Cowboys’ Trevon Diggs, Tyler Guyton cleared to play vs. Eagles – Todd Archer, ESPN
The Cowboys get a major boost to their roster ahead of Week 1.
PHILADELPHIA — After trending in the right direction during the week of practice, Dallas Cowboys cornerback Trevon Diggs and left tackle Tyler Guyton carry no injury designation into Thursday’s season opener against the Philadelphia Eagles
and will be available to play.
The question is how much. On Friday, coach Brian Schottenheimer acknowledged it is easier to mix and match how much Diggs plays compared with Guyton because of their positions.
During training camp in Oxnard, California, it was unclear when either would be able to play this season.
Luepke, Cowboys agree to terms on extension – Patrik Walker, DallasCowboys.com
Dallas locks up the former undrafted free agent.
FRISCO, Texas — All signs point to the Dallas Cowboys being open for business as it relates to contract extensions this week. They followed up the blockbuster decision to trade All-Pro pass rusher Micah Parsons to the Green Bay Packers by awarding All-Pro cornerback DaRon Bland a four-year renewal, and the next in line is none other than Hunter Luepke.
The young fullback has agreed to terms on a two-year extension worth upwards of $7.5 million, a reasonable deal for a promising talent.
An undrafted free agent of the Cowboys in 2023, Luepke initially signed a three-year rookie deal out of North Dakota State that meant he was only a day away from beginning a contract year when he takes the field against the Eagles in Philadelphia on Thursday Night Football.
His initial salary cap hit for 2025 was merely $1.03 million and, depending upon how the contract is structured, there’s a good chance that, now, he won’t cost a dollar toward the cap until 2026, at the earliest, because of the extension occurring proactively.
How George Pickens has fit with Cowboys: ‘It’s only gotten better and better’ – Jon Machota, The Athletic
Pickens and the Cowboys have been a match made in heaven so far.
In his three years in Pittsburgh, Pickens had one 1,000-yard season, averaging 947 yards and four touchdowns per year. Good production, but there were maturity and behavior concerns. Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said in December that Pickens needed to “grow up.”
Since joining the Cowboys, there have been no issues. A close previous relationship with Lamb has had a positive impact. The two are often together during practice, while working off to the side or in the locker room.
“A really unique individual, No. 1,” McClay said, “from the standpoint that he loves football, loves his teammates, and a rare talent from a standpoint of being able to track a football and have the body control to make those contested catches. In the NFL, you got to win one-on-ones, you got to make those catches. He can make catches when he’s covered.”
The trade of All-Pro defensive end Micah Parsons makes the Pickens addition even more important. If the Cowboys struggle defensively, there could be a lot of games when the outcome depends on the production of Prescott, Lamb and Pickens.
“I’m very excited,” Lamb said. “I can’t even put it into words. I tell my camp back at home, my brothers, my family, my friends, how excited I am. And obviously, I don’t want to keep expressing it to the media. I’ll let you guys do that. But for us, we got to go out there and do what we do every day, as we’ve been doing, and just continue that on throughout the season. And never really get complacent or too excited about the moment that we’re embracing.”
Cowboys coach Brian Schottenheimer has made sure to keep the offense as vanilla as possible during open practices. Prescott, Lamb and Pickens didn’t play one snap in the preseason. Since Schottenheimer is also calling the offensive plays and it’s his first season as a head coach, he doesn’t want to show anything that could help the Philadelphia Eagles have a better game plan for Thursday night’s season opener.
Cowboys need this $50 million weapon to sharpen from full performance in 2024 – Reid D Hanson, Cowboys Wire
Jake Ferguson needs a bounce-back year in 2025.
The Dallas Cowboys had a down season offensively in 2024. While some of that can be attributed to Dak Prescott’s season-ending injury, the reality was they were pretty bad even before that fateful Week 8 accident. Ranked 24th in EPA with Prescott in the lineup, their issues extended beyond the absence of their starting quarterback. Poor pass protection from the offensive tackles, little production from the running game and a historically poor season from the starting tight end all led to a significant drop on offensive productivity.
Over the 2025 offseason, the Cowboys made a concentrated effort to upgrade their offense but many of the same problem areas remain unaddressed. In fact, instead of switching gears at that historically poor TE season, the Cowboys decided to double-down, extending Jake Ferguson to four-year, $50 million contract extension.
It’s clear the Cowboys are betting 2024 was nothing more than a fluke season impacted by injuries, and that their 26-year-old TE from Wisconsin is primed for a bounce back season in 2025. How primed, exactly, remains to be seen. Ferguson is now the eighth-highest paid TE in the NFL so anything short of a Pro Bowl bid would be disappointing. That may sound like a bold bet to make, but a closer look reveals that should be everyone’s expectations for the fourth year TE.
Players 2 Watch: Key figures in Thursday’s matchup, DallasCowboys.com
Here’s some of the most important players in the Cowboys-Eagles showdown.
George Pickens: There is zero chance anyone will overlook Pickens in his first-ever game in a Cowboys’ uniform, not to mention the fact he’ll be up against their most bitter NFC East rival and on the road, to boot. If training camp with Dak Prescott and CeeDee Lamb is any indication, the human highlight reel could get off to a fast start against an Eagles’ secondary that has plenty of question marks, allowing Lamb to do the same as a beneficiary and, thus, their era of terror could begin as early as Week 1. – Patrik Walker
Jalen Carter: Stop Carter and the odds of you walking out of Lincoln Financial Field with a win skyrocket for the Cowboys, and that’s the bottom line. Yes, they have other defensive weapons to contend with, e.g., Jordan Davis and Zach Baun, but if rookie first-round pick Tyler Booker and center Cooper Beebe can’t stop Carter, the entire offensive rhythm will be disrupted for the Cowboys — both on the ground and in the air. Stopping Carter is easier said than done, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t doable. – Patrik Walker
Dak Prescott: At long last, Dak Prescott returns to the field after a season ending hamstring injury halted his 2024 campaign. Who welcomes him back to the field? A defense that returns most of the pieces that won them a Super Bowl in the Philadelphia Eagles. IF the Cowboys want to start the year 1-0, Prescott will have to be at his best through all four quarters and take advantage of a potential weakness in the Eagles’ defense that is a young secondary. – Tommy Yarrish
