The Dallas Cowboys have brought in plenty of talent during the 2025 NFL Draft. While some of their selections may be controversial, all of them will be looking to earn a spot on the roster as the incumbent veterans try to hold them off.
For a franchise that loves drama as much as the Cowboys do, it’s a juicy storyline heading into every offseason program. But the competition goes beyond just one team. A bunch of former players are looking to keep their jobs with their new team and were just dealt a bad hand with the results of this weekend’s draft.
Here’s a look at three former Cowboys who face sudden competition after draft weekend and could lose their jobs as they prepare for the 2025 season.
1. Chidobe Awuzie, CB, Ravens
Chidobe Awuzie is a wild name to add to this list, considering he just signed with the Baltimore Ravens this offseason. Awuzie was a second-round pick by the Cowboys in the 2017 draft and spent four seasons in Dallas, making 213 total tackles, making four interceptions and recording 42 pass breakups. While his stats were modest, his play left something to be desired, punching his ticket to the Cincinnati Bengals on a three-year, $21.75 million contract after the 2020 season.
Awuzie rebounded for his best season in 2021, making 64 total tackles with two interceptions and 14 pass breakups. His play also led him to a career-best 75.5 overall grade and a 80.9 passer rating on 120 targets according to Pro Football Focus.
Unfortunately, injuries got in the way. He tore his ACL on Halloween in 2022 and wasn’t the same player, allowing 38 catches, 488 yards and three touchdowns on 56 targets in 2023. Awuzie left to sign a three-year, $36 million contract with the Tennessee Titans, but he lasted just one season before signing with the Baltimore Ravens last spring.
The one-year, $1.25 million contract suggested that Awuzie’s job wasn’t safe and it was confirmed when the Ravens selected Western Michigan cornerback Bilhal Kone in the sixth round of the draft. Kone played on the outside as a two-year starter on the Broncos and ran a 4.43-second time at the NFL Scouting Combine in February. While he needs to develop his skills, he could play his way into a job behind Awuzie, who is currently projected behind starter Marlon Humphrey on the depth chart.
This could turn Awuzie’s stay in Baltimore into a short one and have him looking for work by the time the season begins.
2. Julius Wood, S, Tennessee Titans
The Tennessee Titans are stocking up on former members of the Cowboys’ secondary. Xavier Woods is the most notable name after signing a two-year, $8 million contract with Tennessee this offseason but Julius Wood has already been there after he was claimed off waivers last August.
If you don’t remember Wood’s time as a Cowboy, there’s a good reason. Wood signed as an undrafted free agent out of East Carolina following the 2024 draft but was released during roster cuts at the end of the preseason. Wood was claimed by the Titans but mostly played on special teams with two tackles in nine games. To make matters worse, Wood received a six-game suspension for violating the NFL’s performance-enhancing drugs policy last December and still has a game remaining as he enters his second season.
Minimal production and a suspension are good ways to put yourself on thin ice and things warmed up when the Titans selected Kevin Winston Jr. in the third round of the draft. Winston was ranked fourth among safeties and 83rd in the top 100 prospects in Dane Brugler’s scouting guide “The Beast” and The Athletic draft writer suggested he could develop into a starter if his recovery from a season-ending knee injury goes well.
“Winston is still green in the way he diagnoses play development, but the tools are there for him to eventually become a quality NFL starter – if he’s given a specific role and allowed to grow into the scheme,” Brugler wrote. “Rust should be expected during his rookie season.”
With 61 total tackles and six pass defenses during his lone year as a starter at Penn State, Winston’s draft investment screams bad things for Wood, who could be cut for the second straight year by the time training camp concludes.
3. Trey Lance, QB, Los Angeles Chargers
Four years ago, you could have talked yourself into Trey Lance becoming one of the top quarterbacks in the NFL. With a big arm and mobile skill set, Lance was entering a support system that had a scheme guru in Kyle Shanahan, elite pass catchers in Deebo Samuel, Brandon Aiyuk and George Kittle and a premiere ground game headlined by running back Christian McCaffrey. But Lance was given the keys to this car and promptly ran it into the ditch.
The San Francisco 49ers turned out OK when they turned to Brock Purdy as their new quarterback of the future but Lance’s future was in flux when he was traded to the Dallas Cowboys in 2023. Despite his toolset, Lance was never able to beat out Cooper Rush for the backup quarterback job and made just one start in two seasons in a meaningless game against the Washington Commanders. It left Lance to hit the free agent market for the first time in his career but the best he could do was a one-year, $2 million contract with the Los Angeles Chargers.
Los Angeles didn’t add a quarterback during last weekend’s draft but the quarterback situation isn’t promising in terms of Lance earning a roster spot. Justin Herbert is the team’s franchise quarterback while Taylor Heinicke also signed a one-year, $2.5 million contract to compete for the backup job.
With Heinicke having the benefit of 29 career starts, he figures to have a leg up on Lance. Lance also may have to worry about what’s behind him as former five-star recruit DJ Uiagalelei was brought in as an undrafted free agent.
Maybe offensive coordinator Greg Roman has a way to utilize Lance in packages in the same way he used Colin Kaepernick’s rushing ability during his time with the San Francisco 49ers. But the odds of Lance becoming a franchise quarterback again are slim. At this point, Lance would be happy to have a job in the NFL but it could be another tall task coming out of draft weekend.
