Eric Kendricks praises Mike Zimmer, talent in LB room

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Kendricks on Zimmer’s syle, state of Cowboys LBs – Patrik Walker, DallasCowboys.com

The former All-Pro is giddy about being with his old coach again.

It’ll all begin, and end, with how quickly everyone involved can come together under Zimmer’s system and tutelage, a Super Bowl-winning defensive backs coach in Dallas who garners a ton of respect from around the league — now returned to try and again elevate the team to heights it’s not enjoyed since the mid-1990s.

The first rule of Zim Club is a simple one: don’t make him “grumpy”, as the 67-year-old described it in his initial press conference after rejoining the Cowboys.

From there, the rest should quickly fall into place, defensively.

“That guy’s a true football guy, through and through,” Kendricks said of Zimmer. “He watches [game] film on his off days. He really enjoys it. It’s good to be back with him.

“… He has a high standard of performance. He’s strict, personality-wise, but he always says, ‘You take care of me, I’ll take care of you.’ I’ve talked to the guys about Zim but, at the end of the day, ball is ball and we’ve got to be disciplined and on our cues.”

Stephon Gilmore needs to be in a Dallas Cowboys uniform in 2024 – Shane Taylor, Inside The Star

Getting Gilmore back on top of drafting Caelen Carson would put the Cowboys cornerback room on another level.

I don’t mind that Gilmore is 33 years old. He showed us he could play at a high level still. Getting Diggs back with Bland and JLew, that cornerback room could be one of the best in football.

Outside of Jadeveon Clowney trying to get him to return to the Carolina Panthers, things have been quiet for Gilmore.

Zeke says the jersey change is just like a new chapter in Dallas. Although he only signed for one year.

Leaving 21 wide open for Gilmore to make his way back and claim the number he wore after Zeke spent last season with the Pats in New England.

Gilmore had 68 tackles, 13 passes defended, and two interceptions for the Cowboys last season. He only allowed four passing touchdowns and allowed a 60.3 passer rating when targeted.

Dak Prescott unconcerned about CeeDee Lamb’s absence at voluntary offseason program – Charean Williams, Pro Football Talk

Prescott knows Lamb is handling what he needs to handle, which makes this a non-issue.

Cowboys receiver CeeDee Lamb is skipping the voluntary offseason workouts as he seeks a new contract. It doesn’t sound as if the sides are close to a new deal.

So, the question becomes: How long does Lamb stay away?

Running back Ezekiel Elliott and right guard Zack Martin both held out into training camp in recent summers, and the Cowboys eventually gave both what they wanted before the season started.

For now, quarterback Dak Prescott isn’t fretting his No. 1 receiver’s absence.

“We’re roommates all of July, so if that’s the case, that’ll be fine,” Prescott said, via Patrik Walker of the team website. “No worries. I know what he’s doing. I know how he’s preparing. . . . All the confidence in the way he’s preparing and how he’s doing.”

Why drafting well is key for Cowboys to pay and keep Prescott, Lamb, and Parsons – OCC, Blogging The Boys

Dallas has become one of the NFL’s best drafting teams, and it’ll need to continue to keep their core of start players.

If the Cowboys want to continue paying their top players at top prices, every draft has to deliver immediate contributors and provide immediate cap savings. It also means they can’t keep high-priced veterans around forever. The Cowboys have to make some hard choices on the offensive and defensive line next year and will likely remain conservative at other positions on top of that.

They say you can’t have All-Pro players at every position in the NFL. The data here suggests you won’t even be able to pay just 10 (potential) Pro Bowlers at market rates.

Which 10 positions make up your Top 10 is debatable of course, but you’ll always have to make some kind of trade-off: You think the team needs a top TE? You probably can’t have that and two top WRs unless you make significant concessions somewhere else. Want a top safety? Get yourself some cheap defensive tackles or forget about paying top rates for both DEs. Want two top cornerbacks? Better hope they can cover really, really well, because you may not have any money left to invest in pass rushers.

And if you don’t want to make any of those choices?

Draft well. And draft the Money 5 high in every draft.

Grading the Cowboys’ NFL draft class and recent signing of Ezekiel Elliott – Jon Machota and Saad Yousuf, The Athletic

Dallas got some favorable marks for their recent additions to their roster.

The Day 1 trade back

Machota: A

The Cowboys have given critics plenty of fuel for the fire over the last four months. It started with the embarrassing wild-card loss to the Green Bay Packers. Jerry Jones has since piled on with constantly talking about being “all in” despite the franchise doing very little in free agency. And then there is how they have apparently made no progress in contract negotiations with star players. But even the harshest of critics had to be impressed with the way Dallas traded with Detroit on Thursday night, giving up pick No. 24 this year and a seventh-round pick next year to get No. 29 and No. 73 this year.

After losing C Tyler Biadasz and LT Tyron Smith in free agency, the offensive line was clearly the Cowboys’ biggest area of need. To basically turn their first-round pick into potentially new starters at left tackle (Tyler Guyton) and center (Cooper Beebe), was impressive. There will likely be some bumps in the road as Guyton transitions from being a right tackle in college and Beebe doesn’t have much experience at center, but both picks make a lot of sense. Guyton could have easily been Dallas’ pick at 24. He was the best offensive tackle prospect remaining when the Cowboys initially went on the clock. Beebe was the best interior offensive lineman available when they picked early in the third round. And even if Beebe, who was projected by most experts to be an NFL guard, doesn’t work out at center, he could eventually become Zack Martin’s successor at right guard.

Yousuf: A

The headliner for most teams’ draft is their first-round selection but it’s incomplete to judge the Cowboys by their Day 1 pick alone. Following Tyron Smith’s departure, left tackle was arguably the top need for the Cowboys, especially given their insistence on wanting to keep Tyler Smith at guard. With Biadasz heading to Washington, the Cowboys also had a void at center and had their top center prospect, Graham Barton, available at their original slot (24). When you have a player high on your board and at a position of need, it can be hard to pass. But the Cowboys made the right decision by trading back to No. 29 and picking up an extra third-round pick in the process.

Barton going at No. 26 made their choice at No. 29 even easier. Guyton was the last tackle on their board with true first-round, starter potential. There’s rawness to Guyton’s game but the potential is obvious and there’s a path forward to seeing him as the left tackle in Dallas for a while. Meanwhile, the Cowboys selected Beebe with the pick they added. Beebe is expected to move to center and is arguably the best value pick of the Cowboys’ draft haul. Given the way the draft lined up between the interior offensive linemen and tackles, if the Cowboys didn’t get a tackle in the first round, they likely wouldn’t have gotten a starting-caliber tackle in this draft. But by still getting Guyton after trading back and landing Beebe — on paper — they patched up their offensive line holes with one swing.

Biggest question facing each team following 2024 NFL Draft – Tyler Sullivan, CBSSports

Not really the biggest question in Dallas, but a headline grabber for sure.

Is Mike McCarthy going to get fired?

The major question in Dallas throughout this coming season is going to surround the job status of head coach Mike McCarthy. Jerry Jones is allowing McCarthy to enter into a lame-duck year with his contract running out at the end of the season, which sets the stage for a possible in-season firing if the Cowboys were to get off to a bad start.