The Dallas Cowboys will need to be down to 75 players by tomorrow and the first big cut of training camp is veteran safety Patrick Watkins. Per Todd Archer of the DMN, tight end Scott Sicko and wide receiver Terrell Hudgins were also released this morning.
Watkins being released by the Cowboys should come as no surprise as the team has appeared ready to move forward with Barry Church and Danny McCray from the start of training camp. With Watkins missing significant time with an injury, Church and McCray received ample opportunity to prove they deserved to make the team.
While Watkins was a leader on special teams last season, coach Joe DiCamillis is still transforming the Cowboys special teams and it appears Church and McCray will be more than capable of filling his spot. One slight concern is that without Watkins, the Cowboys have just one safety on the team with any sort of significant amount of experience in the NFL.
A total of five players will need to come off the roster before tomorrow, so the Cowboys are expected to place John Phillips on injured reserve with Stephen Hodge moving to the PUP list as well. There was hope that Hodge, who was supposed to be a special teams monster, would be able to play sometime this season. By going on the PUP, he'll have six weeks in order to continue to recuperate and finally start making plays for the Cowboys since being drafted in 2009.
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