Source: Cowboys Could Cut, Re-Sign Anthony Brown as Kelvin Joseph Backup
FRISCO - Anthony Brown has tried to continue playing for the Dallas Cowboys despite having a punctured lung and despite having broken ribs (twice).
As we approach the March 16 start of the NFL business year, and the Cowboys needing to get under the 2022 salary cap, Anthony Brown will try to continue playing for Dallas despite having a contract that makes him expendable - at least temporarily.
Brown, 28, a starting corner for much of the time in Dallas since being selected as a 2016 sixth-round draft pick, is a "possibility'' as a cap casualty, a source tells CowboysSI.com - while also indicating that the team might circle back and attempt to re-sign him after his release.
Kelvin Joseph, Anthony Brown
Kelvin Joseph
The No. 1 reason this is in play? Second-round rookie Kelvin Joseph, who was drafted a year ago with this exact scenario in mind. Due to injuries and issues, Joseph was not much of a factor in 2021 until late, when he became a starter opposite Trevon Diggs and fared well. (The Cowboys were also impressed with Joseph's commitment to help on special teams, something he'd rarely done before coming to the NFL.)
The No. 2 reason? Brown is scheduled to enter the final season of his $15.5 million contract, signed in 2020 and to make $5 million in base salary and count $6.5 million against the cap. His release by Dallas, which is presently about $21 million over the cap, would create $5 million in cap savings and leave only $1.5 million in dead money.
Trevon Diggs, Anthony Brown
Randy Gregory, Dalton Schultz
Dallas has some hard decisions with bigger-named guys, including under-contract receiver Amari Cooper and free agents Randy Gregory and Dalton Schultz. The Brown decision can actually be an easy one, especially if the Cowboys are right in what they think of Kelvin Joseph ... and especially if the gutsy Brown opts to come back to The Star under terms of a cheaper contract.
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