Getty Cowboys owner Jerry Jones
The Dallas Cowboys’ gamble did not work as the team released Azur Kamara in hopes they could re-sign the defender to the team’s practice squad. The Panthers nixed this plan as the team claimed Kamara off waivers, preventing the Cowboys from retaining the former Hard Knocks star. NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero broke the news that the Panthers put in a claim for Kamara hours before the NFL transaction wire showed Carolina had been awarded the defender.
“Cowboys hoped to re-sign DE Azur Kamara to their practice squad today, but the Panthers claimed him on waivers,” Dallas Morning News’ Michael Gehlken detailed on Twitter on December 21. “Multiple teams interested in the 23-year-old, who was featured on Hard Knocks this summer.”
CBS Sports’ Patrik Walker cited an “absolutely stacked” defensive line group as the reason Dallas was willing to take a risk by releasing Kamara. The move was made to create room on the roster for safety Donovan Wilson to returned from the Injured Reserve list.
“Azur Kamara didn’t clear waivers as the Cowboys hoped,” Walker tweeted. “That said, they needed a spot for Donovan Wilson. Also, DAL defensive line is now whole, and absolutely stacked. The business of roster management.”
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Kamara Was One of the Stars of HBO’s Hard Knocks
.@dallascowboys LB Azur Kamara & his family fled from civil war in the Ivory Coast when he was just a kid.
Last week, his family got to see him play in an NFL game for the first time ever. 💙🙏 (via @NFLFilms)
Watch the first two episodes of #HardKnocks now on @hbomax
Kamara became a fan favorite after his story was featured on HBO’s Hard Knocks. The Ivory Coast native had a long road to making it to the NFL and the pass rusher securing a spot on the the Cowboys 53-man roster was one of the highlights of the show.
“Cowboys coach Mike McCarthy called DE Azur Kamara and told him he made 53-man roster,” Gehlken tweeted on September 2. “Kamara then video called his mother, relaying the news. ‘Right when I said, ‘I made the 53,’ she didn’t hear anything I said after that. She just started singing and dancing and jumping around.’”
Prior to his release, Kamara played in ten games for the Cowboys with the majority of his snaps coming on special teams. Could Kamara eventually make his way back to the Cowboys? USA Today’s K.D. Drummond wonders if the Panthers could release Kamara at the end of the regular season to allow him to play with the Cowboys during the postseason.
“I wonder if the Panthers would be kind enough to release Azur Kamara after their regular season ends in Week 18, so he can sign back with Dallas on their practice squad for the playoffs,” Drummond said on Twitter. “I don’t even know if that’s possible but it should be.”
Kamara signed a three-year, $2.2 million contract with the Cowboys which the Panthers inherited by claiming the pass rusher. The defender will be a free agent after the 2022 season.
Quinn on Cowboys Defense: ‘We’re Not at Our Best Yet’
#DallasCowboys players love Dan Quinn… and he waited for every single one to enter the locker room after the win vs New Orleans…
Heading into the season, the Cowboys defense was widely believed to be the team’s weakest link but the unit has carried Dallas through its recent offensive struggles. The Cowboys are allowing just 20.9 points per game ranking as the No. 7 unit in the NFL. Cowboys defensive coordinator Dan Quinn still sees room for improvement.
“But certainly late last night before I went to sleep, my thoughts that keep me up, were still how do we play faster?” Quinn noted during his December 20 press conference. “How do we play cleaner? How do we play more aggressive and, yes that’s probably a sad state of affairs for my sleep patterns. That you guys are thinking, ‘What the hell is he thinking about that?’ But I really feel like we can get a lot better. And creating takeaways for us is the top of the pile for our job to get the ball back for the offense.
“But it’s not the only one and it’s third downs and it’s short yardage and it’s red zone to go through it. So, we’re not at our best yet, and so that’s why I thought we’re gonna bust our a**es to get there. But I still feel like we’ve got lots to work on, lots to get better at, and I think those are some specific things by player. Not every player will work on the same exact thing, but I think if we’re going to get better, one percent here, here, here. Collectively we’ll get better and that’s really what I want to, just like I said, bust our a** to get there and everybody will have something that’s their own.”