Jerry Jones (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)
The Dallas Cowboys are one of the more fascinating teams to monitor between now and the start of the 2024 NFL season.

Back in January, Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones stated that his team would be “all-in” this offseason, but his moves up to this point haven’t reflected that. Even more interestingly, he has yet to extend quarterback Dak Prescott, linebacker Micah Parsons and wide receiver CeeDee Lamb.

Prescott and Lamb are entering the final year of their respective deals, while Parsons has two seasons remaining on his rookie deal.

The regular season is still four months away, however, so Jones has plenty of time to get those extensions done while also exploring ways to bolster the roster of a team that has finished 12-5 in each of the last three years.

Bleacher Report’s Alex Ballentine recently looked at possible trade and cut candidates in Big D with the 2024 NFL Draft in the books. Ballentine made the case for Dallas to move on from well-respected backup Cooper Rush, who’s won five of six career starts in place of an injured Prescott:

“Unfortunately for him, the Cowboys took advantage of Trey Lance being made available on the trade market. They traded a 2024 fourth-round pick to the San Francisco 49ers for the former No. 3 overall pick.

They ended up carrying (Trey) Lance and Cooper Rush on the active roster. With the new rule that NFL teams can carry a third emergency quarterback without using a 53-man roster spots, it’s a little easier to hang on to developmental options.

But the Cowboys can save $2.3 million against the cap by either trading or releasing Rush.

Given how tight the Cowboys budget is right now, it just doesn’t make sense to pass on that kind of cap savings when Lance has now been around for a year to learn the offense and step in if Prescott is injured.”

Rush won his lone start for the Dallas Cowboys in a 2021 “Sunday Night Football” game against the Minnesota Vikings, throwing a last-minute game-winning touchdown to Amari Cooper. In 2022, he went 4-1 while Prescott was sidelined with a fractured thumb, saving Dallas’ season and propelling them to a second straight playoff berth.

Dallas Cowboys Have To Start Making Moves

Regardless of what Jerry Jones and company decide to do with Cooper Rush, it’s time for Dallas’ owner to get serious and start making some moves.

Stars like Tee Higgins, Trey Hendrickson, Courtland Sutton, Deebo Samuel and Brandon Aiyuk could be available via trade. There are still plenty of notable free agents available, including David Bakhtiari, Justin Simmons, Donovan Smith, Hunter Renfrow and Xavien Howard.

Jones has no excuses at this stage. It’s time for him to follow up his “all-in” promise by actually making some transactions that put Dallas in a better position to compete for a championship in 2024.