Cowboys free agent Luke Gifford to sign new contract with Tennessee Titans

The Dallas Cowboys are losing free agent linebacker Luke Gifford, according to ESPN’s Todd Archer. Gifford is signing a two-year deal this week with the Tennessee Titans. The new contract is reportedly worth up to $5 million.

The former Nebraska standout played the 2022 season for the Cowboys on a one-year, $1.1 million deal. Over 16 regular season games and two postseason games, Gifford tallied 20 tackles, a forced fumble and a half tackle for loss.

His most productive game on the stat sheet this season was in the overtime loss versus Green Bay. He posted five tackles and a fumble recovery. Gifford backed up Anthony Barr this season, who is another one of Dallas’s pending free agents this offseason.

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Gifford was one of a handful of Cowboys that underwent offseason surgery at the end of the year. He had surgery to repair an inner-core muscle injury.

Since joining the Cowboys in 2019, Gifford has 49 games under his belt, along with 44 career tackles. In 2020, the NFL fined the former Cornhusker $79,000 for violation of the league’s PED guidelines. He also had a two-game suspension for the violation.

More on the 2023 NFL offseason, free agency

The NFL 2023 calendar year begins at 4 p.m. ET on March 15. At that time, contracts running through 2022 officially run out, making those players free agents.

Prior to the beginning of free agency, teams will have a chance to designate one franchise or transition tag player, starting on Feb. 21 at 4 p.m. ET and ending on March 7. Beginning March 13 through March 15 teams can enter into a legal negotiation with players who are pending UFAs.

In addition to NFL free agency, the new year also marks the beginning of all trades being made official by the league office. April 21 marks the deadline to sign restricted free agents to offer sheets. On April 26, the deadline for teams to match restricted free agent offers sheets hits.

There are 722 players slated to become free agents in 2023, including 20 unrestricted free agents for Dallas.