UPDATE: Since the publishing of this article, the Cowboys are signing DB Alex Austin and S Juanyeh Thomas, per Jordan Schultz.

The Dallas Cowboys have a crisis brewing in their secondary. With multiple injuries piling up on defense, the front office got to work Tuesday, bringing in five players for a workout ahead of Week 4.

One of them is a familiar face who would make a lot of sense for Dallas to sign right now.

We’ll see what the Cowboys decide later in the week. But here is the full list of players they worked out:

• DB Alex Austin
• DB Shemar Bartholomew
• DB Tyrek Funderburk
• DB Juanyeh Thomas
• LB Germaine Pratt

The familiar face: Juanyeh Thomas

Thomas is a former undrafted free agent the Cowboys signed out of Georgia Tech in 2022, back when Dan Quinn was the team’s defensive coordinator. From 2022 to 2025, he bounced between the practice squad and the 53-man roster.

Last November, Dallas placed Thomas on the non-football illness (NFI) list. The move came because of chronic migraine attacks that went as far as affecting his vision.

The Cowboys didn’t bring him back for the 2026 offseason. Thomas then signed a one-year contract with the Indianapolis Colts, failed to make their roster, and has been a free agent since. His biggest advantage? The Cowboys know him. That’s a relevant piece of information for a team that needs bodies it can trust in a hurry.

And yet, familiarity only goes so far. Thomas knows the franchise, but he doesn’t necessarily know the scheme defensive coordinator Christian Parker is running, because he wasn’t around this offseason.

Scouting the rest of the workout list

Here’s a quick look at the other four players who visited:

Alex Austin played for the New England Patriots very briefly. He was activated for their divisional round matchup against the Houston Texans. He later signed with the Dolphins, who waived him.

Shemar Bartholomew signed with the New York Jets in 2024 and has since made stops with multiple teams, including the Packers in 2025.

Tyrek Funderburk has been a practice squad player for most of his career. He made the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ roster as an undrafted rookie and has since spent time with the Minnesota Vikings and Carolina Panthers.

Germaine Pratt is the only linebacker Dallas worked out, and he’s a name you probably know. The former third-round pick was an NFL starter for a long time, with 104 starts under his belt. Most of them came with the Cincinnati Bengals. Most recently, he spent time with the Raiders and Colts in 2025.

At 30 years old, Pratt could bring much-needed depth at linebacker. That being said, I don’t think he would move the needle as far as the starting lineup goes. I’d expect the Cowboys to keep playing Jaishawn Barham at middle linebacker. And whenever DeMarvion Overshown returns from injury, I’d expect him to start at weakside linebacker.

Why Dallas needs help in the secondary

Listen, the Cowboys’ defensive back room badly needs reinforcements.

Safety Malik Hooker is dealing with an injury, though he might return in Week 4. PJ Locke is on injured reserve, and Jalen Thompson is also headed to IR.

It got so bad that Dallas had to call up Reddy Steward from the practice squad for the Week 3 game against the Ravens and ask him to play some nickel. Most notably, Steward gave up the 27-yard catch late in the game that set up Baltimore’s game-winning field goal.

The Cowboys fielded four backups on that final play. That’s a major problem.

I know these aren’t the most inspiring names. Dallas could use some big-name help, and I wouldn’t argue against a bigger swing. But even if the Cowboys land a high-profile addition, they still need more depth, because the depth chart is getting hit hard right now.

For now, the Cowboys have options on the table, even if none of them jump off the page. The question is whether they stop at depth or finally go get the kind of help this secondary needs.