Dallas Cowboys make it very clear how they feel about fan favorite rookie after latest roster decision
The Dallas Cowboys had a chance to let undrafted rookie TE Michael Trigg make his NFL debut in Week 8. But they passed. Why?
Dallas Cowboys tight end Luke Schoonmaker popped up on the injury report Thursday with a groin injury. He didn’t practice Thursday or Friday, and the team listed him as questionable ahead of Sunday’s Week 8 matchup against the Arizona Cardinals.
It doesn’t seem like he’ll be taking the playing field. The Cowboys’ Saturday roster moves included the practice squad elevation of tight end James Mitchell—who joined the team in September after roster cuts around the league.
The fact that it was he and not undrafted rookie TE Michael Trigg, who rose as a fan favorite throughout training camp and the preseason, elevated is noteworthy. Let’s break it down.
This is not your usual Cowboys practice squad elevation
You might have noticed last Monday night against the Philadelphia Eagles that the Cowboys want to run the football. To do so, they relied on multiple tight end sets and even jumbo packages involving a sixth offensive lineman.
Schoonmaker, as TE3, actually logged a 16% snap count as he played 11 plays on offense. Based on this, the Cowboys are likely going to use Mitchell on offense and not just special teams (which Schoonmaker plays a lot of, by the way). Mitchell has 316 special teams snaps under his belt, per PFR.
This is why I find it relevant that the Cowboys did not choose to elevate undrafted rookie TE Michael Trigg, who was their highest paid undrafted free agent in 2026 at $280,000.
The Cowboys, at 3-4, likely prefered a tight end with NFL experience instead of fast forwarding Trigg’s learning curve.
Cowboys look at Trigg as developmental player
If it wasn’t clear enough how the Cowboys view Trigg when he did not make the 53-man roster, it’s clear now. With a chance to elevate a tight end from the practice squad, they likely passed on Trigg because they don’t view him as a gameday-ready player. Specially given Trigg’s specialty being receiving, not blocking.
“Trigg is more developmental in their mind,” wrote Cowboys insider Joseph Hoyt (Dallas Morning News) on social media.
This isn’t a knock on Trigg, just a sign that they trust Mitchell more due to his superior experience in this case. But don’t give up hope on one day seeing Trigg’s highlight plays in college football translate to Sundays.
Credit to the Cowboys for not forcing things on his development.
