The Dallas Cowboys are approaching the 2026 season with a more varied approach to constructing their defense, which can be rightly interpreted as 1st-year defensive coordinator Christian Parker willing to do whatever it takes to turn around arguably the NFL’s worst unit.
Part of that might be taking chances on outside-the-box players, with the Cowboys getting a closer look at 1 of those on Monday after a standout season in the UFL for edge rusher Olakunle Fatukasi.
The Cowboys would be the 6th NFL team and 8th pro team for Fatukasi since he closed out his career at Rutgers as a 2-time All-Big Ten selection in 2021. He played a career-high 13 games for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2022.
“Birmingham Stallions linebacker Olakunle Fatukasi working out for Cowboys, per a league source,” NFL reporter Aaron Wilson wrote on his official X account on Monday. “He played at Rutgers. Previously, the Buccaneers, Broncos, Patriots, Chiefs, Rams, and St. Louis Battlehawks.”
Coming out of Rutgers, Fatukasi earned big praise but still went undrafted.
From NFL Draft Buzz in 2022: “Plays fast, flows with the action, showing smooth lateral agility and short-area burst. Has good instincts and awareness to quickly find the ball.”
Cowboys Added 2 Possible Starters in Offseason
The Cowboys have revamped the edge rusher position this offseason, when they’ve added 2 players who could very well be the starters when they open the season against the New York Giants on Sunday Night Football.
Dallas traded with the Green Bay Packers for edge rusher Rashan Gary — a former 1st round pick — and used 1 of their 1st round picks on UCF edge rusher Malachi Lawrence at No. 23 overall.
Cowboys Found Pair of Special Teams Stars in UFL
Two of the best players on the Cowboys roster were plucked from the UFL with NFL All-Pro kicker Brandon Aubrey and NFL All-Pro and Pro Bowl return specialist Kavontae Turpin.
Aubrey holds the NFL career record with 6 field goals made from 60 or more yards and is a 3-time NFL All-Pro in each of his 1st 3 seasons with the Cowboys. Aubrey cashed in big this offseason with a 4-year, $28 million contract extension that made him the NFL’s highest-paid kicker.
Aubrey was an All-American soccer player at Notre Dame and a 1st round pick (No. 21 overall) by Toronto FC in the 2017 Major League Soccer Draft before switching sports in 2019 at his wife’s urging.
Aubrey spent 3 years training before he signed with the USFL’s Birmingham Stallions, where he played in 2022 and 2023.
After Turpin went undrafted in 2019, he spent 1 season with the Frisco Fighters in the Indoor Football League, 1 season with the Wroclaw Panthers in the European League of Football, 1 season with the Glacier Boyz in the Fan Controlled Football League, followed by 1 season in The Spring League with the Sea Lions.
Finally, in 2022, Turpin caught a break with the New Jersey Generals in the USFL, where he was named USFL Most Valuable Player with 921 all-purpose yards and 5 touchdowns in just 10 games.
Turpin signed a 3-year, $13.5 million contract extension with the Cowboys after he led the NFL in kickoff return yards in 2024.
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