To say things are unsettled when it comes to the cornerbacks for the Cowboys would be an understatement. Dallas ended the 2024 season hurting at the position.
So far, they haven’t improved things by much in free agency.
A lot of the uncertainty lies in the injury report.
The three top corner backs on the roster in 2025 played a combined 24 games out of a possible 48.
The top corner by stats in 2024 signed with a new team earlier this month.
The Cowboys recently traded for a cornerback. But the jury remains out on if he was a victim of the scheme his former team ran, or is he just not as good as promised?
The Million Dollar Club
This was the starting defensive backfield for the season finale against the Commanders:
- DaRon Bland CB
- Troy Pride Jr. CB
- Jourdan Lewis CB
- Malik Hooker S
- Donovan Wilson S
Lewis, who led the position with 71 tackles and an interception, signed with the Jacksonville Jaguars earlier this month. Amani Oruwariye was a bench player and is an unrestricted free agent unlikely to return.
As for the rest, here are the cornerbacks currently on the roster in one form or another.
- Troy Pride Jr. $960k in ’25, ERFA in ’26
- Kemon Hall – $1.1 million in ’25, UFA in ’26
- J. Goodwin – $1.255 million in ’25, UFA in ’26
- Trevon Diggs – $9 mil in ’25, becomes UFA in ’29
- Caelen Carson – Apprx. $1 million per year ’25-27, UFA in ’28
- Andrew Booth Jr. – $1.1 million in ’25, UFA in ’26
- DaRon Bland – $5.4 million in ’25, UFA in ’26
- Kaiir Elam – $2.57 million in ’25, option for ’26, UFA in ’27
- Israel Mukuamu – $1.75 million in ’25, UFA in ’26
- Luq Barcoo – $1.03 million in ’25, RFA ’26
Carson missed the last seven weeks of the season. Diggs missed six of the last seven games.
Bland missed the first 11 weeks of the season. This led to a dramatic fall off in his production from the 2023 season that should have earned him the defensive player of the year award.
If these three can return to form, Dallas has a formidable cornerback room.
If they can’t, the Cowboys are in big trouble.
For some odd reason, Dallas likes to sign cornerbacks for around a million dollars a year. It must be something they teach in Cap Boy finishing school.
Roster Review 2025: Cornerbacks. This is Part 29 of a series. Click here for a list of all related articles.
Outlook For 2025
It really will all hinge on how well Diggs comes back, if Carson can return to his pre-injury form, will Bland rediscover the magic of 2023, and could Elam thrive in a new building.
Dallas must have at least three of these players hit if the defense is to have any chance.
The good news is Diggs seems to be on track in his recovery. Carson should also be good to go when camp opens.
Bland was showing flashes of the player that had nine interceptions with five going for touchdowns in 2023 once he got back on the field last year.
The weakness in the room is the lack of depth. If these four struggle, or go down with injury again, the Cowboys don’t have a lot of proven talent to fall back on.
Long-Term Outlook
Seven of the 10 cornerbacks currently on the payroll are not signed beyond the end of the 2025 season. The three that are long-term have some big question marks hanging overhead.
Again, if the starters and primary backups can return to form and produce, the Cowboys will be okay.
But if the injury bug keeps bringing these guys down, and the missed games reach above 10 again, the long-term outlook is bleak.
Dallas is reportedly looking at extending Bland. Diggs is set for $9 million this year and that number will eventually reach $20 million by 2028.
Carson is on a rookie deal, but if he blossoms into a star, he’ll be wanting more money too.
Elam isn’t exactly cheap either.
One thing the Cowboys currently don’t have after this year, is a lot of money for high-dollar backups. Which means bargain bin hunting again.
Teams are seldom consistently lucky to find solid players that way.
Something the Cowboys’ front office should be all too aware of after the last three decades.
