← Locked On Cowboys - Daily Podcast On The Dallas Cowboys
Locked On Cowboys - Daily Podcast On The Dallas Cowboys
COWBOYS SQUAD SHOW: The Cowboys have cleared up CAP space ahead of NFL Free Agency.
00:59:57
COWBOYS SQUAD SHOW: The Cowboys are counting down to NFL Free Agency, with cap space, and lots of rumors and potential signings.
Loading summary
Transcript194 lines
- [00:00]
Glenn Stretch Smith
Foreign.
- [00:05]
Landon McCool
Your team every day.
- [00:11]
T Mobile Advertiser
Everyone deserves to be connected. That's why T Mobile and US Cellular are joining forces. Switch to T Mobile and save up to 20% versus Verizon by getting built in benefits they leave out. Check the math@t mobile.com switch and now T mobile is in US cellular stores.
- [00:31]
Savings versus Comparable Verizon plans plus the cost of optional benefits plan features in Texas and fees vary. Savings with three plus lines include third line free via monthly bill credits. Credit stop if you cancel any lines.
- [00:39]
Chevy Truck Advertiser
Qualifying credit required There's a reason Chevy trucks are known for their dependability. That's because they show up no matter the weather, push forward no matter the terrain and deliver. That's why Chevrolet has earned more dependability awards for trucks than any other brand in 2025, according to J.D.
- [00:52]
Glenn Stretch Smith
power.
- [00:52]
Chevy Truck Advertiser
Because in every Chevy truck, like every Chevy driver, dependability comes standard. Visit Chevy.com to learn more. Chevrolet received the highest total number of awards among all trucks in the J.D. power 2025 U.S. vehicle Dependability Study Awards based on 2022 models. Newer models may be shown. Visit J.D. power.com awards for more details. Chevrolet together, let's drive.
- [01:13]
Aaron Judge
I am Jeff Bigs, but I am not sure about hendrickson.
- [01:20]
Landon McCool
I'm Lana McCool and I am available for multiple first round picks.
- [01:25]
Glenn Stretch Smith
Glenn Stretch Smith and I am sure about Hendrickson. For the right money for sure.
- [01:33]
Landon McCool
How about them Cowboys? It's the Cowboys Squad. Everything. Dallas Cowboys every week covering all the big hits and game changing plays from America's team the way only the Locked On Podcast network can get ready and start squad up. It's the Cowboys squad show starting now
- [01:56]
Aaron Judge
and that is what we do. We squat up two times every week. And of course you have the daily Lockdown Cowboys podcast with Landon McCool and Marcus Moser who will be back with us on Monday night. And we have former Cowboys coach Glenn Stretch Smith. Aisha Morrison will be back with us next week as well. But NFL free agency is now less than a week away and before that we'll even have some good old fashioned tampering to get things going coming out of the weekend. But right now, welcome to another edition of the Cowboys Squad show. Again, great to be with you with Landon and the coach. We got a lot to get to over the next hour. The very latest on the Cowboys. The cap and space has been cleared. We are less than a week away from NFL free agency. As I said, we've got more Max Crosby rumors as well. They just don't die. Lots of other news to get to but let's start with a little bit of breaking news today, if we could, gentlemen. The Cowboys have officially waived defensive tackle Perry on Winfrey, which follows the news of yesterday that they opted not to tender Brock Hoffman, which means he will be an unrestricted free agent when the new year begins. You know, to me, Landon, I'll start with you. Old linemen are a plus in the NFL, especially ones that are versatile, that can play, potentially start. My pushback would be okay. You can't, you can't give money to everybody. But man, I mean, I thought he was kind of an asset and now he's just going to walk away with nothing in return.
- [03:43]
Landon McCool
Yeah, I mean, your, your choices were really just like you give him the second round tender, which would have been another $6 million for a second backup interior offensive lineman, which is a lot of money when you're already paying another backup interior offensive lineman $6 million, or to give him the original round tender, which is only $3.5 million, and I guarantee you would have been matched. So the Cowboys didn't have a lot of great options here, and I think they probably are doing a guy that, that served them really well a favor by just not complicating the matter and allowing him to hit free agency and make some well earned cash.
- [04:24]
Glenn Stretch Smith
Yeah, I mean, this is a situation in my mind where you have to prioritize. Excuse me, what you can do. My question would be then, what do you do with Adina Jai? Is he a guy that maybe they're going to try to make something work with so that if you did have, and it looks like you're going to be able to keep Bass as kind of that, you know, inside guy, then you had adenajai had could jump to both tackles. It becomes just a priority situation. What do we need and how do we need to manage through a financial crisis here? And you're going to say, why is it a financial crisis? I mean, it is, guys. Let's just call it what it is. I love Jerry coming out and say, we want to break the bank. And I love the three guys and Smith and CD and Dak that stepped up and restructured their deals, but they got to have a lot more money than that if they're going to go even remotely dip their big toe in the free agent pool.
- [05:36]
Landon McCool
Yeah, they're already paying $6 million to a backup offensive lineman, too.
- [05:41]
Glenn Stretch Smith
So it's like, yeah, 7 million for a damn kicker.
- [05:45]
Landon McCool
If, if he signed, if he signs it, we'll see. Right? But yeah, I think the other Thing too to remember here is that you've also got Nate Thomas, right, who is. Is probably your first tackle off off the bench, but he could also play guard for you if you needed him to. He's done that. So I think, you know, they, they can certainly cobble together a, a good backup offensive line solution with what they've got. And, and I, I just think that having Brock, a guy like Brock Hoffman was really just a luxury at a certain point. I would also say they also had Rob Johnson from last year who got hurt. I'll be interested to see if he's interested in coming back maybe on a cheap deal as well. If just in case you feel like you do need another body, but hopefully just not you don't. You don't need to pay another backup interior only guy, you know, 6, 5.8 million or whatever the second round tender is.
- [06:39]
Glenn Stretch Smith
I wish I could draft offensive. I wish I could draft defensive guys like they draft offensive linemen.
- [06:45]
Landon McCool
Yeah, yeah, it'd be pretty amazing.
- [06:47]
Aaron Judge
There's a, you could do a little comparison there. Landon, I know you and Marcus did a show about this earlier today. Are you convinced though that that Bass is the better. Got to keep over Hoffman. No doubt.
- [07:03]
Landon McCool
Yeah. I mean, I think he's a better fit in what the Cowboys are doing, first of all. But second of all, I just think if you're talking about better at the position of guard specifically, which is the, you know, the more high priority one, I think he's, he's clearly the better guard. He's a bigger guy, he's stronger. I think he's. I think they're both pretty decent in the past game. They both like to finish guys a little bit with maybe Hoffman with a little bit more attitude. But I think Bass can actually move people in the run game from the guard position in a way that I don't know that Hoffman can.
- [07:34]
Glenn Stretch Smith
Yeah, I think he's got better feet. I mean that would be my thing is, you know, he's, he's a guy that they can pull and move and he doesn't get on the ground a lot. I mean, he's just, he's, you know, what do you use for a big, big guy? Nimble. That's the word.
- [07:47]
Landon McCool
Yeah, there you go.
- [07:48]
Aaron Judge
There you go.
- [07:50]
Landon McCool
That's right. And it's over tackle. Right. Like so. He's got that athleticism that I think, you know, Hoffman's not a bad athlete. I just think he's making the most of what he's got, which is probably why he, he was an undressed.
- [08:01]
Glenn Stretch Smith
Yeah, yeah. He's, he's an overachiever, which, by the way, you want those guys too.
- [08:06]
Landon McCool
Yeah.
- [08:06]
Glenn Stretch Smith
Again, I mean, he's gonna get paid,
- [08:09]
Landon McCool
he's gonna get paid a lot of money on the market. Yeah. So, I mean, I promise you right
- [08:12]
Glenn Stretch Smith
now, you think, you think the Texan, he could, he starter with the Texans. He's a day one starter with the Chargers. I mean, the Chargers are looking at Beatish, and he's, he's a better football player than Beatish.
- [08:28]
Aaron Judge
All right, so what does this do, if anything, to the O line depth for this season?
- [08:38]
Glenn Stretch Smith
I'm telling you, the days of, the days of carrying nine offensive linemen and good players like that, that's just, you can't, you, you cannot get in a position where you're paying the quarterback like you're paying him paying the receiver like you're paying him having to pay another. You can't, I'm telling you, if you started signing all these guys, I mean, you might as well just line up and play, play defense on air.
- [09:03]
Landon McCool
I will say it, it's not as good, but it's still pretty good. Like, especially for what the NFL's doing right now, it's pretty good, you know, to have, have at least one telling
- [09:14]
Glenn Stretch Smith
you it's really good.
- [09:15]
Matt Derry
You look at.
- [09:15]
Landon McCool
Yeah, exactly.
- [09:17]
Glenn Stretch Smith
I mean, I'm telling you, the Chargers couldn't block the three of us in a damn phone booth.
- [09:22]
Landon McCool
The Cowboys still have two backups that are probably as good as mini team starters at those.
- [09:27]
Glenn Stretch Smith
They are starters on a lot of teams. That's the point. They have two guys. Think about that. Two backups that are starters on a lot. And, and I'm talking about a lot means more than 15 football teams.
- [09:40]
Landon McCool
So they had three. Now they just have two, which is still a lot. Yeah.
- [09:45]
Aaron Judge
And, and a final thought. What about Winfrey? Just not able to.
- [09:49]
Landon McCool
Yeah, I, I, honestly, that one doesn't make any sense to me. I, I don't understand what's going on there because to me, it just felt like his contract wasn't very, I'm, I, I, I hate to speculate, but I'm going to speculate that I think there's something happened there. Like his contract, his deal was so cheap. I, I, I felt like he, you know, it cost you almost nothing to get a look. See, he showed you a lot of positive stuff in training camp. I'm not 100% sure on what's going on with that one, to be honest.
- [10:20]
Glenn Stretch Smith
Yeah, he's got to come out of The US, the USFL or the UFL or. They changed it, changed the name of it again with the horse race guy in there. But I mean, he's a guy came out of spring football and was a big physical guy. I don't, you know, I guess my knee jerk reaction would be, you know, do. Does this defensive staff think he fits with the scheme? Unlike you, it wouldn't cost you anything. Take a look at him. But yeah, you know, they're, they're, they're going to use that. They're going to use that somewhere else.
- [10:54]
Landon McCool
Yeah, I would have, I would have. That would have been my first thing too. Coach is, is like, oh, this just not a scheme fit. But honestly, the thing about him last year was that he, they put him everywhere. Like, you know, when they were trying him out, he was having success in
- [11:08]
Glenn Stretch Smith
training camp, no question.
- [11:11]
Landon McCool
So, so that's why I don't understand this one. And maybe we'll find out a little bit more information later.
- [11:17]
Aaron Judge
All right, so as we said, we're counting down now to the new NFL new year and NFL free agency on the 11th. We're going to have the tampering period before that, which we're excited about. The sooner the better for me. The Cowboys have been restructuring contracts already to make room as coach said they need more. But Dak, C.D. smith, they've all done and reworked their deals.
- [11:44]
Landon McCool
So what.
- [11:46]
Aaron Judge
Let's just start before we get into the defensive lineman, Landon, where from your vantage point, are, are they in a good spot? And you know what, what are we looking at? How can they, can they clear any more or are they pretty much.
- [12:02]
Landon McCool
Yeah, I mean, they've only, they've only pulled like three triggers, I think. Yeah, they've still got like, I don't know. I think it's probably $70 million that they could add if they needed to. I, I'm not, I can't remember. I haven't kept track of exactly how much they pulled so far, but the number was originally 131 million. They pulled DAC.
- [12:24]
Glenn Stretch Smith
CD I think it was about 60, wasn't it?
- [12:28]
Landon McCool
IS. They've done 60 so far.
- [12:29]
Glenn Stretch Smith
Three with those three with those three. So, yeah, I think they went from 30 over to 60 under, 40 under, something like that. 50 under.
- [12:39]
Landon McCool
Yeah, so. So I think they probably still have another 60 million that, that he can unlock if they need to. But the question will be whether they want to. Right. They, they pulled the trigger on the contracts that they feel comfortable about. Players that are going to be here for the next two Years, probably. Right. I think as you get lower on that list of guys with guarantees, you know, those are the guys who you don't want to have to touch that contract unless you. You need to. Right. They have. It's. It's available to them. They don't have to, like, negotiate anything. It's. There's, you know, it's the same as the rest of the triggers, and it's just when you pull those triggers, it's. It's like you're guaranteeing more money, and so you want to do that with the players that you feel like are going to be here a little bit longer. So you're not just paying a bunch of dead money to a guy who isn't on your team anymore.
- [13:29]
Aaron Judge
All right.
- [13:30]
Glenn Stretch Smith
Yeah. I mean, that's. That's. You're going to go. I mean, I. I think next you can look at the defensive tackle group, that trio. Yeah, Williams, Clark, Quin and Williams, seeing if they could free some of that, you know, some of that cash there, because, again, yeah, we could come up with a, you know, a multitude of names that, you know, we think that they could sign and, And. And. And give it the, you know, get. Give it the wink, wink of can you. Can you get it done? And, you know, obviously they can, but it's like you said it. What you're doing here when you start doing this is you're kicking the can down the road. Now, how far do you want to kick that can down the road? That. That becomes a question.
- [14:21]
Landon McCool
Well, man, if the. If the salary cap is going to continue to increase the way it has the last few years, probably a good idea. I'd kick that can as far as I can can, you know, because it may. That number may become some insignificant, you know, tax percentage by the time it hits 2030.
- [14:40]
Glenn Stretch Smith
I think the question. I think the question would be, would you kick it barefooted?
- [14:44]
Landon McCool
I would probably break my toe, coach. I don't know. Probably wouldn't.
- [14:49]
Glenn Stretch Smith
So.
- [14:49]
Aaron Judge
So, as I said, it's kind of funny, but it's also kind of. I don't know what word I'm looking for, but, I mean, these Max Crosby rumors just every day, I mean, they. They are just not going away. And one of the very latest that I saw was from Ed Werder, who said that according to him, the Cowboys were close to a deal for Crosby, but then apparently the. The price has gone up. I don't know if I believe that or not. He. He says that or other people have said that they're going to get Two first round picks for him. I don't see that, but I could be wrong. But nonetheless, Werner says now they're going to shift to Trey Hendrickson because they don't want to give up two first round picks.
- [15:34]
Landon McCool
That sounds like the Jones family taking Edward's phone and, and texting his, his tweet for him. No, I, I, the price was always two first round picks. I mean that's what that, that's been what the talking point has been since, I don't know, post Super Bowl. So I, I don't think that that changed now. I, I do believe that they have been, you know, talking to, to the Raiders about this and I do believe that they are pursuing and heavily kicking tires here but I, I can't believe that they would necessarily be shocked that two first round picks was going to be the starting offer. I think what's changed honestly and I think, you know, if you read between the lines and some of the stuff like the Jordan Schultz tweet where he says something to the extent of the Raiders are now, teams are reporting that the Raiders are now more interested in dealing with the Max Crosby and, and you should just read the subtext there as hey, we're willing to lower the price. Please just give us a couple more offers here like, because I just don't think anybody's giving up two first round picks. I think the Cowboys, the Rams, the Bears all will pay heavily and probably more than one first round pick. I think the question becomes like the real haggling starts once the Raiders drop the pretense that they're going to get two first round picks. It just probably isn't going to happen. Once they drop that need for that second first rounder then we can really get to work and seeing who's got the best offer.
- [17:07]
Glenn Stretch Smith
Yeah, I mean you mentioned the three teams being the Bears, Cowboys, Rams. I think the Eagles are in this thing.
- [17:14]
Landon McCool
Eagles are probably in this.
- [17:16]
Glenn Stretch Smith
All four of those teams had the exact same game plan that maybe Ed Warder put out there. Hey, we'll, we'll see what we can get with, with Max Crosby and oh by the way, if that's not there, our, our plan B is, is Trey Hendrickson. Well, everybody, I mean you know that's, that, that's a flair for the obvious. Everybody's there. Now the question becomes would you rather have the Cowboys pick at 20 and I'll just say a name, Osa or would you rather have the Rams pick at 13? I mean that, you know, or, or wherever the Eagles are are picking I, it's not going to be, it is not going to be two first round picks. And that's why I said at the start of this, I, I, I'm, I'm way on board with, with, with Trey Hendrickson. Guess what? Because I'm gonna keep my picks, I'm gonna keep Osa. Yeah, I might, I might pay you one 20% of what he's due. I, I don't know, I'm going to say ballpark, let's say you sign him 2 years, 55. I mean, I, but I keep all my picks. Yeah, I'm, I'm, I'm on board with Trey Hendrickson 100%.
- [18:29]
Landon McCool
What if it's 20 and a 2026 or, sorry, 2027 second rounder,
- [18:39]
Glenn Stretch Smith
if it's pick 20 and your second round pick next year?
- [18:43]
Landon McCool
Yeah, because here's, here's the theory.
- [18:45]
Glenn Stretch Smith
The 2027, I mean, I, I'd be fine with that. At 20. What is Crosby's 26?
- [18:52]
Landon McCool
No, he's 29.
- [18:53]
Glenn Stretch Smith
He's 29. What's Hendrickson's 32?
- [18:57]
Landon McCool
That's right.
- [18:58]
Aaron Judge
Yep.
- [18:58]
Glenn Stretch Smith
Okay. So, I mean, I, I, I still seems a little rich, but if you feel like he gets you, he being Crosby gets you into the dance where that second round pick becomes picking around 60, let's say 65 to 72. Yeah, I mean, I, I, I, I, I, I'd say, okay, because here's the
- [19:26]
Landon McCool
theory, right, is that there's, there might be an opportunity here, a window here, to trade 2027 assets at a value. Right. Because there's so much thirst for people to get picks in the 2027 draft. Look at who's coming out, you know, Manning, you've got J.J. smith from Ohio State, you've got Dante Moore from Oregon, you've, you've got, you know, everyone kind of overhyping Potentially. This 2027 class, it might be a really good time to see if you can get, you know, know, some surplus value by dangling that as, as your, your pick as opposed to, I mean, you don't have any other second round picks. So like you said, Coach, if you're trading for Crosby, it's, it's a first rounder plus a, a player potentially. So I think this is a better choice than, than doing something like that.
- [20:14]
Glenn Stretch Smith
Yeah, but what I'm saying is two ones. Oh, coming off of him being injured. I mean, again, you know, I'm from the Casey case of Mage. Yeah. I'll keep my feet in the ground and reach for the stars. That doesn't ever mean I'm gonna reach higher than the damn roof on my house. But, I mean, there's nothing wrong with shooting for that.
- [20:36]
Landon McCool
That's right.
- [20:37]
Aaron Judge
All right, when we come back, I want to ask you, let's kind of dive into that a little bit more. Maybe the pros and cons of each and should those two be kind of at the top of the wish list for the Cowboys or should they go in another direction first? We'll get into that when we come back. This is the Cowboys Squad Show. I'm Aaron judge.
- [21:00]
Landon McCool
Welcome to MLB the Show 26.
- [21:02]
MLB The Show Advertiser
The greatest game in baseball is back. Whether you're a gamer or a baseball fan, this one is tough to put down. Jump into franchise mode with your favorite team, build your roster, chase a pennant, and see if you have what it takes to win it all. It's the closest thing to being in the big leagues yourself. Visit MLB the Show Lockedon and use code lockedon to unlock a pack for Diamond Dynasty. Internet connection required pre order now on PlayStation 5, Xbox and Nintendo Switch. Rated E for everyone.
- [21:32]
Landon McCool
MLB the Show 26 own the show.
- [21:36]
Matt Derry
Hey, it's Matt Derry from the Locked on Lions podcast. The people I love depend on me. If I'm gone, the financial responsibilities don't disappear. I didn't want my family figuring things out during the hardest moment of their lives. That's why I knew only one place to go. I chose life insurance through my friends at Ethos. Ethos makes getting life insurance fast and easy. 100% online, you can get a quote in seconds, apply in minutes, and get same day coverage. There's no medical exam. You just answer a few simple health questions. You get up to $3 million in coverage. Some policies are as low as $30 a month. I love the folks at Ethos. Protect your family with life insurance from Ethos now by going to ethos.comlockdown NFL in as little as 10 minutes, you can get the free quote and up to $3,000,000 in coverage at ethos.com lockdown NFL that is ethos.com lockdown NFL ethos.com lockdown NFL application times and rates may vary.
- [22:44]
Aaron Judge
All right, there we go. Welcome back to the Cowboys squad show. Landon McCool, former Cowboys coach Glenn Stretch Smith. So we were talking about the cap space and the different rumors and you know, the musical chairs. The signings are going to go down quick. So you want to make sure that you, you get the players that you want when, when he had the opportunity. So. So with that said, is, do you feel like Those two players are really the Cowboys top two targets or is this just a media thing? Is there maybe a different. Would you rather see them get a DB or a linebacker first? And you know, if you really looked at both Hendrickson and Crosby, who's, who do you think's the better fit? Who would, who would, who do you think would. Would have more of an impact? Because that's what they need.
- [23:34]
Landon McCool
I think that those are the top two, like, you know, universal candidates and they are pass rushers. So that's why the Cowboys are being, I mean, I, I do think that the, Crosby is being linked to the Cowboys because the Cowboys have legitimate interest. But I also think that the, the Hendrickson thing is, you know, a lot because of, he's kind of the natural top of the market free agent fit, right? I don't know that like he's, I mean, there certainly are cons there too. I mean, he is 31 going on 32 years old. He, he may not be quite the perfect fit necessarily. I mean there's, you know, there's, there's something to, and he's hurt as well. He's another guy who's also, you know, coming off of a year where he was injured. So I, I think that there is, you know, some other things to weigh here. I do think that if you look at guys like Jalen Phillips who are a little bit younger and played in this system last year, but he also has to deal with, you know, he also has an injury history. I think Adafi Oway is a guy that really has started to come on a little bit, was a former first round pick, has all the kind of traits you want, but, but, you know, has only got really one year of solid production, so can you trust that moving forward? So I think that there's, you know, there's pros and cons to all these guys. I think it's, it's all, it's, it's sometimes easy to think that, that the highest priced guy is the cleanest fit and the best, you know, one to one for what you're looking for. And, and look, there's no doubt like Hendrickson's a guy that as far as pass rushing, has been a top three pass rusher at least in production the, the last four or five years. So I, I think it's kind of a clean, you know, fit to say, hey, at least you're going to get this guy and, and get some pass rush production. But, you know, this is also the first time he's moved outside of Cincinnati and, and tried to since he's kind of. Well, that's not necessarily true. He was in New Orleans. But I, I do think that there's, it's not always a guaranteed perfect fit when, when you go from here to there. So maybe the Cowboys feel like they would like to take that risk with a younger player with a little bit less money or, you know, a different style of play that they can do a little bit more. And then as far as like other positions, I think that they're looking at multiple positions to sign. I, I don't think that they're just looking at a top end edge rusher. I think that they have a need at pass rusher and that they may feel like the best way to solve that specific position is in free agency, which I can get behind. But I think that they're going to be looking at several different positions, not just, you know, defensive end.
- [26:10]
Glenn Stretch Smith
Well, we talked about this with the offensive line. This is a priority situation in my mind. Excuse me. As a Raku hip surgery, he's already light mass as it is at 240 something pounds, so probably not going to be able to do much as far as a strength standpoint this off season. That's how you get some weight on is to, you know, is to be able to do that from a lower body standpoint. So I think priority becomes because of what happened with Ezra, who, because I don't know if you keep Dante Fowler, Sam Williams, who knows about it, it becomes the priority. And then I believe the priority is, is at linebacker. I think this is a, you got multiple safeties in this draft and good safeties in this draft. I think you feel like if, if Ravel can be healthy, like you think he should be coming out of that knee surgery this year and what he did at the end of last year, you're listening to the doctors and you're asking what's going on with Bland and where do you feel you can best fit him in. I believe the priority is defensive and linebacker. That's, that's just my personal feeling. You watch those safeties run in the draft. I mean the Oregon kid run a hole in the wind. The Texas kid, smart as hell. I mean, you got, you got, you got options there. You're going to have options, I believe at corner. But I do think that, you know, looking and saying, well, we're going to prioritize, prioritize here. And because our coordinator has a familiarity with Nicole be Dean or Reed Blankenship, that that becomes, they become first priority. I think that's where you get in trouble when you start putting that kind of emphasis on the fact that you got to have a. You got to have a defensive end. You got to have somebody out there. And guess what? I think at the end of the day, Parsons needed to be out of here. That's my gut feeling. And he showed you he wanted out of here, and he was a hell of a football player. But they moved on, and now, you know, they're better there with Quinn and Williams now. How do you build on that and how do you prioritize what you go after? And I think that's what you're seeing them do is prioritize the fact that they're saying, we got to have a defensive end here. That's one. And then we'll address the rest of them as we. As we see fit.
- [29:08]
Aaron Judge
Yeah, I was thinking about it that clearly. I mean, they want to get. They want to. They want the defense to get to another level. Right. Like we've talked about. No mystery there. I think somebody like Crosby could really. He could really make an impact. I mean, he could really change the whole vibe and culture on that defense and add a little juice to it. I'm not. I'm not sure, though. I'm just cautiously concerned about Hendrickson. Nothing against him as a person or as a player. I just, you know, I feel like this free agency and whatever they do, whatever money they spend, they can't whiff. I mean, they can't. They need somebody that's.
- [29:47]
Glenn Stretch Smith
I mean, the last year healthy he had, two years ago, he added 18 and a half sacks.
- [29:51]
Aaron Judge
I know, I know.
- [29:53]
Glenn Stretch Smith
Yeah.
- [29:54]
Landon McCool
Defensive MVP candidate. I think. I think.
- [29:58]
Glenn Stretch Smith
Give me that guy. Please give me that guy.
- [30:01]
Landon McCool
I. I think for me, if you're gonna get Hendrickson, you're gonna need another guy, too. Like, I don't like. To me, I think Crosby is the more natural guy to play a heavier load on the outside and not just. I think you'll get your bang out of your buck as. From Hendrickson as a pass rusher, but I think you should probably still also protect yourself by having another quality backup level guy who could come in and give you some solid snaps, maybe on early downs, and that allows you to really, truly unleash Hendrickson on third down.
- [30:34]
Glenn Stretch Smith
Well, I mean, with that 20th pick, if you. Let's just say you did. Let's just play the game. Sure. Let's just say you did get hendrickson with that 20th pick, you get Bane or you get cash as How. And you'll give it you don't give up. You don't give up. You're not giving up another player and your first round pick and you're getting guys on some rookie contracts. And I get it. I mean, I really do. I, I get the draft capital mentality. I mean, I think it's kind of humorous that the Rams, who have been in the last two NFC championship games and won a Super bowl as recently as what, four or five years ago, they haven't had a first round pick in nine of the last 10 drafts. You think they give a whiskey crap about first round picks? Nope. And they show you they can win without them.
- [31:25]
Aaron Judge
Yeah, yeah.
- [31:27]
Landon McCool
There's lots of ways to skin this cat, for sure.
- [31:29]
Glenn Stretch Smith
That's right. There's a lot of ways to do it. But Jeff makes the point. Don't, don't, don't, don't, don't give me, don't let me toss this softball to you underhanded and you give it a swing and a miss.
- [31:45]
Landon McCool
I will add into Sebastian Shaw like on in the chats talking about Siobhan Ravel and Ready Stewart starting like, ready. Stewart is not a starter. Like and, and Freddie Stewart is not a starter. Like he's, they kept him because he's an exclusive rights free agent and that's an incredibly cheap deal.
- [32:04]
Glenn Stretch Smith
They played at nickel last year. Yeah.
- [32:07]
Landon McCool
And that's the other part of the thing too, right. Is that they're not going to be playing an undersized nickel this year. Like, if anything, they're going the other direction. I wouldn't be shocked if you want to look at like guys that were on the roster last year that that could be surprise starters again. Goodwin, Marquis Bell. Yeah, Marquis Bell. I would not be shocked if he was a starter at nickel because they like those bigger body nickels. He has the history of playing down in the box. He's good at that. I wouldn't be shocked if he was a guy that they looked at that kind of big nickel star overhang position that they like to use.
- [32:43]
Aaron Judge
So let me ask you this land and we talked about this on Monday night. I wanted to get your thoughts. So we were talking about the draft in round one and as coach aptly put, you want to get a couple of starters if you can, if you have those picks in the first round. With that said, from all the, what you saw from the combine and all the shows that you and Marcus have been doing, what, what position do you think is best suited for two starters to, to emerge? Like, do they have a better chance of getting Two starters in the secondary, D line, linebackers.
- [33:21]
Landon McCool
I think that you could get two starters in the secondary in the draft. I, I think it's not like, it's not so clean. Like, I mean, the pick you have to worry about is what happens to you at 12, right? And, and what falls to you. What's. Who. Who either makes it to you falling out of the, the top 10 because one of these offensive linemen or a quarterback or a wide, an extra wide receiver or maybe a tight end that this wide receiver is posing as a tight end from Oregon goes in the top 10, you know, and, or just like, do you just go for, for a guy like Monsieur Delane, right, who, who maybe will be there at 12 regardless. So I, I think that, I think you have to find a way to kind of insulate yourself a little. This is one of those years where you really, really do wish that free agency was after the draft, you know, because it, it, it. The best strategy would be to go in and just see how the draft falls to you, right? And then pick the best value players at, at one of those positions of need and then go into free agency and kind of backfill that a little bit more, which there is that opportunity a little bit. But a lot of the pickings have been done right at that point. So I, I think that, look, if, if you want to kind of go the, the free agent route or the trade route of getting an edge player, it makes some sense because I, I think that's a position that, that naturally takes a little bit longer for players to develop at, right? So I think that, you know, putting all your eggs in the basket of Ezraku coming off of a hip surgery and then a rookie, I think that's pretty tenuous, you know, so. And I think that this coach has shown us the ability to, this defensive coach has shown us the ability to coach up young secondary players to get them ready to play at a high level. So I think DB makes the most sense simply because it feels like you can find the players that you're looking for at 12 and 20 for that, that you've got the kind of coaching staff that can get them ready to play in a quick manner. And because of what's available in the free agent market specifically and trade market, I guess as well, at defensive end
- [35:42]
Glenn Stretch Smith
and at linebacker, I mean, you know, I'd arguably say the best corner free agent wise is probably Tyreek Woolen. It is going to be extremely expensive shopping down that aisle. That's going to be, that is going to Be extremely expensive. And so when you see the, what I feel like is the depth that is at corner and the depth that is a safety, I get it. They don't have a 2 and a 3. But I'm still saying I'd be more inclined to hang on to that pick at 20, see if maybe I could, I could back out of there and then pick up an extra pick. Because from what I'm hearing, and I've talked to multiple people throughout the league, they have between 12 and 14 true first round grades. That's what they have. Now, that doesn't mean, that doesn't mean that there's a lot of difference between a first round grade and a guy that's in a second round. I'm not saying that. What I'm saying is there will be multiple, multiple teams that will reach in this draft and they'll reach, they'll reach for need. And so I think there's a lot of value in that pick at 20 because I do think it's a very rich draft. 40 to 90 player, 40 to player. 90, 95 is very rich. And the fact that the Cowboys don't have those picks in that arena, I mean, I think that's where the draft capital helps you.
- [37:31]
Aaron Judge
Yeah, yeah.
- [37:33]
Landon McCool
I, I think that the, you know, at 12, you have, you've got an opportunity for someone to follow you because of what coach is talking about. Right. Because some team is going to convince themselves I got the number seven pick. I want to pick a player of high value. I can squint enough to make this guy look like a tackle. Right. Like, I, I know everyone's telling me he's a guard, but I can, I can, I'll make it work. Work and, and, you know, or they'll, they'll, you know, someone, and they do it almost every year. But I, I would not be shocked to someone, you know, just like I can squint, I can make Ty Simpson into a top 15 pick. Like I, I can, you know, I can listen to that absolute crap about him being a better quarterback than Fernando Mendoza in, in the, in the Rose bowl or whatever it was that they played each other. Like I, I, I, I, I can lie to myself there. So, you know, there is a chance that, that you get some benefit of it up top. But I agree, like at 20, you know, and here's the other thing too. Just kind of circle back on the defensive backs. Yeah, it's not exactly a great fit for what the Cowboys usually like either. Like this, it's not like there's a ton of great candidates that usually fit the kind of profile that the Cowboys are used to. So if the Cowboys are going to need to go the route of defensive back, they're going to need to be a little bit more flexible than they have been in years past in their prototypes, because there just aren't. There's probably, you know, two or three guys that meet their arm length thresholds or height thresholds, you know, and the top end guys like man, Sir Delaine, you know, they're definitely not going to meet the threshold. So if the Cowboys want to go that deep at the background, I don't disagree that they. I think they maybe should. They're going to need to be a little bit more flexible about the type of players that they're drafting at the position, and maybe they will be because they have Christian Parker.
- [39:29]
Aaron Judge
All right, let's hold it there. When we come back, I'm going to ask you another question about the draft, something that you already discussed with Marcus. We'll do that when we come back. This is the Cowboys squad. Show
- [39:43]
Landon McCool
thy ticket, lady Jennifer of Coolidge.
- [39:46]
Glenn Stretch Smith
Well, many thanks, good sir. Here is my Discover card.
- [39:52]
Landon McCool
They accept Discover at Renaissance fairs.
- [39:54]
Geico Advertiser
Yeah, they do here. Discover is accepted at the places I love to shop. Getith with the times. With the times.
- [40:02]
Glenn Stretch Smith
You're playing the loot. Yeah.
- [40:05]
Geico Advertiser
And it sounds pretty good, right? Discover is accepted at 99% of places that take credit cards nationwide. Based on the February 2025 Nielsen report.
- [40:15]
Aaron Judge
I want to talk to you about this episode being brought to you by BetterHelp. Because March is a time to celebrate women, especially around International Women's Day, and recognize just how much they carry at work, in relationships and families and in all the unseen roles they step into every single day. It's easy to celebrate that strength. But it is just as important to make space for their emotional well being and. And honestly, that goes for all of us. So take a moment and celebrate the women in your life and think about how much she cares and how much she carries. And without saying so, it really makes you think how many of us are doing the same thing. I mean, the roles we play, the expectations we carry, the pressure we don't always talk about. Well, therapy can help with all of that. Creating balance, setting healthy boundaries, and supporting your overall being. With over 30,000 licensed therapists and more than 6 million people served worldwide, BetterHelp is the world's largest online therapy platform. And it works. You fill out a short questionnaire, you get matched with a licensed therapist, and if it's not the right fit. You can switch anytime. So your emotional well being matters and you need to find the support and feel lighter in therapy. Sign up and get 10% off@betterhelp.com LockedOn that's BetterHelp. H E L P.com LockedOn all right, we're back. Cowboy Squad Show Landon McCool, co host of the daily Lockdown Cowboys podcast along with former Cowboys coach Glenn Stretch Smith. Landon, you and Marcus did a show on this earlier and the topic was after the combine, coming out of the combine, has the Cowboys draft strategy changed? So with what you just said before we went to break, where do you see their strategy at right now?
- [42:28]
Landon McCool
I mean, I think, you know, I think first it's getting through free agency. Right. And seeing what you know. Exactly. I think they, you know. Right. It's a, it's all information gathering right now. I don't, I don't think that there's any kind of draft strategizing yet. Right. Like, I think it's all about still kind of learning to see what's there. Getting a lay of the land may be kind of from a 10,000 foot view, right. Like, okay, there's, there seems to be a surplus of pass rushes at the bottom of the first round or you know, like having a kind of general idea. But then I think, you know, they're focusing on, on, on getting free agency lined up and seeing what they, how they want to solve some of their problems there. And then depending on whether, you know, how successful they were in free agency, then you can kind of start building your board and start understanding a little bit about, you know, sequencing and how you want to like, attack the, the rest of your needs with this draft board. I think right now it's, it's more about, hey, I think we've got these needs that we are going to try and hit in free agency. You know, what happens if we do hit them? What happens if we don't hit them? What are our contingency plans? What happens if we just completely, you know, strike out in, in free agency? You know, right now it's, it's all about getting a certain amount of gathering of information in the free agency and then they'll turn their, their eyes to the draft and how they're going to sequence things.
- [43:55]
Aaron Judge
All right, with that said, is there, is there one, one group that you like more than the others or that you're maybe a little more excited about than you were before the combine?
- [44:10]
Landon McCool
I mean, I, I think that it, the defensive backs obviously, really kind of Showed out was a really fast group. I think the linebacker group for the most part looked good. I mean, you know, it's hard not to come away incredibly impressed with guys like Sonny Styles and, and, and, and, and what they were able to accomplish. But I, I think, you know, even the group writ large seemed like very athletic. So, yeah, I think the Cowboys are in a good spot, especially at 20. If they want to pick something, there's going to be decent value there. If they get an opportunity to trade back, they absolutely should. But they're also not going to get to a point at 20 where there's not going to be, I don't think, somebody that is a good pick for them. I think 12 is more where I'm concerned that, that you, you'll get that perfect kind of nexus of, of need and, and, and value.
- [45:03]
Aaron Judge
Coach, are you hearing anything you said? You've been talking to a lot of people about kind of the depth of the draft, but are you hearing anything specifically about the Cowboys?
- [45:14]
Glenn Stretch Smith
No, no, I'm not, I'm, I just, you know, you try not to push too much. You try to gather enough information to give yourself an opportunity to make a, what I would say is an educated guess.
- [45:28]
Aaron Judge
There you go.
- [45:29]
Glenn Stretch Smith
But I'll, you know, I, I'll, I'm not afraid to say on March 5th today, if, if we had to say, give me Hendrickson and free agency, okay, at 12, Delane's probably gone. Stiles may be sitting there, I think at 12 take him. And at 20, the phone's not ringing. Give me the Oregon phenomenon. Give me the, give me the Oregon safety and I'll, you know, I, I, I'd come out of this, I'd come out of this thing and if I was Jerry Jones, I'd go drink that Johnnie Walker blue to the damn world. Look flat lap.
- [46:15]
Landon McCool
Yeah, I, I'm starting to think more and more that despite an absolutely outrageous combine that Sunny Styles may be available to the Cowboys at 12. I, I, I just, you know, it's,
- [46:29]
Glenn Stretch Smith
if he is, if he is and they don't pull the trigger, turn, turn your ear to the west. You'll hear Stretch scream some words that will make a sailor blush.
- [46:41]
Landon McCool
Me too. I, I feel the exact same way, Coach. I, it's such a no brainer. I, I was talking to a couple different folks and, and you're starting to hear and not even talking to folks like, even seeing like Mike Sando, who does a kind of post combine mock draft collectively with several different front agent, anonymous front agent folks that he Talks to and, and Sunny Styles was not in the top 10 that in that draft either. And I, I've heard from a couple other folks too, that, that maybe he's not necessarily viewed like that up top. And I, you know, it's funny because I get this information secondhand. You know, it's never like, from the source, or maybe it is for coach, but for me, I would yell back and be like, what is wrong with y'?
- [47:30]
Aaron Judge
All?
- [47:30]
Landon McCool
Like, what do you need to see from this guy to, to, to make him a, a top 10 pick? I mean, he literally jumped 43 and a half inches. He's the green dot Mike linebacker, maybe the best defender, arguably the best defender on two of the greatest college football defenses of all time. Like, what more does this guy need to do to, like, impress y'? All? And, and I'm, I'm sure that I would get some answer that would be unsatisfactory to me.
- [48:01]
Aaron Judge
I like that. That was a good answer there. So you touched on it a little bit, but we talked about this Monday speculation that the Cowboys will want to bring in Nicobi Dean to work with Christian Parker in his defense. What, what are your thoughts on that? Do you like that? Is, is there somebody better that they might, that might be a better fit? Do you like Dean where he's at in his career?
- [48:24]
Landon McCool
I mean, I think you have to look at, like, what these linebackers are going to be doing, right? It's, it's a lot less of a requirement to be that kind of elite, instinctual, like, you know, fine ball, go get ball kind of. Of linebacker. You're going to be doing more blitzing. You may be doing a little bit more coverage stuff. It's, it's, it. I think you're coming downhill a little bit more. You're slow playing your, your, your reads because you're, it's a gap in the half system. So you're, so you're, you know, having an extra gap to kind of COVID a little bit. So it just, it, I think it actually opens up and, and the type of linebacker you're looking for, and I think it's the type of linebacker that Nakobe Dean is, right? Like where you want Nakobe Dean coming downhill, you want to blitz Nicobe Dean, you want to have him coming through the, running through the a gap, tackling a running back in the, in the backfield. So I, I, I think that, you know, because he obviously played in Parker's system last year and because of his playing style being such a, a different, a good fit I, I think that there's obviously some interest there. The question becomes, like, what is he gonna want in the open market? Right. Like, because I think he probably is still viewed as one of the top five available free agent linebackers. So is it, is it a seven and a half million dollar situation or is it a ten and a half million dollar situation? I think that's gonna kind of dictate like my level of interest.
- [50:04]
Glenn Stretch Smith
Probably this is. Does his health history scare you at all?
- [50:07]
Landon McCool
Yeah, sure, absolutely it does. You know, not been able to stay on the field like consistently. I, I, you know, it's one of those things where it's like, I think it gets mitigated by the fact that I feel better about his fit in this defense than any of these other linebackers because I've obviously seen him play in this defense before.
- [50:27]
Glenn Stretch Smith
Yeah, I mean, you gotta, I mean, there's no question. You gotta have a, you gotta have a good football IQ and that, I mean, I think styles fits that he's, you know. Yeah, he checked. The Kentucky Derby is not a hat. Okay, that's, that's the first question right now. Let's move forward here.
- [50:45]
Aaron Judge
Coach. How important though is that? If at all, or maybe it isn't to. If you're a coach and you have a player that you've worked with, that you've coached and he knows you and knows your system and you have the opportunity to bring him with you, is that a big deal or is it overrated?
- [51:03]
Glenn Stretch Smith
No, it's a big deal. But I want, if you're asking me one or the other, I'd rather have Blankenship because I know he's going to understand the checks, the motions, the checks, the shifts, what they're doing. If I had to say bang for the buck, if I had to say, give me the guy that understands the defense that has gotten us lined up, that knows where to put us in position. Give me that guy along with the, with the kid at Oregon. Have I mentioned him enough already?
- [51:36]
Aaron Judge
No.
- [51:36]
Glenn Stretch Smith
One more time.
- [51:40]
Landon McCool
Yeah, I mean, I, I think he's, he's a cheaper player, you know, so, so I think it, that makes it also a lot more palatable. Right. And I don't even know if necessarily if you sign him, if you have to have him as your starter, I think, you know, he's kind of at that borderline level. I think he's, I think a very good fit and probably would be your starter because of the force multiplier aspect of the fact that he has familiarity with this defense. But like he's not, I, I don't think that there is, I'm, I'm presenting this as a positive. Right. I don't think that there is as much league wide interest in Blankenship as there is in the Kobe Dean. Right. So I think you're going to have more competition for a guy like Kobe Dean which you know, again is just another positive towards maybe preferring to go after Blankenship than Nicobi Dean.
- [52:34]
Glenn Stretch Smith
You know what they call that in Texas? Landon.
- [52:36]
Landon McCool
What's that?
- [52:37]
Glenn Stretch Smith
Coach bang for the buck.
- [52:39]
Landon McCool
That's right. That's right.
- [52:42]
Aaron Judge
All right, when we come back, our final segment, final thoughts and we have actually have a Matt Eber Floose update. We'll share that too when we come back. This is the Cowboys squad show.
- [52:57]
T Mobile Advertiser
Everyone deserves to be connected. That's why T Mobile and US Cellular are joining forces. Switch to T Mobile and save up to 20% versus Verizon by getting built in benefits. They leave out, check the math@t mobile.com switch and now T Mobile is in US cellular stores.
- [53:17]
Savings versus Comparable Verizon plans plus the cost of optional benefits plan for features in Texas and fees vary. Savings with three plus lines include third line free via monthly bill credits. Credit stop if you cancel any lines. Qualifying credit required.
- [53:32]
Aaron Judge
All right. Well, just when you thought that we saw the last of Matt Eber floofs, turns out Cowboy fans are going to get to see him again in person next season coming up because according to reports Eberfluss is going to be joining the 49ers coaching staff as the assistant defensive head coach to I guess they're, whoever their coordinator is going to be. I think they Boris.
- [53:58]
Landon McCool
Yeah.
- [53:59]
Aaron Judge
Yeah. There we go. Thank you. So there you go. So Matt Eber Fluth will be back at AT&T when they play during the season.
- [54:07]
Landon McCool
I guess if you're gonna fill a Gus Bradley shaped hole in your defensive coaching staff, might as well fill it with a Matt Eber flu. So, you know, yeah, I mean, I, I, I, I don't know that that brand of, of coach, that style of, of play is, is very much dying. So I, I, at this point I think he's probably, you know, going to be taking these kind of consulting jobs from here on out. I mean they, they, he's assisted defensive coordinator. You know, usually if, if you're truly the assistant defensive coordinator, you get hired within the same month of the first defensive coordinator that gets hired. Right. So I have a feeling it's more of a, hey, maybe try it this way. No okay, cool. Don't, like, sort of roll as a. As a coach. Right.
- [54:57]
Glenn Stretch Smith
I mean, I. I don't want to get on here and you know, on a guy. I mean, at the end of the day, it was really. It was a really poor scheme combined by very poor technique. And that's. That's the results you got or what you got, so. Doesn't mean he doesn't know football. Doesn't mean that he doesn't understand all that. But, you know, when I was. I mean, we used to sit around the locker room all the time, play dominoes. There were guys that I wanted to play. Yeah. Domino game. He'd be one of those guys that I would be. I would be knocking some holes in a pow. I'd be knocking some holes in his head with those dominoes.
- [55:41]
Aaron Judge
I don't know if you guys remember. I. I'm gonna date myself. But there was a corner who played for the Giants under Bill Parcells and did not have success. And he was given the nickname Toast Elvis Patterson.
- [55:57]
Landon McCool
I do remember Toast.
- [55:58]
Aaron Judge
Some reason I. I kind of feel like that Eber flu is kind of. He's kind of in that category now. Not Toast of coaching, if you will. Like, it's going to be hard.
- [56:09]
Landon McCool
Except not the. The Toast of coaching. Just. He's toast. Right. Like. Yeah, I agree.
- [56:16]
Glenn Stretch Smith
Is that like. Is that like milk toast or is that like burnt toast?
- [56:20]
Landon McCool
I think it's more like burnt toast. Yeah.
- [56:25]
Glenn Stretch Smith
So.
- [56:25]
Aaron Judge
So when. When do you think we'll start here? And so do you think we'll start hearing some stuff over the weekend or.
- [56:31]
Landon McCool
Yeah, for sure. Yeah. I mean, you know, usually you start hearing whispers before then, and I'm sure we'll hear, you know, birdies in our ears even before that. But I think the first time that you'll probably start getting some real. At least some solid information is probably this weekend, you know. Right. Right before that.
- [56:50]
Glenn Stretch Smith
Monday.
- [56:51]
Landon McCool
You know, they got tampering before the tampering still. You know, it's like, it doesn't matter how much they move the tampering period. There's still more tampering that gets done.
- [56:59]
Glenn Stretch Smith
So I think. I think Monday at noon, you're gonna. You'll know some solid.
- [57:04]
Landon McCool
You'll get a fire hose.
- [57:05]
Glenn Stretch Smith
Yeah. You're gonna have some solid information. So.
- [57:09]
Landon McCool
Sure.
- [57:09]
Glenn Stretch Smith
You know, Jeff, take it easy. You won't have to do a bunch of show prep this. This weekend to get on. On Monday. There'll be. There'll be enough to talk about.
- [57:18]
Aaron Judge
I look forward to that.
- [57:19]
Landon McCool
I just.
- [57:19]
Aaron Judge
It's It's a. You know, and we had Dak speaking out over the last couple days talking about he feels they can really take a big step in free agency and if, if they can improve that the team can take a big step if they sign the right players. He had advice for George Pickens on being tagged. So, I mean, it's been a lot of talking, I guess what I'm trying to say. And, you know, hopefully we're going to see some. Some of the action here pretty soon. Soon enough. It's.
- [57:50]
Landon McCool
Yeah, I mean, I think we're all ready for it right now. I mean, honestly, everyone's kind of on pins and needles waiting for some new Max Crosby news because Cowboys names have been associated with it so much. But, you know, who knows if anything like that's going to go through. I, I think it's. Sometimes it's really hard to parse that stuff. I do think that there is some smoke there. I do think the Cowboys are. Obviously have had advanced conversations about it, but, yeah, I think more than likely we should get something about Max Crosby before the weekend. I would think.
- [58:23]
Aaron Judge
Yeah. Just don't want. Just don't want them to. To overpay. I know, I know you have to balance between the importance of winning now and the window, but I just, I want to see them succeed and have good signings and a good draft and not, not, not overpay and have it turn into a negative because it's a critical season. I mean, it's going to be. We said that last.
- [58:48]
Glenn Stretch Smith
I'm gonna tell you in, in, in. In free agency, you. You're gonna overpay. There, there. There are multiple. There are going to be multiple bidders and where you thought you were. You, you. If. If you want to think that you're at the dollar tree, you're in the wrong line if it's free agency.
- [59:08]
Landon McCool
Yeah.
- [59:09]
Aaron Judge
Well said. All right, before we get out of here, Landon, what do you and Marcus have coming up on the daily Locked on Cowboys podcast? One more day tomorrow. And then of course, we got all the activity Monday.
- [59:22]
Landon McCool
Yeah. So tomorrow. So tomorrow's show, we're going to be talking about some rookie linebackers or coming upcoming rookie linebackers. Right. We're going to be covering. Let's see. I think it's Jacob Rodriguez, Anthony Hill Jr. And C.J. allen. So we, we did deep dives on all three of those guys. Make sure you guys check that out. And we've been doing a lot of, you know, it's mock draft simulation season, so we've Been doing a lot of those, so make sure you guys, you know, come and check us out, because those are always a lot of fun, too.
- [59:51]
Glenn Stretch Smith
Marcus, he's been staying up all night. He puts, puts his little baby to bed. He's been staying up all night watching that film. So I'm sure he is going to get on there tomorrow like a rolling ball of butcher knives with these linebackers.
- [60:05]
Landon McCool
We've already, we've already started arguing in the DMS about players, so I can't wait to see what happens on camera.
- [60:11]
Aaron Judge
And when did the, when do the visits begin? When, when do those happen?
- [60:17]
Landon McCool
I think they start, you know, after free agency, mostly. I mean, I, I, I think they can happen. There's a versus, there's, I guess there's rules about when they can happen. And I think it has to start, like, mid March, if I'm not mistaken.
- [60:30]
Aaron Judge
All right, beautiful. Coach, any final thoughts from you before we wrap things up? Anything you're looking forward to?
- [60:37]
Glenn Stretch Smith
Yeah, I'm, I'm on board here with whatever direction they go. I mean, I don't think it's a, you know, I don't, I don't, I don't think the Cowboys are in a bad position right now. I think they're in a really, I think they're in a good place, and I think they pull the trigger the way that they should pull the trigger, which is not fire, aim, and then shoot. It's, it's, it's a get your, get your, you know, get, get your, get it in your sights, get the target that you want to hit and then, you know, go at it. I, I really do. I think they're in, I think they're in a heck of a position here to, to really, really put themselves in competition for the, you know, for winning the NFC East. And I'm not trying to put it, put it way out there, but if they, if they can, they can pull the right trigger here and get in the right position, they absolutely can compete with the Eagles next year, which I think it's going to be those two teams for the East.
- [61:41]
Landon McCool
Yeah, you've, you've got a lot to do. But I agree with Coach. Like, the way things have lined up have been really favorable for, for you and you, and you can do it now. It's just about executing a strategy correctly. I think they can do it.
- [61:55]
Aaron Judge
Yeah. It's all about the season, right? It's all about. It doesn't matter what happened two seasons ago or la. It's this season. It's all new season, new opportunity, and that's what we're looking forward to. All right, guys, well, thank you very much as always. Have a great weekend. Great rest of the week with you and Marcus tomorrow. We'll be back with you again on Monday night. Hopefully, Aisha will be back with us as well. But enjoy the weekend. Enjoy the the rumors and the tampering and thank you to everybody listening here later on. We appreciate you, we love you, and we'll do it again soon. This has been the Cowboys Squad show.
- [62:40]
Glenn Stretch Smith
Foreign.
- [62:45]
Geico Advertiser
We've all been there. You hold on to a coupon, hoping to cash it in at the store, but then you forget about it and suddenly you've got a mountain of useless expired coupons.
- [62:54]
Landon McCool
Do you think this one's still good?
- [62:56]
Aaron Judge
Free milk?
- [62:56]
Geico Advertiser
Oh, mate, that expired in 1993.
- [62:59]
Aaron Judge
Dang it.
- [63:00]
Geico Advertiser
Fortunately, there are better ways to save money. Like by switching to Geico, you could save about $900 on cop car insurance without ever touching a coupon.
- [63:08]
Glenn Stretch Smith
Oh, how about this one? Half off floppy discs.
- [63:11]
Geico Advertiser
Now you should try a bit of spring cleaning.
- [63:13]
Landon McCool
It feels good to save big.
- [63:14]
MLB The Show Advertiser
It feels good to Geico.
- [63:16]
Chevy Truck Advertiser
There's a reason Chevy trucks are known for their dependability. It's because they show up no matter the weather, push forward no matter the terrain and deliver. That's why Chevrolet has earned more dependability awards for trucks than any other brand in 2025, according to J.D.
- [63:27]
Glenn Stretch Smith
power.
- [63:27]
Chevy Truck Advertiser
Because in every Chevy truck, like every Chevy driver, dependability comes standard. Visit Chevy.com to learn more. Chevrolet received the highest total number of awards among all trucks in the J.D. power 2025 U.S. vehicle Dependability Study Awards based on 2022 models. Newer models may be shown. Visit J.D. power.com awards for more details.
- [63:43]
T Mobile Advertiser
Chevrolet Together, let's drive to be a team USA skier. It takes dedication, determination and lots of hard work. But it doesn't take all that to score unlimited 2% cap rewards on purchases. Just use the active cash Visa credit card from Wells Fargo and tap to pay with that natural born talent and unwavering focus. Earn unlimited 2% cash rewards on purchases with the Active cash Visa credit card from Wells Fargo. Terms apply. Visit Wells Fargo.com ActiveCash Visa, proud sponsor of the Olympics and Paralympic Games.