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Dallas Cowboys: 3 Late free agents options before training camp

By Randy Gurzi

LOS ANGELES, CA - JANUARY 12: Dak Prescott #4 of the Dallas Cowboys and Ndamukong Suh #93 of the Los Angeles Rams speak after a play in the second quarter in the NFC Divisional Playoff game at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on January 12, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CA - JANUARY 12: Dak Prescott #4 of the Dallas Cowboys and Ndamukong Suh #93 of the Los Angeles Rams speak after a play in the second quarter in the NFC Divisional Playoff game at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on January 12, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images) /
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PHILADELPHIA, PA – SEPTEMBER 06: Matt Bryant #3 of the Atlanta Falcons kicks a field goal against the Philadelphia Eagles during the first quarter at Lincoln Financial Field on September 6, 2018 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)
PHILADELPHIA, PA – SEPTEMBER 06: Matt Bryant #3 of the Atlanta Falcons kicks a field goal against the Philadelphia Eagles during the first quarter at Lincoln Financial Field on September 6, 2018 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images) /

3. Matt Bryant, Kicker

This comes down to how the Cowboys feel about Brett Maher, who took over for Dan Bailey unexpectedly last season. Maher was a 29-year old rookie who had been playing in the CFL but continued to get opportunities in the preseason.

He handled kicking and punting duties for Dallas and then nailed a 57-yarder in an exhibition game that helped him unseat Bailey. Maher then had a good season even though there were a few hiccups along the way.

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In the end, he was 29-of-36 on field goals and 32-of-33 on extra points. Most impressively, Maher was 6-of-7 from 50-yards plus including a 62-yarder against the Philadelphia Eagles.

While all that is great, there’s a veteran available who could challenge him if given the opportunity. 43-year old Matt Bryant was recently released by the Atlanta Falcons but still wants to play. And when he was last on the field, he was still playing at a high level.

In 2018, Bryant was 20-of-21 on field goals and 33-of-35 on extra points. He suffered a hamstring injury which ended his season, but he played in all 16 games the previous two seasons in Atlanta and hit on 91.9 percent of his kicks in 1016 and 87.2 percent in 2017.

For his career, Bryant has been good for 86.2 percent of his kicks and has earned the nickname “Money Matt” for his accuracy. His addition could improve the kicking game, or at the very least, push Maher to become even better this season.

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