The Cowboys are already shuffling their practice squad, and the latest move comes at tight end.
On Thursday, Dallas released Mitch Van Vooren from the practice squad and filled his spot with James Mitchell. Van Vooren had only been with the team for a few weeks after missing the initial 53-man roster and landing on the practice squad as expected.
Mitchell now gets a new chance in Dallas, where he joins rookie Michael Trigg as one of two tight ends on the practice squad. The Cowboys also carry three tight ends on the 53-man roster: Jake Ferguson, Brevyn Spann-Ford and Luke Schoonmaker.
Mitchell entered the league as a fifth-round pick of the Detroit Lions out of Virginia Tech in 2022. Over three seasons in Detroit, he played in 30 games and produced 13 catches for 141 yards and a touchdown. His best stretch came in 2022, when he posted 11 receptions for 113 yards and the score.
After his contract was not renewed in 2025 following the end of the 2024 season on Detroit’s practice squad, Mitchell moved on to the Carolina Panthers in 2025 and caught three passes for 28 yards across five games. Carolina brought him back in 2026, but his path to the roster got a lot tougher once the Panthers signed Darren Waller.
Mitchell brings pass-catching ability and plus athleticism for the position, but his blocking is only adequate at best.
Dallas can carry 17 players on its practice squad, one more than the normal 16-player limit, because International Player Pathway players do not count against the total. The Cowboys’ international player is defensive lineman Adedayo Odeleye.
The team also recently brought back Joe Milton, who had made the 53-man roster along with Sam Howell before being cut after cutdown day to make room for running back Emari Demercado. Dallas claimed Demercado off waivers to add depth at running back, where it had only two true backs.
That move left Howell as the clear QB2 after a tight competition between the two quarterbacks.
Milton remains a popular presence in the building, both with head coach Brian Schottenheimer and with teammates who were glad to see him return.
"It means a lot," quarterback Dak Prescott said of Milton re-signing to the practice squad. "Obviously, me just personally, I thought he would've gotten picked up in the waivers.
Fortunate for us, we got a hell of a player back and a guy that makes our room better, a guy that makes our team better. His spirit, just the way that he approaches the day… he's a hell of a dude, a hell of a competitor."
Milton did make progress through the offseason and especially during the preseason, where he turned in two phenomenal performances. But the final preseason game may have tilted the quarterback battle, as Milton struggled and Howell stood out.
For now, Milton can keep developing on the practice squad while waiting for another opportunity.
In Other News...
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Defensive coordinator Christian Parker said the concern was opponents using camp video to glean strategic clues, and that warning has plenty of backing around the NFL. Miami Dolphins head coach Jeff Hafley pointed to a game in which the Philadelphia Eagles appeared to use practice footage to anticipate pressures against his Green Bay Packers, and Jalen Hurts handled the blitz especially well in that matchup. For Dallas, the episode was less about optics than it was a reminder that in an information-driven league, even practice tape can become part of the chess match. [Read more 🡒]
Cowboys Roster Cuts Are Already Raising Questions Around Young Talent
The Cowboys roster cuts have already begun sending familiar names elsewhere, and Jaydon Blue is the latest example of how quickly the league can turn over a young player. After Dallas released him, Blue landed on the Philadelphia Eagles practice squad, adding another wrinkle to a division rivalry while underlining how much interest there still is around unproven talent when teams trim down to their final roster.
Blue was hardly the only former Cowboy to find a new opportunity. Sam Williams, Julius Wood, and Trevor Keegan also moved on quickly, getting claimed or signed by other NFL teams in the wake of Dallas decisions. For the Cowboys, the immediate aftermath of cutdown day is more than a paperwork exercise, since it keeps exposing which young players other clubs believe are worth betting on. [Read more 🡒]