The Dallas Cowboys got an early start on their offseason agenda by moving on from veteran cornerback Trevon Diggs before their Week 18 game against the New York Giants.
Dallas announced on Tuesday that Diggs has been waived, allowing him to become a free agent if no team claims him.
Per NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, waiving Diggs was the culmination of “multiple factors spread over time, including both performance and other elements.”
B/R’s NFL scouting department already had the Cowboys addressing their secondary with Tennessee’s Jermod McCoy projected to be their first-round pick in their most recent mock draft.
Dropping Diggs is unlikely to significantly change the Cowboys’ draft and free-agent plans, especially since members of the organization have spoken about him publicly throughout the season in a way that suggested they could move on.
Defense always seemed like the area of the roster that the Cowboys were going to address the most in the offseason. Moving on from Diggs only helps to solidify that as a strong possibility.
The Cowboys do have two first-round picks this year that could be used to bolster their defense. Those selections are currently at No. 14 and 21 heading into the final week of the regular season.
Other potential cornerbacks the Cowboys could target early in the draft going off B/R’s big board include Clemson’s Avieon Terrell, Texas’ Malik Muhammad and Duke’s Chandler Rivers.
A more pressing need in Dallas is likely at Edge where the team never found a way to replicate a significant portion of Micah Parsons’ production after trading him to the Green Bay Packers.
Jadeveon Clowney has been effective in his role with 5.5 sacks this season, but he is also going to be a free agent in the offseason and turns 33 on Feb. 14. Trey Hendrickson, coming off an injury-plagued 2025, could be in Dallas’ price range on a short-term deal going into his age-31 season.
The Cowboys do have a very strong interior defensive line after acquiring Quinnen Williams from the New York Jets, so putting a player with Hendrickson’s upside on the edge could make them a disruptive force if Jerry Jones wanted to pursue a deal.
Some of the draft-eligible edge players the Cowboys could look at in the first round might include Texas Tech’s David Bailey, Texas A&M’s Cashius Howell, Auburn’s Keldric Faulk and Clemson’s T.J. Parker.
One primary issue with looking at free agency is Jones has been reluctant to really dive into that pool. He hasn’t signed an external free agent to a contract worth more than $6 million since Gerald McCoy’s three-year, $18 million deal in March 2020.
If the Cowboys are going to significantly address their defense, it will likely come through either the draft or a potential trade.
Dallas enters Week 18 ranked 30th in yards allowed, last in passing yards allowed and last in points allowed. Fixing the pass defense, through both the secondary and pass-rush, has to be the top priority for the Cowboys if they want to get back into playoff contention in 2026.