Jerry Jones is currently navigating the Cowboys’ current free agency plan as he brings Rashan Gary from Green Bay in exchange for a 2027 fourth-round pick. But his past comments are still not behind him. Former Dallas Cowboys quarterback Ben DiNucci may be looking for a new opportunity in the market, but he didn’t leave the opportunity to take a shot at the Cowboys’ owner for comments he made five years ago that still bother the QB.

“Never forget when Jerry Jones said the Cowboys had a harder time preparing me for Sunday Night Football than the Broncos did getting a practice squad WR to play QB,” Ben DiNucci said, as he replied to a fan who shared an old 2020 clip where Broncos WR Kendall Hinton played QB for a game during the pandemic.

To understand the jab, fans have to go back to the 2020 season. At the time, Jones compared two very different situations during a radio interview. The Broncos were forced to play without a real quarterback because of COVID restrictions. Meanwhile, Dallas had its own crisis in Week 8 when the team turned to DiNucci after starter Andy Dalton went down with an injury.

While discussing both teams’ struggles at the position, Jones downplayed the difference between them.

“I don’t know that Denver had any more challenge than we’ve had with (Ben) DiNucci or any of the young quarterbacks we’ve had,” Jones said on 105.3 The Fan.

Unfortunately for DiNucci, his performance that season did little to shut the criticism. His start against the rival Philadelphia Eagles turned into one of the roughest outings for America’s Team that year. He finished 21 of 40 for 180 yards with no touchdowns, absorbed four sacks, and ended with a 19.5 QBR in a 23-9 loss. Soon after, Jones openly criticized the former Dallas quarterback before sending him back to the bench.

“I think that it was a lot for him. I think we certainly, as a team, paid the price to have him come in and under those circumstances. And that’s almost trite. It was frankly more than he could handle,” Jones said.

Since then, DiNucci’s NFL path has been far from stable. He spent the 2021 season on the Cowboys’ practice squad before being released in August 2022. Later, a strong run in the XFL helped him land with the Broncos in May 2023, where he again spent time on the practice squad before being waived in May 2024. He returned to Denver last season, but now the quarterback is back on the market.

Former Cowboys quarterback hits the free agency one more time

Earlier this year, the Denver Broncos brought back Ben DiNucci under different circumstances. Ahead of the team’s AFC Championship Game, they signed Ben DiNucci to the practice squad. The move brought him back to Denver after he previously spent the 2023 season with them.

Between 2023 and 2025, the former James Madison quarterback bounced between several other teams including the Buffalo Bills, New Orlean Saints and Atlanta Falcons on their practice squad.

At each stop, however, he found himself buried on the depth chart. As a result, DiNucci mostly appeared during preseason games while waiting for a real opportunity. In fact, he has not played a regular-season snap since 2020 with the Dallas Cowboys during Mike McCarthy’s first season leading America’s Team.

That year, he played in three games and made one start, completing 21 of 40 passes for 180 yards with no touchdowns while also losing two fumbles.

DiNucci is still only 29 years old, which means another opportunity could arrive in 2026. Of course, it might take an injury somewhere on the depth chart. However, teams across the league still value reliable third-string quarterbacks, and DiNucci has proven he can fill that role when needed.