Photo by Butch Dill/Getty Images Here is our scouting report on Matthew Golden from Texas We continue our 2025 NFL Draft preview of draft prospects that could interest the Dallas Cowboys. Today we are looking at wide receiver Matthew Golden from Texas. Matthew Golden WRTexas Longhorns Junior4-star recruit 5’11”191 lbs Photo by Todd Kirkland/Getty Images History Matthew Golden was a four-star recruit coming out of Klein Cain High School in Houston, Texas, where he showcased impressive athleticism and playmaking ability. He would receive 26 offers from different schools but choose his home team and joined Houston after flipping his commitment from TCU. He would quickly became one of their top receivers, recording solid stats and earning recognition for his maturity and leadership on and off the field. Golden made an immediate impact as a true freshman, finishing the season with 38 receptions for 584 yards and seven touchdowns. He showcased his ability to stretch the field and became a reliable target for quarterback Clayton Tune. His composure, route-running, and knack for finding the end zone earned him All-AAC Freshman honors and attention as one of the top young receivers in the country. Despite battling through some injuries, Golden continued to shine in his second year at Houston. He totaled 38 receptions for 404 yards and six touchdowns in just nine games. What really elevated his profile was his contribution as a kick returner, where he averaged over 35 yards per return and scored two kick return touchdowns. His versatility and explosive ability made him one of the most dynamic all-around players in the AAC. The next season Golden entered the transfer portal and committed to the University of Texas. He was expected to play a major role in the Longhorns’ receiving corps and special teams, and he met those expectations. He led both Texas and the SEC in receiving touchdowns (nine), and ended the season in career highs with 58 receptions and 987 receiving yards. 2024 Statistics 854 Offensive Snaps83 Targets58 Receptions 987 Receiving Yards9 TDs303 YAC8 Missed Tackles Forced120.9 Passer RTG When Targeted 4 Penalties NFL Combine/Pro Day 10-Yard Split- 1.49s (92%)40-Yard Dash- 4.29s (98%) Awards Second-team All-Big 12 (2023) Scorecard Overall- 85.9Speed- 97Acceleration- 94Agility- 86Strength- 77Catching- 78Route Running- 89YAC- 80Blocking- 55Discipline- 91 THE GOOD Crisp, disciplined routes with sharp cuts. Has great awareness at the top of his route, understands spacing and how to create separation. Consistently plucks the ball away from his body and can make tough catches in traffic. Quick off the line with explosive acceleration; capable of turning short routes into big gains with yards-after-catch ability. Plays with poise and maturity beyond his years, understands defensive coverages, and adjusts routes accordingly. Quick off the line and able to hit top-end speed in space. Can line up both outside and in the slot. Also a dangerous kick returner with two return touchdowns in 2023. Plays with grit and toughness; not afraid to go over the middle and absorbs contact well. TAPE TIME WR Matthew GoldenTexas ✅ THE GOOD✅#scouting #NFLDraft #Longhorns pic.twitter.com/eJ2eup55tp — Mike Poland (@kenfigkowboy) March 24, 2025 THE BAD At his size and weight, he can occasionally struggle against long, physical press corners who disrupt his release. He’ll need to continue refining his release techniques to be more consistent at getting into his stems at the NFL level. His blocking effort is solid but technique and consistency need improvement. Solid build but not overly big; won’t win many jump-ball situations against taller defensive backs. Missed some time in 2023 due to injuries. TAPE TIME WR Matthew GoldenTexas ❌THE BAD❌#scouting #NFLDraft #Longhorns pic.twitter.com/9bVPlnoUbs — Mike Poland (@kenfigkowboy) March 24, 2025 THE FIT Matthew Golden projects as a high-floor, versatile receiver with potential at the next level and immediate special teams value. At Texas, he was a steady, experienced presence who produced right away. His versatility and special teams ability make him extremely valuable, and he’s the type of player who will contribute immediately in more ways than one. To reach his full potential, he’ll need to improve his ability to consistently win against physical press coverage and become more effective in contested catch situations. Adding strength and refining his release techniques will help him against bigger, more aggressive defensive backs. He also needs to sharpen his blocking effort in order to round out his game and make him a more complete receiver. Golden would be a strong fit for the Dallas Cowboys as a versatile weapon who could immediately contribute as a reliable WR2 with CeeDee Lamb. His precise route-running and dependable hands would give Dak Prescott a trustworthy target on third downs and in the red zone, while his ability to create yards after the catch would complement the Cowboys’ quick passing game. Additionally, his impact on special teams as a dynamic kick returner would add immediate value, filling in behind KaVonate Turpin if anything should happen, making this a strong point to the roster. With time, he has the potential to develop into a polished, starting-caliber receiver in Dallas’ offense. COMPARISON: Tyler Boyd, Cincinnati Bengals BTB GRADE: 58th CONSENSUS RANKING: 21st(Consensus ranking based on the average ranking from 90 major scoring services, including BTB)

Photo by Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images What has been your most-liked Dallas Cowboys move of the offseason so far? It has been a few weeks since free agency began across the NFL and the Dallas Cowboys have been much more busy than in years past. The jury will remain out on the Cowboys as a whole until they contend in the playoffs, but you can only do so much to change the narrative or idea in the month of March. That being said, the Cowboys did do more than we are accustomed to seeing from them which is refreshing in and of itself. Perhaps that still wan’t enough for you or you wanted to see something different. At the very least the Cowboys gave us a number of things to look at and debate. This has served as the inspiration for our daily discussion as we are opening a poll to ask what each person’s most-liked move from the offseason so far has been. Make sure to vote in the poll and then add some commentary in the comments down below!

Think you can figure out which Cowboys player we’re talking about? You’ll get five clues to figure him out in our new guessing game! Hey Cowboys fans! We’ve got a new treat for everybody. Some of you have likely seen the daily trivia game that lives in the top right corner above the fold of the site. To date, that game has been the SB Nation in-5 trivia game. Today, that changes here. We’ve now got a Dallas Cowboys version of the game. The SB Nation version has been a general NFL game with active and retired players from all 32 teams featured. Moving forward, at Blogging The Boys you’ll get a daily Cowboys version of this game. We’ll be rotating between current Cowboys and some of our old favorites and not so well-known options. You can still play the SB Nation version. You just need to go to sbnation.com, where it lives on the front page every day. You can play the game below and share your results in the comments or on social media. Please share any and all feedback about the game, both good and bad. You can post feedback in the comments, but we also have a Google Form. We’re past the beta stage of the game, but it’s still a work in progress. See Blogging The Boys in-5 game instructions below the game. If you can’t see the game due to Apple News or another service, click this game article. Previous games Tuesday, March 25, 2025Monday, March 24, 2025 Play more SB Nation in-5 trivia games NFL in-5MLB in-5MMA in-5 Blogging The Boys in-5 instructions The goal of the game is to guess the correct Cowboys player with the help of up to five clues. We’ll mix in BOTH ACTIVE AND RETIRED PLAYERS. It won’t be easy to figure it out in one or two guesses, but some of you might be able to nail it. After you correctly guess the player, you can click “Share Results” to share how you did down in the comments and on social media. We won’t go into other details about the game as we’d like your feedback on it. How it plays, what you think of it, the difficulty level, and anything else you can think of that will help us improve this game. You can provide feedback in the comments of this article, or you can fill out this Google Form. Enjoy!

Geoff Burke-Imagn Images Who do you think will be the Giants quarterback in 2025? NFL Rumors: Giants Will Be ‘Poking Around’ At Veteran QB Market After Winston Contract – Adam Wells, Bleacher Report Even after signing Jameis Winston, New York is still in the market for a quarterback. Jameis Winston may not be the only free-agent quarterback the New York Giants bring in this offseason. On the latest episode of the Scoop City podcast (starts at 8:20 mark), The Athletic’s Dianna Russini said the Giants will be “poking around” the veteran market for another quarterback. Fox Sports’ Jordan Schultz reported on Friday that Winston agreed to a two-year, $8 million deal with New York. The Giants haven’t given up on their pursuit of Aaron Rodgers. ESPN’s Jordan Raanan reported on Monday they are “still waiting” for the four-time MVP to make a decision. Rodgers’ focus seems to be more on the Pittsburgh Steelers at the moment. He had a meeting with team officials last week, but left their facilities without signing a deal. Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer noted Steelers officials seemed to think Rodgers would also have a similar meeting with the Giants at some point in an effort to “to get a vibe for their building, and what head coach Brian Daboll and GM Joe Schoen have built.” There’s no indication at this point that Rodgers is close to making a decision. While the Giants continue to wait for him, they have also been keeping an eye on Russell Wilson and Joe Flacco as potential options. The Giants could in theory come out of free agency and the draft with three quarterbacks. Tommy DeVito was the only signal-caller on their roster before they agreed to a deal with Winston. DeVito is only set to earn $1 million in 2025, so it wouldn’t be difficult to move on if they found better depth. There’s also the possibility the Giants try to add Shedeur Sanders with the third pick in the draft, but there’s growing buzz he could end up going to the Cleveland Browns at No. 2 overall. Whatever the quarterback room looks like in Week 1 of the regular season, the Giants had to prioritize the position this offseason. They may not end up with a franchise player at that spot, but it should look better than the group that ended last season with DeVito and Drew Lock starting games after Daniel Jones was released. Rich Eisen: Commanders have had the best offseason in the NFL so far – Serena Burks, USA Today Eisen believes the NFC runner-up has improved the most so far this offseason. Washington Commanders general manager Adam Peters has been busy this offseason, as has the rest of his front office. The Commanders made moves this offseason, bringing in a strong offensive lineman in Laremy Tunsil and adding a weapon in Deebo Samuel. They’ve retained players set to become free agents, signed free-agent players from other teams, and done most of this without taking a huge financial hit. The “Rich Eisen Show” recently ranked the top 5 NFL offseason biggest winners, and the Commanders were at the top of the list as the biggest winner so far this offseason. “Number one on the list,” Rich Eisen, the host of “The Rich Eisen Show,” said. “I think I’ve been talking about them enough to give you an idea that you know where I’m going on this. But if you are going to trade for Laremy Tunsil and Deebo Samuel and protect and give another weapon to your unicorn in Jayden Daniels, if you’re going to do that and it’s only going to cost you draft capital and cap space that you have in abundance, what a brilliant march for the Washington Commanders. You know, and the offseason began where they keep their offensive coordinator, they re-signed Noah Brown, Mariota is the backup, so they keep the quarterback room the same for the kid…” He goes on to discuss some of the other things the team has done this offseason and why that puts them at the top of the list. Adam Peters and Dan Quinn are clearly of the same mindset; they are on the same page, and everyone in the Commanders’ locker room believes in their vision. Ultimately, that’s what it takes to be successful in this league: Getting your players to buy in. The Commanders’ players have bought in and are ready to keep pushing in the right direction. Eagles agree to terms with OT Kendall Lamm – Charean Williams, NBC Sports Philadelphia still continues to prioritize their offensive line. The Eagles have agreed to terms with free agent offensive tackle Kendall Lamm on a one-year deal, Peter Schrager of NFL Media reports. Lamm, 32, will compete to replace Fred Johnson as the swing tackle on Jeff Stoutland’s offensive line. He had back surgery Jan. 3. In 2024, Lamm played 15 games with seven starts, seeing action on 511 offensive snaps and 63 on special teams. He played four seasons in Houston, two in Cleveland and one in Tennessee before joining the Dolphins before the 2024 season. Lamm has appeared in 119 games with 44 starts.

Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports The Cowboys have been shy with extending first-round draft picks in their first year of eligibility over the last decade. It is important to understand that the 2011 CBA changed a lot for the NFL, its owners and the players. What made the 2011 CBA (and all that have followed) notable relative to the past was the introduction of a rookie salary cap, so to speak. Prior to then any player drafted in to the NFL was free to negotiate whatever deal that they wanted which, as you likely remember, led to some massive contracts (relative to the time) for players who had never taken a snap at the professional level. As noted, that all changed since 2011. It made drafting right, and ensuring that you were getting legitimate production from your draft picks while they were on rookie contracts, essential. Elite front offices began to evolve after that and recognized that beating the market for extensions for these players kept them on the cheapest possible contracts at a veteran level. With players needing three years of service in the NFL to be eligible for an extension, teams could extend their superstars after their third year in the name of achieving this goal. Stars are found all over the place, but obviously the odds of finding them are highest in the first round. We talk often about the success that the Dallas Cowboys have had in the first round in the time in question, but interestingly they have not necessarily exploited the ability to get them on the cheapest possible deals (that’s some loose verbiage, but you get the point) when the players in question get their first veteran contracts. Since the 2011 CBA the Cowboys have only signed 3 first-round picks to extensions at their first point of eligibility An NFL player is first eligible for an extension after their third year of service. Looking back at the 2011 CBA, that means that the first drafted player for the Cowboys to be eligible for an extension for the first time in their career was Tyron Smith in 2014. You likely remember that Dallas signed Tyron to an eight-year deal in the summer of 2014 that became a fountain of salary cap space for them over the ensuing years. It was a visionary type of contract, and that the Cowboys got it done at Smith’s first point of eligibility was a true act of financial brilliance. Since then, we have seen the Cowboys be rather shy with getting ahead of the curve on players drafted in the first round specifically. Only Travis Frederick and Ezekiel Elliott received their extensions from the team at their first point of eligibility, and the latter had to hold out in order to make it happen. There is some important context needed for a handful of these situations. Morris Claiborne and Leighton Vander Esch were not extended by the Cowboys, and neither of them had their fifth-year option picked up. For those unaware, first-round picks can have that option picked up after their third year in the league. Dallas declined it for both Claiborne and Vander Esch, but interestingly was able to bring them each back on deals after the fact. Claiborne returned to Dallas on a one-year deal in 2016 in what would have been his fifth-year option season, and Vander Esch did the same in 2022 before signing a two-year deal after that. But using our technical definition, they were not extended. Byron Jones did not receive an extension from the Cowboys and did not receive a second contract from the team at all. He left after the 2019 season (his fifth-year option season) for the Miami Dolphins in free agency. Interestingly Taco Charlton also wound up with the Miami Dolphins after leaving the Cowboys, but he was dismissed early and didn’t even finish out his rookie contract. He is the only person on this list for whom that is the case. Back to the main point though, the Cowboys talk often about wanting to pay their own. It is fair for them to take pride in drafting players and keeping them around for a long time. Zack Martin just retired and did so in a celebration after having a storied career with the team. It was obvious that Martin was a player of that variety in his first season of eligibility for a contract extension, but the Cowboys did not capitalize on that. The same was arguably true for Byron Jones, but it was certainly true for CeeDee Lamb and Micah Parsons. The former had to wait until after fourth season and had to hold out to get his deal while the latter just finished his fourth season. The opportunity to get to Lamb and Parsons early came and went for Dallas. Time will tell if it is something they jump on with Tyler Smith. it should be embarrassing for the Cowboys that the 2022 draft class picks are starting to get their extensions before Parsons. Micah is now the only star 2021 first rounder without one — Gregg Rosenthal (@greggrosenthal) March 17, 2025 This list represents 11 players (not counting Tyler Smith who just became eligible) who the team had opportunities to get deals done with. Not every player was worth it and in certain situations the Cowboys were wise to wait. Fair is fair in that sense. But there are only three players on this list who received contract extensions at the earliest, and therefore cheapest, possible times in Tyron Smith, Travis Frederick and Ezekiel Elliott. Like Lamb, Zeke had to hold out to get that deal. If we acknowledge that his situation is different from the others in that sense this means that there have only been two instances in which the team moved with proactivity relative to a first-round pick. Stating the obvious here, this disposition needs to change. To be clear, this is true for players drafted in any round, but first-rounders

Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports Here is the order in which the Cowboys should take care of their would-be extensions (if they do them) this offseason. The Dallas Cowboys would be wise to take care of extensions sooner rather than later. You know this. We have discussed it many times. It does not need to be re-litigated at this point. This is a principle that the front office has not necessarily agreed with (something else you know) in recent history as it took until the eleventh hour for deals to get done with the likes of CeeDee Lamb, Dak Prescott (multiple times) and DeMarcus Lawrence. For context’s sake we should note that Dallas was early on players like Jaylon Smith, La’el Collins, Trevon Diggs and Terence Steele (Ezekiel Elliott too sort of, although Zeke forced that issue by holding out). Obviously this is a topic of conversation right now what with Micah Parsons being eligible for an extension for the second offseason in a row. By not taking care of it last year the Cowboys allowed the situation to turn into more of one which is why we are all screaming at them to get it done. Parsons may be the best player on the Cowboys, but he is not the only one who it would be wise for the team to take care of relative to extensions this offseason. Counting Parsons there are four players who the team would be wise to lock up for the long-term. Here is our ranking of how the team should view the levels of importance. First and foremost… Micah Parsons Micah Parsons is the best player on the Dallas Cowboys. He is on track to have a Pro Football Hall of Fame-level career. On the heels of a rough season with longtime veterans departing, he appears ready and willing to take the mantle of leadership. These are all incredible qualities and ones that you dream about the player you give a massive extension to having in their repertoire. We promised that we wouldn’t waste time, but this should have been taken care of last year. With that being the case that means that this is and has been priority number one for a long time now. If this ripples into training camp it will only hurt the overall goal. Second in action… DaRon Bland Last week saw the cornerback market rise for the second time this offseason when the Houston Texans paid Derek Stingley Jr.. This is the way that the game goes. Paying DaRon Bland is about more than just playing some game, though. He may be coming off of a tough season for the standards that he set in 2023, but he is arguably a huge part of the defense and secondary moving forward. Given the uncertainty surrounding Trevon Diggs, you can argue that he is an essential part of it moving forward. You know what else, though? Not to be cold or calloused, but Bland is coming off of a down season as mentioned. If the Cowboys were to be proactive and approach him in his first offseason of eligibility – while not coming off of a performance that he knows he is capable of – does it not stand to reason that the price will be lower than it could be? This is the dangerous game that the Cowboys have lost in the past. To use one example, the Cowboys could have extended CeeDee Lamb and/or Dak Prescott after the 2022 season. Consider that the latter was coming off of a season filled with interceptions. Getting to one or both of them at that point could have led to a slightly friendlier deal, at the very least it would have led to a friendlier market rate. But as we all know, the Cowboys decided to wait and both Lamb and Prescott turned in stellar 2023 seasons which gave them all the more leverage. This is an opportunity to not make that same mistake again. Third and vital… Tyler Smith The prioritization here is not about ranking the importance that the players hold relative to the team. If this were the case then it would feel awkward having Tyler Smith be down at three. Smith has had an interesting career with the Cowboys in that he was a decision that the front office stood against the world on and was proven right about. There were very few who agreed with them selecting him in the first round back in 2022. To his credit, Smith has turned into the star that Dallas foresaw in that first round. Beyond being an amazing player, he is now positioned to be the leader of the offensive line for the future with Zack Martin having retired. He has an apprentice under his wing in fellow first-rounder Tyler Guyton. He is the perfect candidate to pay and take care of. The Cowboys must decide if they want to pick up Smith’s fifth-year option this offseason (Kaiir Elam too now) and obviously will, but that does not mean that they can’t or won’t get an extension done. We know that he is a part of the long-term future of this team. Getting a deal done makes perfect sense. Fourth but not forgotten… Jake Ferguson You can make the argument in a number of directions here and the fact that the team spent a second-round pick on Luke Schoonmaker last year is part of the calculus. But if we are making a list of extension candidates, then there is no question that Jake Ferguson is a part of it, just a little lower down the priority list than others. This isn’t a knock on Ferguson in any way and is more representative of the markets of all positions involved. We have seen the offense really thrive with Ferguson as a part of it over his career to date. Last year was tough for the team and for him individually, but like with Bland, that represents a time to

Photo by Richard Rodriguez/Getty Images It is so silly when other fanbases try to claim the America’s Team nickname. There are very few things that annoy me as far as other NFL fanbases anymore. Once upon a time certain things got my attention or riled me up. Maybe it is the passage of time or something along those lines, but we live in a world where the Philadelphia Eagles just won their second Super Bowl and it feels pretty “eh” in my opinion. Something that used to really get me going was when other teams would claim that they were the new America’s Team. To be clear this still happens pretty often when a newcomer tastes success for either the first time or first time in a long time (shout out to the Detroit Lions) and people run with it. My stance has always been that nicknames belong to who they first belonged to no matter what. There is only one Steel Curtain. There is only one New York Sack Exchange. You can’t just try to use something old because you like it and want it in the here and now. Maybe I am wrong. Maybe other teams taking it still upsets you. For our Tuesday Takes here at BTB, how do you feel about other teams claiming to be America’s Team? Upset? Indifferent? Let us know in the comments below.

Think you can figure out which Cowboys player we’re talking about? You’ll get five clues to figure him out in our new guessing game! Hey Cowboys fans! We’ve got a new treat for everybody. Some of you have likely seen the daily trivia game that lives in the top right corner above the fold of the site. To date, that game has been the SB Nation in-5 trivia game. Today, that changes here. We’ve now got a Dallas Cowboys version of the game. The SB Nation version has been a general NFL game with active and retired players from all 32 teams featured. Moving forward, at Blogging The Boys you’ll get a daily Cowboys version of this game. We’ll be rotating between current Cowboys and some of our old favorites and not so well-known options. You can still play the SB Nation version. You just need to go to sbnation.com, where it lives on the front page every day. You can play the game below and share your results in the comments or on social media. Please share any and all feedback about the game, both good and bad. You can post feedback in the comments, but we also have a Google Form. We’re past the beta stage of the game, but it’s still a work in progress. See Blogging The Boys in-5 game instructions below the game. If you can’t see the game due to Apple News or another service, click this game article. Play more SB Nation in-5 trivia games NFL in-5MLB in-5MMA in-5 Blogging The Boys in-5 instructions The goal of the game is to guess the correct Cowboys player with the help of up to five clues. We’ll mix in BOTH ACTIVE AND RETIRED PLAYERS. It won’t be easy to figure it out in one or two guesses, but some of you might be able to nail it. After you correctly guess the player, you can click “Share Results” to share how you did down in the comments and on social media. We won’t go into other details about the game as we’d like your feedback on it. How it plays, what you think of it, the difficulty level, and anything else you can think of that will help us improve this game. You can provide feedback in the comments of this article, or you can fill out this Google Form. Enjoy!

Photo by Cooper Neill/Getty Images It’s been a busy couple of weeks for the Cowboys, but how much have they improved the team in your opinion? Believe it or not, the Dallas Cowboys have done some stuff. It’s different from past offseasons where they patiently wait for better deals. This year, they have been active early and addressing several areas of their roster. How are things looking after these recent moves? Today, we’ll run through each position group and examine how this Cowboys team looks after the first two weeks of free agency. QUARTERBACK Need: A backup QB Initial prediction: Re-sign Cooper Rush and draft a late-round rookie They say you don’t appreciate someone until they’re gone and that could ring true for Cooper Rush as he signed with Baltimore, leaving a huge hole at the backup QB position. With no remaining desirable free agent, this puts a lot of pressure on finding a quarterback late in the draft or else they’ll be putting all their faith into Will Grier. RUNNING BACK Need: A starter and backup RB Initial prediction: Re-sign Rico Dowdle and select a RB within the first two days of the draft Rico Dowdle turned out to be too expensive for the Cowboys so they instead went with a couple of low-cost former second-round picks in Javonte Wiliams and Miles Sanders. Both players are coming off underwhelming seasons where they averaged just 3.7 yards per carry, but they are fine choices with the caveat that the Cowboys will select a RB within the first three rounds of the draft, which feels like a foregone conclusion. WIDE RECEIVER Need: Find a WR2 to complement CeeDee Lamb Initial prediction: Select a wide receiver within the first two days of the draft Like the running back position, this will be judged based on what the team does in next month’s draft. Some big-name free agents were floating around, but the team instead chose to re-sign KaVonta Turpin and then sign Parris Campbell. Nothing the team has done at wide receiver makes us feel any better. If they draft a receiver early, they’ll earn a strong grade, but it also has a chance to blow up in their face if they disappoint us next month. TIGHT END Need: A blocking TE to join Jake Ferguson and Luke Schoonmaker Initial prediction: Late-round draft pick or priority free agent The Cowboys haven’t done anything at the tight end position and that’s fine. There won’t be anything splashy happening at any point. Ferguson is in the last year of his rookie deal so the team could surprise us and unexpectedly draft a tight end if they’re looking ahead. A more likely outcome is finding a new, young in-line blocker that meets the standards of new offensive coordinator Klayton Adams. OFFENSIVE LINE Need: Add offensive line depth Initial prediction: Sign a low-cost lineman who has position flexibility There wasn’t a lot expected here. Terence Steele’s name was brought up a lot as an “all but certain” cap casualty but his 2025 salary became fully guaranteed last Sunday, we can finally put that to rest. The Cowboys retained Brock Hoffman who was an exclusive rights free agent. They also went out and signed free agent Robert Jones who is 26 years old and has 30 NFL starts under his belt. His cost is low and he can play either guard position, so this signing is right on brand for them. DEFENSIVE END Need: Add edge-rushing depth Initial prediction: Re-sign Carl Lawson Maybe it was a pipe dream to think DeMarcus Lawrence would return on a team-friendly deal. With Tank leaving for more money, the Cowboys pivoted and brought Dante Fowler back on a one-year incentive-based deal. Fowler had 10.5 sacks last year and adds reinforcements to the edge group. The team also added former first-round pick Payton Turner. With Sam Williams returning and joining forces with Micah Parsons and Marshawn Kneeland, the Cowboys are in good shape for the upcoming season. DEFENSIVE TACKLE Need: Add more resources at both 3-tech & 1-tech spots Initial prediction: Sign a low-cost veteran for depth They started great by re-signing Osa Odighizuwa which we predicted they would do a year ago. Better late than never. They followed that by signing former third overall pick Solomon Thomas to a two-year, $6 million deal. As far as 3-tech defensive tackles go, the Cowboys are in good shape. They still lack depth at nose tackle as it’s just Mazi Smith and not much else. They aren’t likely done here as we could see them look to the draft or another one of their late-summer veteran adds they have grown accustomed to doing. LINEBACKER Need: Any and all linebacker depth they can get Initial prediction: Mid-level free agent signing and draft a linebacker on Day 3 With Marist Liufau and Damone Clark being the only linebackers on the roster, this area needed lots of attention. Fortunately, the Cowboys have been active and made a concerted effort to get better. First, they signed former Bears linebacker Jack Sanborn to a low-cost deal. The 24-year-old has made 19 starts over his three seasons in the league. Then, they swapped late-round draft picks to pick up the last year of Kenneth Murray’s two-year deal with the Titans. It’s not a stout group by any means, and they certainly will miss DeMarvion Overshown while he’s recovering from his injury, but at least they now have a fighting chance in the middle of the defense. CORNERBACK Need: Get help now, get help later Initial prediction: Re-sign Jourdan Lewis and draft a top collegiate corner by round two The Cowboys cornerback room is a big enigma that got more puzzling after Lewis left in free agency. Lewis’ price tag was a bit steep, so the front office was smart to let him walk, but it still left them with questions. The team acquired former first-round pick Kaiir Elam from Buffalo, but we’ve seen them trade for underachieving corners before

Bob Donnan-Imagn Images The Dallas Cowboys have cost themselves at least $20 million by waiting to extend Micah Parsons. It’s no secret that the Dallas Cowboys dragged their feet on extending their star players over the past few seasons. What should’ve been relatively straightforward extensions for quarterback Dak Prescott and wide receiver CeeDee Lamb turned into protracted negotiations that resulted in no reward whatsoever for the team. Those two deals, in particular, are case and point for why teams should be proactive in signing their cornerstone pieces as soon as they’re able: the market rate at every position is increasing rapidly alongside the NFL salary cap. Instead of learning from this mistake, the Cowboys appear ready to make it again with another star: Micah Parsons, who is among the NFL’s best pass rushers and also provides unique linebacker versatility when needed. Parsons should be one of those “slam dunk” extensions: a no-brainer star player, entering his prime, and coming off multiple years of elite production. Parsons is about as reliable as they come and would instantly become the most coveted pass rusher available if he were to hit the open market. Parsons was eligible for an extension in 2024, but in the midst of protracted negotiations for Prescott and Lamb, he simply wasn’t in the Cowboys’ plans at the time. Dallas instead picked up Parsons’ fifth-year option – which itself is a pretty big payday at $24 million – and no movement was made on an extension throughout the season. The Cowboys had another opportunity to extend Parsons over the past two months, another chance to get out ahead of the massive record-setting deals that were coming for Myles Garrett and Maxx Crosby. The Cowboys didn’t seize that opportunity, and it’s likely to cost them significantly in the long run. The previous record-holder among pass rushers was the 49ers’ Nick Bosa, whose deal came in at a hefty $34 million per year back in September of 2023. If the Cowboys had been proactive with Parsons’ deal and signed him to an extension back in 2024, it’s possible Parsons could’ve been signed for a slight increase to that number. Something like $35 million would’ve been a reasonable raise given the cap increase. Even getting the Parsons deal done during the 2024 season or prior to the start of 2025 free agency would’ve helped keep the number in that range. Instead, the top of the market was completely reset with the Cleveland Browns finally reaching an agreement on a long-term extension with Myles Garrett. Garrett’s trade demands made national news earlier in the offseason, but the Browns solved that issue by giving him a four-year extension at an incredible $40 million per year. We also saw massive deals go out for two other top pass rushers. The Raiders extended Maxx Crosby at $35.5 million per season, and the Texans added another year onto Danielle Hunter’s contract to bring his yearly rate to just top Crosby’s at $35.6 million per year. The Crosby deal is a great example of what the Cowboys probably could’ve extended Micah Parsons at prior to 2025 free agency. Now? $35.5 million probably isn’t even the starting point of negotiations. That start point is much likelier to be Garrett’s $40 million number. And why shouldn’t it be? A clear case can be made for Parsons to demand more than Garrett. Parsons is four years younger and offers versatility that Garrett just doesn’t have. Sure, Garrett has the longer track record of success, but how much does that really matter in this context? Not enough to convince Parsons to take a discount. The expectation is that the Cowboys will work out a deal for Micah Parsons before the start of the 2025 season. As much as other teams would love for him to be available via trade, we all know that’s a fantasy. Dallas would be foolish to let Parsons out of the building. But the team’s failure to proactively address Parsons’ future is now going to cost them, to the tune of at least $5 million per year over the length of his deal. Assuming a four-year extension, that’s $20M of salary cap and cash flushed down the drain. And for what? There’s no argument to be made here, like the one that was made for Dak Prescott, that you still want to “wait and see” if he’s worth the cost. Parsons clearly is worth it. It’s certainly not a lack of cap flexibility, since Parsons already has a very high cap hit in 2025 thanks to the fifth-year option. If anything, the extension would lower Parsons’ cap hit this season and give the team increased flexibility for other moves. Instead, fans are left wondering what exactly the front office in Dallas is doing… again. There is no real logic in delaying an extension for Parsons in 2024, and and the same goes for not extending him prior to 2025 free agency. If there’s one thing that’s become abundantly clear over the years since the COVID crisis created a temporary cap squeeze, it’s that the salary cap, and likewise player contracts, are starting to skyrocket every single year. The best teams have learned this, and have started to get out ahead of their biggest deals well before they are forced to act. Extending a player with two years left on their current contract used to be a rarity. That’s no longer the case, because there’s value in locking down your stars as early as possible. The players like the added security and guarantees, and it helps the team with future planning and cap flexibility. So why aren’t the Cowboys adapting along with the rest of the NFL? Why are we now looking at two straight offseasons of Dallas sitting on their hands and letting the rest of the league dictate their contract terms, instead of setting the market for themselves? Cowboys fans have their own ideas on that answer, so let’s hear your answer in the comments, but