Dallas Cowboys waive former sixth-round pickup, linebacker Devin Harper

The Dallas Cowboys waived former sixth-round draft pick Devin Harper on Thursday, opening up a spot on the 53-man roster for the Week 4 game against the New England Patriots on Sunday. Harper, a former Oklahoma State standout at linebacker, went No. 193 overall to Dallas in the 2022 NFL Draft.

After making the 53-man this summer, Harper was active for all three of the Cowboys’ regular season games so far this season. However, last week against the Cardinals, Harper received a holding penalty on a punt return that negated a 51-yard return by KaVontae Turpin.

Last season, the Cowboys had to put Harper on Injured Reserve due to an Achilles injury. The Knoxville, Tennessee native notched three tackles for Dallas over a season and three games.

Harper is the second member of the 2022 Cowboys draft class to get his walking papers. The Cowboys released defensive tackle John Ridgeway out of Arkansas last year. He landed with the Washington Commanders and stuck with them for this season.

The 2022 draft picks still on the roster were all drafted ahead of Harper and Ridgeway. A few have earned starting roles, including first-rounder Tyler Smith at left guard and DaRon Bland, currently filling in as starting cornerback for Trevon Diggs.

Cowboys’ Micah Parsons earns NFC Defensive Player of the Month

The NFL unveiled its September award winners for the AFC and NFC on Thursday ahead of Week 4 games. The Players of the Month come from the Dolphins, Steelers, 49ers, Cowboys, Bills, Bucs, Texans and Patriots.

AFC Awards
Offense: Tua Tagovailoa
Defense: TJ Watt
Special Teams: Tyler Bass

NFC Awards
Offense: Christian McCaffrey
Defense: Micah Parsons
Special Teams: Jake Camarda

Rookies of the Month
Offense: C.J. Stroud
Defense: Christian Gonzalez

In the month of Sept., Micah Parsons had 12 tackles, four sacks, five tackles for loss and eight quarterback hits, as well as a forced fumble and recovery. His tenacity in getting after the quarterback earned him his first-ever Player of the Month award. He earned the NFC’s Player of the Week award after his Week 2 game against the Jets.

Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy had high praise for his former first-rounder on Thursday.

“Rightfully deserved,” McCarthy said. “He was the Defensive Player of the Year in training camp, too. He’s really stepped it up.”

Parsons is battling things out with Steelers star T.J. Watt for the league’s defensive MVP award this season. Watt has already surpassed his 2022 sack total of five with six this season. He also has 11 tackles (five for loss), two forced fumbles, and two fumble recoveries (one for a touchdown).