The Dallas Cowboys have their initial 53-man roster after cut day, and part of the way they got there was by trading swing tackle Nate Thomas for exactly the return they used to draft him. They also put two players on the injured reserve-designated to return list.
The backup quarterback battle, one of the big stories on the offensive side of the ball in camp, has not yet resolved itself, which Dallas hopes won’t be an issue. The opening-day roster is far from settled, as it is for every team at this point, with the start of the season two weeks away.
Here is Dallas’ day.
Cowboys trade Nate Thomas
When training camp began, one of Dallas’
big battles for a starting spot was at left tackle between incumbent Tyler Guyton and Nate Thomas. Guyton quickly won that battle and now Thomas is no longer a Cowboy.
On the day rosters were finalized, and a day after Dallas acquired Pittsburgh Steeler tackle Broderick Jones through trade, the Cowboys dealt Thomas to the Houston Texans for a seventh-round draft pick. That is where Dallas drafted Thomas in 2024.
Thomas was projected as Dallas’ third tackle, so a swing tackle role. That’s presumably where he’ll be with Houston.
Dallas puts 2 on IR, designated to return
The Dallas Cowboys placed two players on the injured reserve-designated to return list, linebacker Marist Liufau and cornerback Devin Moore. Liufau broke his arm in Dallas’ final preseason game, will require surgery, and per coach Brian Schottenheimer, will miss several weeks.
Moore is dealing with a hip injury.
The NFL allows teams to put two players on IR to return on cut day. Over the course of the season, teams get eight spots for IR to return, and Liufau and Moore are the first two.
Cowboys backup QB battle unresolved
One of the stories of camp was the battle for QB2 between Joe Milton III and Sam Howell and the good news is that both played well enough in August that both are still on the roster. There had been some thought one (Howell) would drop to the practice squad, which would have involved clearing waivers.
That hasn’t happened and now both are listed on the second line of the depth chart behind Dak Prescott. So which one is QB2 and which is QB3? Dallas hopes this is a largely hypothetical question and it is one that is still unresolved two weeks before opening day.
“That's one that we may just split the difference and have two backup quarterbacks. Here is the easy way to do it," Cowboys owner/GM Jerry Jones said in the aftermath of the loss to the New Orleans Saints to close the preseason. "I thought both guys out there did some really good things tonight. But keep in mind, quarterback, sometimes it's not the great plays, it's not making the bad plays is the biggest deal of the backup quarterback."
Did the Cowboys release Shiyazh Pete?
Yes, the Dallas Cowboys released guard Shiyazh Pete, a former New Mexico State Aggie who was the first Navajo to sign with an NFL team. He will hope to get picked up on the practice squad, which will be set Monday evening.
Pete became a viral phenomenon after his postgame locker-room speech following the second preseason game against the Arizona Cardinals.
Did Camden Brown make the Cowboys?
Camden Brown, the undisputed star of the preseason, completed his journey from undrafted free agent to a spot on the initial 53-man roster when he was one of six wide receivers the Dallas Cowboys retained.
The Georgia Southern product had two highlight-reel touchdown catches in the preseason opener against Seattle, a 70-yard reception against Arizona, and a 27-yard catch against New Orleans. He and Jonathan Mingo ended up competing for WR5, which didn’t matter as Dallas opted to keep six wideouts.
Dallas Cowboys next game
The Cowboys open the regular season on Sunday Night Football on Sept. 13. The 6:20 p.m. MT/7:20 p.m. CT kickoff will be televised on NBC. The game will be the Giants' debut under new coach John Harbaugh.
Bret Bloomquist can be reached at bbloomquist@elpasotimes.com; @Bretbloomquist on X.
This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: Dallas Cowboys news. Cowboys trade Nate Thomas and set initial roster
