Sources Reveal Cowboys Thoughts On DTs Richardson, Hurst

The Cowboys fans and media who are of the opinion that Dallas should sign Richardson and/or Hurst hold a view not shared by the Cowboys personnel department.

FRISCO - The knee-jerk reaction from outside observers regarding now-on-the-street free agent defensive tackles Sheldon Richardson and Maurice Hurst is understandable: The Dallas Cowboys need help at the position, so ...

Sign 'em!

The reaction to their availability from here inside The Star is something else again.

A team source tells CowboysSI.com that Dallas did not put in a claim on Hurst, the 25-year-old former Raiders part-time starter. Another source indicates that former first-rounder Richardson, 30, dumped by Cleveland, is not of particular interest, either.

Richardson is the more talented of the two, but it's been years since he was a force as an interior pass-rusher with the Jets. At 6-foot-3, 294 pounds, he could still fill space for a Cowboys D-line that could use bodies inside, and obviously, given the fact that he was due to make $12 million this year from the Browns before his release, there is somebody who thought he'd still be a force in 2021.

But as of Friday, our source indicates that "somebody'' won't be Dallas.

Richardson has been tied to Dallas before, but it's been more media-driven than Cowboys-driven. Why? Maybe it's because Richardson has a history of off-field issues that are off-putting.

And what of the 6-2, 290-pound Hurst? At 25, the former fifth-round selection out of Michigan has eight career sacks, but some see potential there, still. He has played, mostly as a backup, despite a congenital heart defect. The Cowboys tell us their disinterest here is not health-related; he's simply not highly-regarded here.

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Opinions can change, and needs can force those changes. Dallas is presently reliant on youngsters Trysten Hill and Neville Gallimore to do most of the work inside. After the NFL Draft, maybe Dallas re-examines its thoughts here. Injuries down the line could do the same. But for now, the Cowboys fans and media who are of the opinion that Dallas should sign Richardson and/or Hurst hold a view not shared by the Cowboys personnel department.

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