Dallas Cowboys 2022 NFL preseason round-up: Roster cuts, Gallup, quarterbacks…

Explaining the Cowboys’ roster moves

The deadline to have the roster down to 53 men was yesterday at 4 p.m. and the Cowboys have made 28 moves to get there. 25 players were waived, two were waived/injured, and one was placed on Reserve/Non-Football Injury.

Of note, the Cowboys waived all three backup quarterbacks Cooper Rush, Will Grier, and Ben DiNucci, their only kicker Brett Maher, and their only long-snapper Jake McQuaide. They also waived running back Malik Davis, who was challenging Rico Dowdle for the RB3 spot.

Here is the complete list of roster moves they made this week:

Waived:

Waived/Injured:

Reserve/NFI:

No backup for Dak

It may seem confusing that the Cowboys cut all their backup quarterbacks, but of course, they don’t plan for it to stay that way. If they have the opportunity to bring either Grier or Rush (or both) back, they will. Rush will more than likely be the guaranteed one to come back - he has accrued his four years in the NFL, meaning he’s not subject to waivers. That means he can sign with any team he wants for any deal they want to give him. If Rush is okay with riding it out a little longer while the Cowboys make some other moves, they could call him back in to re-sign. Grier, who is subject to waivers, could be of interest to other teams after his preseason performance, but the Cowboys are taking their chances that no one will claim him and they can put him on the practice squad.

If for some reason Grier is claimed and Rush decides not to come back to Dallas, the Cowboys would have to sign a free agent. There is no way they would start the season without a backup for Dak. They are slim pickin’s, but there are some players available. Of the bunch, they are looking at 33-year-old Cam Newton, underdeveloped Kellen Mond, 0-3 Sean Mannion, and underwhelming Josh Johnson. So let’s hope their plan works out.

Only one special teamer on the Cowboys

The team cut kicker Maher and long-snapper McQuaide, neither of whom are subject to waivers. It’s the same idea as above. They can make their moves with other players who need injury designations and eventually re-sign the players they “cut”. At the moment, Tyron Smith and James Washington are still on the active roster, but will likely both soon be placed on Injured Reserve. That would free up two more spots. Of course, to bring back those two and Rush, they’ll need to free up at least three. Where they will make that move is not certain, but they’ll make it.

Michael Gallup moves off the PUP list

Cowboys’ wide receiver Michael Gallup, who’s been recovering from his ACL surgery in February, has officially been taken off the PUP list after passing his physical, just after making the Cowboys’ 53-man roster. Known to be a bit of an exaggerator, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones stated his confidence in Gallup’s current physical state by saying that “if [week 1] was the Super Bowl, he’d be lining up and playing”. Of course, week 1 isn’t the Super Bowl and the stakes aren’t that high, so that confidence level could waver considering there’s a full season ahead. And yet, things are looking positive for Gallup, who was running routes with Prescott at the Chargers joint practice on August 18.

Gallup has already ruled himself out for the season opener against Tampa Bay, so I wouldn’t get your hopes up about that, but at least he is looking hopeful to return before October.

Update on the Tyron Smith problem, sign Chuma Edoga?

The nightmare that is the Cowboys losing left tackle Tyron Smith to an injury until December (“at best”) continues to torment them. Rookie Tyler Smith was all set to be starting at left guard, but now will be replacing Tyron Smith completely at left tackle, a position he hasn’t played at since June. He wasn’t able to get that practice in during the Cowboys preseason finale due to a minor injury of his own - a high ankle sprain. Though he was cleared to return to practice, it is not exactly comforting to know he’s dealing with that at all.

Previous rumors were swirling that the Cowboys could pick up Andrew Whitworth, who retired after winning the Super Bowl last year with the Rams. That was quickly shot down when Whitworth said he has no interest in that whatsoever. So, unlike that rumor, the rumor that they were looking to trade for Jets tackle Chuma Edoga proved to have some veracity to it.

Edoga was the Jets’ third-round pick in 2019 and has played in 12 games, starting every game his rookie season before falling off a bit in 2020. The Cowboys need to add someone to their o-line, and Edoga is the best idea they’ve had since the offseason, in which they did next to nothing to fix their o-line. They were originally looking to trade for him, but the Jets released him before that could happen.

The Cowboys weren’t able to get the deal, so would now have to pick Edoga up from the waiver wire. But that gives the rest of the league a chance at him as well.