Cowboys add former second-round draft pick at defensive end
The Cowboys have added another defensive end to their roster.
The club signed Ben Banogu on Wednesday, putting the current personnel count at 89 players, one short of the limit.
Banogu was a second-round draft pick of the Indianapolis Colts in 2019. The native-born Nigerian grew up in the Dallas/Fort Worth area and graduated from TCU.
The 27-year-old appeared in 50 games over four seasons with the Colts, amassing 29 tackles, three TFLs, six quarterback hits, 2.5 sacks, one pass defended, and one forced fumble.
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At 6-foot-3 and 252 pounds, Banogu roughly fits the physical profile that the Cowboys like to see in their ends. He’s known as an uber-athletic player who simply may not have been a good fit in the scheme run by Matt Eberflus, the Colts’ former defensive coordinator. It’s worth noting that he saw action in 16 games last season under new DC Gus Bradley, after getting into just nine games in each of the two years prior.
The Cowboys have signed former TCU DE Ben Banogu, a former second round pick of the Colts. Brings the roster to 89 players.
— Todd Archer (@toddarcher) June 7, 2023
The edge rusher who flashed linebacker skills in college (and played in the Senior Bowl as one) couldn’t stick in Indy, but the Cowboys do have a soft spot for multi-tooled hybrid players.
Now entering a crowded and promising DE room in Dallas, Banogu will compete alongside the likes of DeMarcus Lawrence, Dorance Armstrong, and Sam Williams, not to mention another edge-rushing linebacker type in Micah Parsons.
