3 players the Cowboys will regret leaving off the 53-man roster

Tuesday marked the deadline for NFL teams to finalize their 53-man roster. While there is still more than a week until the regular season begins, the Dallas Cowboys will be adjusting their rosters all day, every day until kickoff. Several veteran players will be shown the door, opening the opportunity for a team to find the help they need.

The Cowboys' 53-man roster is set, and while there were not a ton of surprises, a few names left off the initial roster stood out like a sore thumb. While Dallas can sign released players to the practice squad if they clear waivers, as of now the players left off the roster are allowed to seek employment elsewhere.

These three players in particular had a good chance of making it, but were ultimately left off the roster. The Cowboys might regret letting these three walk out the door before the Week 1 opener against the Browns.

3 players Cowboys will regret leaving off the 53-man roster

3. DT Justin Rogers

The Cowboys were looking for help at defensive tackle in the draft after Johnathan Hankins signed with the Seahawks. Mazi Smith seems poised to take a leap, but clearly help was still needed. They spent their seventh-round pick on Justin Rogers out of Auburn.

While late-round picks getting waived is not unheard of, it was surprising that Dallas already pulled the plug on Rogers after he barely played in preseason.

Rogers' release is likely due to the arrivals of Jordan Phillips and Linval Joseph. Joseph is expected to play the three-tech behind Osa Odighizuwa, while Joseph is expected to play the one-tech at nose tackle behind Smith. This feels like a missed opportunity for Dallas to develop a late-round pick who could develop into a contributor.

Both Phillips and Joseph are on one-year deals. Based on the Cowboys' recent track record, both players will be gone by next season. It is understandable why Jerry Jones wanted to bring in the two vets, but now a rookie draft pick could be out the door. It could be considered a wasted draft pick in terms of Dallas just not giving the player a chance.

While Rogers could end up on the practice squad, the Cowboys could regret leaving him off the roster if Rogers or Joseph suffer an injury. Phillips and Joseph are in their 30s and who is to say they will be both be healthy or even pan out? If they had kept Rogers, they would have more depth and a better backup plan.

2. CB Eric Scott

The Cowboys need all the cornerback depth they can get right now with All-Pro DaRon Bland sidelined for 6-8 weeks due to foot surgery. While Trevon Diggs is back from a torn ACL, it is fair to question if he'll be the same player in his first year post-surgery. With those factors, it was surprising to see Eric Scott left off the roster.

A sixth-round pick last year, Scott garnered praise in training camp but wound up not being active for a single game as a rookie. He endured a rough start to 2024 preseason, struggling to cover the Rams' shifty receivers before later getting flagged for unnecessary roughness on a late hit.

However, Scott bounced back with an interception at the end of the first half. His stock might have gone up some after that game, but he unfortunately was a bystander in the final two exhibitions, recording just three tackles.

After Bland's injury, many felt that Scott would be the next guy in line to fill in as the third or fourth outside corner. Now, the Cowboys are left with rookie Caelen Carson, Andrew Booth and Israel Mukuamu behind Diggs.

While Scott could clear waivers and remain on the practice squad, letting a promising young cornerback off the roster might not be a good idea for a team that is short one of the best defensive backs in the game.

1. TE Peyton Hendershot

Early on Tuesday the first big surprise of the Cowboys' roster cuts occurred when tight end Peyton Hendershot was traded to the Kansas City Chiefs for a conditional seventh-round pick in 2026. It was widely reported beforehand that Hendershot was going to get waived.

On the surface, the trade looks genius for Dallas since they got a draft pick for a player they were going to cut anyway. However, this could be one the Joneses regret. Injuries are rampant in the NFL and when the injury bug bites the Cowboys, they often have to scramble because of their lack of depth.

The Cowboys' tight end room is led by Jake Ferguson, but Hendershot proved just as capable as Luke Schoonmaker of being an impactful depth piece. He scored three touchdowns as an undrafted rookie in 2022 and looked like he could do the same in 2023 after Dalton Schultz walked away.

Unfortunately, Hendershot missed time due to injury and Ferguson's emergence as a budding star paired with Schoonmaker's solid rookie season made Hendershot expendable.

What is more surprising is that Dallas kept John Stephens Jr. and Brevyn Spann-Ford on the roster over Hendershot. Neither Stephens nor Spann-Ford had a standout moment in the preseason while Hendershot is a two-year veteran who knows this offense. If either Ferguson or Schoonmaker get hurt, the backup plans look bleak. Letting Hendershot go may be a decision Jerry regrets by the latter part of the season when the Cowboys need to be playing their best.

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