FRISCO, Texas — Days before the team will travel to California for the start of training camp, the Dallas Cowboys will be releasing wide receiver Allen Hurns, he confirmed to NFL Network on Tuesday.
“Just wished they did this earlier,” Hurns told NFL Network. “They asked me for a pay cut Monday … couple of days before camp.”
Hurns suffered a gruesome ankle injury in the Cowboys’ wild-card win against the Seattle Seahawks in January that required surgery to repair a dislocation and broken fibula. He was able to return to work in a limited fashion during the offseason program and said he was close to “90 percent” in his recovery in June.
The move will not be made official by the team Tuesday, according a source. The Cowboys would save $5 million against the salary cup by cutting Hurns, who was set to make $4 million in the final year of a two-year deal he signed in 2018.
Hurns’ first year with the Cowboys did not go as planned. He had seven starts and played in every regular-season game, finishing with 20 catches for 295 yards and 2 touchdowns. The Cowboys planned for him to be one of the leaders of a wide-receiver-by-committee approach they were taking after cutting Dez Bryant, but Hurns’ playing time diminished after the arrival of Amari Cooper in a midseason trade.
The Cowboys added veteran Randall Cobb in free agency and re-signed Tavon Austin to go along with Cooper and Michael Gallup. Third-year receiver Noah Brown could open camp on the physically unable to perform list as he comes back from June knee surgery.
The Cowboys like the potential of younger receivers Cedrick Wilson, who missed last season with a shoulder injury, Jon’Vea Johnson and Jalen Guyton. They also have Devin Smith, a former second-round pick by New York Jets, on the roster.