Cowboys Lose Additional O-Line Depth to NFC Rival in Free Agency

For the second time in three days, the Dallas Cowboys have lost a reserve offensive lineman to NFL free agency. The latest departure is veteran guard Robert Jones, who signed with a longtime NFC rival.

Late Monday night, a report surfaced from league insider Tom Pelissero that Jones has signed with the San Francisco 49ers. Terms of the deal were not immediately available.

Jones signed with the Cowboys last offseason after playing 49 games with 30 starts for the Miami Dolphins. Unfortunately, Jones suffered a scary neck injury during training camp that forced him to miss the 2025 campaign. He "broke a bone in his neck" during the team's first padded practice.

Before his injury, Jones was working with the Cowboys' first team and was serving as a mentor to standout rookie Tyler Booker. Now, Jones is healthy and ready to return to the field.

Rob Jones and Tyler Booker are competing for a starting job pic.twitter.com/6q8gHSFp9a
— Nick Harris (@NickHarrisFWST) July 27, 2025

Jones' departure follows the Cowboys' loss of versatile offensive lineman Brock Hoffman, who signed with the Pittsburgh Steelers over the weekend. Hoffman will be reuniting with some familiar faces in Pittsburgh, including former head coach Mike McCarthy and former Cowboys assistant offensive line coach Ramon Chinyoung. During the past two seasons, Hoffman started in 14 games, with starts at guard and center.

The losses of Jones and Hoffman deliver a blow to the Cowboys' offensive line depth, but the good news is that Dallas has still managed to keep its starting unit intact. Entering the 2026 season, the Cowboys are set to return all 11 starters on offense.

To add some depth to the trenches, it will be interesting to see whether the Cowboys bring in additional veterans due to the ages of their young offensive line stars: Tyler Smith (24), Tyler Booker (21), Cooper Beebe (24), Terence Steeler (28), and Tyler Guyton (24).

Of course, the Cowboys could keep the youth movement going and add some additional promising depth in the 2026 NFL Draft, where the team has a total of eight picks.

Cowboys' 2026 Offseason Departures

A view of Dallas Cowboys players' helmets on the bench against the Washington Commanders at FedExField. | Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

Brock Hoffman, offensive line: signed with the Pittsburgh Steelers
Robert Jones, offensive line: signed with the San Francisco 49ers
Jack Sanborn, linebacker: signed with the Chicago Bears
Juanyeh Thomas, safety: signed with the Indianapolis Colts
Jalen Tolbert, wide receiver: signed with the Miami Dolphins
Payton Turner, defensive end: signed with the Detroit Lions

— Sign up for the Cowboys Daily Digest newsletter for more free coverage from Dallas Cowboys on SI —

Add us as a preferred source on Google