5 Dallas Cowboys veterans on the cusp of getting cut
By Reid Hanson
Training camp and preseason are far from over, yet already, we’ve identified players who are fighting for their careers in Dallas. The Dallas Cowboys are fairly deep in some position groups and based on injuries, will have to go shallow at some positions to compensate for it.
There are five Dallas Cowboys veterans on the cusp of getting cut before the season even begins.
Today we dive into some veteran players who could be surprising camp casualties in coming days. We explain why they’re on the chopping block and what has to happen for them to win a spot. You’ll notice, many of them come from the same position group…
Tarell Basham, DE
Tarell Basham is in the second year of a two-year, $5.5M deal he signed in 2021. Basham is a versatile player who the Dallas Cowboys leaned on heavily last season. Playing 627 snaps, he acted as the Cowboys defacto “Tyrone Crawford” filling in wherever needed. But there are a few factors working against him in 2022:
- He’s not a flashy high-impact player, but he’s steady and reliable.
- At age 28, he’s maxed out his potential.
- He’s only controllable for one more season
- Younger, cheaper, controllable players are competing for the same job in Dallas.
The defensive end position is a bit of a logjam. DeMarcus Lawrence is going to lock down one side, and the Dallas Cowboys re-signed Dorance Armstrong (to starter money) to lock down the other side. Micah Parsons is going to get a TON of EDGE snaps. And Sam Williams is a second round pick who happens to be Dan Quinn’s pet project.
That’s a lot of players fighting for snaps on the outside. Inside, the situation is quite similar (we’ll discuss that later). Versatility and ability to play the run is Basham’s greatest trait and second year player, Chauncey Golston, is vying for the same role.
Golston put on roughly 15lbs of muscle in the offseason and looks to take on more of an inside role. The former EDGE is perfectly equipped to bounce between the same spots as Basham, plus he has youth, money, controllability, and potential on his side.