Cowboys news: Dallas moves on from Brett Maher

Cowboys cut kicker Brett Maher, sign Kai Forbath - Nick Shook, NFL.com
In a move that seems like barring the barn door after the livestock has escaped, the Cowboys finally got around to getting rid of Brett Maher and trying someone else.

Maher’s forgettable 2019 season as a Cowboy comes to a close after 13 games in which he made just 66.7 percent of his 30 field goal attempts (but was perfect on all 36 extra points). The 30-year-old drew the ire of Cowboys owner Jerry Jones after the kicker missed field goals in each of Dallas’ last two losses, which both came on prime-time national television. Jones was quick to point out the need for improvement at kicker first before turning his attention anywhere else during his contentious Friday radio appearance, which ultimately served as a hint of Monday’s eventual roster move.

Offensive linemen finalists announced for NFL All-Time Team - NFL.com
Another Cowboys makes the list of finalists for the Top 100 offensive lineman in NFL history.

Larry Allen (1994-2007)

2013 Pro Football Hall of Fame Inductee... Selected by Cowboys in 2nd round (46th overall pick) in 1994 draft... Versatile, played every position on OL except center in 12 seasons with Cowboys... Won Super Bowl XXX with Cowboys, 1995 season... Blocked for HOF QB Troy Aikman, HOF RB Emmitt Smith with Cowboys... Helped Cowboys rank in top 5 with fewest sacks in season 5 times in first 6 seasons... Earned 11 Pro Bowl selections (T-5th most all-time among OL)... 6-time 1st-team All-Pro selection (T-10th among OL in NFL history)... Named to NFL’s All-Decade Team for 1990s and 2000s... Born November 27, 1971 in Los Angeles, California.

Tight end finalists announced for NFL All-Time Team - Staff, NFL.com
And yet another Cowboys player nominated at the tight end position.

Jason Witten

Selected by Cowboys in 3rd round (69th overall pick) of 2003 draft... Ranks 2nd among TE in NFL history in receptions and receiving yards... 4-time 1,000-yard receiver, tied for NFL record among TE... Caught 90 passes in season 4 times, 2nd-most by TE in NFL history... Posted career-high 110 receptions in 2012, which set NFL single-season record by TE (since broken)... Owns NFL single-game record for TE with 18 receptions, Week 8, 2012... Cowboys all-time leader in receptions, receiving yards... Made 11 Pro Bowls, 2nd-most by TE in NFL history... 2-time 1st-team All-Pro... Born May 6, 1982, in Elizabethton, Tennessee.

Spagnola: Playoffs Still In Realm Of Possibilities - Mickey Spagnola, DallasCowboys.com
You have to give Mickey credit; carrying this torch is admirable.

The Cowboys have lost three consecutive games.

They have lost four of their last five and seven of their last 10.

They own but a 6-7 record, their worst record since sitting 4-9 after 13 games during the mostly Romo-less 2015 season.

Yet with three games to go, the Cowboys still are in first place in the NFC East, no matter what the outcome of Monday night’s 5-7 Eagles’ game against the New York Giants.

If the Eagles win, breaking a three-game losing streak of their own, they will be tied with the Cowboys for first place in the East, though technically the Cowboys would be a half-game up on them, owning the head-to-head advantage on the strength of their 37-10 victory in the first of their annual two meetings.

Collins Persevered After Draft Moment Was Lost - Jeff Sullivan, DallasCowboys.com
One of the few Cowboys who’s played up to potential this year is right tackle La’el Collins. This long-form piece is a must read for anyone interested in the budding star.

La’el Collins did everything right. For this singular moment. To hear his name called on stage, to hug his mother, to cry tears of joy, to become a millionaire, to take care of his family.

This was going to be the culmination, his shining achievement thus far. It was an ending of a lifelong dream and the beginning of a new one. Instead, the dream quickly dissolved into a nightmare, a cruel fate of timing beyond anyone’s repair.

The Cowboys offensive tackle endured the worst draft experience perhaps in the history of professional sports. That’s not an exaggeration. Name another athlete who was projected as a top-10 overall pick days beforehand and ended up not being drafted altogether. Through absolutely no fault of his own. And in the process, lose roughly $15 million in guaranteed money.

Again, through absolutely no fault of his own, Collins lost his lifelong dream of being drafted and $15 million. If that’s not the worst story in draft history, hard to imagine what is.

Film room: 5 first-round draft targets for Cowboys, including instant impact at nose tackle and an electrifying WR - John Owning, DallasNews.com
In a clear sign of the times, Owning has already moved on to studying the draft, rather than the play on the field.

The NFL draft is less than five months away, and the homework has already begun.

Typically, when a team is underwhelming on the field, the reward is a high pick in the draft. Unfortunately for the Cowboys, they can’t even underwhelm right. Despite going 3-7 in their past 10 games, they still sit atop the comically bad NFC East, meaning if the draft started today, the Cowboys would be picking 21st (assuming they got bounced in the wild-card round).

But if the Cowboys continue their downward spiral to the point where the Eagles are able to limp by and win the division, then picks 12-18 become a possibility based on how other teams finish their seasons.

Whether they’re picking in the early 20s or the mid-teens, be assured that there will be plenty of talent available when the Cowboys go on the clock in Round 1. With the idea that they would pick somewhere between 15-21, let’s take an early look at five prospects who could be available when it’s Dallas first goes on the clock.

MMQB: 49ers sitting pretty in NFC playoff race after beating Saints - Albert Breer, Sports Illustrated
If head coaching rumors are your thing, the Monday Morning Quarterback has the goods.

The Cowboys’ interest in Urban Meyer is real. And I also believe that Urban is interested in them. I don’t think he’s dying to go back to coaching, but as I said earlier in the week he does plan to listen to NFL teams if they call. To me, two things have to be in place for it happen. One, it has to be a flagship franchise. Two, it has to be a place where he can win quickly, because I don’t know at his age, or with his physical history, that he can take the losing required to go through a rebuild. Dallas checks both of those boxes. There’s already an established relationship between the franchise and Meyer. He’s close with one of the best players on the team, in Ezekiel Elliott. So I’m not saying it’s likely. But it’s certainly possible.

How George Kittle and the ‘Choice’ Route Helped Lift 49ers Over Saints in the Game of the Year – Peter King, ProFootballTalk
Peter King was asked about Jimmy Johnson’s prospects for making the Hall of Fame and King thinks the former Cowboys coach deserves the nod.

Put Jimmy Johnson in the Hall of Fame.

From Jonathan Vender: “I’m lifelong Cowboys fan and it has bothered me for a long time that Jimmy Johnson is not in Canton. He is one of if not the only true college coach who was successful in the NFL, was a tremendous football coach, incredible drafter and evaluator, and has won two Super Bowls. I think Jerry Jones belongs in the Hall of Fame but putting him in before Jimmy is like putting in Eddie DeBartolo before Bill Walsh.”

There is no more uniquely strong coaching career than Johnson’s among those I’ve considered for Canton in my 28 years as a voter. In short: Was the driving force behind the renaissance of the Dallas Cowboys . . . Excellent in personnel. Truly excellent . . . Tough and ornery when he had to be, and could have won one of two more titles with that team had he stayed beyond five seasons . . . Didn’t maximize the twilight of Dan Marino’s career in Miami . . . Won 89 games in nine NFL seasons. So, what does it all mean? I think with the Terrell Davis election, Johnson’s case should be strongly reconsidered. We, as a selection committee of 48 members, have put the Canton stamp on Davis for three terrific rushing seasons, one Super Bowl MVP and three first-team all-pro seasons. For Johnson to have been the engine behind the three-Super Bowl run of the nineties Cowboys is clearly as big an accomplishment as, or bigger than, what Davis did.