Photo by Matthew Pearce/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images The Cowboys secondary has changed a lot in a short amount of time. Looking back at the 2024 Dallas Cowboys season, there wasn’t much that went to plan or left fans feeling great about the direction of a team that fell from first to third in their own division. The obvious weaknesses this team had going into the campaign predictably held them back, and even the few strengths they needed to lean in to to have any success were hampered by injuries, inconsistent play, or just too many unforced mistakes. One of these potential strengths was in the secondary, where defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer was brought in to team up with secondary coach Al Harris. This duo’s expertise in coaching defensive backfields paired with the excitement of potentially having DaRon Bland and Trevon Diggs together for a full season for the first time, along with veteran Jourdan Lewis and a deep safety group, made the Cowboys secondary a group to expect big things from. After getting only 11 games out of Diggs and seven from Bland, just one of which came together in a Week 12 primetime loss to the Bengals, both Zimmer and Harris are no longer here. Neither is Lewis who became one of the first departures in free agency to the Jacksonville Jaguars. We’ve documented how the Cowboys have stepped out of their comfort zone to work the roster this offseason, but also how the reason their approach truly feels any different is simply because of how inactive last offseason was. Put the two together, and at least on offense, the end result is humbling when looking at some of the familiar issues this team is facing heading into the draft. This being the side of the ball where the Cowboys also have the most new coaches and a new play-caller in charge with HC Brian Schottenheimer, perhaps a more long term view is needed to evaluate the scheme fits these coaches have brought in so far to make a difference. Taking the same look at the Cowboys defense now, the same patience may not be afforded if this team has any ambitions of being close to the level of either the Washington Commanders or Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles. Matt Eberflus is back in the building as defensive coordinator, and with his arrival comes an expectation of what he’s already capable of from a past stint as linebackers coach for the Cowboys. The team prioritized signing Osa Odighizuwa at the all-important 3-technique position in Eberflus’ scheme, shuffled the depth chart considerably at linebacker by signing Jack Sanborn and trading for Kenneth Murray, and added a former first-round pick to help replace Lewis at cornerback with Kair Elam. Clearly, the expectation is to field a competitive defense right away under Eberflus. However, the Cowboys’ much more pressing needs at skill positions on offense have completely stolen the spotlight away from the possibility of this team addressing the secondary early in the draft. If they fail to do so, this is a cornerback group that is going to need a lot of work to be game ready between now and September. Let’s look even closer at the transformations the Cowboys secondary has gone through from last offseason to now. Cornerback 2024 Additions: Andrew Booth Jr., Caelen Carson 2024 Losses: Nahshon Wright, Noah Igbinoghene, Stephon Gilmore 2025 Additions: Kaiir Elam 2025 Losses: Jourdan Lewis Even without a “big name” leaving the Cowboys stable of cornerbacks a year ago, the fact they didn’t do more to add depth at a constant position of need in today’s game is once again hurting them as the page turns to the 2025 team. Andrew Booth Jr. was never a reliable defender on the outside, and the same could be said much more unfairly about rookie Caelen Carson – thrown into the fire early when DaRon Bland missed the first ten games of the season. It is actually this offseason where the Cowboys have the better departing player to replace in Jourdan Lewis, which dulls the excitement of trading for Kaiir Elam a bit. Elam was pushed down the depth chart in a strong overall secondary for the Bills. If the Cowboys retained Lewis and still added a player like Elam, there wouldn’t be such pressure to perform right way, but now as his replacement he will be the latest first-round reclamation project the Cowboys are putting a lot of faith into. When it comes to further depth options behind Diggs and Bland, who Dallas is still heavily dependent on right now despite even more injury concerns, the Cowboys have Josh Butler (when he is recovered), Troy Pride Jr., Kemon Hall, Booth Jr., and special teams ace C.J. Goodwin. Versatile safety Israel Mukuamu is also capable of playing corner in an emergency, though the team will not want to count on that. Hall flashed in the preseason with a pick-six against the Raiders but only appeared on special teams during the regular season in six games. Pride Jr. appeared in the final two meaningless games of the season, and did also flash a few times, but the former fourth-round pick has still only started nine games since 2020 and is on his fourth team. He has a long way to go to become anything close to a dependable player the Cowboys can feel good about lining up at cornerback. The Cowboys defenses that Eberflus was a part of in the past always had a knack for getting a lot out of a little, and through his first offseason back as defensive coordinator so far, that trend seems destined to continue at cornerback. This is a group that is going to need to rely on the overall structure of their coverage schemes, getting linebackers and safeties involved as well, to not give up big plays or get caught in single man coverage too often. A year two leap from Carson who took his lumps as a

Rob Gray-Imagn Images WR2 needs to be a huge focus for the Cowboys during the NFL Draft. With most of the free agent wide receivers off the market, the Cowboys will likely need to turn to the NFL draft to find their CeeDee Lamb complement. The Cowboys brought in Parris Campbell on a cheap free agent deal, and are hoping to see a jump from Jonathan Mingo, who they acquired via trade at the trade deadline, but in reality the WR2 role is still missing in the Cowboys offense. Dallas may very well look to use their first-round pick on the position, but if they do go a different direction, here are four names that they should consider drafting on day two to fill the WR2 role. Jayden Higgins, WR, Iowa State It is no secret that the Cowboys need a X-receiver in their offense in 2025. Along with size, the Cowboys need to add some speed into the receiver room as well. Higgins checks the size box and ran an impressive 4.47 40-time at the combine. Higgins enters the draft with a lot of the boxes checked. He was very productive at Iowa State, has route running skills, and possesses size the Cowboys desperately need on the outside. Higgins is currently projected to be drafted in the top 50 and should be available for the Cowboys with the 44th overall pick. HIs fit in Dallas makes a ton of sense and his game translates well to the next level as a true X-receiver who can impact the game in all three levels of the field. WR1 stuff from Jayden Higgins iwbhwhole Texas sideline shook pic.twitter.com/WCebMADi6c — JetPack Galileo (@JetPackGalileo) March 27, 2025 Tre Harris, WR, Ole Miss Similar to Higgins, Ole Miss’ Tre Harris enters the draft with size, speed, explosiveness, and production at the college level. Harris was the Rebels big-play receiver for most of the season, before dealing with injuries that limited him to just eight games in 2024. Harris is an exceptional route runner for his size and tested very well at the combine, posting a 4.54 40-time, a 38.5” vertical, and a 10’ 5” broad jump. Harris’ stock has dropped a bit over the course of the offseason, but would provide excellent value if he is able to last until the 76th overall pick. Harris is a top 60 player in this class given his size, athletic profile, route running ability, and yards after catch ability he put on display over the course of his college career. Tre Harris Ranked 1st in the NATION in Receiving Yards Per Game (128.8).. Before his injury Vs. LSU he was Averaging: ➖10.4 Targets (6th in CFB)➖8.4 Receptions (2nd in CFB)➖1.0 Receiving TD’s (3rd in CFB) Dudes 6’2, 205 lbs and was ALSO 1st in Yards Per Route Run.. (5.12) pic.twitter.com/JKbPbDI6wT — Austin Abbott (@AustinAbbottFF) March 21, 2025 Kyle Williams, WR, Washington State Unlike the two guys listed above, Kyle Williams is more of a jack of all trades wideout, instead of your prototypical X-receiver. Williams played a good amount of snaps in the slot for the Washington State offense in 2024 (25%), but played primarily on the outside for most of his career. Williams’ athletic profile will not blow you away, but his 4.40 speed is evident on tape in the deep passing game. Williams put out some impressive tape in 2024 and proved the ability to impact the game with his route-running ability at all three levels of the field. Williams does not quite fit the X-receiver need in Dallas, but with CeeDee Lamb’s ability to move around in the Cowboys offense, his skillset is still a really nice fit in Dallas with his ability to line up anywhere in the offense and create separation. WR Kyle Williams separating vertically from Travis Hunter is impressive pic.twitter.com/4iiJfIeR6B — Edgar Salmingo, Jr. ✌ (@PanthersAnalyst) March 24, 2025 Tory Horton, WR, Colorado State Could the Cowboys go back to the Colorado State well again to find an impact receiver in the middle rounds? They would be wise to consider it, with Tory Horton. It was surprising Horton did not declare last year, and after playing in only five games in 2024, he would probably like to have a do over on that decision. Horton is a smooth operator at receiver, with a nuanced, developed route tree and extremely reliable hands. Horton has a long frame that shines in all areas of the field and is as intelligent as they come at the wideout position. While he showcases just average athleticism on tape, Horton does all the little things at a very high level, which is extremely important at the receiver position in the NFL. Horton produced at a high-level in his healthy seasons at Colorado State and could follow in Michael Gallup’s footsteps in carving out a really nice career in Dallas. Tory Horton. Pro rep. Hand swiping in stem, subtle stab late, stack CB. Lovely. This dude knows how to play WR. Oh yea.. vs CB Will Johnson 1on1 pic.twitter.com/L5trt7y8nN — Ben Fennell (@BenFennell_NFL) March 21, 2025

Photo by Cooper Neill/Getty Images The Cowboys would be wise to get a DaRon Bland extension done right away. For the bulk of this offseason the subject of extensions regarding the Dallas Cowboys has been centered around one player in Micah Parsons. That makes sense. The Cowboys are already late on getting a Parsons’ extension done as he was first eligible for one last offseason. There are still plenty of grains of sand left in the proverbial hourglass, but watching any more of them tick down would not be wise. An hourglass that just turned upside down (so to speak) is that of DaRon Bland. The Cowboys are looking at a cornerback who set the NFL record for pick sixes in a season two years ago who is eligible for an extension for the first time in his career. With him coming off of a down year it would make sense for the team to strike now. Stephen Jones touched on this subject while at the NFL owner meetings and noted the Cowboys want to get deals done with Bland and even Jake Ferguson. In addition to getting a deal done with Micah Parsons, Cowboys EVP Stephen Jones said they are keeping the door open for extension conversations with DaRon Bland and Jake Ferguson (both are entering contract years): “Those are really good football players that we want to keep… pic.twitter.com/swFVEPtpC0 — Nick Harris (@NickHarrisFWST) March 30, 2025 Stephen noted in his quote that “it takes two sides” to make a deal and while that is true, only one of them is a front office that has to be constantly looking ahead. The other side of the equation involved is a player and their representation and they are obviously less focused about bigger picture things as they are focusing only on themselves (that isn’t said in a negative way about players or their representation). We have already seen the cornerback market rise this offseason with deals coming for Carolina’s Jaycee Horn and Houston’s Derek Stingley Jr.. Kansas City and Trent McDuffie could technically strike at any moment so the time for Dallas to act is now. For our Monday Musings prompt here at BTB we want to know if you want to see the Cowboys extend DaRon Bland? If so, do you want it to happen ASAP? If you are against the idea, why do you hold that position? Let us know 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’re back for another day of the Blogging The Boys in-5 daily trivia game. Game instructions are at the bottom if you’re new to the game! Feel free to share your results in the comments and feedback in this Google Form. If you can’t see the game due to Apple News or another service, click this game article. Previous games Sunday, March 30, 2025Saturday, March 29, 2025Friday, March 28, 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!

Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images What are you expecting from the Cowboys running back room in 2025? To say the Cowboys running back room in 2025 will look a lot different is an understatement. With Ezekiel Elliott and Rico Dowdle no longer with the team, Deuce Vaughn and Malik Davis are the only familiar faces still in Dallas (with Hunter Luepke at fullback). The Cowboys were active early in free agency after making Javonte Williams their first signing of the 2025 free agency period. Williams, just 24 years old, is looking for a fresh start in Dallas, after starting off his career hot in Denver. Williams looked the part in his rookie season, but after an ACL tear four games into his sophomore campaign in 2022, Williams has struggled to get back to his form that had him drafted 35th overall in the 2021 NFL draft. While the production has been down for Williams over the last three years, he has still proven to be a capable receiver and pass protector out of the backfield, which was probably a big reason he was acquired. Along with Williams, the Cowboys also signed Miles Sanders to a one-year deal this offseason. Sanders, now 27, had a very productive career in Philadelphia, but has struggled to make much of an impact in Carolina since joining the Panthers in 2023. Both Sanders and Williams provide veteran depth and starting experience to the Cowboys running back room, which it needed, but the Cowboys need more at the position, and that will likely come in the 2025 NFL draft. There was an assumption the Cowboys would add to the running back room in free agency, and they did, but it is pretty much a guarantee that they will be drafting a running back relatively early in the 2025 NFL draft. In case you have not heard, the 2025 NFL draft is loaded with quality running backs. Ashton Jeanty and Omarion Hampton headline the group, but players like TreVeyon Henderson, Quinshon Judkins, Kaleb Johnson, Dylan Sampson, RJ Harvey, DJ Giddens, Damien Martinez, and Jordan James are all top 100 players in this class that can immediately improve the Cowboys running back room. Boise State’s Ashton Jeanty is the only running back in this class who should be considered in the first round in this draft, and it is likely he will be drafted in the top 10. Even with the consensus top back likely off the board, the Cowboys should be able to add one of the many backs who will be available with the 44th or 76th overall pick who should be able to handle the bulk of the carries in 2025. It may be tough to do so with so many positional needs, but this would be a great draft to double up on running backs, with so many different style backs in this class. SMU’s Brashard Smith, Virginia Tech’s Bhaysul Tuten, Texas’ Jaydon Blue, and Kansas’ Devin Neal are all quality running backs who could very well be starting level players in the NFL that can be had outside of the top 100. There is still plenty of work to be done on the running back position, with no quality starter currently on the roster, but this one should be a very small concern for Cowboys fans, due to the quality of backs available in the draft.

Photo by Ron Jenkins/Getty Images Stephen Jones noted that a trade could be on the horizon. The Dallas Cowboys have been active so far this offseason. Skeptics are allowed remain in “I’ll believe it when I see it” mode, but in a literal and transactional sense, the Cowboys have been much busier these days than in recent ones. There are a number of free agent acquisitions that Dallas has made to this point, some even during the legal tampering period and before the new league year began. This, in and of itself, is very unlike the Cowboys of recent seasons. Among the other moves that Dallas has made so far have been two trades. The Cowboys utilized compensatory picks to effectively move down slots with the Buffalo Bills and Tennessee Titans while acquiring Kaiir Elam and Kenneth Murray, respectively. Fans have clamored for more veteran trades after the ones the team executed for Stephon Gilmore and Brandin Cooks a few years back, and while these aren’t necessarily those, they represent a front office that is at least trying a little bit harder than we were used to seeing. With NFL owners meetings set to take place this week there are dignitaries from across the league who are being quoted on the record. Stephen Jones was asked about continuing to add to the roster and noted that more trades are definitely possible. Cowboys EVP Stephen Jones is keeping the door open for adding more players before the draft, including via trade: “We’ve got several things we’re looking at from a trade standpoint, but certainly not to the point where we have a deal yet.” Added that backup QB is “still an… pic.twitter.com/g5JSyVoMx5 — Nick Harris (@NickHarrisFWST) March 30, 2025 Through trades and signings, the Cowboys have added 10 players in free agency. Stephen Jones said the Cowboys shored up holes at DL, LB, RB. “We’re not done yet. Still got some things that are outstanding out there that we’re trying to get done,” he said. One spot: backup QB. — Todd Archer (@toddarcher) March 30, 2025 Stephen said outright that the Cowboys have some things that they are looking at from a trade standpoint. It would stand to reason then that the Cowboys have their eyes on a veteran or two and have talked price with the teams in question and that maybe sides haven’t quite come to terms on anything yet. As things stand the Cowboys have 10 picks to work with, the number of selections they had after compensatory picks were originally announced. 1st Round (12th overall) 2nd Round (44th overall) 3rd Round (76th overall) 5th Round (149th overall) 5th Round (171st overall) [compensatory pick] 5th Round (174th overall) [compensatory pick] 6th Round (204 overall) [from Kaiir Elam trade] 6th Round (211th overall) [compensatory pick] 7th Round (239th overall) [from Kenneth Murray trade] 7th Round (247th overall) [from Jonathan Mingo trade] It feels incredibly unlikely that the Cowboys will utilize all 10 of their picks during the 2025 NFL Draft, although to be fair we said that four years ago after Dallas picked up a selection from moving back in the first round and they wound up doing so. Anything can happen. If you follow what the front office has to say in the media you know that Stephen Jones is not the type to throw out the word trade in a loose fashion. This isn’t a “this definitely going to happen” sort of assessment, but the point taken should be that Stephen is clearly feeling confident that a trade may wind up happening. What do you want to see the Cowboys do?

Max Faulkner/Fort Worth Star-Telegram/Tribune News Service via Getty Images This year’s class is short on blue chip players The Dallas Cowboys landed themselves a premium draft pick this year, selecting 12th overall, but they’ve found themselves in an odd pickle: there are few players who seem to be home run picks in that range, barring a CeeDee Lamb-type slide. Many have connected Ashton Jeanty to the team, though it’s hardly a guarantee he’ll be available. And draft experts seem to be significantly lower on this draft’s receiver class than initially believed, leaving it unclear what the right position to target at 12 would be. This has, at least partially, led to some developing the opinion that the Cowboys should seek to trade up in the draft to ensure a blue chip prospect like Travis Hunter. Such a move wouldn’t be worth the squeeze, as we broke down recently, but there is another option that should emerge as the best way to ace this draft: trade down. This draft is loaded with players from No. 19-70 who will be good players. It only has a few sure-fire stars. Trading down makes sense. — Pete Prisco (@PriscoCBS) March 29, 2025 Pete Prisco may have actually exaggerated the number of sure-fire stars in this draft, too. Hunter and Penn State EDGE Abdul Carter are easily classified as blue-chip prospects, while the draft’s top quarterbacks will always go high just based on positional value. Offensive tackles Will Campbell (LSU) and Armand Membou (Missouri) are likely to come off the board in the first 10 picks, as are Michigan defensive tackle Mason Graham, Penn State tight end Tyler Warren, Michigan cornerback Will Johnson, and the aforementioned Jeanty. That puts the Cowboys in an odd spot. They’re likely to have their pick of receiver prospects, but what if they don’t love Tetairoa McMillan at 12? Or what if they do, but McMillan comes off the board at pick 11, similar to what happened with cornerbacks in the 2021 draft? That’s where the trade comes in so handy. Dallas has traded back in the first round in two of the last four years, gaining immense value both times. In 2021, they moved back two spots and still landed Micah Parsons, who would be a sure-fire top five pick in a redraft today. They also netted Chauncey Golston because of the trade. Last year, they moved back five spots and took Tyler Guyton, who many believe they would’ve drafted anyway if not for trading back. Because of the trade, though, they were also able to snag Cooper Beebe, who started all but one game at center as a rookie and finished 11th at his position in Pro Football Focus’ player grades. Given the way this draft class stacks up, the Cowboys would be wise to focus on accumulating more draft picks rather than trying to land a blue-chip player at 12. They’ll be able to find players in the second, third, and even fourth (if they can get a pick there, of course) round that can round out this roster just as well as guys they’re likely to get in the first round. Of course, trading down is easier said than done. It takes two to make a deal, and the Cowboys can’t force anyone’s hand in these kinds of negotiations. For the same reason the Cowboys should want to trade down, they’re unlikely to find any sweet deal prior to draft night as is. That said, Will McClay has been a master of letting draft night come to him. After all, that’s how Lamb became a Cowboy. There’s no need to jump the gun and trade out of 12 right now, but the Cowboys ought to come into the draft fully ready to do just that. If one of those precious few blue-chip players falls to 12, hand in the card and get to celebrating. Otherwise, find a trade partner and celebrate another year of maximizing value on draft night.

Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images The Cowboys could benefit from adding some depth before the draft. A little less than a month stands between the Dallas Cowboys and the 2025 NFL Draft. While the Cowboys have made some decent depth signings this spring, there’s plenty of room for upgrades at multiple spots on the current roster. Today, we examine two free agents Dallas should consider taking a flyer on before the start of the draft. Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images 1) QB Carson Wentz Wouldn’t it be ironic if things came full circle and the Cowboys signed Carson Wentz as Dak Prescott’s backup? Wentz, of course, was the Eagles’ longtime starting quarterback, playing 68 games in Philadelphia with a 35-31-1 quarterback record. After leaving the Eagles, Wentz has bounced around the league, playing for four different teams over the past four seasons. While his performance has been lackluster in the past three, he did throw 27 touchdown passes to just seven interceptions with the Colts back in 2021. No one expects Wentz to be able to come close to replicating this performance, but he has something that could be an asset to the Cowboys, and that’s starting experience. Currently, Dallas’ backup option behind the starter Prescott is Will Grier, who has played in just two NFL games during his career. Even with his downward trajectory in performance since that 2021 campaign, Wentz has started nine games over his last three seasons and appeared in 13. Signing Wentz wouldn’t cost much at all, and if Grier or another young quarterback substantially outperforms him during training camp, the Cowboys could part ways with no real repercussions. Overall, the veteran and the Cowboys are a great fit. Photo by Timothy Nwachukwu/Getty Images 2) WR Tyler Boyd While it seems extremely likely the Cowboys will select a wide receiver with one of their first two draft picks in a couple of weeks, they could greatly benefit from adding a veteran to strengthen the position group’s depth. One veteran at the position who could make sense is 30-year-old wideout Tyler Boyd. The nine-year veteran played his first eight seasons in the league with the Cincinnati Bengals before signing with the Tennessee Titans before the 2024 season. Boyd‘s production wasn’t up to his standards last season, as the veteran caught just 39 passes for 390 yards and did not score a single touchdown. While the downturn in production is a bit concerning, he dealt with some of the worst quarterback play in the league last year. The Cowboys wouldn’t need Boyd to be a first or second option on their offense; they’d just need him to make a few plays a game and provide a veteran presence to a wide receiver corps that desperately needs one. Spotrac projects Boyd to earn a one-year, $2.1M deal, so it would not cost Dallas much to obtain his services. Signing the veteran would also not hinder Dallas’ draft plans, allowing them to still select a young wideout with pick 12 or 44. Boyd needs a team, and the Cowboys need a veteran presence in their receiving room, making the two a good potential fit.

Photo by Dustin Bradford/Getty Images It seems incredibly unlikely that the Cowboys would trade up for Travis Hunter, although it is fun to think about. It’s always the same song and dance for the Dallas Cowboys. They are risk-averse in free agency and protect draft capital like Gollum and his precious ring. Those two things together don’t necessarily create many opportunities to make big roster moves, and that can upset the fanbase. Who doesn’t like a little splashiness here and there? I miss the days when the Cowboys were aggressive & fun. Spice it up. Trade up for Travis Hunter. — Daniel Jeremiah (@MoveTheSticks) March 25, 2025 There was a time not too long ago when Jerry Jones was always willing to spice things up. Giving up premium draft capital for players like Joey Galloway or Roy Williams was fine and dandy back then. Moving up to take Morris Claiborne was okie dokie if it meant landing college’s top cornerback. Sadly, those moves didn’t work out. In fact, they stung a bit. So much in fact, that it caused the front office to step away from the ledge every time they thought about jumping into a deal that potentially could have a long-term negative effect. That is not to say they didn’t consider it. They still did. It’s just that they have reeled back what they are willing to lose in exchange. Some of the deals the Cowboys didn’t make, they were close to making, but the cost was just a smidge too high to pull the trigger. The failed Paxton Lynch trade in the first round of 2016 and the passing on trading for Earl Thomas for a second-round pick in 2018 are a couple of examples. There are probably others, but those are the ones they have spoken about. The Cowboys aren’t being aggressive in those moments because they value what they’d have to get up to make it happen. Trading for WR/CB sensation Travis Hunter is the splashiest of splashes. For the Cowboys to pull that off, they’d have to give up a lot. Hunter is projected to go in the top five of next month’s draft. According to the NFL trade value chart, the Cowboys would have to give up next year’s first-round pick or a package of picks that could include their second- and third-round pick this year. That’s expensive. To get something good, you have to give up something good. But for Dallas to give up so much premium draft capital for one player is super risky for them because they are counting on those picks to become players with low-cost rookie deals who make meaningful contributions. And the more, the merrier. The Cowboys are already paying some hefty prices for their star players, and those expenses are only going to rise when you consider they have to pay Micah Parsons, Tyler Smith, and possibly even DaRon Bland soon. To have the funds to do that, the Cowboys must find ways to cut costs, and that is where all those rookie deals come in. They need all the Cooper Beebe’s and Marshawn Kneeland’s they can get. Trading away premium draft capital reduces the chances that the Cowboys would have to replenish their inventory. And if Hunter would cost a future first-rounder, now they would be taking away one of the team’s biggest strengths, landing first-round picks. The Cowboys are a league above the rest in finding great talent in round one, and taking their legs out from underneath them in this area wouldn’t be smart. Forget that they whiffed on Claiborne. And ignore that Williams wasn’t even close to the receiver he was when he was with the Detroit Lions. Instead, think about how dealing for Claiborne cost them two players, one of whom would have been Bobby Wagner. Or, how the Williams trade deprived them of draft capital that led to the infamous “special teams draft” of 2009, where none of the players they selected received a second contract from the Cowboys. None. Just because they were bad at trading up for players before doesn’t mean they will be again, but what we do know is that this team has been pretty good at making picks. There is no reason to take that away from them, especially when they rely on those players to maintain a competitive roster. A big win for the Cowboys in the upcoming draft would not be coming away with Travis Hunter. It would be keeping Dak, CeeDee, Micah, Trevon, Osa, Tyler, and possibly DaRon all together by successfully finding multiple quality contributors on low-cost rookie deals. pic.twitter.com/zfObHZLoyQ — Dan Rogers (@DannyPhantom24) March 29, 2025

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’re back for another day of the Blogging The Boys in-5 daily trivia game. Game instructions are at the bottom if you’re new to the game! Feel free to share your results in the comments and feedback in this Google Form. If you can’t see the game due to Apple News or another service, click this game article. Previous games Saturday, March 29, 2025Friday, March 28, 2025Thursday, March 27, 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!