3 decisions the Dallas Cowboys absolutely nailed while building the initial 53-man roster
The Dallas Cowboys had a lot of tough decisions to make to build their initial 53-man roster, but they nailed these three.
The Dallas Cowboys’ intial 53-man roster will likely change a lot by the time Week 1 rolls around. But most of the work has been done. And there’s a lot to like from the initial look of the team.
Below, I list three decisions I believe the coaching staff nailed on roster cutdown day.
1. Carrying three RBs says a lot
Carrying only 3 running backs. Bryan Broaddus of Crown Global Media recently tweeted that Cowboys vice president of player personnel Will McClay told him the goal was carrying the best 53 players. Not about development, not about anything else. Carrying only three running backs backs it up.
Jaydon Blue wasn’t good enough, so they didn’t carry him. Simple as that. Israel Abanikanda and Phil Mafah flashed in the preseason but not enough to justify a fourth back.
Dallas would rather have six wide receivers, nine offensive linemen, three quarterbacks, or go long at several defensive positions. Don’t try to meet some arbitrary running back number just because. That’s the right approach.
2. Cowboys give undrafted WR a chance
How about the rookie that stole the show in the preseason? That’s right, Camden Brown makes the roster.
The undrafted rookie wide receiver played his tail off during the preseason, and the growing consensus on social media was that Dallas would waive him, let him clear waivers, and bring him right back to the practice squad. I absolutely love that the Cowboys didn’t follow that logic.
They simply decided Brown is a good football player, and they weren’t going to leave his availability up to the rest of the league. They kept him and made the numbers work. We’ve seen many undrafted wide receivers shine in the preseason, but Brown making it sets the bar of what needs to be done to crack the 53.
3. Meritocracy shows up at OLB
Tyrus Wheat over Sam Williams. Williams had his chance to secure a spot Friday night after Marist Liufau got hurt. He was competing with Wheat for that spot. However, the missed multiple tackles are hard to ignore. He wasn’t great rushing the passer, despite getting some pressures in.
Wheat, meanwhile, quietly raised his stock throughout the preseason and brings versatility as an outside linebacker who can drop back into coverage. Now granted, he’s the sixth outside linebacker on the team. Nobody should expect a 10-sack season out of him.
But he earned that spot on merit, and the Cowboys rewarded it, even though Williams got paid more in free agency.
For now, we wait. This is only the initial 53-man roster, and changes are coming. But these early decisions suggest Dallas is building with the right priorities.
