Nick Sorensen talks Cowboys special teams weapons, working with Brian Schottenheimer again, more :: The Mothership
Sorensen is looking forward to making the jump from 49ers defensive coordinator to now heading up the Cowboys’ special teams units. “I think in the end, it’s all football, and I think that’s the fun part,” Sorensen said. “I think the challenge is not just the personnel, but it’s also you’ve got to find ways to make it make sense to the player to where it can kind of translate to them.” Having weapons like Brandon Aubrey, KaVontae Tuprin, and Bryan Anger should certainly help ease that transition. “What a group of guys here that have really done it at a high level for a number of years. It was a big bonus.”
‘Create violence’: New Cowboys coach vows ‘controlled energy’ to boost struggling unit :: Cowboys Wire
Offensive coordinator Klayton Adams says he’ll never stray too far from the O-linemen, where he’s spent nearly his entire football career. But now he’ll also be responsible for putting A-list playmakers like Dak Prescott and CeeDee Lamb “in an advantageous position as many times as we can within a game.” He’s looking for “violence” from his linemen and preaches running and hitting above all else. He won’t be calling the plays on gameday, but a little of that imprint- on the offensive scheme that foundered last year- should go a long way in improving the Cowboys’ on-the-field product.
Ken Dorsey’s role with Cowboys may be more important than meets the eye :: Blogging the Boys
Dorsey’s 12 years of NFL experience is the second-most of any of the Cowboys’ new offensive hires, and he has success to show for it. Cam Newton won an MVP on his watch in Carolina, and the Bills’ Josh Allen became a superstar under him as well. But it’s worth noting that he isn’t QB coach in Dallas, as many expected, he’s the pass game specialist. If there’s a spot on Brian Schottenheimer’s coaching staff that most closely resembles the position he himself started in to eventually rise to head coach, it’s the role Dorsey now occupies. Schottenheimer may lean on Dorsey a lot this season.
Conor Riley on reunion with Beebe, Vaughn; blueprint for Cowboys’ offensive line :: The Mothership
Riley has an eye for OL talent: he moved Cooper Beebe from defensive line to offense while at Kansas State. But Riley’s move to Dallas as offensive line coach is obviously about more than just a reunion with the Cowboys center. “The sky is truly the limit” for Tyler Guyton, he says, and he envisions helping Tyler Smith take his game to an even higher level. As for what he looks for in new OL talent, Riley asks, “How tough are they? How physical are they? What kind of grip? When I’m sitting there watching film, how do they finish? … The measurement of value to this football team is gonna be how close you are to the football when the play is dead.”
NFL’s new projected cap of $279.5M barely allows Cowboys a little wiggle room :: Cowboys Wire
The league has informed teams that the 2025 salary cap will be between $277.5 and $281.5 million per club. That’s $5 to $9 million higher than original estimates. Dallas is now projected to be under the cap- by around $2.5 million- when the league year starts on March 12. They will not have to release anyone in order to be cap-compliant, but some simple restructuring of current contracts could get them to over $60 million of space… should they choose to do so.
Micah Parsons has three-letter reaction to salary cap increase :: Micah Parsons
Agent’s Take: Cowboys should call Micah Parsons’ bluff with new deal soon before star seeks full market value :: CBS Sports
Parsons has made it clear he’d love to have his new contract wrapped up by the start of free agency, ostensibly so the team can devote more resources to player acquisition and he can be a full participant at both OTAs and training camp. The team should call his bluff and do it, so Parsons can put his money where his mouth is. Waiting will only cost the Cowboys more in the long run as other non-quarterbacks sign huge deals… and Parsons’s price tag (and his frustration) grows.
Cowboys biggest 2025 FA decision proves why drafting his replacement is a foolish strategy :: Cowboys Wire
Making the Cowboys’ decision regarding Osa Odighizuwa even more difficult is the fact that Mazi Smith has not developed like the club had hoped when they invested a first-round pick in him. But then again, defensive tackles are notorious for needing a while to progress at the NFL level, often not peaking until their second or even third contract. Odighizuwa may well be worth keeping if his best days are in fact still ahead, but the team would nevertheless be wise to put another rookie DT into the mix either way.
2025 Free Agency: Cowboys predicted to replace 7x First-Team All-Pro with 197-game starter :: Cowboys Wire
Pro Football Network wonders if Detroit’s Kevin Zeitler, a 13-year veteran, might be a good replacement for Dallas if Zack Martin decides to either retire or seek greener pastures. Zeitler has bounced around to several different teams since being drafted in the first round two years before Martin, but the veteran has started nearly 200 games and earned a Pro Bowl nod in 2023.
2025 NFL Mock Draft: Latest two-round predictions as combine nears :: The 33rd Team
The Cowboys add a big-play threat opposite CeeDee Lamb with their first trip to the plate in this two-round mock, selecting Arizona WR Tetairoa McMillan with the 12th overall pick. His pass-catching is effortless, he has a massive catch radius, and he can win at all three levels of the field. With the 44th pick, Dallas adds to the interior defensive line with Oregon’s Derrick Harmon.
From Zero Star to Superstar: Cam Ward’s mindset, motivation, and faith prepare him for 2025 NFL draft :: Cowboys Wire
The self-proclaimed “best quarterback in this draft” was labeled “The Superstar You’ve Never Heard Of” as recently as 2021. But he’s a long way now from the University of Incarnate Word, the only school that offered Ward a scholarship (after high school days that saw him with an offense that averaged just 12 pass attempts per game). He’s set to star in a new docuseries charting his journey, which will now take him to the combine as he looks to boost his draft stock and perhaps become a Day 1 pick.
Chargers to serve as host for NFL’s second regular-season game in Brazil in 2025 :: Yahoo Sports
The Cowboys now know they won’t face the Chargers in their season opener. The Bolts will play hosts in São Paulo on the Friday of Week 1, the league announced on Wednesday. Dallas will meet the Chargers in 2025, but the matchup is slated to be a home game for the Cowboys. L.A. will square off against one of these teams: the Chiefs, Raiders, Broncos, Commanders, Eagles, Texans, or Vikings. (The Eagles traveled to Brazil just last year.)
