Dallas Cowboys Sign Four-Time Pro Bowl Linebacker Ahead of 2022 Season

By Brian Jones

The Dallas Cowboys are looking to get a little stronger on defense before the 2022 NFL season kicks off. This week, the Cowboys announced they have agreed to sign linebacker Anthony Barr to a one-year contract. According to Todd Archer of ESPN, the deal is for $2 million but can Max out to $3 million. Barr joins a linebacker group that includes Micah Parsons and Leighton Vander Esch. 

"I think when you look at packages and how we feature Micah (Parsons), I think it gives you another weapon, another excellent player on and off the ball," Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy said, per the team's official website. "I think when you get in and out of packages as you build your system for a 17-game season, I know the defensive staff is real excited to have another piece."  

Barr, 30, spent his entire career with the Minnesota Vikings. He was selected by the team in at No. 9 overall in the 2014 NFL Draft and became one of the premiere linebackers in the league. Barr was selected to the Pro Bowl from 2015 to 2018, and his best season was in 2015 when he tallied 68 tackles, 3.5 sacks, one interception, three forced fumbles and seven passes defended. Last year, Barr played in 11 of the team's 17 games and notched 72 tackles, 2.5 sacks and three interceptions. 

In 2019, Barr was a free agent and verbally agreed to play for the New York Jets. The Jets reportedly offered Barr $15 million per season for five years, but he decided to return to the Vikings 24 hours later for less money. "It was mostly when I hung up the phone after saying, 'Yeah I can do New York,'" Barr said on NFL Network at the time, per Bleacher Report. "My stomach dropped, I kind of get some cold sweats. ... It was like you're about to go down the altar and marry the wrong woman. I think I'm making a bad choice. I did what I felt was right for myself." Barr is joining a Cowboys team that finished the 2021 season with a 12-5 record. They won the NFC East for the first time since the 2018 season but didn't make a deep playoff run as they lost to the San Francisco 49ers in the wild-card round of the playoffs. 

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