The Dallas Cowboys have several members of their 2024 draft class in key roles this season and need big things from all of them. One is center Cooper Beebe, who has already been a full-time starter but has plenty of room to develop his craft. Our next roster rundown profiles Beebe ahead of a hopeful third-year leap in 2026.<\/p>\n
Years in NFL: 2
Acquired by: 2024 3rd-round pick<\/p>\n
Before Beebe came to Dallas, Tyler Biadasz had been the starting center for the majority of four seasons. He performed adequately, but not enough that the Cowboys wanted to give him a substantive contract extension. Biadasz\u2019s rookie deal ended and he quickly signed with the Commanders that March. Dallas did not replace him in free agency, seemingly content with promoting Brock Hoffman if needed. But the potential of finding a new starter in the upcoming draft was also there.<\/p>\n
On the first night of the draft, the Cowboys traded back from 24th to 29th pick with the Lions, obtaining Detroit\u2019s third-round pick as the key piece in the exchange. They used that pick to scoop up Beebe, who some felt was a steal at 73rd overall. Though he played guard in college, Beebe was touted as a potential center and the Cowboys quickly made it clear that they intended to play him there. It didn\u2019t take long for Beebe to be named the starter during the offseason.<\/p>\n
Beebe finished his rookie season as the 15th-ranked center according to Pro Football Focus. He had a slow start, but was doing his best work in the second half of the year. Naturally, Beebe returned as the starter in 2025. His performance graded out about the same, which disappointed those hoping for second-year growth. But Beebe also missed six games with an ankle injury, taking him out of the lineup from Weeks 3-8. He came back and maintained his general level of play, but the missed time likely played a big part in his not making gains. Beebe also had to adjust to a new offensive coaching staff last year, which may have contributed.<\/p>\n
Years Left: 2
2026 Cap Hit: $1.62 million<\/p>\n
We\u2019re halfway through Beebe\u2019s rookie deal and enjoying the savings that come from it. This season will be huge for positioning Beebe for contract talks in 2027, when Dallas may look to get ahead of his 2028 free agency with an early extension.<\/p>\n
Role: Starting C
Roster Chance: 100%<\/p>\n
There isn\u2019t much to discuss here. Beebe\u2019s the unquestioned starter and has no real competition for the job. Even Hoffman\u2019s gone now, leaving in free agency to reunite with Mike McCarthy in Pittsburgh. The Cowboys have signed veteran center Matt Hennessy to replace Hoffman, but he hasn\u2019t been a full-time starter since 2021. He\u2019s a backup through and through, and even his roster spot isn\u2019t guaranteed.<\/p>\n
While he\u2019ll go unchallenged as the starter, Beebe will still face some scrutiny in 2026. The third-year leap is not only hoped for, it\u2019s an expectation given his hype coming into the league. And unfair though it may be, even after all these years, Travis Frederick\u2019s shadow still looms over the center position. The perception of Biadasz suffered from it, and Beebe will too. Expecting him to become a perennial All-Pro isn\u2019t fair, but Frederick\u2019s high standard still sticks in our minds.<\/p>\n
Beebe should have every opportunity to improve this year. There\u2019s continuity in the offensive coaching staff and in his teammates. Tyler Smith should be back for All-Pro work to his left, and we\u2019re all excited about Tyler Booker\u2019s second year at right guard. There\u2019s even a strong backup ready in T.J. Bass, so guard play shouldn\u2019t hamper Beebe\u2019s development. It isn\u2019t a leap to think that Beebe could go from an average starter to one of the league\u2019s best in 2026.<\/p>\n
Check out our previous player profiles from this series:<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Dallas Cowboys have several members of their 2024 draft class in key roles this season and need…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":892616,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2066],"tags":[230,229,257,438,2461,7,6],"class_list":["post-892615","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-dallas-cowboys","tag-cowboys","tag-dallas","tag-dallas-cowboys","tag-dallas-cowboys-roster","tag-dallascowboys","tag-football","tag-nfl"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/116583157188458636","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/892615","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=892615"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/892615\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/892616"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=892615"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=892615"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=892615"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}