Cowboys outside linebacker Von Miller and his teammate, Hunter Luepke, were playing a game of chicken with the No. 40. Miller wanted it; Luepke, a fullback, has had it since 2023.
Both wore the number in training camp, but a decision had to be made Thursday about who would wear 40 in the regular season since the NFL doesn’t allow for duplicate numbers.
Miller finally blinked, giving up a percentage of his chicken company in exchange for the number he wore in high school, college and with the Rams and Bills. Luepke will switch to 30.
“You got to give Hunter a great [shout] out,” Miller said, via Jon Machota of TheAthletic.com. “He’s learned from the best with the negotiators here with the Cowboys. It went down to the final hour, but we were able to get it done. I don’t want to get into the details of it, but I’m happy to say he’s my business partner. He’s a part owner of Greener Pastures Chicken. The chicken of champions.”
Patrick Mahomes, Drew Brees and Nick Foles are among other current and former players who have a stake in the USDA-certified organic poultry processing facility in Elgin, Texas.
“[Luepke] was a great fit for us,” said Miller, who majored in poultry science at Texas A&M. “It was a great fit for him. I’m happy that we were able to get it done.”
With the regular season approaching, the Cowboys have maneuvered to create some extra cap space.
Via Todd Archer of ESPN, the team has restructured the contracts of defensive tackle Kenny Clark, cornerback DaRon Bland, and tight end Jake Ferguson.
The moves have created more than $19 million in additional 2026 cap space. Previously, the Cowboys had approximately $14.2 million in spending room.
With more than $30 million in 2026 cap space now on hand, the Cowboys have plenty of space to absorb a veteran contract (or two) via trade.
Coincidentally, or not, Raiders defensive end Maxx Crosby has a 2026 base salary of $30 million.
Just saying.
Not even a month ago, Cowboys executive vice president Stephen Jones called it “realistic” for the team to think it can keep CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens long term. This week, Jones admitted keeping both wide receivers beyond 2026 will be challenging.
“I don’t know of any teams that really can pay two top receivers top of the market, so that’s gonna be a real difficult situation as we move forward,” Jones told the DLLS Cowboys podcast. “We’ve managed to figure out how we can do it for this year. If everything works out the way we think it is, [in] which CeeDee and George both have huge years again, then it’ll be a bigger challenge next year.”
Before the 2024 season, Lamb signed a four-year, $136 million extension. His $34 million annual average ranks sixth at the position.
Pickens will play this season under the one-year, $27.3 million franchise tag. He is coming off a career year when he made 93 catches for 1,429 yards and nine touchdowns.
“George is really wanting to put back-to-back years on top of one another, so it’ll help his market,” Jones said. “And certainly, I know at some point -- as does every player in this league -- will want to be rewarded with a long-term contract. So that certainly puts pressure on us to have a unique situation there at wide receiver.”
The Bengals managed to pay Ja’Marr Chase (four-year, $161 million extension signed in 2025) and Tee Higgins (four-year, $115 million extension signed in 2025), and the Eagles paid A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith before trading Brown this offseason. But Pickens will want — and will deserve — more than Higgins or Smith if he has another year like last year.
The Cowboys hope they face that problem in the offseason, because that will mean Lamb and Pickens both had solid seasons again.
“[Cowboys defensive coordinator] Christian Parker will tell you, who went against us twice a year, what a challenge that it was for the Eagles when they played us, and he was on the defensive side of the ball trying to defend Dak [Prescott] and those two receivers,” Jones said.
It’s official: Von Miller will wear No. 40.
The Cowboys announced their roster on Thursday, and fullback Hunter Luepke has switched to No. 30.
Miller wanted 40 after signing with the Cowboys, but it took some negotiations to get the number from Luepke. Both players wore 40 for a while in practice.
Miller wore 40 at Texas A&M and 40 with the Rams and Bills. He wore 58 in his nine seasons with the Broncos. He wore 24 last season with the Commanders.
It is not known yet what Miller gave up to Luepke to get 40, but he had offered a lifetime supply of chicken.
Luepke had worn 40 since joining the Cowboys in 2023.
Rookie safety Caleb Downs will remain No. 13, which was assigned to him when he arrived.
The Cowboys wanted Joe Milton back on the practice squad, and on Wednesday, they made that happen.
The team announced it has signed the quarterback.
He will serve as the third quarterback behind Dak Prescott and Sam Howell, who are on the 53-player roster. Howell beat out Milton for the backup job to Prescott.
Milton served as the No. 2 last season.
In three preseason games, Milton completed 29 of 43 passes for 378 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions. He added 12 carries for 14 yards and a rushing touchdown.
The Cowboys traded a fifth-round pick to New England for Milton in the 2025 offseason, and he served as Prescott’s backup last season.
