The Dallas Cowboys lost DeMarcus Lawrence in free agency one year ago, and it didn’t seem like a big deal. Set to enter his age-33 season, Lawrence was on the back nine of his career and had just three sacks in four games due to a right mid-foot Lisfranc injury. By heading to the Seattle Seahawks, Lawrence allowed some of the younger pass rushers to get an opportunity in Dallas. But as it turned out, the move backfired and allowed Lawrence to find a fountain of youth.
Lawrence posted his highest sack total since 2022 and wound up helping the Seahawks win a Super Bowl. While the ring is sure to grind the gears of Cowboys fans, it also may have created a ripple effect for other defenders on their way out of Dallas.
On Tuesday, that ripple effect carried Dante Fowler Jr. to Seattle as he agreed to a one-year contract worth up to $5 million with incentives, according to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero. The contract gives Fowler another chance to extend his career as he goes deeper into his 30s, and it could be a reflection of Lawrence’s successful gamble to leave Dallas last spring.
Dante Fowler Jr. Eyes Career Revival After Demarcus Lawrence’s Seattle Success
The Cowboys had their reasons to believe that Lawrence’s best days were behind him. After recording 6.5 sacks during the 2020 season, Lawrence had four or fewer sacks in three out of the next four seasons, with the outlier coming during a six-sack campaign in 2022. The serious nature of Lawrence’s Lisfranc injury can also include long-term effects such as chronic pain, osteoarthritis, and stiffness, according to Yale Medicine, and at his advanced age, it was a risk bringing him back.
Of course, Lawrence bucked the odds and had a tremendous season with Seattle. The former second-round pick by the Cowboys in the 2014 draft started 16 games for the Seahawks and racked up six sacks. But he was also a consistent source of pressure as his 65 quarterback pressures were his highest total since he had 66 back in 2018, according to Pro Football Focus.
After seeing what Mike MacDonald’s scheme did for Lawrence, it had to be a selling point for other aging pass-rushers, and Fowler could be the next in line.
Fowler’s success has been a little more recent, collecting 10.5 sacks for the Washington Commanders in 2024. But his three seasons with the Cowboys were modest, with 13.0 sacks in 51 games. Last year was the biggest disappointment as Fowler appeared in all 17 games and started 11 of them, but he managed just three sacks and 30 pressures on 248 pass-rushing snaps according to PFF, and didn’t make an impact on a defense that was begging for a pass-rush.
Perhaps the Cowboys didn’t do Fowler any favors by trading Micah Parsons to the Green Bay Packers right before the start of last season. But Fowler is also getting a massive upgrade in scheme, going from the fired Matt Eberflus to MacDonald, who is fresh off winning a Super Bowl and reviving Lawrence’s career.
It leaves the Cowboys hoping that they have the right answers after trading for Rashan Gary, selecting Malachi Lawrence in the first round of last month's draft, and bringing back 2025 second-round pick Donovan Ezeiruaku in a starting role. But Lawrence’s success in Seattle and Fowler’s decision to try and chase it are something Dallas will have on its radar going into next season.
More Dallas Cowboys News & Rumors:
Add us as a preferred source on Google