Cowboys To Place Sean Lee On IR
The Cowboys will place linebacker Sean Lee on injured reserve to start the year, according to Michael Gehlken of the Dallas Morning News. Meanwhile, the Cowboys are expected to park at least a few more players on IR thanks to a slew of training camp injuries.
This is, unfortunately, familiar territory for Lee. The veteran saw his 2014 season completely wiped out by a torn ACL tear and played in just 18 total games between 2017 and 2018. Still, the Cowboys know what he’s capable of doing when healthy, having employed him since 2010.
Lee did manage to stay on the field for much of 2019 and he closed out the year on a high note. After tallying double-digit tackles in two of his final five games, including a 17-stop showing in their Week 16 game against the Eagles, the Cowboys re-upped him on a one-year, $4.5MM deal. All in all, Lee finished out with 86 stops, one interception, one sack, and four passes defensed as he filled in for Leighton Vander Esch.
Gehlken adds that cornerback Jourdan Lewis is also likely to land on IR with a left ankle injury. Among the other banged up Cowboys: wide receivers Amari Cooper and Ventell Bryant, linebacker Luke Gifford, cornerback Chidobe Awuzie, safety Xavier Woods, and right tackle La’el Collins.
Cowboys To Release Ha Ha Clinton-Dix
The Cowboys are moving on from Ha Ha Clinton-Dix quickly. After signing the veteran safety to a one-year deal in March, Dallas will release him, Todd Archer of ESPN.com tweets.
Clinton-Dix signed for a guaranteed $2.5MM, so this move will tag the Cowboys with a bit of dead money. It will, however, free up $1.75MM in cap savings. While this marks the first release of Clinton-Dix’s career, the former first-round pick may well move to a fifth team before what would be his seventh NFL season.
Expected to be a starter alongside Xavier Woods, Clinton-Dix evidently did not justify the modest salary commitment. He signed a one-year deal with the Bears last year and started 16 games for their No. 4-ranked scoring defense. Now. Clinton-Dix joins Gerald McCoy as 2020 Cowboy signees jettisoned before the season’s outset.
While this could accelerate the Earl Thomas-to-Dallas hype, the Cowboys are said to be split on the All-Pro safety. Mike McCarthy, in particular, was not believed to be on board — as of late last month — with bringing in Thomas. But Jerry Jones has not ruled it out, and the owner/personnel czar certainly would have the final say. Indeed, NFL.com’s Jane Slater tweets this does not necessarily mean a Thomas signing is imminent.
The Cowboys have used Woods and Jeff Heath as their safety starters over the past two years, doing so amid constant rumors about upgrades to the position. Their most notable effort came when they offered a second-round pick for Thomas in 2018. After Heath’s defection to Las Vegas, Dallas signed Clinton-Dix. The Cowboys have former Giants draftee Darian Thompson, 2019 sixth-round pick Donovan Wilson and rookie UDFA hopeful Luther Kirk in their safety stable currently.
A former Packers draftee, Clinton-Dix has started 90 career games and made the Pro Bowl in 2016. Pro Football Focus graded him as its No. 19 overall safety last season. Green Bay traded Clinton-Dix to Washington at the 2018 deadline, and he signed with Chicago the following March. He will likely head to another city for work soon.
Minor NFL Transactions: 9/2/20
We’ll keep track of today’s minor moves here:
Atlanta Falcons
- Signed: QB Kyle Lauletta
Carolina Panthers
- Signed: LB James Onwualu
- Waived/injured: WR Tommylee Lewis
Dallas Cowboys
- Waived: T Pace Murphy, TE Charlie Taumoepeau, QB Clayton Thorson
- Waived/injured: OT Mitch Hyatt, OT Wyatt Miller
Denver Broncos
- Acquired via trade: 2021 7th-Round Pick (from Giants)
Minnesota Vikings
- Waived: RB Tony Brooks-James, LB Jordan Fehr, TE Stacy Keely, LB Quentin Poling, DE Anthony Zettel
- Placed on IR: DE Kenny Willekes
New York Giants
- Acquired via trade: CB Isaac Yiadom
- Signed: C Jon Halapio, WR Johnny Holton, LS Carson Tinker
- Waived: S Jaquarius Landrews, OL Jackson Dennis
- Waived/injured: TE Rysen John
New York Jets
- Signed: RB Pete Guerriero
- Waived: LB B.J. Bello, DL Sterling Johnson
San Francisco 49ers
- Signed: DE Cameron Malveaux
Tennessee Titans
- Signed: S Doug Middleton
- Waived: G Avery Gennesy
Cowboys To Cut WR Devin Smith
Devin Smith played a minor role for the Cowboys last season, starting two games despite not playing in any during the 2017 and ’18 campaigns. But Dallas will not carry the wideout over to its 53-man roster this year.
The Cowboys are cutting Smith, Jon Machota of The Athletic tweets. They also waived offensive lineman Adam Redmond on Wednesday.
A former second-round Jets pick, Smith signed with the Cowboys via reserve/futures contract in January of 2019. This followed an injury-plagued New York stay, but the Ohio State product could not carve out much of a role with Dallas either. He caught five passes last season, and while one of them went for a long touchdown, Smith only played in four games.
Dallas drafted CeeDee Lamb in Round 1 and has other capable holdovers behind starters Amari Cooper and Michael Gallup. Originally a Colts UDFA out of Harvard, Redmond played in 10 games for the Cowboys in 2018 but did not see action last season. He landed on IR in November.
Cowboys’ Mike McCarthy Doesn’t Want Earl Thomas?
Jerry Jones is still on board, but Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy is less-than-enthusiastic about the prospect of signing Earl Thomas, Ed Werder of ESPN.com (Twitter link) hears. McCarthy, who places a major emphasis on locker room culture, is concerned about the veteran safety’s fit in Dallas.
Thomas, a seven-time Pro Bowler, left his past two clubs on bad terms. As one league source told Werder, “Contact anyone you know with the Ravens or the Seahawks and ask if the positives outweigh the negatives.” In Seattle, Thomas literally left the team with an extended middle finger as he was carted off of the field. In Baltimore, Thomas failed to grasp the playbook in his first year and wore out his welcome last week when he got into an altercation with a teammate.
Still, the final decision ultimately lies with Jones, who has made no secret of his fondness for the safety. Thomas has reciprocated, on several occasions through multiple channels. Thomas might not be the prototypical team player, but his potential as a game-changer is undeniable. Thomas has spent the bulk of his career as one of the NFL’s very best safeties, resulting in 713 tackles and 30 interceptions over the course of his career.
For now, the Cowboys are set to start the season with new addition Ha Ha Clinton-Dix, Xavier Woods, and Darian Thompson as the leaders of the group.
NFC East Rumors: Rivera, Sanders, Cowboys
Ron Rivera announced last week he is battling lymph node cancer. The new Washington HC will attempt to coach the team through his treatment process, though Jack Del Rio is in place as the emergency fill-in. Rivera will undergo a mixture of chemotherapy and proton therapy, and John Keim of ESPN.com notes the veteran coach’s treatment schedule will feature five per week over a seven-week period. Upon hiring Del Rio, Rivera prioritized having someone with head coaching experience on his staff — which he did not have in Carolina. Del Rio served as an acting head coach for part of the 2013 season, leading the Broncos while John Fox recovered from heart surgery.
Here is the latest from the NFC East:
- Gerald McCoy‘s Cowboys tenure may not be over. Despite the organization taking advantage of the injury protection it included in the Pro Bowl defensive tackle’s contract, and releasing him months after he signed the three-year deal, McCoy would like to play for the Cowboys in 2021, Calvin Watkins of the Dallas Morning News tweets. The 10-year veteran indicated he will help the younger defensive linemen still on this year’s Cowboys roster, Ed Werder of ESPN.com adds (via Twitter). McCoy underwent successful quadriceps surgery last week, per Watkins.
- A key component in the fantasy drafts taking place worldwide this week, Miles Sanders is currently not practicing with the Eagles. And the team has been vague as to why. Philadelphia’s starting running back is dealing with a “lower-body injury,” according to the team. However, the second-year back is expected to be ready to play by Week 1, Tim McManus of ESPN.com notes. Having lost Jordan Howard in free agency and seeing the Seahawks sign one of their UFA targets, Carlos Hyde, the Eagles are set to rely on Sanders more than they did last season. The Eagles were also interested in Devonta Freeman, and while the ex-Falcons Pro Bowler remains available, the team is going with Boston Scott and Corey Clement as its backup backs at this point.
- Graham Gano‘s Giants deal is worth up to $2.5MM, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. The Giants guaranteed their new kicker $1MM. This is more money than the team gave Chandler Catanzaro, whose Giants stay lasted barely three weeks. Gano has 10 years’ experience, though he missed all of last season with a knee injury.
Latest On Cowboys, Earl Thomas
Will the Cowboys’ longstanding love affair with Earl Thomas result in a deal? That depends on who you ask. The Cowboys are not expected to pursue Thomas, according to NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport (Twitter link) and other reports from earlier this week. However, in an interview with 105.3 The Fan, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones did not rule out the possibility of signing the safety (Twitter link via Field Yates of ESPN.com). 
Jones explained that the Cowboys have discussed Thomas internally and considered him against their current group of safeties. Next, Jones says he’ll chat directly with Thomas’ agent.
Thomas, a seven-time Pro Bowler, quickly wore out his welcome with the Ravens. His final years with the Seahawks played out similarly and included several overt S.O.S. signals to the Cowboys. In theory, the Cowboys don’t need Thomas, thanks to the addition of Ha Ha Clinton-Dix. Still, it’s hard to pass up the chance to add Thomas to the group, which also includes Xavier Woods and Darian Thompson.
Thomas, 31, registered 49 tackles, two sacks, two interceptions, and four passes defensed in his first season with the Ravens. For his career, Thomas has notched 713 stops, 30 interceptions, and three First-Team All-Pro nods.
Cowboys Won’t Pursue Earl Thomas?
The Cowboys have been connected with Earl Thomas for years, but there’s “nothing” brewing on that front right now, a source tells Mike Florio of PFT. Thomas, of course, is newly available following his release from the Ravens. 
[RELATED: Ravens Release Earl Thomas]
The Cowboys tried to pry Thomas away from the Seahawks two years ago when he was entangled in a contractual dispute with the team. Thomas, meanwhile, added fuel to the fire by repeatedly expressing his love for the Cowboys. The multiple-time Pro Bowler bowed to the Dallas bench after an interception, cut plans short to catch the Cowboys on TV, and leaked further word of his interest to the press through backchannels.
Ultimately, those trade talks were not fruitful. Last year, the Cowboys stood pat as Thomas made the rounds in free agency, but that likely had more to do with his asking price than anything else.
Historically, the Cowboys have been willing to take chances on players with red flags, but Thomas’ rocky year with Baltimore may have dulled their interest. It’s also possible that the Cowboys are finally comfortable with their safety situation after adding Ha Ha Clinton-Dix earlier in the offseason.
As Thomas looks for his next opportunity, he’ll likely have his reps battle things out with the Ravens. The Ravens’ official announcement of the release cited “personal conduct that has adversely affected” the team. As Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link) notes, that wording indicates that the Ravens will come after Thomas for money.
Ravens Release Earl Thomas
11:37am: The Ravens have released Thomas, the team announced. The wording of the announcement suggests that Baltimore will indeed attempt to void his $10MM guaranteed salary for 2020 for conduct detrimental to the team.
9:12am: The Ravens will trade or release star safety Earl Thomas, as Adam Schefter of ESPN.com reports (via Twitter). Thomas got into a physical altercation with teammate Chuck Clark at practice on Friday, and the team sent the three-time First Team All-Pro home on Saturday. Baltimore told Thomas to stay away from the facility today, so it definitely sounded like a parting of the ways was in the works.
Schefter notes in a separate tweet that the Cowboys, who have long been connected to Thomas, are once again a candidate to land him. The ESPN scribe adds that Baltimore has been trying to complete a trade throughout the weekend, though obviously nothing has materialized just yet (Twitter link). Ian Rapoport of NFL.com says (via Twitter) that the 49ers and Texans could also be in the mix, while Michael Gehlken of the Dallas Morning News says the Cowboys will not trade for Thomas (Twitter link). Dallas could make a play for him if he is released.
The Ravens’ decision comes just one year after they landed Thomas, arguably the best safety of his generation, on a four-year, $55MM free agent contract. So any club that trades for the 31-year-old would be taking on the remainder of that hefty deal, though Thomas could certainly agree to some sort of restructure in order to facilitate a trade.
Without such a restructure, the Ravens would see a $15MM dead cap charge this year, though Thomas was set to count $15MM against the cap if he stayed with Baltimore, so that’s basically a wash. However, the Ravens would be left with a $10MM dead money hit in 2021 (when the salary cap is likely to be reduced), making this a major financial issue.
Of course, the Ravens don’t have a ton of leverage in trade talks right now, so a release could be forthcoming. If that happens, then obviously the same dead money charges would apply, though Baltimore could try to void Thomas’ guaranteed $10MM salary for 2020 for conduct detrimental to the team, thereby alleviating the burden. Thomas would almost certainly grieve such a move, but Baltimore would stand a good chance of succeeding in the grievance process. After all, the altercation started when Clark, Thomas’ would-be running mate at safety, became upset after Thomas blew a coverage assignment. Clark slammed his helmet to the ground, and Thomas escalated matters by throwing a punch. Thomas later posted a video of the play itself on social media, which is clearly prohibited.
That the Ravens are willing to take on a potentially massive dead cap hit while parting ways with a player like Thomas is indicative of just how bad of a fit he was in the team’s locker room. The incident with Clark, who is well-respected by his teammates, angered a number of prominent players, as Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic details. And last year, Thomas was late for or missed several team and position meetings, and he reportedly already missed one position meeting this year.
His Ravens teammates had grown weary of his antics and wanted him gone, but they might very well miss his on-field presence. Though Thomas struggled in the early portion of the 2019 campaign as he learned Baltimore’s defensive system, his play improved considerably as the year went on, and opposing offenses generally avoided him. He did not make many splash plays, but he was consistently strong in coverage and earned his seventh career Pro Bowl nod.
For now, Thomas will be replaced by DeShon Elliot, a promising young player who has dealt with injury problems in the early stages of his career. Elliott was selected in the sixth round of the 2018 draft.
Cowboys Rework Tyron Smith’s Contract
The Cowboys converted $8.9MM Tyron Smith‘s base salary into a signing bonus (Twitter link via Field Yates of ESPN.com). With that, the Cowboys have freed up at least $6.675MM in cap space for 2020. It’s not immediately clear whether a void year has also been added to the tackle’s deal, but if that’s the case, they’ll have upwards of $7.1MM in additional room. 
[RELATED: Cowboys Release Gerald McCoy]
Smith, 29, is under club control through 2023 thanks to the eight-year, $97.6MM extension he inked with the Cowboys in 2014. Since then, he’s made similar concessions to help the Cowboys navigate their numbers crunch.
Smith made six straight Pro Bowls from 2014 through 2019 and was named as a first- or second-team All-Pro in four of those campaigns. Unfortunately, injuries have been a roadblock in recent years. He has not played in a full season since 2015 – a mix of knee, back, groin, and hip issues have limited him to just 13 regular season contests in each of the last four years.
The extra space could give the Cowboys some extra ammunition to help replace Gerald McCoy. After McCoy tore his quadriceps, the Cowboys tore up his three-year, $18MM deal. The Cowboys have support thanks to the additions of Dontari Poe, Aldon Smith, and Everson Griffen, but more interior help couldn’t hurt.