No Dallas Cowboys on NFL’s Top 30 over 30 list a good thing
No Dallas Cowboys players appeared on the NFL’s Top 30 over 30 list. So why is that a good thing?
The Dallas Cowboys are viewed by many as having one of the most talented rosters in the entire NFL. Yet, this team ended up posting a pedestrian 8-8 record in 2019. So where’s the disconnect?
Clearly, owner and general manager Jerry Jones, his son executive vice president Stephen Jones, and the rest of the Cowboys’ brass think they know the answer. This offseason, they parted ways with head coach Jason Garrett and hired Mike McCarthy to take his place.
The Cowboys also dismissed nearly the entire coaching staff to boot. But they notably retained first-year offensive coordinator Kellen Moore after Dallas fielded the league’s top offensive unit when it came to yardage in 2019.
As for the roster itself, the core set of stars remains. This offseason, quarterback Dak Prescott was franchise tagged and new contracts were handed out to wide receiver Amari Cooper, tight end Blake Jarwin, linebacker Sean Lee, cornerback Anthony Brown, and several others.
The fact is the Cowboys’ uber-talented roster possesses a very young nucleus. And that point was perfectly illustrated recently when not a single Dallas player appeared on the NFL’s Top 30 players over the age of 30 list.
There are currently only nine players who are over the age of 30 on the Cowboys’ currently bloated 80-man roster as of the writing of this article. And of those nine, four of them were just signed this offseason as free agents. The oldest current Cowboy is long snapper L.P. Ladouceur at 39 years of age. He’s followed by Sean Lee, who’s 34.
But the elder statesman of America’s Team (outside of Lee) is likely seven-time Pro Bowl left tackle Tyron Smith, who is entering his 10th season in the NFL. A first-round selection back in 2011, Smith will amazingly not turn 30-years of age until December. Six-time Pro Bowl right guard Zack Martin, who was drafted in the first round three years after Smith, will somehow turn 30 the month before Tyron does.
The Dallas Cowboys have a young nucleus of star players
The truth is, many of the Cowboys’ superstars are under 30, which should be very exciting for fans. Prescott is only 27. Both running back Ezekiel Elliott and linebacker Jaylon Smith just turned 25 years old. Four-time Pro Bowl wide receiver Amari Cooper is somehow just 26. Defensive end War Daddy DeMarcus Lawrence is 28.
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Entering his third season in Dallas, linebacker Leighton Vander Esch is just 23 years old. Offensive guard Connor Williams is only 23 as well. Tight end Blake Jarwin is 26. Right Tackle La’el Collins is only 27. And to round things off, the Cowboys’ top pick in this year’s draft, Oklahoma wide receiver CeeDee Lamb, is the youngest player on the roster at a mere 21-years old.