, the Cowboys can extend him a one-year qualifying offer. This will keep Butler from negotiating with any other teams, and he would have to sit out the season if he didn’t sign. If the Cowboys don’t offer him a deal, Butler would become an unrestricted free agent and could sign with any team.

The Cowboys will have to decide if they want to pay Bland early or let him play out the 2025 campaign before doing an extension, seeing as he just suffered an injury. Regardless of what they do, Butler can be a very nice depth piece to have along with Carson and, of course, drafting another guy in April.

Butler has a long road ahead of him, but he’s no stranger having to grind for what he wants.