The Dallas Cowboys had an eventful NFL combine. Jerry Jones and Stephen Jones were working the media circuit, fans got to learn more about Christian Parker through a few interviews, and there was drama surrounding the reports of Brandon Aubrey’s contract negotiations.
Dallas, TX
NFL insiders share Cowboys rumors from the combine
A lot of knowledge is shared throughout the week, both on camera and behind closed doors, as the NFL landscape is set to shift as free agency approaches in just a few weeks. Jeremy Fowler and Dan Graziano, NFL Insiders for ESPN, emptied their notebooks on what they learned throughout the week.
Here are a few nuggets and takeaways that matter for the Cowboys.
1. How Dallas attacks the start of free agency
Jerry Jones held court on his bus during combine week and talked to media members about how the team will be active in free agency. The majority of their moves could come on the defensive side of the ball as Dallas gets their new defensive coordinator the pieces he needs to run his defense.
Clarence Hill Jr. of DLLS Cowboys was the first to report the Cowboys’ potential interest in Philadelphia Eagles linebacker Nakobe Dean. Fowler doubles down on that idea.
The Cowboys are crafting a detailed free agency plan to bolster their defense. The new scheme under coordinator Christian Parker needs replenishment. Eagles linebacker Nakobe Dean is someone to watch as a green-dot player in the middle of the defense.
Dean has been with the Eagles for four seasons after being drafted in 2022. When healthy, Dean has shown flashes of the player people viewed as the one he could become coming out of Georgia in college. The biggest concern with handing him a big contract is his health.
Out of 68 possible games, Dean was on the field for just 47 of them. He’s battled injuries throughout his young career, so if he’s expected to be the one leading Dallas’ defense, Dean has to be on the field more than he’s shown to this point.
2. The Cowboys will look to add a pass rusher
The Cowboys’ leader in sacks from last year is Jadeveon Clowney, who is set to hit the open market. Two other edge rushers for Dallas are free agents in Sam Williams and Dante Fowler Jr. Both could return to the Cowboys, but the front office might look to not only upgrade the position but also go after one of the top free agents if the price is right.
Fowler: The Cowboys will monitor the top of the pass-rush free agent options, too. They aren’t guaranteed to spend big, but I believe they will get a pass rusher at some point.
Later in the notebook, Fowler says, “Trey Hendrickson (Bengals) and Odafe Oweh (Chargers) will probably not be franchise-tagged.” That means two more premier edge rushers could be on the market. A few beat reporters have mentioned Hendrickson’s name as a possibility this offseason, but will he command too much money that Dallas is unwilling to spend? Probably.
What about Jalen Phillips? Can the Cowboys pull two former Eagles in free agency away from their rivals because of their connection to Parker? The keyword Fowler adds when it comes to Dallas’ interest in the best available pass rushers is “monitor.” If the numbers get outrageous, then they might go in a different direction. A name that could make a lot of sense for the Cowboys is Kwity Paye of the Indianapolis Colts.
He’s totaled 30.5 sacks over his five seasons in the NFL and could play a similar role in Parker’s defense to what Brandon Graham had in Philadelphia with inside-out versatility.
3. Dallas may want to add a few pieces in the secondary
One of Jerry Jones’ biggest regrets in recent history seems to be not re-signing Jourdan Lewis last offseason. Dallas would have been much better off with Lewis, given his skill set, familiarity with the defense, and leadership off the field. His presence was missed in more ways than one. It sounds like Jerry isn’t willing to make the same mistake twice.
Fowler: They [Dallas] will also comb the free agent safety class (Arizona’s Jalen Thompson makes sense), and they need a nickel corner. Dallas has felt the void since Jourdan Lewis left.
Christian Parker talked about how important the nickel position is for his defense at his introductory press conference. There are a few free agent corners out there who should be an upgrade from what Dallas had last year, but the route that makes the most sense is drafting a cornerback in the first round.
Donovan Wilson and Juanyeh Thomas are free agents, leaving Malik Hooker and Markquese Bell as the two players under contract on the team with starting experience at safety. Bell is someone who could play a more significant role in Parker’s defense given his position versatility. Where does that leave Hooker? Dallas could save almost $7 million if they cut him before June 1, but how does Parker feel about him fitting into his scheme?
How Dallas approaches the safety position at the start of free agency will tell us a lot.
4. Brandon Aubrey could have a contract sooner rather than later
You know the negotiations with Aubrey go sideways when he, his wife, and Todd France (Aubrey’s agent) go to Instagram and call the reports around it all “fake.” The Cowboys have remained optimistic in getting a deal done with Aubrey to make him the NFL’s highest-paid kicker. The holdup is just how much Dallas is willing to go and raise that number.
The Cowboys made an offer to Aubrey last year to be the highest paid at his position. The number has never been $7.5 million per year. Aubrey and his camp reportedly asked for $10 million per year, which would blow past the current mark with Harrison Butker ($6.4 million annually), but that has also been a disputed figure.
If it comes down to it, the front office is prepared to apply a second-round tender on their kicker, bringing his salary for 2026 between $5.5-5.8 million. It seemed as though negotiations had stalled after things got out of hand, but a resolution may be coming soon.
Graziano: Sabre rattling aside, I expect the Cowboys to reach a deal with Brandon Aubrey at some point in the first week or two of March that makes him the highest-paid kicker in the league. If they don’t get a deal done by the restricted free agent tender deadline, Dallas plans to put a second-round tender on Aubrey. That means he’d make $5.767 million this season if the two sides don’t reach a deal and the Cowboys would get a second-round pick if another team made Aubrey a contract offer they didn’t want to match.
Getting a deal done within the next 10 days before the second-round tender would be ideal for both parties. The front office would lock up the league’s best kicker long-term, and Aubrey will be making more than the price that comes with the tag.
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The search for the next general manager or president of basketball operations of the Dallas Mavericks has begun. They terminated Nico Harrison in November, which was about nine months too late, and gave any available candidates clear notice that they were open for business.
The plan was always to wait until after the season to start the search. While names popped up as the season reached an end, they didn’t begin turning over the staff until the Monday after the season ended. However, Dallas Mavericks fans are not going to like how the team is going about the search.
Patrick Dumont Leading Search for General Manager
NBA insider Jake Fischer reported that the Mavericks are not hiring a search firm in their hunt for a new lead executive. Instead, team governor Patrick Dumont is “acting as his own point person.”
This is an… interesting decision, to say the least. Dumont is not a basketball person whatsoever, and most organizations usually hire a search firm. The Chicago Bulls hired one as they look for their replacement for Arturas Karnisovas. Just because a firm is hired doesn’t mean a team will listen, though.
The Mavericks hired a firm in their last search for a GM. They let Donnie Nelson go in 2021 after a long tenure with the Mavs. Instead of listening to the firm, though, Mark Cuban ignored it to hire Nico Harrison, who had no previous NBA front office experience. Harrison had been an executive with Nike, which gave him connections with players like Kyrie Irving, Anthony Davis, and plenty of others.
For a while, that seemed to be working out okay. While he still had some questionable transactions, such as trading for Christian Wood and letting Jalen Brunson walk in free agency, they were still able to make a run to the NBA Finals in 2024. Then, he blew it all up, trading away Luka Doncic for an older and injured Anthony Davis, and the team hasn’t been the same since.
It’s imperative that the Mavericks get this hire correct. The interim Co-GM setup with Matt Riccardi and Michael Finley has performed admirably, but the 2026 NBA Draft is important for the Mavs to get right. It’s their best chance to pair Cooper Flagg with another young star, as they don’t own their first-round pick again until 2031 after this.
Hiring the right GM could help bring in more draft capital by bringing in bad contracts or flipping veterans into picks.
Dumont was able to convince Rick Welts, a Hall of Famer, to come out of retirement to be the CEO and lead the charge for a new arena. Maybe Dumont pulls another rabbit out of his hat for the GM.
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For a moment, it looked like FC Dallas was on its way to another statement win at home tonight.
Petar Musa scored two first half goals, to extend his Golden Boot leading tally to nine goals. But after Dallas grabbed control, the Galaxy found a way back before halftime with goals from Lucas Sanabria and Joseph Paintsil.
The second half brought more chances and more frustration for Dallas, which finished the night with 13 shots to LA’s nine. In the end, the point stretched Dallas’ unbeaten run to five games, though just like last week, it felt like another match where Dallas left points on the table.
Key Moments
7’ – GOAL! After a poor pass back by a LA defender, Petar Musa was free to go one-on-one with the LA goalkeeper. After a touch to get ahead of a defender, Musa slotted home his eighth goal of the season from outside the penalty box.
21’ – Offside! Joaquin Valiente sent a floating ball over the Galaxy defense, where Musa was able to get behind the defense and make an easy play for what appeared to be his second goal of the night. The play was called offside despite a fairly lengthy review period.
38’ – GOAL! This one counts! Musa gets his second of the night off a great ball from Chris Cappis. Logan Farrington picked off the ball in the midfield. He then played Cappis wide to the left of the penalty area. Cappis immediately played a ball back across the goal for Musa to slide in and finish for his ninth of the season.
43’ – Goal LA. Lucas Sanabria got the ball near the top of the penalty area. He took a couple of touches to get outside the penalty box before firing a shot that beat Michael Collodi at the near post.
45+4’ – Goal LA. Gabriel Pec got the ball near the top of the penalty area. He pulled the ball back a bit, which caught a pair of Dallas defenders. This allowed Joseph Painstil to get free behind the Dallas defense as Pec played him through inside the penalty area. Pec immediately smashed home a shot above Collodi to tie the game.
75’ – Another offside goal. This time on a corner kick for Dallas, after a scrum in the penalty box, Kaick hammered home what looked to be the go-ahead goal. But after a few seconds the flag was raised due to a deflection on Osaze Urhoghide, who was in an offside position.
Instant Reaction
Yeah, this is another disappointing result for this team. In a real way, it felt like the first half against Houston from last month. Dallas grabbed the lead, looked in control, but some defensive miscues opened the game up for the visitors to climb back.
With a double-game week coming up, this will certainly be another game where Dallas will wonder ‘what if’ more than anything else…especially when you factor in the two goals called off for offside.
About the Subs
Eric Quill went to his bench for the first time in the 66th minute, as he brought on Santiago Moreno for Logan Farrington. Quill went to his bench again 81st minute with Ran Binyamin and Nolan Norris coming on for Sebastien Ibeagha and Deedson. The final sub came during stoppage time with Herman Johansson and Joaquin Valiente coming off for Sam Sarver and rookie Nick Simmonds, who made his MLS debut.
Man of the Match
No question about it tonight, it has to be Musa.
Where does this fit into the season
As of this writing, the draw puts Dallas into a three-way tie for 5th place with Real Salt Lake and Seattle. Both are in action right now and look firmly in control of their games. I’d expect Dallas to be in 7th place by the end of the night.
What’s next for FC Dallas
Dallas wraps up a three-game homestand next Wednesday night as they host Minnesota United.
Dallas, TX
Akheem Mesidor selected by Cowboys by Blogging The Boys in SB Nation’s community mock draft
Akheem Mesidor, Edge, Miami
Pass rush has been an issue since the Micah Parsons trade. The Rashan Gary trade helped, but Dallas still needs an injection of talent. Akheem Mesidor fits here because his body size allows for some versatility inside and out, something DC Christian Parker utilizes. Mesidor is also a high-motor player with a deep bag of pass rush moves.
His last season at Miami was full of disruption in the offensive backfield and he shows an all-around game, not just a bend-around-the-edge pass rusher. Yes, he’s a little older than you’d like in a rookie (25), but his motor, pass rush toolbox, and ability to play the run matches up with a need and makes him a quality pick at number 20.
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