The Dallas Cowboys have already made a surplus of good moves to improve their league-worst defense from 2025, but the job is still far from finished. Jerry Jones knows that it takes a village to fix this defense, so even though the first wave of free agency is over, there are still impact players available.
Joey Bosa is one of the top defenders available, but a more viable name for Dallas is former New York Giants' linebacker Bobby Okereke. Jones should be well aware of how helpful the 29-year-old can be after facing him twice per year in each of the last three seasons as the leader of New York's defense, yet was cut so New York could spend more to sign Tremaine Edmunds.
While pinpointing the best fits for some of the top remaining free agents, Bleacher Report's Gary Davenport named the Cowboys as the best fit for Okereke, which is a dream scenario. The Cowboys have made moves all over the defense except at linebacker, which is their biggest remaining need.
The Dallas Cowboys can compensate for missing out on Nakobe Dean by signing Bobby Okereke
The Cowboys' linebacker corps is in a pretty brutal spot. DeMarvion Overshown is great when he's healthy, but has struggled to remain on the field. While Shemar James has potential, Okereke would be a major upgrade over James and Kenneth Murray.
But that could change with a big signing, and Okereke would fit that bill.
Not only would the Stanford product likely wear the green dot in Christian Parker’s defense, but landing him would make the Nakobe Dean miss much easier to stomach. Better yet, he should cost a good bit less than Dean would have.
The 2019 fourth-round pick is one of the best tackling linebackers in football, which Dallas needs after Murray couldn't stop a nosebleed. Okereke has surpassed 130 total tackles in four of the last five seasons, and he likely would've been 5-for-5 if he didn't miss five games for the Giants in 2024.
Even though Okereke comes from a division where he previously made the Cowboys' life harder, he could very well make Parker's life easier in 2026. He would instantly be the most experienced and productive linebacker this defense has, and he would be the perfect running mate for Overshown.
The Giants' defense was genuinely putrid in 2025, but Okereke wasn't the reason why. He's solid against the run, can rush the passer, and is passable in coverage.
That's the sort of steadying hand a horrible defense undergoing a defensive overhaul badly needs, especially at a position of weakness.