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Jerry Jones quietly confirms what Cowboys fans knew all along about Kenny Clark – Lior Lampert, The Landry Hat
If the Cowboys want to make moves this offseason, restructuring is inevitable.
It was initially reported that the Cowboys will restructure quarterback Dak Prescott, wide receiver CeeDee Lamb and left guard Tyler Smith’s deals. Then, Jones revealed that the plan is to do the same for Dallas’ defensive tackle trio of Clark, Quinnen Williams and Osa Odighizuwa.
“I want you to know that the only way to push more [out] is for me to go borrow some of my future, OK?” Jones said (h/t ESPN’s Todd Archer). “Expect me to go borrow some of my future.”
Jerry Jones all but tipped the Dallas Cowboys’ plans to keep Kenny Clark
Why would a club that doesn’t have many good players on Clark’s side of the ball cut a proven veteran like him? A Cowboys squad that ranked last in opponent scoring and 30th in total defense in 2025 can’t afford to let talent walk out the door.
While Clark is no longer the elite run-stuffer we saw earlier in his career, he remains effective at getting to the quarterback. The 30-year-old recorded 44 pressures, 34 hurries and three sacks across 17 games this season. Pro Football Focus graded him as the NFL’s No. 21 pass-rushing interior defender (72.4) out of 134 qualified options.
Moreover, and perhaps more notably, new Cowboys defensive coordinator Christian Parker has discussed the importance of the nose tackle position in his scheme. More specifically, he spoke about Clark’s dominance during their overlapping stints with the Green Bay Packers. They have an established rapport and a proven track record of success working in unison that makes separating them even harder.
Cowboys will spend over $13 million on rookie class, here’s cap impact- K.D. Drummond, Cowboys Wire
It’s time to salary cap watch.
They’ll of course need to solve more than $56 million worth of conflicts if they want to be players in free agency and add talent to their current roster. And from there, they’ll need to have enough room to sign their rookie class.
Dallas, thanks to having two first-round picks in the Top 20, but no more selections until No. 112, currently are set to spend $13.7 million in cap hits for 2026 salaries for their rookies. They don’t need to create that much additional space, though.
Each NFL team has a rookie pool based on their picks, and Over The Cap has calculated that number based on comp pick projections that will be finalized over the next week. But because of how the offseason cap is calculated, not every draft pick is going to add to the compliance calculation.
In the NFL offseason, when teams can carry up to 90 players on their roster, only the Top 51 salaries count towards cap compliance. Those numbers, plus dead money from players who had bonus money pushed beyond their time on the teams roster, compose that actual number.Expert NFL picks: Exclusive betting insights only at USA TODAY.
So any player whose deal lands him outside of a team’s Top 51, doesn’t have a material impact on the cap. And when players do land inside that Top 51, they are pushing another player out of the calculation; so only the difference between those cap hits is what gets “added” to the cap.
3 NFL Combine Storylines Cowboys Fans Should Pay Attention To – Mark Heaney, Inside The Star
With the combine in the books, here is the impact on Dallas’ draft outlook.
1. Ohio State’s Sonny Styles May Be Out Of Cowboys’ Grasp
If you’re an NFL fan at all, odds are you’ve heard about Ohio State’s Sonny Styles dominating the combine in virtually every aspect.
His size measurements were off the charts, his athletic testing was other-worldly, and his on-field drills performance looked as good as his tape suggests he is. I had him as a top-five player in the class coming in, and I think that may become the standard.
What does this mean for Dallas? You can definitely ignore any mock draft that has him heading to the Cowboys with the 20th pick. That will not happen.
As far as the 12th pick is concerned, he may have elevated his stock too much for that to be realistic, either. It’s too early to say for certain, and his lack of “positional value” may help give Dallas a shot, but the odds aren’t in their favor.
Cowboys Get Bad News on Potential All-Pro Trade Candidate- Randy Gurzi, Sports Illustrated
The Maxx Crosby hopes continue to dwindle.
The latest news from Jeremy Fowler has now dampened those feelings. Fowler said there’s no indication that Crosby will ask to be traded, and added that he’s expected to stay with the Raiders.
“It’s somewhat quiet on the Maxx Crosby front. This is a layered discussion because a team source said a few weeks ago that Crosby’s chances of returning were relatively small. But he doesn’t plan to request a trade. He’s tight with Raiders owner Mark Davis, and he probably wouldn’t garner a Micah Parsons-like trade package (two firsts and a key player),” Fowler wrote.
“He wants to win, which might not be in the cards for Las Vegas in 2026. Some teams I’ve spoken to believe he will remain with the Raiders — for now.”
Fowler also quoted an NFC executive, who said the price for Crosby is too high, and added that there’s a belief the Raiders have no interest in making a move. “I think the price is too high. I’m not sure they really want to move him at this point. But that could change,” the unnamed executive said via Fowler.
NFL insiders share Cowboys rumors from the combine- Brandon Loree, Blogging The Boys
Rumblings about 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.