Tuesday, April 30th (5:45pm ET): We’ve updated this post to reflect that the trackings are just about finished. The mothership announced on Tuesday afternoon that the Dallas Cowboys officially agreed to terms with 13 undrafted free agents (they do note that two more are expected to sign at some point between now and May 9th). We tracked all 13 names throughout the UDFA process and, score one for BTB, we nabbed them all. Here’s to there being a gem in here! The Dallas Cowboys have a long history of finding success as soon as the NFL Draft is over. Tony Romo and Miles Austin made headlines, Dan Bailey rose to prominence as the NFL’s most accurate kicker at one point, and countless others have made contributions on one level or another. It seems like people even forgot that Cole Beasley went undrafted. Dallas actually has one prominent UDFA currently on their roster in their backup quarterback, Cooper Rush. This is an outlet for them that has proven to be very valuable so it’s not out of the question for any of these players to make the team. The world of undrafted free agents can be tricky. When it comes to reports of one that has agreed to join a team, things are still not guaranteed. Tony Pauline of DraftAnalyst said it best two years ago. Have you ever wondered how teams sign so many UDFAs almost the minute the draft has ended? It’s simple -- the deals were worked out earlier this week and many of them are done. I spoke with more than a dozen agents through Wednesday of last week, and most told me they had deals in the works for players they represent that may end up undrafted. In some instances agents use the leverage of the deals in hand to get even more for their players. In other instances they use the deals to get the player drafted, telling the team on the other side of the phone, “If you want him you’re going to have to draft him.” It’s important to remember that reports of players joining teams comes from a variety of places. We do our absolute best to track the information as quickly as we can, but sometimes information can be wrong in all of the frenzy or a player can back out of a deal with a team. Please keep that in mind. Here is BTB’s official tracker list for all reported 2019 undrafted free agents and players that will attend rookie minicamp. 2019 Cowboys Undrafted Free Agents Player Position School Player Position School Daniel Wise DT Kansas Chris Westry CB Kentucky Jon'Vea Johnson WR Toledo Jalen Guyton WR North Texas Brandon Knight OL Indiana Ricky Walker DT Virginia Tech Justin Phillips LB Oklahoma State Luke Gifford LB Nebraska Mitch Hyatt OT Clemson Derrick Puni OL Central Missouri Andrew Dowell LB Michigan State Nate Hall LB Northwestern Larry Allen Jr. OL Harvard Last updated on Tuesday, April 30th at 5:45pm ET.<doc-sep>FRISCO - The Dallas Cowboys have signed seven of their eight draft picks already, sources tell me, as of about 1:30 today -- convenient because this is the first time many of have been in DFW since being taken in the 2019 NFL Draft, and efficient because the signings all happened either right before the morning practice or right before the afternoon session. The list of signees: Trysten Hill, DT; Tony Pollard, RB; Michael Jackson, CB; Joe Jackson, DE; Donovan Wilson, S, Texas A&M; Mike Weber, RB, Ohio State; and Jalen Jelks, DE, Oregon. While the front office is busy doing that, the coaches and players took the the field for the Friday opening of a two-day rookie minicamp here inside The Star. The work took place inside the Ford Center, was followed by a media session in the locker room, and will be followed by yet another on-field session. The initial look and feel ... The fellas were up-and-at'em to start the day ... Cowboys rookies were up and at em preeeeetty early on Friday morning pic.twitter.com/mI2Drxzl4b — Blogging The Boys (@BloggingTheBoys) May 10, 2019 And then continued with their predictable amazement at the Cowboys HQ's facilities ... Members of the #DallasCowboys 2019 draft class share their thoughts on arriving at @thestarinfrisco and describe how they believe they will best fit in with the team. #EarnTheStar pic.twitter.com/xWs3AoR8yz — Dallas Cowboys (@dallascowboys) May 10, 2019 And by about 10 a.m. were on the field in position group performing in traditional Underwear Olympics fashion. Third-round pick Connor McGovern, wearing No. 66, along with UDFA Mitch Hyatt, were among those worthy of watching ... #Cowboys o-line work at rookie minicamp here inside The Star ... pic.twitter.com/ZQ9d1M8Jiw — mike fisher ? (@fishsports) May 10, 2019 And indeed, owner Jerry Jones and personnel boss Will McClay spent a good chunk of time doing just that, eyeballing the offensive line's work. Jerry Jones gave #Cowboys rookies a post-practice pep talk after he and Will McClay enjoyed their watching of the O-line work under @marccolombo pic.twitter.com/yS05W1Zuce — mike fisher ? (@fishsports) May 10, 2019 Hyatt is a two-time All-American tackle from reigning national champion Clemson, a four-year starter who pretty much allowed one sack per season. He's penciled in as a roster member in 2020 ... and maybe more, sooner. Starting today, of course, he will likely be obscured along the offensive line by Dallas' third-round pick, Connor McGovern. But someday, maybe both guys will be considered prizes from the Class of 2019. Meanwhile, top defensive aide Kris Richard spent a great deal of time with the DBs, including draftees Michael Jackson (No. 33) and Donovan Wilson (No. 37) ... #Cowboys Richard supervises Top rookie DBs Jackson & Wilson rookie minicamp here inside The Star ... pic.twitter.com/ynpdE4xi9v — mike fisher ? (@fishsports) May 10, 2019 And Richard was also in the mix with the drafted defensive ends, Joe Jackson (56) and Jalen Jelks (74) ... #Cowboys d-line work at rookie minicamp here inside The Star feat Jackson & Jelks pic.twitter.com/8DWHGb0nQR — mike fisher ? (@fishsports) May 10, 2019 Some of these jersey numbers are going to change, obviously; Bob Lilly is 74 around here, and that's just the way it is. For Tony Pollard, the elusive fourth-round running back, he told me he's looking forward to changing from No. 36. #Cowboys @Tp__5 - apparently not a fan of Jersey No. 36 - at work at rookie minicamp here inside The Star ... pic.twitter.com/h4f14XYnr7 — mike fisher ? (@fishsports) May 10, 2019 "It's no big deal, they just gave it to me,'' Pollard told me. "But I'd prefer, like, No. 23.'' Defensive back Darian Thompson is the present owner of 23, so ... we shall see. But Pollard does have his four-year contract as a done deal, being the first of this group to do so ... #Cowboys signings - a bunch are coming - begin with deal with 4th-round RB @Tp__5 .. four-year contract, done deal. pic.twitter.com/BPeuU9RR4n — mike fisher ? (@fishsports) May 10, 2019 And one more to come, with third-rounder Connor McGovern still waiting to happen, as is often the case, as the CBA allows more wrinkles in the third-round contracts.<doc-sep>Signing draft picks used to have more drama around it. Now, it's become more of a formality – at least with most of the picks. The Cowboys were able to sign seven of eight draft picks on Friday, including second-rounder Trysten Hill and fourth-round running back Tony Pollard, who was actually the first to sign his deal Friday morning before the first practice. After that, Hill and fifth-rounders Joe Jackson and Mike Jackson, along with sixth-round safety Donovan Wilson and seventh-round picks Mike Weber and Jalen Jelks all were able to sign the dotted line on their four-year contracts. The only holdup in completing the class is something the Cowboys – and most NFL teams – have expected. Third-round pick Connor McGovern has yet to sign, and likely won't for a while as teams try to figure out the offset language on the final years of the contract. It's the same reason Maliek Collins (2016), Jourdan Lewis (2017) and Michael Gallup (2018) all took longer than the rest of the class to sign their deals.<doc-sep>The Dallas Cowboys have accomplished a lot this offseason but this particular unit may ultimately be the most improved in 2019 Between the added drafts picks and the high quality undrafted free agent signings, the Dallas Cowboys addressed multiple areas of the team. Defensive backs and defensive linemen standout as both top needs heading into the draft and heavily addressed units over draft weekend. But it’s one other position group that stands to improve the most in 2019 and frankly, it’s not even close… Offensive line To the surprise of many, guard Connor McGovern was selected with the Dallas Cowboys’ second pick in the draft. McGovern wasn’t just the highest rated player on the board when Pick 90 was made, but he was the highest by a pretty wide margin. In fact, McGovern was rated by Dallas even higher than Trysten Hill, the man they selected at Pick 58. It’s this detail that made McGovern a surprise option to even the Dallas front office. It’s safe to say –this was not the plan. But McGovern joins a fairly prestigious group determined to regain their glory… Last season, the Dallas Cowboys offensive line significantly underperformed. Obviously much of that is because they were without the services of All-Pro Travis Frederick. Joe Looney did admirably in his stead, but he was far from the elite level we’ve grown accustomed to at the middle of this line. Expect Improvement The bookends, Tyron Smith and La’el Collins, expect to have stronger seasons. Smith is still just 28 years-old and last season was a relatively healthy for him – offering him some momentum heading into 2019. Collins is in a contract year and looking to cash in on his immense potential. So there’s reason to believe both will be better in 2019. Zack Martin, arguably the best guard in the NFL, was noticeably hurting last season after injuring his knee in training camp, but he still managed to perform on an high level. Now that he’s healthy he’s expected to improve significantly and likely to be nothing short of dominant in 2019. Connor Williams and Xavier Su’a-Filo essentially split snaps at left guard last season. Williams started the season shaky largely because of his youth (a young 21-years-old), strength, and inexperience at guard. It’s said he’s already added at least 10-pounds of muscle this offseason likely fixing his biggest weakness. Indications are he’ll be splitting time at RT too, to seamlessly replace Collins when he departs in 2020. McGovern will, no doubt, be given the opportunity to compete at guard, and as a proven commodity inside, he has a legitimate chance of winning. But it’s likely Williams will retain possession given his athleticism, increased strength, and year under his belt. Either way, the rookie Connor provides some competition, which is always a good thing. Depth The Dallas Cowboys aren’t just elite in the starting ranks but also in depth. They were extremely aggressive in the undrafted free agent signings following the draft. Even through the serviceable Cameron Fleming is locked in at swing tackle through 2020, Dallas threw big money at priority free agent Mitch Hyatt. If Hyatt can add good weight to his frame, he could develop into a decent swing tackle down the road. If he can also be serviceable at guard, he could bump a veteran for a roster spot this season (the Cowboys paid him handsomely for a reason). The Cowboys also signed offensive tackle Derrick Puni from the University of Central Missouri. He’s been absolutely dominant in the lower ranks and looks like he could have a bright NFL future with Coach Marc Colombo coaching him up. There's a chance Xavier Su'z-Filo doesn't make the final roster for #DallasCowboys In '18 they kept 9 OL. Smith, Collins, Martin, Frederick, Williams, and McGovern are locks(6). Fleming and Looney are near-locks (8). 1 spot for Hyatt, XSF, Knight, Redmond, Puni & Allen Jr. — Reid D Hanson (@ReidDHanson) May 3, 2019 This leaves Adam Redmond, a lineman with guard-center versatility and XSF, the multi-game starter from last year, to round out the depth. Consider this: there is a very good chance neither player makes the final cut. Note: XSF got a lot of love from Cowboys Nation last season but multiple outlets rated Connor Williams’ final stretch above Su’a-Filo’s. After re-watching the All-22 in January, I only gave XSF a positive grade in his first game and see Williams’ athleticism as huge advantage to his development and as long as his strength is as improved as they say it is, this won’t even be a competition. Extra Note: Even if Frederick comes back a little less than 100 percent, he’s still offering a significant upgrade on the line. And with Joe Looney, who by all accounts is an average NFL starter, serving as primary interior depth, the Dallas Cowboys find themselves abnormally deep. The Dallas Cowboys upgraded multiple areas of the team over draft weekend but no unit went from as low as they were in 2018 to as high as they’re expected to be in 2019 than the Dallas O-line.<doc-sep>
The Dallas Cowboys got some strong potential contributors in the 2019 NFL Draft, but which undrafted players and UDFA signings could have a role to play? Though the Dallas Cowboys had to wait until Day 2 of the 2019 NFL Draft before making their first selection, they tried to make their picks count. With the 58th pick in the draft, they selected Trysten Hill out of UCF, a defensive tackle that should see the field right away for them. Then, with the 90th overall pick, they drafted quality offensive line depth in offensive guard Connor McGovern. Throughout the rest of the draft, the Cowboys made a healthy mix of quality and confusing moves in terms of their selections. Nabbing two running backs (Tony Pollard and Mike Weber) was a bit confusing, even with the need to fill out the depth chart behind Ezekiel Elliott. Even more shocking was largely ignoring the safety and tight end spots aside from a sixth-round flier in the case of the former position. Regardless of what you think about the Dallas 2019 draft class, though, it’s now set in stone. And then came the next part of the proceededings: the signing of undrafted free agents. The Cowboys have had great success over the past decade and a half with UDFAs and they are looking to do so again. Here are the 13 UDFAs the Dallas Cowboys have signed: Larry Allen Jr. (OL, Harvard); Andrew Dowell (LB, Michigan State); Luke Gifford (LB, Nebraska); Jalen Guyton (WR, North Texas); Nate Hall (LB, Northwestern); Mitch Hyatt (OT, Clemson); Jon’Vea Johnson (WR, Toledo); Brandon Knight (OL, Indiana); Justin Phillips (LB, Oklahoma State); Derek Puni (OL, Central Missouri); Ricky Walker (DT, Virginia Tech); Chris Westry (CB, Kentucky); Daniel Wise (DT, Kansas) Looking at that class, there are certainly some familiar names and, perhaps, a few that many thought would actually be drafted. Regardless, they are now on the Cowboys 90-man roster as we enter the offseason workouts portion of the programming. But who could make the final 53-man roster? Let’s take a look at three players in the Dallas Cowboys 2019 UDFA class that could be around after the final cuts.