Cowboys To Sign CB Cobie Durant
The Rams importing the 2025 Chiefs’ starting cornerback duo will send Cobie Durant elsewhere. The fifth-year corner is heading to Dallas, according to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler and Todd Archer.
The Cowboys are signing Durant to a one-year deal. A primary Rams starting corner over the past two seasons, Durant has extensive experience on the perimeter and in the slot. A Dallas team that has run into regular CB injuries over the past two seasons will likely turn to Durant as a starter in 2026.
A 2022 fourth-round pick, Durant became a central component in the Rams’ low-cost cornerback plan following the 2023 Jalen Ramsey trade. Los Angeles turned to the Division I-FCS product (South Carolina State) as a 32-game starter from 2024-25; he started nine games in 2023, becoming a young option in a position group that soon included vets Darious Williams and Ahkello Witherspoon.
Deployed more as a slot option in 2023 (349 inside snaps), Durant became an outside staple for L.A. over the past two years. After 132 slot snaps in 2024, he saw only 34 (compared to 744 boundary plays, per Pro Football Focus) last season. PFF graded Durant 43rd overall among corners last season — up from 56th in 2024. Coverage stats classify Durant as consistent between 2024 and ’25, as he is charged with allowing 54.0 and 55.9 completion rates as the closest defender to go with 71.2 and 79.2 passer rating-against numbers. Those stack up reasonably well among CB regulars.
Durant intercepted three passes last season and broke up 15 between the 2024 and ’25 campaigns. He notched pick-sixes in 2022 and ’25. The 5-foot-11 cover man is on the older end for a first-time cornerback FA, turning 28 in February. That makes a one-year contract rather risky, as time is running out for the starter to secure a nice payday. Though, this one-year Dallas offer likely indicates a big market did not form here.
The Rams’ decision to keep costs low at corner may have cost them a Super Bowl berth, however, as Sam Darnold torched the L.A. secondary for 346 yards and three touchdown passes in the NFC championship game. Los Angeles has since traded a four-pick package for Trent McDuffie and signed his four-year Chiefs teammate Jaylen Watson to a three-year, $51MM deal. As the Rams transformed their CB balance sheet, their holdovers will either see their roles reduced or, in Durant’s case, change teams.
Cutting Trevon Diggs after an injury-filled stretch on his pricey extension, the Cowboys paid DaRon Bland last year but saw him suffer a season-ending injury. Foot trouble has plagued the versatile DB. Dallas drafted Shavon Revel in last year’s third round. Revel figures to be a key part of the Cowboys’ 2026 secondary, but after fielding an abysmal defense last year, the Cowboys needed reinforcements. New DC Christian Parker has identified one in Durant.
Rams Likely To Move Jonah Jackson To C
Rams head coach Sean McVay is “leaning towards” installing offensive lineman Jonah Jackson as the team’s starting center, according to The Athletic’s Jordan Rodrigue.
Jackson signed with the Rams on a three-year, $51MM deal back in March after spending the first four years of his career with the Lions. A shoulder injury in training camp sidelined him for the preseason, but he has been taking reps at center as he ramps up to return.
Jackson has spent almost his entire career at guard, with just 24 career snaps at center — in Week 18 of the 2021 season — per Pro Football Focus. But the Rams are returning both of their starting guards in recently extended Kevin Dotson and 2023 second-round pick Steve Avila, so Jackson’s move to center allows McVay to get his five best offensive linemen on the field.
Avila frequently played center at TCU but worked as a guard — as since-departed Coleman Shelton manned the Rams’ center post last season — as a rookie. Avila’s mobility at guard is crucial to Los Angeles’ offensive scheme, according to Rodrigue. That said, Avila spent the offseason back at center, as Shelton signed with the Bears, only to be moved back to guard just before the regular season. That will make for an interesting transition for the former Big 12 standout.
McVay also announced that third-year running back Kyren Williams will be the team’s punt returner, per ESPN’s Sarah Barshop. Williams seized the Rams’ RB1 job last season with 1,350 yards from scrimmage and 15 touchdowns in just 12 games and is set to reprise his role this season. His new special teams gig could indicate that his offensive touches will go down with former Michigan standout Blake Corum also on the roster.
It is worth noting that McVay also handed the punt returning job to Cooper Kupp in 2021. He went on to lead the NFL in receptions, receiving yards, and touchdowns on his way to Offensive Player of the Year honors. Kupp’s punt returning duties did not impact his workload; instead, he simply fair caught 20 out his 21 punt returns in the regular season, per PFF. McVay may be employing a similar strategy this year: get the ball in the safest hands possible to avoid any costly muffed punts.
The rest of the Rams’ 53-man roster has taken shape over the last week, with Cobie Durant as the primary backup to outside cornerbacks Tre’Davious White and Darious Williams, writes Rodrigue. Third-year defensive back Quentin Lake is expected to start at the ‘star’ position in the Rams’ sub packages where he will operate as a safety, nickelback, or dimeback depending on the play call.