Known for pinching pennies in free agency, the Dallas Cowboys just had their most aggressive offseason in years. They traded for George Pickens, reunited with Dante Fowler, and stacked the roster with former first-rounders in a surprisingly active push to upgrade talent.
In doing so, the front office had to make tough calls with long-tenured players and they ultimately weren't able to bring back Jourdan Lewis or DeMarcus Lawrence. While Lawrence's exit wasn't a surprise, Lewis was a player seemingly all Cowboys fans wanted back.
While Dallas pushed hard to re-sign Lewis, they were outbid by the Jaguars, who made Lewis the highest-paid nickel cornerback in the NFL for a brief moment in time to sharpen their secondary. Sure enough, Lewis is already making a profound impact with his new team.
Cowboys are feeling the loss of Jourdan Lewis, who is shining with the Jaguars
ESPN NFL insider Dan Graziano recently visited Jaguars camp and made a telling observation about Lewis.
"The cornerback group looks like a potential strength, with or without Hunter. The addition of former Cowboy Jourdan Lewis in free agency was a big one for former Rams exec Gladstone, who said L.A. tried to get him several times over the years because Sean McVay always said he was especially tough to game-plan against. The Jags believe Lewis is already having an impact as a leader in that room," Graziano wrote.
That sounds about right.
Lewis didn't have much cache outside of Dallas during his Cowboys tenure, but he was among the top nickel CBs in football from the moment he stepped into a starting role in 2020.
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No matter if it was Trevon Diggs, DaRon Bland, Stephon Gilmore, Anthony Brown, or Chidobe Awuzie lining up beside him, Lewis was the steady hand in the Cowboys’ secondary, and his toughness set the tone for everyone around him.
Cowboys fans might remember a rookie Jourdan Lewis not backing down from a prime Dez Bryant during the team's 2016 training camp.
Looking back, the Cowboys probably should have given Lewis more in 2024 free agency. He re-signed on a fully guaranteed one-year deal worth $2.82 million that March. Lewis missed most of the 2022 season with a gruesome Lisfranc injury, but he recovered to play 16 games in 2023 with eight starts. He was among Dallas' best players for the final two months.
While we understand why the front office didn't rush to give Lewis a longer deal, he proved down the stretch of the 2023 season that he had returned to form post-injury. It is not a surprise he had a Pro Bowl-caliber year in 2024 and ultimately played himself out of Dallas' price range.
Even before injuries hit the Cowboys’ CB room, no loss was going to sting more than Lewis leaving. We'll see how that plays out in September in beyond, but it's no surprise he's stepped into a leadership role in Jacksonville.
That's who JLew is.