Dallas Cowboys running back Jaydon Blue celebrates after scoring the first touchdown of the game, Sunday, January 4, 2026, in East Rutherford. Kevin R. Wexler-NorthJersey.com / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

3 Dallas Cowboys Entering Make-or-Break Offseasons

Originally posted on Dallas Cowboys on SI
By Zach Dimmitt | Last updated Feb 14, 2026 2:10 PM ET

The Dallas Cowboys have already made some major moves this offseason.

The team fired defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus, replacing him with Christian Parker, and is reportedly set to franchise tag wide receiver George Pickens.

However, the Cowboys still have some other notable decisions to make this offseason as they look toward next season and beyond.

Jaydon Blue, RB

Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

Blue entered training camp as a rookie with some notable hype from the fan base but quickly became an afterthought in the running back room as the season began.

Javonte Williams certainly deserved all of the attention after impressing early on, but few fans likely predicted that Malik Davis would eventually become the team's backup running back while Blue remained sidelined as a healthy scratch.

After Miles Sanders suffered a season-ending injury, Blue appeared set for more reps but the coaching staff clearly didn't trust him yet.

If Blue can't show some notable improvement during training camp this summer and next season, the Cowboys won't have much of a reason to hold onto him and could look elsewhere once next offseason rolls around.

Jake Ferguson, TE

Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images

This might be a controversial pick to some, but Ferguson will need to prove that he can live up even further to the four-year, $50 million deal he signed with the Cowboys before this past season.

"Make-or-break" for Ferguson's situation doesn't mean he's in danger of getting cut or anything, but if he repeats his forgettable late-season stretch in 2026, there will definitely be some concern if his contract extension was worth the price that Dallas paid.

After catching six touchdowns across the first seven games of the season, Ferguson had just two scores in the final 10 contests while failing to post more than 60 yards in a single game during this span.

Sam Williams, DE

Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

Williams is set to be a free agent this offseason, but if he signs a one- or two-year deal with the Cowboys to return for 2026, he immediately re-enters make-or-break territory.

Williams had 8.5 sacks combined during his first two seasons in Dallas before injury kept him out all of 2024.

He had just one sack this past season and will need to get back to his prior form in order to have a role in the Dallas defense moving forward.