Cowboys Insider Identifies Ideal Free-Agent Fits at EDGE & Linebacker

The Dallas Cowboys need a linebacker and a defensive end to round out their roster.

Buffalo Bills linebacker Shaq Thompson looks over his shoulder after an interception during the AFC Wild Card playoff game. | Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

While the Dallas Cowboys were able to rebuild their secondary and add a new pass-rusher during NFL free agency, there's still work to be done.

Dallas needs to continue to add players as they transition to a new defensive scheme under Christian Parker. While Parker wants to be multiple in his formations, he also expects to utilize the 3-4, which is why they signed nose tackle Otito Ogbonnia and traded defensive tackle Osa Odighizuwa to the San Francisco 49ers.

Cowboys insider Bobby Belt broke down their moves and said they still must get a defensive end to fit the 3-4, and they have to shore up the linebacker spot. He also identified two names to target, beginning with Jerry Tillery, who spent the 2025 season with the Kansas City Chiefs.

.@BobbyBeltTX says the #DallasCowboys need to add an edge and a linebacker before the #NFLDraft.

He presented @1053SS and @rjchoppy two veteran options on Monday's show - Jerry Tillery and Shaq Thompson⤵️ pic.twitter.com/ZeK5ptAfIn

— 105.3 The FAN (@1053thefan) March 16, 2026

"One, Jerry Tillery, who is a former first-round pick, sort of a failed first-round pick from the Chargers," Belt said. "But there's a connection there where Christian Parker was on staff with Notre Dame when Jerry Tillery was there. And your defensive line coach, Marcus Dixon, had brought him to Minnesota based on the testimony from his mentor, who had been with the Chargers.

"He played better in Minnesota than he had played in other spots. And so I wonder if Tillery might be a guy, since he's kind of a flexible tackle end player."

Kansas City Chiefs defensive tackle Jerry Tillery against the Arizona Cardinals during a preseason NFL game. | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

Tillery, 6-foot-6 and 295 pounds, has played in 113 games with 53 starts. He's recorded 195 tackles, 17 tackles for loss, and 14 sacks in seven seasons.

Cowboys top option at linebacker identified

Buffalo Bills linebacker Shaq Thompson reacts to a tackle during first-half action at Highmark Stadium. | Tina MacIntyre-Yee/Democrat and Chronicle / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

After identifying Tillery as a target, Belt then discussed the linebacker situation, saying the position is "picked over" in free agency. He said that will force them to look at an older player and while Belt doesn't see them targeting Bobby Wagner, he wonders if Shaq Thompson should be on their radar.

"I wonder if that might be Shaq Thompson, who's played in a similar scheme before, coming off of a decent year in Buffalo, not the same player that he once was, but still solid, and plays with a lot of length, and somebody who's been a green dot on defense before," Belt said.

Thompson played in just two games in 2023 and four in 2024, leading to his departure from the Carolina Panthers after 10 seasons. He signed a one-year deal with the Bills and played in 12 games, recording 56 tackles, six tackles for loss, and one sack.

His performance improved as the season went along, with Thompson standing out as one of Buffalo's top defenders in the postseason.

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