The Dallas Cowboys looked like the team their fans had been waiting for. They finished the regular season 12-5 and won the NFC East thanks to the Philadelphia Eagles’ bad end to the year. Dallas hosted the No. 7 seed Green Bay Packers in the Wild Card round but got done early and lost 48-32 in a stunner.
Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said that he was “all in” for 2024, but when hasn’t he been? Still, Dallas has a light free-agent class but important holes to fill, so we will see if Jones whips out the checkbook to see if he can get the Cowboys back to the playoffs.
3 things Cowboys must do this offseason
Find a center
Dallas has been known for its strong offensive line, but that streak could be coming to an end. While the Cowboys only have 16 free agents, one of them is Tyler Biadasz, who played 86.8% of offensive snaps last season. Dallas could try to convert Tyler Smith to a center, but Brock Hoffman would be a risk despite being the backup last season. The Cowboys are $10.6 million over the cap at the time of this writing but will need to find a way to free up space to bring in a reliable center for their offensive line. Dallas is also letting Tyron Smith walk in free agency so the offensive line replacements don’t stop at center.
Add a RB or two
The deadline to franchise tag a player has come and gone and Dallas didn’t use it on running back Tony Pollard. They weren’t expected to, but after a year as the starter for the Cowboys, Pollard will test free agency for the first time in his career. There are a lot of big names already free agents at this position, including Austin Ekeler, Derrick Henry and D’Andre Swift, but Joe Mixon is also expected to be a free agent. Dallas had Rico Dowdle also hit the market, so they need to find someone to pair with Deuce Vaughn and Malik Davis, who don’t project as starters.
Land a defensive tackle
Johnathan Hankins and Neville Gallimore are free agents, leaving Osa Odighizuwa as the lone starting defensive tackle. Dallas may think that Mazi Smith is ready to be a starter, but he likely should be rotated in and get another season to develop. Dallas already has Micah Parsons bringing plenty of pressure on the quarterback, so the Cowboys could look to add someone who projects more as a run-stopper in the middle.