Cowboys free agency 2022: Dallas signing defensive end Dante Fowler

The Dallas Cowboys were the last team in the NFL to sign an external free agent and when they did they seem to have opened the floodgates. Not even an hour after news came of the team adding wide receiver James Washington, it was reported that they have landed yet another.

It always made sense that the Cowboys were going to add players at their own pace and that when they did they would do so at positions of need to protect themselves ahead of the draft. That is how they have chosen to operate for a long time now.

Where James Washington fit in at wide receiver, the Cowboys needed somebody at defensive end and have begun to address the position by signing Dante Fowler according to ESPN.

It was a long time ago that Fowler was the third overall selection in the draft (seven years ago to be precise) by the Jacksonville Jaguars and since then has bounced around a bit across the NFL. Fowler’s peak came in 2019 as a member of the Los Angeles Rams when he totaled 11.5 sacks but after that he reunited with Dan Quinn, then with the Atlanta Falcons.

Quinn, now the Dallas Cowboys defensive coordinator, helped recruit Fowler to the University of Florida and their bond has been well-documented. It clearly served a role in Fowler’s decision to join the Atlanta Falcons, but Dan Quinn was dismissed early on during their time together. As a free agent in the here and now, Fowler is seemingly following Quinn to Dallas.

Dante Fowler had 4.5 sacks in 14 games for the struggling Falcons last season. The Cowboys were in need of an edge rusher as mentioned after losing out on Randy Gregory. Perhaps they can get the best out of Fowler the way that they did with Robert Quinn three years ago.