Blogging The Boys
Do you think the Cowboys will bring Cooper Rush back?
The Dallas Cowboys have a long list of unrestricted free agents who will officially hit the open market in a little over a month. Of those, six or seven were significant contributors in 2024, meaning the Cowboys have some difficult decisions ahead of them in the coming weeks.
We continue our free agent profile series, taking a look at Dallas’ impending free agents. Today, we examine a player who unexpectedly played significant snaps last season, quarterback Cooper Rush.
2024 Regular Season Stats: 8 GS, 4-4 QBRec, 60.7% Completion Percentage, 1,844 Passing Yards, 12 Passing Touchdowns, 5 Interceptions, 6.0 Y/A, 83.8 Passer Rating
Year Review: For the second time in the past three seasons, veteran quarterback Cooper Rush saw some extended playing time when Dak Prescott went out with an injury. Prescott suffered a season-ending hamstring tear in Week 9, inserting Rush as Dallas’ starter for the rest of the regular season.
Things didn’t start well for the 31-year-old veteran as Dallas got outscored 68-16 in his first two starts, with Rush completing just 57% of his passes and recording a Passer Rating of 68.8. During that two-game span, Rush’s -0.371 EPA/Play was the worst among qualified starting quarterbacks, and it looked like the Cowboys would need to make a change if they wanted any shot of staying competitive for the rest of the season.
After two awful performances, Dallas’ Week 12 matchup against the Washington Commanders ended up being a turning point for Rush’s 2024 season. The veteran had arguably his most productive day of the season in Dallas’ 34-26 upset win, completing 24 of 32 passes for 247 yards and two touchdowns, recording a season-high Passer Rating of 117.6.
In the five-game stretch from Week 12 through Week 16, Rush completed 64% of his throws to go with nine touchdown passes to just one interception. His Passer Rating during this five-game span was an impressive 100.5, and the Cowboys as a team posted a 4-1 record. While the Cowboys weren’t playing many quality opponents during this stretch, Rush did perform as well as we’ve seen him throughout the course of his seven-year NFL career.
The 31-year-old’s season ended with a rough outing against the Eagles in Philadelphia as the Cowboys opted to sit Rush for their season finale, giving young quarterback Trey Lance a chance to start.
Free Agency Outlook: Although Rush did play some decent football at times this year, it’s hard to see any team in the league giving him a chance to start next season. The veteran’s potential free-agent market will likely be filled with teams looking to acquire an experienced, reliable veteran to fill in if their starter were to go down for a short period of time.
While he certainly hasn’t lit the world on fire when he’s been forced to start, Rush is 9-5 as a starter in the NFL, something few backup quarterbacks in the league have accomplished. Last offseason, quarterbacks Carson...
