Busy Cowboys Wednesday: Lawrence leaves for Seattle, Dallas adds three defenders
The first day of the new NFL league year on Wednesday saw the Dallas Cowboys show activity early and often, specifically on the defensive side of the ball.
The team was dealt unfortunate news when 11-year veteran and fan favorite defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence signed with the Seattle Seahawks , agreeing to a three-year, $42 million deal. He reunites with former Cowboys defensive line coach Aden Durde (2021-2023), who is now the defensive coordinator in Seattle, and also returns to the Pacific Northwest where he played his college ball at Boise State.
The departure leaves a sizable hole at the defensive end position. While Micah Parsons locks done one side of the line of scrimmage, the other side will see a training camp competition between Sam Williams (who is coming off a torn ACL), 2024 second-round pick Marshawn Kneeland, newly acquired Payton Turner and any draft pick that Dallas makes at the position.
However, the Cowboys were the most active team in the NFL in the trade market today, making two moves for former first-round picks on the defensive side of the ball.
In a deal with the Buffalo Bills, the Cowboys acquired 2022 first-round pick Kaiir Elam and a 2025 sixth-round pick (No. 204 overall) in exchange for a 2025 fifth-round pick (No. 170) and a 2026 seventh-round pick. Elam, who was quickly passed up on the depth chart in Buffalo after arriving as a rookie, has struggled early in his NFL career but will get a chance to compete for a starting job on the outside while Trevon Diggs rehabs from offseason knee surgery.
Later in the afternoon, in the Cowboys traded a 2025 sixth-round pick to the Tennessee Titans for linebacker Kenneth Murray Jr. and a 2025 seventh-round pick. Murray, who was a first-round pick out of Oklahoma in 2020, joins a thin linebacker room as a former team captain in Tennessee and a tackling machine (416 tackles in 73 games). He brings immediate experience and depth in a position room that needs as much experience as it can get. Marist Liufau enters his second season in 2025 while DeMarvion Overshown is expected to miss at least a chunk of the 2025 season as he rehabs a torn ACL, LCL and MCL.
Murray will also join a linebacker position group that includes Jack Sanborn, who was signed in between both trades on Wednesday after playing three seasons under defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus in Chicago. Sanborn went from an undrafted free agent in 2022 to an eventual starter as a rookie, landing on the PFF All-Rookie Team at the end of the year. He has taken on big roles with the Bears and will join Dallas having already learned the Eberflus system.
The Cowboys will need to continue to add depth in the coming weeks, specifically at wide receiver, running back, defensive tackle and quarterback. Having extra bodies at both linebacker and cornerback, in addition to what was added on Wednesday, could also provide a big benefit.
