Brandon Aubrey sounds like a weight’s been lifted after new Cowboys contract – Levi Dobro, The Landry Hat
With the contract conundrum of Brandon Aubrey behind the Cowboys, they should feel relief.
When a team endlessly finds itself in headlines, it typically means one of two things: They are a complete disaster or a rousing success. But if you’re the Dallas Cowboys, you’re always the talk of the town, even if you hover in mediocrity, as America’s team has recently. The bulk of that media attention has come from contract disputes with high-level players like Micah Parsons and George Pickens.
And while the
former was eventually traded, the future is still unknown for the latter. But Brandon Aubrey didn’t go down that road. Aubrey, who is the NFL’s consensus best kicker, reached an agreement on a record-breaking contract earlier this offseason. His recent comments about the deal also prove that Jerry Jones and Co. paid the right player and person.
Dallas Cowboys K Brandon Aubrey is appreciative of new contract
At the annual Reliant Home Run Derby, where the Cowboys were out in full force once again on Thursday, The Athletic’s Jon Machota spoke with Aubrey about his flashy new deal. Of course, Aubrey expressed his gratitude and responded in typical fashion.
“I’m happy to have it behind me. Happy to be able to stay here and play for a record-setting contract. It’s an awesome achievement, something that I never thought I would be able to say.
“I just wanted to have a job, and this locks me up for the foreseeable future and gives me that job that I wanted when I started this thing. I’m just excited to have a job and have it right here in Dallas where I grew up.”
Now, it is fairly easy to maintain this mindset and appreciation for the franchise when they pay you better than any player at your position in the league’s history. But Cowboys fans know that it is much more than that for Aubrey. If you had told the Birmingham Stallions’ kicker a few years ago that he would be paid a life-changing amount of money by his hometown team, even he might have called you crazy. But the money clearly hasn’t changed Aubrey.
Which Dallas Cowboys have the best chance to win awards in 2026? – Mark Heaney, Inside the Star
Which Cowboys could take home personal hardware this season?
The last time the Dallas Cowboys took home performance-based awards was at the 2017 NFL Honors, where Dak Prescott won Offensive Rookie of the Year, and Jason Garrett was crowned Coach of the Year. Time flies when you’re failing to make the NFC Championship game, I suppose. Anyway, it has been quite some time since Dallas won some hardware for on-field performance, and while that’s not always an indicator of success, it very likely means you at least made the postseason; that’s also something the Cowboys haven’t done in a bit.
Is this the year that they get back to making acceptance speeches at the league’s award show? The betting odds will tell you it’s not likely, with one main exception. Here, I’ll go over the highest Dallas Cowboys award-winning odds (via FanDuel) as we head toward the 2026 campaign.
1. Caleb Downs +850 To Win Defensive Rookie of the Year
There is a clear answer to the top spot, as I mentioned: it’s former Ohio State star Caleb Downs to win the Defensive Rookie of the Year award. Sitting at +850, Downs’s odds may seem high, but he sits behind only two others (Rueben Bain +500 and David Bailey +500) for the best odds at the award at this point in the year. Not to mention, the guy is a defensive back. Versatile as any out there, yes, but still, a DB winning the award is somewhat rare.
The only three to win it in the 2000s were cornerbacks Marcus Peters, Marshon Lattimore, and Sauce Gardner. To find a safety that won DROY, you have to go all the way back to 1990 when Malik Carrier, a Bears great, took it home. Downs, however, with that aforementioned versatility and elite football talent, has as good a chance as anybody to win the award this coming season.
Can this $3.7M Cowboys addition do what 3 vets couldn’t do for $10.6M? – Reid Hanson, Cowboys Wire
Cowboys are hoping that the fourth time is the charm.
Certain positions demand a degree of readiness when veteran additions are made; running back is generally considered plug-and-play from team to team. Cornerback is usually thought of as a smooth veteran transition, and linebacker is widely regarded as a spot where a veteran can hit the ground running somewhere new. Yet in 2025, the Dallas Cowboys struggled mightily in getting their veteran linebackers to do anything right.
The Cowboys welcomed three veteran linebackers to the mix last season: Kenneth Murray, Jack Sanborn and Logan Wilson. All three were swings and misses. Sanborn and Wilson looked like they were running in mud in 2025 and struggled to even stay on the field. Murray moved well but to all the wrong places (see also: PFF grade that ranked him 86 of 88).The Cowboys spent $7.5 million on Murray, $1.2 million on Sanborn and $2.9 million for Wilson, totaling $10.6 million on veterans from the outside who offered little actual benefit.
The Cowboys have flushed the deck in 2026 and are taking a stab at a new veteran addition, Dee Winters. The 25-year-old product of TCU comes to Dallas after a draft weekend trade with the 49ers. He has a track record of success, playing good football on a good defense in San Francisco. On paper, Winters looks like the base hit the Cowboys need and not the strikeout that happened a year before. It’s here where Winters separates himself from the others.
The primary criticism with Sanborn and Wilson from last year is that they looked a step too slow. They might have known what to do in the mind but the body wasn’t cooperating anymore. An honest look back before they came to Dallas showed signs of this physical decline as well. Sanborn slipped to just a three-game starter his last year in Chicago, logging more special teams snaps than defensive snaps. Similarly, Wilson showed signs of decline as well. The 29-year-old was seeing a decline in snaps while simultaneously playing on a poor defense. Again, the signs were there.
Murray was nothing but a gamble on traits. The former first-round pick came with draft pedigree and A+ athleticism, yet never seemed to put things together as a defender. The Cowboys hoped things would suddenly click in Dallas but things just never did. In all three cases the Cowboys had what some may consider “unrealistic expectations” for their veteran linebackers.
10 bold predictions for the Dallas Cowboys in 2026 – Brian Martin, Blogging the Boys
10 spicy takes for the Cowboys this season.
With free agency and the 2026 NFL Draft now well behind us, we’ve officially entered the lull of the offseason. There will be voluntary and mandatory workouts, but until training camp gets underway things could be rather boring around Cowboys Nation. Because of that, we thought we’d try to liven things up by sharing some of our bold predictions for the Dallas Cowboys this season.
1. 11-6 regular-season record
Despite having the fourth-toughest strength of schedule this year, we predict the Cowboys end their two-year playoff drought and finish with a 11-6 regular-season record. We have them losing to the Eagles, Commanders, Ravens (in Brazil), Seahawks, Rams, and the Texans.
2. NFC East Champions
We predict the Cowboys finish with a 4-2 record in the NFC East division, splitting games with the Eagles and Commanders and sweeping the Giants. As NFC East Champions, they would be in position for a potentially strong playoff run.
3. Super Bowl Contender
After already predicting the Cowboys finish with a 11-6 regular-season record and winning the NFC East division, predicting them to be a serious Super Bowl contender is only fitting. With one of the league’s best offenses and an expected defensive improvement, this team could be dangerous in the playoffs.
4. Top 15 Defense
A Top 15 defense? That’s quite a jump from being arguably the worst defense in the league a season ago, but that’s exactly what we are predicting. First-time DC Christian Parker’s versatile 3-4 scheme and the players he’s added should upgrade the Cowboys defense by leaps and bounds from last year.
5. Caleb Downs wins DROY, makes first Pro Bowl
The Cowboys may have a trade up one spot to draft Caleb Downs 11th overall in the first-round, but in so doing they landed the centerpiece of their defense for years to come. Due to his versatility, play speed, and football IQ we not only predict him to make his first Pro Bowl, but also win Defensive Rookie of the Year as a rookie.
Daily discussion question: Are you planning on going to any Cowboys games this year?
