First, Turpin and Aubrey. Have the Cowboys found another UFL contributor?
In 2022, the Dallas Cowboys struck gold by digging into the now-defunct USFL to invite return specialist/wide receiver KaVontae Turpin to Oxnard for a training camp workout. Three years later, the TCU product is not only hanging around on the roster, but he’s earned two All-Pro honors and a three-year, $18 million contract that makes him the highest-paid return specialist in NFL history.
One year later, it was kicker Brandon Aubrey that earned a training camp invite after two solid seasons in the XFL to battle former kicker Tristan Vizcaino for the starting job. Halfway through camp, he landed the job on a temporary basis with the idea that he would need to remain consistent in the first few weeks of the season to keep his first job in the NFL. He not only kept the job, but also earned two Pro Bowl honors in two years and has cemented himself as one of the top placekickers in the league.
It’s not easy to find immediate success in training camp coming off a spring league season, but Turpin and Aubrey laid the groundwork for others to follow. Cornerback Josh Butler has remained on the roster and even started three games in 2024 after being signed out of the XFL. Since 2023, the Cowboys have invited at least three former spring league players for training camp invites.
In 2025, it’s no different.
One month before the team departed for training camp, the front office added depth at the defensive tackle position by signing 2025 All-UFL team member Perrion Winfrey.
The 2022 fourth-round pick out of Oklahoma played in 13 games for the Cleveland Browns in his rookie season but was waived after being investigated for threatening and pulling a gun on a woman in Cleveland. A short stint on the New York Jets practice squad in 2023 later, and Winfrey was out of the league.
A regroup in the springs of 2024 and 2025 with the Birmingham Stallions put him back on the NFL radar, and now, he is shining in his first training camp back in the league.
“It doesn’t surprise me that [Winfrey] is showing up early out there,” head coach Brian Schottenheimer said. “He knows this system and he knows this defense. He’s a veteran and veterans have an easier time in the early parts of training camp. Perrion is doing a great job.”
Winfrey has earned some reps with the first-team unit during a handful of the eight practices so far, as he looks to earn one of the many spots up for grabs in the defensive interior.
“Perrion is a great dude,” fellow defensive tackle Mazi Smith said. “He’s always walking around with a ski mask on, and he plays like it.”
Winfrey will need to have a strong preseason to earn a roster spot, as numbers figure that a couple of spots will be up for grabs among four players that include himself, Jay Toia, Tommy Akingbesote and Denzel Daxon.
