For the 27th season in a row, the Dallas Cowboys will not be a part of Conference Championship Weekend. While they lost to the superior team — maybe the best in the NFL — in the San Francisco 49ers, the Cowboys are the brunt of every joke on NFL Twitter, and there’s nothing fans can do about it.
After all, Sunday’s loss goes down on another missed opportunity to win a championship with this current core of players. Dallas’ window is still open, but the year-to-year trajectory is impossible to predict given the roster turnover that’s bound to happen each offseason.
The Cowboys have a lot of tough decisions to make with impending free agents and potential cuts to open up cap space. While more than five players will surely leave this offseason, these five, in particular, feel like locks to depart.
5 Cowboys who just played final game with the franchise
5. Anthony Brown, CB
Brown finally got his due respect after the Cowboys secondary struggled following his season-ending injury, but that doesn’t mean he’ll be back in Arlington. The injury marked the third time in four seasons he missed at least five games through injury, and he’s missed a combined 19 games during that span.
Brown is a solid NFL cornerback, but the injury history is alarming and he’ll be on the wrong side of 30 by the middle of next season.
A former sixth-round pick in 2016, Brown allowed just a 55.4% completion rate this season when targeted, but he was victimized on explosive plays pretty consistently. His 12.4 yards per catch allowed is a testament to that, as was his nine missed tackles, and 561 yards and five touchdowns allowed in coverage.
With DaRon Bland becoming an instant playmaker as a rookie, and Jourdan Lewis under contract for 2023, it’s likely the Cowboys let Brown leave this offseason and pursue depth options either through the draft or in free agency.
4. Jason Peters, OT
If you squint, you can envision a world where the Cowboys re-sign Peters to be their backup swing tackle. If you open your eyes, though, you can envision a world where Peters, who turned 41 Sunday and is rehabbing another injury, takes up retirement after he went unsigned for almost the entire offseason.
That’s not to say Peters is no longer a serviceable lineman. Far from it, actually. Over 135 pass-blocking snaps, Peters allowed just 11 pressures, one sack, and one QB hit, all the while not committing a single penalty, per PFF.
The future Hall of Famer was indispensable helping the Cowboys overcome Tyron Smith’s season-long injury. He held down the fort at right tackle after Terence Steele went down with an ACL tear and started the Wild Card game against the Buccaneers at left tackle before leaving with a hip injury.
Most Cowboys fans would like Peters back, but it’s far more likely Dallas looks to a more youthful alternative to fill their swing tackle void.
3. Dante Fowler, DE
This is nothing against Fowler, but you can name several Cowboys defensive linemen who had a bigger impact in 2022 than Fowler.
That includes Micah Parsons, DeMarcus Lawrence, Dorance Armstrong, Osa Odighizuwa, Carlos Watkins, and Sam Williams. You could even throw Chauncey Golston and Johnathan Hankins in there given the role they took on down the stretch of the regular season and into the playoffs.
Regardless, the Cowboys have Parsons, Lawrence, Armstrong and Williams under contract for 2023, and Fowler’s production simply doesn’t warrant re-upping his contract. In 17 games, he played just 30% of the snaps, managing six sacks, nine quarterback hits, seven tackles for loss, and a 77.0 pass rush grade.
Throw in the fact that Dan Quinn — the reason Fowler came to Dallas to begin with — could leave for a head coaching gig, and it’s highly unlikely that the former No. 3 overall pick returns to the Cowboys in 2023.
2. Anthony Barr, LB
The Cowboys’ linebacker room could look a lot different come the offseason workout program. Both Barr and Leighton Vander Esch are free agents, meaning Damone Clark and Jabril Cox are the only backers under contract for 2023.
As far as Barr is concerned, it just isn’t likely Dallas brings him back. He provided a needed spark to a shorthanded linebacker room, but was routinely outplayed by a rookie in Clark who was coming off spinal-fusion surgery.
In 14 games, Barr logged 58 tackles, two tackles for loss, four quarterback hits, and two fumble recoveries. His fumble recovery against the Eagles on Christmas Eve was probably his biggest moment in a Cowboys uniform, which speaks volumes. He allowed a 115.5 passer rating in coverage, per PFF, and finished the year with a lowly 59.7 player grade.
Finally, Barr didn’t make anywhere near the impact as a pass rusher that was expected when he was signed. He’ll leave as a free agent.
1. Dalton Schultz, TE
In a perfect world, Schultz signs an extension with the Cowboys and spends the remainder of his prime in Dallas.
In a realistic world, though Schultz demands to be one of the league’s highest-paid tight ends this offseason, which he undoubtedly deserves to be, and goes to the highest bidder. And trust me, there will be multiple bidders.
After making $10.93 million on the franchise tag in 2022, Schultz will command no less than $11 million annually on the open market. He could max out at $13 million if a team is willing to go that high, as Ravens star Mark Andrews is the fifth-highest-paid tight end in the game at $14 million per year.
Whatever happens, don’t expect Schultz back with the Cowboys in ’23. Jake Ferguson and Peyton Hendershot showed real promise as rookies, and there’s potential for the Dallas to sign a veteran on the cheap if their cap allows it.
If Sunday was, in fact, Schultz’s last game with Dallas, it wasn’t a great way to go out, as he showed awful awareness on the final drive. That shouldn’t paper over what was an exceptional final three years with the organization.
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