It happens every year. Training camps get rolling across the league, cuts are made, and a few veteran players suddenly find themselves out of a job. A younger player steps up during practice, a team draws a line in the sand over salary, a project player doesn’t live up to billing, an older player’s skills diminish just a little bit too far, and the circle of life continues in the NFL.
The bubble is a dangerous place to be during training camp, but basic math says several Cowboys will be on it as they arrive in Oxnard later this month. Trying to predict who will or won’t survive is a dicey proposition; one head-turning play in a scrimmage is often enough to cement a spot on the final roster. For others, that moment never even presents itself.
ESPN asked its NFL Nation reporters to offer up the name of one player on each team who may be in a precarious spot as training camp gets underway. Todd Archer looks squarely at the position that the Cowboys perennially have trouble with and says free agent safety Jayron Kearse could be the odd man out.
Writes Archer:
“The Cowboys do not have a lot of veterans in danger for the traditional reasons, like money, age, or draft resources at that spot. So it comes down to Kearse or Darian Thompson, though both could make the final roster. Thompson started seven games last year and is a core special teamer. Kearse, who is guaranteed just $137,500 on the one-year deal he signed, can do the same. It could come down to the development of sixth-round pick Israel Mukuamu. If he shows he can make the transition from college corner to safety, then Kearse and Thompson will be in a battle. Thompson’s time with the current staff gives him the slightest edge.”
Kearse signed with Dallas in late March. The Clemson product was a seventh-round draft pick by Minnesota in 2016. The nephew of former Titans defensive end Jevon Kearse and the cousin of Raiders ex-cornerback Phillip Buchanon, Kearse seemingly had the DNA to make some noise in a pro defense.
But over four seasons, Kearse got just five starts with the Vikings. He signed a one-year deal with Detroit in 2020 and eventually started seven games, but missed the first portion of the season due to a substance-abuse suspension. Following the regular season, he spent a few weeks on the Ravens practice squad during their postseason run.
Standing 6-foot-4 and weighing 215 pounds, the 27-year-old has the size that new coordinator Dan Quinn openly covets in his defensive backs. But so do many of the guys Kearse will be competing against in camp.
As Archer points out, Thompson has tenure and a relationship with the staff. And the rookie Mukuamu was taken because the Dallas coaches clearly feel there is some level of untapped potential there. With Donovan Wilson and Damontae Kazee projected by most to be the starting safeties, it could well come down to making a big special teams play in a fortuitous situation that determines whether the bubble underneath Kearse bursts.
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