Dallas Cowboys CanFan Weekly Wrap Up | May 20th, 2023
It’s been a minute since I’ve written a weekly wrap up for the Dallas Cowboys.
I was sick for a week, and then the NFL draft hit and CanFan did nearly 20 hours of streaming in 4 days.
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Finally, I was just lazy.
But I kicked that. Let’s get into all the big Dallas Cowboys news from the last 7 days.
Upcoming Dallas Cowboys Free Agency Contracts
The Dallas Cowboys have a young, talented team. They are the 9th most youthful squad in the NFL.
That's great for any organization that wants to make a dynasty push, whatever that means in today's NFL.
It also comes with millions and millions of necessary contract dollars.
Let's have a look at the big free agents over the next 4 years.
2024 Free Agency
Must Sign
Trevon Diggs CB
Obviously, we need Trevon Diggs to be wearing the Star in Dallas for many, many moons to come.
High Priority
Jourdan Lewis CB
Jayron Kearse S
Terence Steele T
Malik Hooker S
Jourdan Lewis gets high praise, Terence Steele could be non-replaceable, and if Kearse and Hooker continue to beat up defences in the secondary, finding the same ingredients might be difficult to source.
Low Priority
Tony Pollard RB
Stephon Gilmore CB
Tyler Biadasz C
I love TP20, so I would be down for another franchise since I don't think the Dallas Cowboys have a realistic bell cow without him, but the front office needs to invest in a long term solution. Also, Biadasz is really good, and good centres are hard to find, so if he's gonna be reasonable, he's worth keeping.
2025 Free Agency
Must Sign
CeeDee Lamb WR
No question, Lamb has the potential to, dare I say, dethrone some of the great 88's from the past.
High Priority
Leighton Vander Esch MLB
Bryan Anger P
If LVE can play like he did last season, he's worth keeping around. A solid option in the middle of the field for the Dallas Cowboys.
Bryan Anger has one of the deadliest boots in football. Special teams is unfairly such a huge part of the game that it makes a dude with a foot like Anger extremely important to retain.
Low Priority
Cooper Rush QB
Kelvin Joseph CB
Osa Odighizuwa DT
Chauncey Golston DE
Nahshon Wright CB
Jabril Cox OLB
Josh Ball T
Simi Fehoko WR
Quinton Bhanna DT
Israel Mukuamu CB
Matt Farniok C
A big list of dudes who, if they up their game, could easily be moved up to high priority. But as of right now, the Cowboys should be looking to replace them through the draft.
Standouts on this list are Osa, Cox, and Mukuamu. If they elevate or even maintain their game for the next two seasons, they should be sought after.
2026 Free Agency
Must Sign
Micah Parsons OLB
What do I even need to say here? Feed the lion!!!
High Priority
DaRon Bland CB
Damone Clark LB
Sam Williams DE
DaRon Bland is a big bright shiny star. I love the kid. I hope he proves me right!
Damone Clark is on the verge of a make-or-break season. High praise and all the opportunity in the world at his fingertips.
Sam Williams looked to be someone special, but he needs to play a little more to avoid being replaced in the draft. DE's are too common.
Low Priority
Jake Ferguson TE
We'll see what happens here, but Jake Ferguson might be on the cut list if Schoonmaker is who I think he is. The exact opposite could be true if Schoonmaker falls flat in the NFL.
2027 Free Agency
Must Sign
Dak Prescott QB
Tyler Smith T
Zack Martin G
This one is gonna have an asterisk. I can't imagine the Dallas Cowboys ever making a move to sign a top tier QB in the draft, and while Dak Prescott is under contract, they won't make moves in free agency.
So it's a difficult scenario to predict; more than likely Dak will sign an extension before 2027. But if he doesn't, do the Dallas Cowboys risk letting him walk? I just don't see that happening at this point.
Zack Martin is a no-brainer. There is a real possibility Martin hangs up his cleats after this contract, but if not, you need to bring the big man back!
And finally, Tyler Smith is the future of the Dallas Cowboys offensive line. Throw him as big of a bone as he needs.
High Priority
Donovan Wilson S
Dono Dub is a fantastic athlete. He plays with heart. Would be great to have him return and keep that Kearse, Hooker, Wilson trio together for one or two more years.
Low Priority
Michael Gallup WR
DeMarcus Lawrence DE
Love these two dudes, but by now, Gallup is on the latter half of his career and I'm hoping there are a few new faces in Dallas via the draft to make this less necessary of a signing.
Same with Zack Martin, I think DeMarcus Lawrence hangs up the cleats and joins the Dallas Cowboys coaching staff. Print it.
The Unknown
All 2023 NFL Draft Picks
This is the big question; how will the 2023 Dallas Cowboys draft class perform in the NFL? If the majority come to play, it could be an expensive 2027.
Minicamp Surprises
Two players I want to touch base on have been getting a little praise after the Dallas Cowboys rookie minicamp.
The obvious cliché is Isaiah has “Landed” in Dallas. I prefer Isaiah “Promise” Land.
If you’re asking, who is this guy? I was too about a week ago. Isaiah Land is a 6 foot 3 inch, 240 pound linebacker from Florida A&M, has been on Dan Quinn's radar for quite some time now.
Markquese Bell played with Land in Florida, and that's when Lieutenant Dan first became away of the baller.
“I first saw him, looking at Bell from a year ago, and [Land] had a fantastic junior year... He had over 20 sacks and really lit it up. Who is this guy?”
Isaiah ran a 4.6 40, benched 21 reps, and leaped 10 feet 6 inches in the broad jump. Stellar numbers for a dude nearing a quarter the size of a Canadian moose!
In 2021, Land produced 25.5 tackles for a loss and an outstanding 19 sacks. In 2022, his numbers dropped but were still respectable on their own; 11.5 TFL's and 7.5 sacks.
If the dude can play football at an NFL level, “Promise” Land could be one of the sweetest post draft snags!
Another player who had made waves previous to the NFL draft and nobody knew it (or at least, his name was never actually written) was the perennial Prospect X.
This is a player selected by writer Kalyn Kahler who she believes is the most overlooked in the NFL draft.
And this year it seems to be none other than David Durden. No, that's not a new Marvel superhero. But he is a multisports athlete.
David Durden, a 6 foot 2 inch, 205 pound wide receiver out of West Florida who was drafted to the Redsox farm team as a prospect, but ultimately has decided to give football a go.
With a 4.40 forty, Durden had two significant years; reaching 787 yards and 10 touchdowns with a 23 average per reception in 2021, and 1128 yards, 13 touchdowns, and a 17.7 average yards per punt return in 2022.
Over his last two seasons with West Florida, Durden averaged 20 yards per catch.
He was also the only rookie with any sort of punt return experience. Here's to looking up, David Durden!
Gallup Is Finally Ready To Play
Michael Gallup admitted he was too cautious with his knee last season.
“You know how you're supposed to play. That didn't happen for me last year. I was thinking too much. My knee was feeling sore and it was just different.”
Gallup continued that although he was medically clear to play NFL football, The Dallas Cowboys 6th year vet couldn't shake the negative thoughts last year,
“I was thinking it, but I didn't want to say it. If you say it, you believe it. I didn't really want to say it. I had those thoughts, but you gotta block them out.”
MG admits that he had never had a big injury like that, and he had to work harder. He had to prepare better. And now, he's feeling better.
“I'm very confident I'll feel like that guy again. Very confident.”
The entire Cowboys Nation is loving this optimism, and with a trio of Lamb, Cooks, and potential of 2019-2021 Gallup, we are kind of salivating at this point.
Jim Brown, Rest In Peace
An icon on and off the field has passed peacefully. Jim Brown, running back for the Browns from 1957-1965, has left this earth!
Brown was a pro bowler every season of his career, and the Dallas Cowboys were fortunately “unfortunate” enough to have played the brightest NFL star 11 times. Brown won 10 of those games and averaged nearly 96 yards, scoring 8 times.
The Dallas Cowboys wrote a nice summary of his career against them and in the NFL, but no words are going to accomplish what Jim Brown did while playing in the NFL and being an ambassador afterwards.
Rest in peace, Jim Brown. You deserve it.
