Cowboys Declining CB Kaiir Elam’s Fifth-Year Option

Fowler notes Dallas was largely expected not to pick up Elam’s option. 

Dallas acquired Elam from the Bills back in March in exchange for a 2025 fifth-round pick and 2026 seventh-round pick. The Cowboys included a 2025 sixth-round pick as part of the deal. 

The fifth-year option would’ve cost Dallas $12,682,000 for 2025, per OverTheCap. He’s currently set to be an unrestricted free agent in 2026. 

Elam, 23, was a first-round selection by the Bills in the 2022 NFL Draft out of Florida. He is the son of former NFL S Abram Elam and the nephew of former NFL S Matt Elam.

He’s entering the final year of a four-year, $13,690,809 rookie contract. 

In 2024, Elam appeared in 13 games for the Bills and recorded 26 tackles, two tackles for loss, two pass defenses and one fumble recovery.