The salary cap for NFL teams was set at $255.4 million for the 2024 season, and in any given week it’s understood a chunk of that money won’t be on the field.
Players get hurt. They get suspended. They get benched for whatever reason.
But as the Dallas Cowboys enter their Week 12 NFC East Division game against the Washington Commanders, America’s Team will be missing an eye-popping amount of talent and money when they take the field.
“With right guard Zack Martin and cornerback Trevon Diggs ruled out of Sunday’s game because of injuries, the Dallas Cowboys will be without more than $100 million of salary cap space when they take on the Washington Commanders,” ESPN’s Todd Archer wrote on November 23. “The Cowboys already have quarterback Dak Prescott ($44.6 million), defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence ($20.4 million) and wide receiver Brandin Cooks ($10 million) on injured reserve. Martin counts $15.5 million against the cap, while Diggs counts $15.3 million.”
All told, the Cowboy will be missing approximately $105.8 million in salary cap space against the Commanders with just those 5 players — symbolic of their 3-7 record after 3 consecutive seasons with a 12-5 record.
Cowboys Bottomed Out Before Season Started
The two best — and worst — moves in the 2024 NFL offseason both involved running backs and at least one of them involved the Cowboys. It may have been where their season came undone before it even started.
The Philadelphia Eagles leveled up when they signed free agent running back Saquon Barkley away from the New York Giants for a 3-year, $37.5 million contract — Barkley is having the best season of his career and the Eagles are on a 6-game winning streak and sitting alone in first place in the NFC East.
The Cowboys could have made a similar move by signing running back Derrick Henry, who lives in Dallas in the offseason and wanted to come play for the Cowboys, who pled poverty despite the franchise being valued at $11 billion in 2024 — approximately $3 billion more than any other NFL team.
The Baltimore Ravens ended up signing Henry to a 2-year, $16 million contract and he leads the NFL with 15 touchdowns. The Cowboys decided to turn to a player who had burned them in the past with his lack of production and commitment and signed running back Ezekiel Elliott to a 1-year, $2 million contract.
Through 9 games, Elliott is averaging 3.3 yards per carry and has 179 rushing yards and 2 touchdowns. He was also suspended for a Week 9 loss to the Atlanta Falcons for disciplinary reasons — the first healthy scratch of his career.
Commanders Coming Off 2-Game Losing Streak
The Commanders have lost 2 consecutive games to drop to 7-4 but have a unique opportunity to bounce back at home against the Cowboys, where first-year Commanders head coach Dan Quinn spent the last 3 seasons as the defensive coordinator.
Dallas has a porous defense that’s ranked 31st out of 32 NFL teams and giving up approximately 29 points per game. The Cowboys have also lost 5 consecutive games for the first time since 2012.
The Commanders aren’t dealing with any notable injury issues outside of cornerback Marshon Lattimore, who will miss his fourth consecutive game with a hamstring injury and hasn’t played for the Commanders since they acquired him via a trade with the New Orleans Saints on November 5.
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