IRVING, Texas — In a high‑profile offseason move that’s immediately making waves across the NFL, the Dallas Cowboys have released two rookie players for what the organization described as “unprofessional conduct”
and failing to embrace the team’s culture and expectations, league sources tell ESPN. The decision comes as the franchise looks to solidify its identity after another missed playoff appearance and ongoing structural changes under head coach
Brian Schottenheimer.
“I don’t care how fast you run or how wide you catch — if you disrespect the process or the room, you’re out,” Schottenheimer said in addressing the roster moves. “We’re building for winners, not weekend warriors.
I promised Dallas a culture shift, and I’m delivering it.” The blunt statement reflects a renewed emphasis on professionalism at all levels of the Cowboys organization as it enters a critical offseason.
Dallas concluded the 2025 season with a 7–9–1 record — marking back‑to‑back losing seasons and missing the playoffs for the second straight year. After a disappointing campaign in which inconsistent
play and defensive lapses defined their slide, the Cowboys retained Schottenheimer as head coach heading into 2026 with hopes that continuity would help reboot the franchise’s fortunes.
The names of the two rookies cut have not been made public, but sources describe behavior deemed detrimental to team cohesion — including repeated missed meetings, lackluster engagement at practice,
and instances of poor attitude both on and off the field. According to insiders, the team decided early in the offseason that it would not tolerate conduct perceived as disrespectful to the process that the coaching staff and veterans have spent months reinforcing.
Dallas has been in the midst of an offseason reshuffle that goes beyond this roster move. The Cowboys’ defensive staff has seen significant turnover, with the recent hiring of Christian Parker as defensive coordinator
and additions like Derrick Ansley and Ryan Smith to the coaching ranks. These changes underscore a broader push to rebuild both schemes and culture on the defensive side of the ball after the 2025 defense struggled mightily.
The team’s young core — including standout wide receiver CeeDee Lamb, who was recently named to the Pro Bowl again — continues to be a bright spot for the franchise as it looks to rebound. However, the Cowboys’ inability to translate offensive firepower into wins has been a recurring theme that Dallas leadership is intent on fixing.
Reactions from analysts around the NFL have been mixed. Some view the Cowboys’ decision as a bold step that mirrors successful rebuilds in other franchises, where high standards and accountability are enforced
from day one. Others have questioned whether cutting young players this early in the offseason might send the wrong message to developing talent still adjusting to the rigors of professional football.
Within the locker room, however, sources suggest veteran leaders support the move and see it as a way to establish clear expectations early in the offseason. With free agency, draft planning, and training camp looming,
Dallas is sending a clear signal that culture and conduct will be non‑negotiable components of its strategy moving forward.
As the Cowboys prepare for the 2026 campaign — where they aim to return to contention and end a playoff drought that has frustrated fans and management alike — this cultural reset may play a defining role. Whether it leads to sustained success remains to be seen, but the organization’s emphasis on accountability is unmistakable.
Bucs Hire Ken Zampese As QBs Coach, T.J. Yates As Passing Game Coordinator
With Zac Robinson taking over as their offensive coordinator, the Buccaneers recently made two other key hires on that side of the ball, per Aaron Wilson of KPRC 2. Ken Zampese will serve as the Buccaneers’ quarterbacks coach, and former NFL QB T.J. Yates will work as their passing game coordinator.
Yates is replacing Kefense Hynson, the Bucs’ passing game coordinator in 2025, Jonathan Jones of CBS Sports reports. Hynson’s expected to coach elsewhere next season.
Considering Robinson’s history with Zampese and Yates, it’s no surprise they’re accompanying him to Tampa Bay.
Zampese was a senior offensive assistant in Atlanta during Robinson’s run as the Falcons’ offensive coordinator from 2024-25. Yates was the Falcons’ QBs coach in 2024 before moving to passing game coordinator/wide receivers coach this past season.
Zampese is now set to reunite with Buccaneers signal-caller Baker Mayfield, whom the Browns took first overall in the 2018 draft. Mayfield spent his first NFL season with Zampese, then the Browns’ QBs coach, and finished second in Offensive Rookie of the Year voting.
With Mayfield entrenched as Tampa Bay’s starter eight years later, Robinson, Zampese and Yates are walking into a better QB situation than they had in Atlanta. The Falcons made huge investments in free agent signing Kirk Cousins and first-round pick Michael Penix Jr. heading into the 2024 campaign, but neither lived up to expectations over the past two seasons.
While Cousins and Penix combined to throw for the fifth-most yards in 2024, they put up a below-average passer rating (86.6) and tossed just two more touchdowns (21) than interceptions (19). The Cousins-Penix tandem dramatically lowered their INT total to eight in 2025, but they plummeted to 19th in yards and only threw 19 TDs.
The Buccaneers finished one spot worse than the Falcons in passing yards this season, though a slew of costly injuries contributed to Mayfield’s drop in production from a career-best 2024 showing. Wide receivers Mike Evans, Chris Godwin and Jalen McMillan combined to miss 30 games. Stalwart offensive linemen Tristan Wirfs, Luke Goedeke and Cody Mauch combined for 26 absences.
Godwin, McMillan, Wirfs, Goedeke and Mauch are sure to return to Tampa Bay next season, though Evans and tight end Cade Otton are a little over a month from reaching free agency. Evans and Otton are important parts of the Buccaneers’ passing attack, but it’s anyone’s guess if Yates will have an opportunity to work with either of them in 2026.
Evans’ exit would still leave the Bucs with Godwin, McMillan and Emeka Egbuka atop their receiving corps. Nevertheless, losing the franchise icon after 12 years would be a significant blow.
Up front, Wirfs, Goedeke, Mauch and the rest of the Buccaneers’ offensive linemen will have a new assistant OL coach in Andrew Mitchell, according to Pete Thamel of ESPN. An NFL lineman from 2010-12, Mitchell spent 2025 as Oklahoma State’s O-line coach. Mitchell blocked at Oklahoma State for Robinson, then the team’s QB, from 2008-09. Seventeen years later, Robinson is giving Mitchell his first pro coaching position. Mitchell will work under offensive line coach Kevin Carberry in Tampa Bay.