With the final roster cuts rapidly approaching for the Dallas Cowboys, there's no better time than now to do some guesswork on what the final 53-man roster could look like. The key word there is guesswork. It would be great to correctly guess all 53 guys, but it’s highly unlikely.
QB (2):
Tony Romo
Kyle Orton
Romo and Orton are shoo-ins to make the roster. The only real question here is if Alex Tanney has done enough to make the team. Dallas might try to sneak him on the practice squad.
HB (4):
DeMarco Murray
Phillip Tanner
Lance Dunbar
Joseph Randle
All four guys should make the team with ease. I suspect they all will see carries in a running back-by-committee approach when if Murray gets hurt.
WR (6):
Dez Bryant
Miles Austin
Dwayne Harris
Terrance Williams
Cole Beasley
Anthony Armstrong
Bryant, Austin, Harris and Williams are all locks and should dress for every game when healthy. Beasley and Armstrong are both on the bubble, but injuries and the apparent desire to get both on the roster should be enough. I don’t think Dallas wants to make the same mistake with Beasley that they did with Danny Amendola and the team has been putting Armstrong on the first team special teams unit. Still, I wouldn’t be shocked if Dallas only went with five wide receivers.
TE (4):
Jason Witten
Gavin Escobar
James Hanna
Dante Rosario
I think the Cowboys want to go with four tight ends and Rosario gets the nod over Andre Smith. My money is on Rosario will end up being the team’s short yardage full back as well.
OL (9):
Tyron Smith, OT
Ronald Leary, OG
Travis Frederick, C
Doug Free, OT/OG
Jeremy Parnell, OT
Mackenzy Bernadeau, OG
Phil Costa, C
David Arkin, OG
Veteran Guard/Tackle, TBD
Those first eight names should be locks to make the roster. The veteran part might be cheating, but I expect Dallas to sign a veteran player. Maybe they eventually sign Brian Waters, or grab someone who will be a roster cut. I don’t think Nate Livings will play, because I think his knee injury is serious. I think Dallas will carry nine linemen, but who that ninth man will be is up in the air.
DL (8):
Anthony Spencer, DE
Jason Hatcher, DT
Nick Hayden, DT
DeMarcus Ware, DE
George Selvie, DE
Sean Lissemore, DT
Ben Bass, DT/DE
Kyle Wilber, DE
With the Jay Ratliff heading to the PUP list and Tyrone Crawford out for the year because of a knee injury, the depth looks shaky. Selvie has played his way from the street to a key rotation guy. With the injury to Ratliff, Landon Cohen might find his way onto the roster as well. Hayden, who was out of football last year, will likely start the season opener. If you weren’t already upset with the decision to not take Sharrif Floyd in the draft, you should be now.
LB (6):
Bruce Carter, OLB
Sean Lee, MLB
Justin Durant, OLB
DeVonte Holloman, OLB
Brandon Magee, MLB
Ernie Sims, OLB
Carter, Lee, and Durant will be starters. Sims and Holloman should be locks, especially given the way Holloman has continued to make plays in the preseason. The final linebacker spot will come down to Magee and Caleb McSurdy, which might be decided in the final preseason game.
CB (5):
Brandon Carr
Morris Claiborne
Orlando Scandrick
Sterling Moore
B.W. Webb
These should be the five corners that Dallas takes into the regular season. Webb has bounced back from a rough start and should feel safe about his roster spot. Dallas has invested a lot in its corners the past few seasons and it should starting paying off soon.
S (5):
Barry Church
Will Allen
J.J. Wilcox
Danny McCray
Matt Johnson
Church, Allen and Wilcox should be locks. I think Dallas wants to carry five safeties, which leaves two spots for some combination of Eric Frampton, Danny McCray, Matt Johnson and Jeff Heath. I think Frampton is last in that battle. Johnson has yet to stay healthy, but Dallas has invested a lot in him and it might be too soon to give up. McCray is huge on special teams and Heath has looked impressive in the preseason. Heath is going to be tough to leave off, but I think Dallas tries to get him on the Practice Squad.
ST (3):
Dan Bailey
Chris Jones
L.P. Ladouceur
If these aren’t the three special teams players, then something has gone terribly, terribly wrong.
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