Dallas Cowboys defensive end clears waivers, signed to Cowboys practice squad

Dallas Cowboys defensive end Bradlee Anae has officially cleared waivers and will be signed to the Cowboys’ practice squad, Calvin Watkins reported on Twitter on Wednesday night.

A former fifth-round pick in the 2020 draft, Anae was inactive for nine of his 23 possible games and did not play in another two. His stint in Dallas ended with two career tackles and no sacks. Similar to Jabril Cox, most of Anae’s playing time came via special teams.

A few penalties for special teams coordinator Bones Fossil’s unit may have been the reason Anae is no longer on the Cowboys’ primary roster. The latest came on Sunday night, as the defensive end jumped offsides, extending Minnesota’s drive. They got a field goal as result.

Cowboys head coach seemed to disagree from the theory that the penalty was the reason Anae was waived.

Mike McCarthy on Cowboys releasing DE Bradlee Anae: “It really wasn’t” the offsides penalty Sunday night. McCarthy is hopeful they can get Anae back on the practice squad

— Jon Machota (@jonmachota) November 3, 2021

Bradlee Anae college career

Anae became Utah’s ninth consensus All-American during his 2019 season for the Utes. He was named first and second team All-American by a variety of publications across the country. In 2019, he racked up 13 sacks in the season, which ranks as the fifth most ever recorded in a season in Utah program history. His 14 tackles for loss not only ranked tops in the Pac-12 conference, but put him first on team in the category. In 2018, he was named first team All Pac-12, after he led the conference with 8 sacks.

The Hawaii native also racked up 15.5 tackles for loss that year. His 51 tackles that season led the Utah defensive line. He had his season high (7) tackle total of 2018 against BYU, where his uncle, Robert, played college football and coached for several years. Robert Anae is currently the offensive coordinator at Virginia. Bradlee Anae’s father was also a two-time All-American at BYU during his playing days there (1979-1981).

High School career in Hawaii

He was named first team all-state by the Honolulu Star-Advertiser. Anae helped guide Kahuku High School to a Division I state title and go 13-0 in 2015. He helped them reach the state semifinals in 2014 with a 9-3 record. A well-rounded athlete coming out of high school, he also competed in basketball, and did the high jump in track and field. He was rated as a three-star prospect.

It will be interesting to see if Anae can find his way back on the primary roster with the Cowboys. As many injuries as Dallas has dealt with this season, it’s definitely not that far out of the question. Head coach Mike McCarthy’s comments make it sound it was a tough decision, so we’ll see what happens.

On3’s Griffin McVeigh also contributed to this report.