Jordyn Brooks #20 and Dante Trader Jr. #25 of the Miami Dolphins. Brooks is a Cowboys trade target.
Getty
Jordyn Brooks #20 and Dante Trader Jr. #25 of the Miami Dolphins. Brooks is a Cowboys trade target.
The NFL owners meetings are underway in Phoenix and while the business of rule changes and referee concerns will be the primary purpose of the gathering, the meetings are also fertile ground to push forward potential trade talks ahead of the draft, which will kick off on April 23 in Pittsburgh. For the Dallas Cowboys, this could be the last chance the team has to set up a deal to bring in a starting-quality middle linebacker, a key missing ingredient on a defense the team is in the process of rebuilding.
The Cowboys entered the offseason in need of a replacement in the middle of the defense, after the team added, in back-to-back years, Eric Kendricks and Kenneth Murray. Kendricks struggled in 2024, and Murray struggled even more in 2025–he was rated No. 86 in the Pro Football Focus grades of 88 NFL linebackers last season.
The Cowboys made pitches for linebackers Nakobe Dean and Quay Walker at the outset of free agency. Both rejected their offers and signed with the Raiders instead. The Cowboys did not have an outstanding Plan C, and are thus entering April without a credible middle linebacker on the roster.
Cowboys Seeking LB Trade for Jordyn Brooks
But Nick Harris, the Cowboys beat writer for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, reported last weekend that Dallas did express some interest in two potential top-tier trade targets, Azeez Al-Shaair of the Texans and Jordyn Brooks of the Dolphins. There wasn’t a firm mention of offers between the sides, but Al-Shaair is probably off limits.
Brooks could be another story, as the Dolphins are in a particularly difficult salary-cap hole and could seek trades to escape it. According to a report in the Miami Herald, the Cowboys have called Dolphins GM Jon-Eric Sullivan on Brooks, but so far, those talks have gone nowhere.
The paper reports: “When asked about Brooks, Sullivan admitted he’s fielded a couple of calls from teams interested in acquiring the NFL’s leading tackler. The Dallas Cowboys are one of those teams, according to a source. However, a deal is not imminent.”
Dolphins Seeking to Re-Sign Jordyn Brooks
In fact, Dolphins GM Jon-Eric Sullivan said that, rather than trade Brooks to the Cowboys, the team is hopeful of signing him to a contract extension. (Worth noting: That’s what a GM should say if he’s planning on trading a player.)
“I want Jordyn to be part of this. He’s made of the right kind of stuff,” Sullivan said. “We want him to be a pillar on the defensive side of this as we build this thing out.”
Indeed, Brooks had one of the best linebacker seasons in the league in 2025 (rated No. 11 of 88 by PFF), leading the NFL in solo tackles (99) and combined tackles (183). He’s also durable, with 83 games played in the last three seasons.
Brian Schottenheimer
GettyDallas Cowboys head coach Brian Schottenheimer.
Cowboys ‘Always Open for Business’
Without an NFL alternative on the roster as the draft approaches, the Cowboys will weigh using one of their first-round picks–at No. 12 and 20–on a linebacker, which also means the possibility to deploying a rookie in that spot in 2026.
But coach Brian Schottenheimer said the Cowboys’ search is not over.
“Look,” Schottenheimer said when meeting with reporters on Monday at the owner meetings, “we made a run at some guys in free agency. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. And what you do, you just adjust. It’s something we’re working on 365, 24-7. We’ve got a good plan. We’ve got firepower now, going into the draft. We’re not done. We’re always open for business.”