The Cowboys are going to regret letting this stud walk.
The Dallas Cowboys announced a wave of roster cuts on Tuesday to complete their initial 53-man roster for the 2024 season. Most of the moves were expected. The players kept at quarterback, running back, wide receiver and cornerback were easy to predict.
As always, the Cowboys made some moves that were downright surprising. Trading Peyton Hendershot to Kansas City came out of left field. As did keeping offensive lineman Matt Waletzko, who was an abject disaster in preseason and had no business making the team.
In terms of undrafted free agents, tight end Brevyn Spann-Ford was surprisingly the only one to make the cut. While Spann-Ford is raw, the Cowboys clearly didn't want to risk losing him to waivers. It's hard to fault them for that, but they also should have taken that approach with safety Julius Wood.
Cowboys will regret losing undrafted safety Julius Wood to waivers
Widely regarded as the front-runner of Dallas' undrafted free agents to make the roster, Wood was claimed on Wednesday by the Tennessee Titans. Cowboys fans crossed their fingers that Wood would survive waivers and return to the practice squad, but that was wishful thinking.
Wood put together an excellent training camp and preseason. He played everywhere in Mike Zimmer's scheme, including 46 snaps in the box as a strong safety, 43 at free safety and 15 in the slot, per Pro Football Focus. He allowed two catches for five yards in coverage and intercepted two passes.
A three-year starter at East Carolina, Wood allowed a 30.6 passer rating and made three defensive stops, which are tackles that constitute as a failure for the offense. His physicality against the run made him a dream pairing with Zimmer. He's a playmaker in every sense of the word.
Unfortunately, Wood competed in a deep Cowboys safety room. Donovan Wilson, Malik Hooker, Juanyeh Thomas and Markquese Bell made the team. It would have been difficult for Dallas to keep Wood being that he would struggle to make the game day roster, but sometimes teams have to bite the bullet in the name of holding onto talented players.
While Wilson and Hooker are signed through 2025, neither player has any guaranteed money remaining beyond this season. The Cowboys could easily move on next offseason. That's not as crazy as you think.
Wilson will be 30 before next season and has a history of getting banged up. Hooker will be 29 next year and his injury history includes a torn ACL, torn Achilles, double sports hernia surgery and a meniscus tear. He's stayed healthy since joining Dallas in 2021, but that history is alarming.
Thomas, 24, and Bell, 25, are viewed as the future of the safety room. However, they are both restricted free agents after this season. It won't cost a fortune to bring them back, but their returns aren't guaranteed.
Wood looked like the Cowboys' next undrafted gem at safety (Thomas and Bell were both undrafted). It would have been great to have him study under Wilson, Hooker, Thomas and Bell before eventually being entrusted with a prominent role.
It's not the end of the world that Wood got away, but it also wouldn't surprise if he blossoms into a future starter in Tennessee. This feels like a decision that won't take long to blow up in Dallas' face.
