The Dallas Cowboys spent most of this offseason buying a new defense by adding names like Rashan Gary, Jalen Thompson, Cobie Durant, and Derion Kendrick to the roster. And now, the NFL has set the calendar for when the Cowboys can put those new pieces into action.

“The NFL has released offseason workout program dates,” Cowboys insider Tommy Yarrish reported on X. “The Cowboys’ first day will be April 20. OTAs are June 1-2, June 4, June 8-9, and June 11. Mandatory minicamp runs June 16-18.”

Phase 1 runs for the first two weeks, during which the players can participate in “meetings, strength and conditioning, and physical rehabilitation only,” per the league’s announcement. Then, the 2026 NFL Draft kicks off on April 23rd, just three days after the offseason program begins. Now, this is where Dallas holds an advantage with their draft capital.

The Cowboys enter with eight picks, headlined by two first-rounders – 12th and 20th overall. Trading Osa Odighizuwa to San Francisco netted the 92nd pick. The Solomon Thomas swap with Tennessee moved Dallas up eight spots to 218th in the seventh round. Two fifth-round compensatory picks round it all out.

To add to the new DC Christian Parker’s arsenal, Dallas traded for Packers edge rusher Rashan Gary, signed safety Jalen Thompson on a three-year deal worth up to $33 million, and added corners Cobie Durant and Derion Kendrick. But head coach Brian Schottenheimer made it clear at the NFL Owners Meetings that nickel corner is still a need.

The Cowboys even added depth at defensive tackle with Otito Ogbonnia and Jonathan Bullard. Schotty has said he’s pleased with the additions, but he’s also made it clear the team isn’t finished. The draft is where the final pieces arrive, and inside linebacker remains one of the missing pieces that the coach believes Dallas could address in the draft.

“Yeah, depending on who the guy is and why their football instincts are and things like that,” Schottenheimer said. “Yeah, it’s happened before. Again, he’s going to be surrounded by a lot of really good veteran players at all three levels. And so I think that if you get the right guy, absolutely.”

As for the Schedule, the OTAs in June give Parker and Schottenheimer their first look at all of it together. New additions alongside veterans, in live reps, with training camp just around the corner. The mandatory minicamp from June 16-18 is the last checkpoint before the roster takes its real shape.

But before any of that, Dak Prescott was supposed to have somewhere else to be this weekend. But a hamstring injury ended that.

Dak Prescott’s cornhole commitment derailed

Haymaker Network’s Ben Rogers had put together something genuinely good. A free cornhole match at Rollertown Beerworks in Firsco on Saturday (April 4th) where Prescott was supposed to go against NBA star Luka Dončić. The event was open to all ages and featured a public cornhole tournament alongside the main event. Rogers called it “The Throwdown at Rollertown” and billed it as “The Cornhole World Championship of the World.”

But Dallas won’t get that chance right now. On Thursday, April 2nd, Luka faced off against Oklahoma City. In a particular play in the third quarter, Dončić tried to drive on Jalen Williams, pulled up short, dropped the ball, and grabbed his left hamstring. He limped straight to the locker room and didn’t return. The Lakers confirmed a Grade 2 strain, and Dončić’s regular season ended right there.

“It will be an epic event, it just won’t happen tomorrow,” Rogers announced on X. “In light of the Luka injury in Thursday night’s game, we will have to postpone for now. Luka’s health takes priority over everything else. Muster all your vibes and fan energy into supporting one of your all-time favorite players.”

Luka had spent eight seasons in Dallas before the Mavericks traded him to the Los Angeles Lakers in February 2025. This cornhole event was built around that history, and Dak Prescott signing on says something on its own. He’s spent years staying visible in the Dallas-Fort Worth area well beyond Sundays.

Last year, he flew his skill players to Lake Oconee, Georgie, for a multi-day working retreat with the performance group O2X. Before that, he organized a throwing session at The Star with his new receivers months before the offseason program opened. The cornhole event fits the same pattern.

Rogers made it clear that the event will be rescheduled. When it happens, the calendar will look different for the Cowboys: training camp on the horizon, the roster mostly set. For Dak Prescott & Co., the real work begins on April 20th.