ARLINGTON, Texas -- The 2024 preseason is complete for the Dallas Cowboys after their 26-19 defeat against the Los Angeles Chargers on Saturday, a game in which starters didn't play and the back end of the roster was evaluated.
Space is tight on a roster comprised of many members of the 2023 squad, but there are a few openings available. Offensive tackle Chuma Edoga is dealing with a toe injury that will likely cause him to miss the start of the season, so he is not included in this count below since he could be on injured reserve to begin 2024. Ditto for All-Pro cornerback DaRon Bland as Dallas announced he will be out six to eight weeks following surgery to repair a stress fracture in his foot. Cowboys owner and general manager Jerry Jones said he is "not at all" interested or feeling like he needs to add an external defensive back to the roster because of how 2024 fifth-round pick Caelen Carson has played this preseason. That opens up a couple extra 53-man roster spots early in the 2024 regular season.
Jones revealed the running back, wide receiver, offensive line and tight end position groups will be some of his toughest to sort through when making the league's mandated cuts.
"The [running] backs we'll have trouble dictating by where we are with our numbers at other spots," Jones said postgame on Saturday. "There's deserving backs to be on our roster, and of course, you always look at least likely to be claimed if we're trying to make some room here and get a little breather through trying to get a player to the practice squad. That type of thing. All of that is good. We just have, we got some good depth in some good places between our offensive line, our tight ends and frankly our receivers."
With that in mind, here is our final Cowboys 53-man roster projection.
QB -- (3): Dak Prescott, Cooper Rush, Trey Lance
Out: None
Analysis: There won't be any drama here. Jones made it clear Lance will be on the roster prior to his preseason performance against the Chargers that was very much a mixed bag: 90 rushing yards and a touchdown -- a 46-yard read-option run -- on 11 carries and 323 passing yards, one passing touchdowns and five interceptions while completing 33 of his 49 passes. Starting quarterback Dak Prescott, a 2023 Second-Team All-Pro after leading the NFL with 36 touchdown passes last season, and longtime backup Cooper Rush will obviously also return.
"Well, I saw good and some things you would like to have back," Jones said. "I hate that those five interceptions are going to be a stat on a game that I couldn't have asked for more reps and a better situation to watch him play. He needed that because the one thing he's missing more than anything is the lack of reps, much less NFL reps. Saw some good things. Saw some things you'd like to have back. Overall, I'm glad to have that outing with us. Certainly, we're planning on him being on our roster for sure."
Despite his rollercoaster preseason finale, Jones maintains he would still trade away a fourth-round pick for Lance, the 2021 NFL Draft's third overall pick, knowing what he knows now about the 24-year-old quarterback.
RB -- (4): Ezekiel Elliott, Rico Dowdle, Deuce Vaughn, Hunter Luepke
Out: Royce Freeman, Malik Davis,Snoop Conner, Nathaniel Peat
Analysis: Royce Freeman performed well all throughout training camp and the preseason, but stylistically he is similar to Ezekiel Elliott in that he is bruising, big body running between the tackles. Jones expressed an affinity for Deuce Vaughn after he totaled 53 rushing yards on nine carries (5.9 yards per carry) and a 23-yard kickoff return on Saturday, saying the team needs to find a place for his explosive burst. Looks like head coach Mike McCarthy will be tasked to do just that.
"He obviously has got some very special talent, and you've got to find a place for that," Jones said of Vaughn on Saturday. "You've got to find a place for that on Sunday to get it on the field. That'll be the job of the next few days, of weighing what a roster spot means. He's sitting right there though. He is gadget juice at non-gadget times. So, he is going to be interesting for us."
WR -- (6): CeeDee Lamb, Brandin Cooks, Jalen Tolbert, KaVontae Turpin, Jalen Brooks, Ryan Flournoy
Out: Jalen Cropper, Tyron Billy-Johnson, David Durden, Racey McMath, Kelvin Harmon, Cam Johnson, Deontay Burnett
Analysis: Two weeks in a row for sixth-round rookie Ryan Flournoy hauling in a goal line fade touchdown from Lance probably puts him on the squad with the sixth and final wide receiver spot. McCarthy praised his performance postgame, admiring how strong his 6-foot-1, 200-pound rookie receiver.
"Flournoy missed some time during training camp, but boy he's bouncing back so strong," McCarthy said postgame on Saturday. "Such a physical player, tough player, smart player. Without seeing the video, I was impressed."
TE -- (3): Jake Ferguson, Luke Schoonmaker, John Stephens Jr.
Out: Peyton Hendershot, Brevyn Spann-Ford, Princeton Fant, Alec Holler
Analysis: According to Jones, he is going to have trouble evaluating his tight end room with all the depth they currently have. Princeton Fant is an H-back type Dallas likes, and Brevyn Spann-Ford, the undrafted rookie out of Minnesota, had some nice moments but didn't will his way onto the initial 53-mand roster. Cowboys tight ends coach Lunda Wells had his arm around Spann-Ford walking back into the locker room postgame, so it's highly likely he'll remain in Dallas on the practice squad.
"Well yeah," Jones said when asked if the tight end room is hard to evaluate behind Ferguson and Schoonmaker. "We've got guys that have played and can play that are there. It's a group all the way down that's our longest position there. That will be real interesting. We love our fullback, but we have some tight ends who can play fullback."
OL -- (9): Tyler Guyton, Tyler Smith, Zack Martin, T.J. Bass, Brock Hoffman, Cooper Beebe, Terence Steele, Asim Richards, Josh Ball
Out: Matt Waletzko, Nathan Thomas, Cohl Cabral, Dakoda Shepley, Earl Bostick Jr.
Analysis: Rookie first-round pick Tyler Guyton has been penciled in as the Cowboys' starting left tackle essential since draft day, but he has more than earned the spot after more than holding his own against three-time All-Pro edge rusher Micah Parsons in practice. Third-round rookie Cooper Beebe was the back-to-back Big 12 Offensive Lineman of the Year at Kansas State while playing almost every position up front for the Wildcats except center. He has developed into the starting center throughout the offseason. Both will have quite a test starting as rookies in Week 1 against 2023 NFL Defensive Player of the Year Myles Garrett and the Cleveland Browns defense.
"Well I think it has everything to do with what they've done because they have had competition, and we do have alternatives," Jones said of likely starting Guyton and Beebe in Week 1. "We could very soundly not start them. If they're starting, it says everything about what we think of them and about how good we feel about them. Because we could line up there without them."
One of the critical components of playing center in the NFL is obviously snapping the football to the quarterback, something Beebe was working on doing when the team lined up in shotgun all offseason. The Cowboys are now confident enough in his ability to be consistent in that area.
"Very, very impressed," Jones said when asked about Beebe's progression as a center and snapping the ball after not playing a snap at center at Kansas State. "Impressed is just the word, and of course, he's as advertised as a football player. So we were rewarded that he's what we thought we were getting number one. Number two, his progress since he got here is outstanding. He deserves that kind of results [starting Week 1]. ... Again, I think the offensive line to me, that area and the tight end area, which is everything to do with the running game as well as the fullback. I think what we need to be doing for protection and running game is in good shape so I've seen it around here."
As for the back end of the offensive line group, Josh Ball, a 2022 fourth-round pick, allowed only one quarterback pressure and no sacks on 97 pass-blocking snaps in the three preseason games. Matt Waletzko, a 2022 fifth-round pick, surrendered six quarterback pressures and a sack on 123 pass-blocking snaps. The edge goes to Ball here for the last offensive line roster spot.
DL -- (9): Micah Parsons, DeMarcus Lawrence, Mazi Smith, Osa Odighizuwa, Chauncey Golston, Marshawn Kneeland, Jordan Phillips, Carl Lawson, Linval Joseph
Out: Justin Rogers, Viliami Fehoko Jr., Al-Quadin Muhammad, Carl Davis, Albert Huggins, Tyrus Wheat, Durrell Johnson, Denzel Daxon
Analysis: The Cowboys were thin at the defensive tackle and edge rusher spots with only a few weeks left in the offseason, they addressed the problem by trading for defensive tackle Jordan Phillips, signing edge rusher Carl Lawson and signing defensive tackle Linval Joseph. Those vets are all making the time, which will mean a lot of the younger defensive linemen will be sent to the practice squad.
LB -- (6): Eric Kendricks, DeMarvion Overshown, Damone Clark, Marist Liufau, Nick Vigil, Buddy Johnson
Out: Damien Wilson, Willie Harvey, Darius Harris, Brock Mogensen
Analysis: This is one of the spots aided by Edoga and Bland starting the year on injured reserve as their injuries create extra roster opportunities. Linebacker was the most thin position on the Cowboys a year ago, decimated by injury, as safeties Markquese Bell and Jayron Kearse were both used plenty as linebackers late in the year. Now, Dallas has some dudes whose body types actually fit the role of the position. Vigil played for defensive run game coordinator Paul Guenther with the Cincinnati Bengals and defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer with the Minnesota Vikings. He gets a spot as does Buddy Johnson, who made the most of his opportunity against the Chargers.
CB -- (4): Trevon Diggs, Jourdan Lewis, Caelen Carson, Andrew Booth Jr.
Out: Eric Scott Jr., Josh Butler, Kemon Hall, Josh DeBerry
Analysis: Jones said he is "not at all" looking to add external cornerbacks to his roster because of Bland's injury. He is placing his faith in 2024 fifth-round rookie Caelen Carson.
S -- (5): Malik Hooker, Donovan Wilson, Juanyeh Thomas, Markquese Bell, Israel Mukuamu
Out: Julius Wood, Sheldrick Redwine, Emany Johnson
Analysis: All five of the safeties here were on the 2023 team, and there's no reason why all five wouldn't be again on the 2024 team. That makes undrafted rookie Julius Wood's omission tough because he did produce in the preseason.
Special Teams (4): K Brandon Aubrey, P Bryan Anger, LS Trent Sieg, CB C.J. Goodwin,
Out: None
Analysis: Aubrey, the 2023 First-Team All-Pro kicker in his first season in Dallas, isn't going anywhere after making his first 35 NFL field goals, the most all time to start a career. Anger earned his second career Pro Bowl selection last season after his 44.9 net yards per punt were the second-best in the leaguebehind only Raiders punter AJ Cole (45.1). Sieg is back as the long snapper, and special teams John "Bones" Fassel has long lauded Goodwin's impact leading the special teams unit both on and off the field.
