It’s been widely speculated that the Cowboys may be looking at a quarterback in the late rounds of this weekend’s draft. While Dak Prescott’s starting job obviously isn’t in danger, it remains a passer-driven league; constantly re-stocking the shelves at the position helps ensure that the offense is in the best hands possible in case of emergency. And a little camp competition for the QB2 and QB3 roster spots is always a good thing.
A few names seem to keep popping up who may fit the bill for Dallas in 2023. Georgia’s Stetson Bennett, UCLA’s Dorian Thompson-Robinson, and Purdue’s Aidan O’Connell might be guys to watch, while prospects Clayton Tune of Houston and Max Duggan of TCU would likely create some extra buzz among in-state fans.
But is the best young quarterback option already playing pro ball?
Ben DiNucci last played for the Cowboys in the 2022 preseason. Himself a former seventh-round draft choice, he was one of the final roster cuts of that summer, waived in favor of Will Grier, who took over the third-stringer’s role in Dallas.
Since then, DiNucci’s thrown for over 2,600 yards in 10 games to finish as the XFL’s regular-season passing leader. On Sunday, he tossed three touchdowns and ran for another to put the Seattle Sea Dragons in that league’s postseason. The XFL ride isn’t over yet for DiNucci, but he’ll be eligible to sign with an NFL squad as soon as Seattle’s playoff runs ends.
Given his performance over the first season of the revamped league, it’s almost certain he’ll get the opportunity.
For Dallas, the question is about who presents more upside: a college kid coming in and learning everything for the first time, or someone who has already spent the past three offseasons and two full campaigns with the club and even started a primetime game?
Is it better to hope for lightning in a bottle? Or look at DiNucci’s XFL stint as part of his overall growth, a valuable side gig that could pay dividends within a longer-term Cowboys experiment?
True, DiNucci went just 21-of-40 in his only Cowboys start, a forgettable 23-9 loss in Philadelphia on a Sunday night as a wide-eyed rookie.
“I feel like that wasn’t me out there,” he said a few months later.
He didn’t start again for Dallas, and his opportunities were limited to preseason contests. But even after getting cut, DiNucci maintains a strong connection with Dallas that many Cowboys fans and players have publicly worn on their sleeves. Or heads.
Shortly after being drafted, he became co-owner of True Brvnd, the streetwear manufacturer who makes the “SALLAD” hats that have shown up on everyone from Prescott and Tony Pollard to Trevon Diggs and CeeDee Lamb… not to mention the everyday consumers who regularly wipe out the inventory of new hats as they become available on the company’s website.
The logo is actually the word “DALLAS” presented upside-down, a nod to the way the whole world felt in the spring of 2020, during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Even eight months after his release by the Cowboys, DiNucci remains one of the brand’s most visible ambassadors… not to mention a curiosity for many followers of the team who still consider him one of their own.
His prolific XFL season has now perhaps flipped DiNucci’s image as a player with some segment of the fanbase. Whether it’s also been enough to warrant a second chance with the NFL team that drafted him remains to be seen.
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It was a chance meeting in an elevator that perhaps first put him on the Cowboys’ radar in 2020. The James Madison football team was in Frisco for the FCS title game, and DiNucci got on an elevator at the Dukes’ hotel, attached to the Cowboys’ facility at The Star.
Head coach Mike McCarthy was already on board, waiting for his floor.
DiNucci introduced himself, a fellow Pittsburgher, and mentioned their shared connections. McCarthy’s brother had coached DiNucci in middle school basketball, and DiNucci’s position coach at JMU had also worked under McCarthy in Green Bay.
That may have tipped the scales a few months later when the Cowboys were about to make their final pick in the 2020 draft. It may have earned DiNucci a longer look after his first NFL start fizzled in Philly. And it may have made his release at the end of 2022’s camp- after some glimmer-filled preseason moments- a tough decision.
He’s now 26, just 11 months older than one of the project quarterbacks- Bennett- the Cowboys could be considering in the draft. One of the big differences, of course, is that DiNucci is a known commodity who’s spent time in the Cowboys system, knows many of the current players, is familiar to the coaching staff, and would free up that late-round draft pick to use on a different position.
It’s worth noting, though, that this time around, the Cowboys may not be the only NFL team interested to see how much DiNucci has grown as a passer.
But if the Cowboys do decide to make him an offer that brings him back to Dallas, it won’t be because they already know him. It won’t be because of an elevator ride or a trendy ball cap. It won’t be a reunion made for sentimental reasons. It will be his 10 games (and counting) of live-fire experience with the Sea Dragons that did it.
That, and the whole not-having-to-spend-a-draft-pick thing.
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