Brent Urban was seen as just another bargain-basement free-agent signing last offseason. Once he took the field, it was apparent that he fit in with defensive coordinator Dan Quinn's scheme as a run-stuffer at the 1-tech.

Urban is on the market again as he continues to rehab the torn biceps muscle he had surgery on last November. In an offseason that's seen Amari Cooper and Randy Gregory find new teams, much to the dismay of Cowboys fans, getting Urban re-signed would be a huge win for Dallas.

Not long after Urban was signed, he spoke about wanting to be the anchor the Cowboys needed to stop the run.

“I do a good job being stout up front, taking on double teams and doing the dirty work to allow those guys to run free,” Urban said back in June, via the team’s website. “That’s part of the reason I came here. It seemed like the perfect opportunity for me to continue to do that and help elevate this defense and allow the athletes to be athletes.”

Urban made good on his proclamation. In the six games (Cowboys went 5-1) he played in during the 2021 season, the Cowboys' defense only allowed 86.1 yards per game on the ground and gave up just two 100-yard performances. Urban's ability to own the middle was a key factor over that span.

Urban injured his arm Week 6 and the last 11 games were a different story. Dallas' run defense allowed 127.3 yards per game over that span and gave up eight consecutive games with over 100 yards from Week 8 through Week 15. Including the playoffs, the Washington Football Team (Week 16) was the only team since Urban's injury that didn't reach 100 yards rushing against the Cowboys.

A 41.2-yard per game increase against the run is a lot, to say the least. The Cowboys will look to add more bodies in the NFL draft on the defensive front to solve their woes against the run. However, Urban is a veteran with a track record of filling this particular need and he won't cost much which fits the Cowboys' conservative spending style.

Stopping the run is the first order of business with any defense. Urban's ability to do so, hopefully for a full season if he's brought back, will force offenses to be one-dimensional and resort to passing the ball more which will let guys like DeMarcus Lawrence and Micah Parsons get after the quarterback. In addition, Urban can keep interior offensive linemen from reaching the second level and putting a body on the Cowboys linebackers which will let them roam and make plays.

Re-signing Urban would be a low-cost move that would help fill a big deficiency in the Cowboys' defense. Based off last year, Urban's overall value, and the Cowboys' spending philosophy, it's pretty obvious why the Cowboys need to re-sign him. The only thing left to see now is if the Cowboys value Urban enough to bring him back.

Feature image via Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports