WR waived, 2 DEs added, Sunday Ticket verdict overturned
The Cowboys did not practice on Thursday, but there was noteworthy action on the business side of things in Oxnard. In this edition of News and Notes, we’ll bring you the latest on which wide receiver prospect saw his journey come to an end as well as the two veteran defensive ends who will now join the roster to help provide depth in the wake of Sam Williams’s loss.
Elsewhere, we’ll hit the defense hard with Micah Parsons shedding some light on the changes coming to his role this season, DeMarcus Lawrence offering an encouraging scouting report on rookie Marshawn Kneeland, and DeMarvion Overshown giving an inside look at Mike Zimmer’s teaching style. We’ve got standouts- both good and not-so-good- of this year’s camp thus far, Dak Prescott’s thoughts on possibly wearing a new uniform, and a reveal on the location for this season’s Pro Bowl festivities. All that, plus a late-breaking 180 on the multi-billion-dollar verdict in the Sunday Ticket case.
The undrafted free agent wide receiver out of Minnesota was having a strong showing in camp, but a lower leg injury has derailed his bid to make the 2024 roster. Crooms was waived Thursday.
Al-Quadin Muhammad was signed to a one-year deal shortly after his workout. The 6-foot-4-inch 250-pounder has 12 sacks, 33 quarterback hits, four forced fumbles, 157 tackles, and 23 tackles for loss on his NFL résumé, which has included stints in New Orleans, Indianapolis, and Chicago. Shaka Toney is also expected to be added to the roster, where he’ll reunite with former Washington assistant coach Jeff Zgonina.
Jones says the club’s continued exploration of defensive tackle help is not a reflection on the development of Mazi Smith. “He’s doing a really good job,” defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer added. “You may not see him make flash plays, but we see him taking on double teams, getting his hands in the right place. I see him understanding where he’s supposed to be.”
Toney, the ex-Nittany Lion who was banned from the league for the 2023 season for gambling on games, and former Bengal and Jet Carl Lawson were perhaps the most well-known of the four defensive ends the Cowboys brought in for Thursday workouts. Muhammad and Justin Hollins, a 2019 Broncos draft pick, rounded out the quartet.
Overshown spent his rookie year taking mental reps while rehabbing an ACL injury, but now he’s getting a crash course in the real thing with a new defensive coordinator. “I love him,” Overshown said of Zimmer. “[H]e’s like a professor at the game as far as teaching. He allows us to be students and players and anything he says, you want to try to get a grasp of it. Even if it’s just one thing just to keep in your toolbox, because there’s the reason why he’s been in his game.”
Parsons hints that he’ll be even more all over the place than usual and has worked on his conditioning this offseason in anticipation of covering a lot of ground. “Dropping in the flats, curls, it’s really everything. They’re expanding my versatility and using me in ways I should be used, and moving me around to make [offenses] ID me from other places; and [sending] me when they should send me,” said Parsons of his role in Zimmer’s new-look defense. “[He’s] gonna utilize every asset of my ability, and that’s something I appreciate.”
Now that Parsons and Toney are teammates once again, flash back to this 2021 story about their first meeting as pros when the Cowboys visited the Washington Football Team. The two players’ parents met up in the stands at FedEx Field and did their own jersey swap.
In his 11th year, Lawrence says he’s trying to be a leader by teaching instead of yelling and screaming. He likes what he’s seen so far from second-round draft pick Marshawn Kneeland, and though he doesn’t buy the popular “DeMarcus Lawrence 2.0” comparisons, he does believe the gritty youngster could evolve into a better player than even the four-time Pro Bowler himself.
Jalen Tolbert is making a serious bid for the Cowboys’ WR3 job, but Tyron Billy-Johnson is turning heads, too. Tight end Luke Schoonmaker is showing improvement, and Tyler Guyton is proving his worth early. Quarterback Trey Lance and cornerback Nahshon Wright have stood out in camp, too, but not always in an overly positive way.
Prescott claims becoming a father has helped re-shape his perspective on his future. “A lot of quarterbacks have [played for other teams]. That’s just the business and nature of this game. That’s just me not being naive to that,” Prescott said in a TV interview Thursday. “It’s not something I look for, or prepare, even plan for, but if something like that happens, I’ll certainly be ready for it.” The quarterback expressed his confidence that a long-term deal could come at anytime.
The Pro Bowl Games will come back to Camping World Stadium in 2025, the league announced Thursday. Orlando hosted the all-star festivities from 2017 to 2020 and then again last year. The Pro Bowl is scheduled to be played Feb. 2.
U.S. District Judge Philip Gutierrez ruled Thursday that the testimony of two witnesses for the subscribers had flawed methodologies and should have been excluded. The lawsuit covered 2.4 million residential subscribers and 48,000 businesses in the United States who paid for the package on DirecTV of out-of-market games from the 2011 through 2022 seasons. The NFL could have been liable for over $14 billion in damages due to antitrust laws. An appeal from the plaintiffs is likely, though, meaning the story isn’t necessarily over.
Cowboys News: WR waived, 2 DEs added to roster, Sunday Ticket verdict overturned
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