Cowboys Prevent a Possible Vikings Reunion
The Minnesota Vikings showed defensive tackles Jonathan Allen and Javon Hargrave the door without adding any new talent to the position group. Suddenly, the club is a player or two short at defensive tackle, even if they are confident in promoting internally.
Free agency still had a handful of intriguing interior defenders, including an old friend in Jonathan Bullard, who played three seasons in Minnesota. After a one-year absence, a reunion was feasible due to the DT shortage as well as his low salary demands and availability, but he is taking his talents to Dallas.
The Cowboys announced on Saturday, “The Cowboys have added some more depth on their defensive line, agreeing to terms with veteran Jonathan Bullard on a one-year deal. Bullard, 32, will play his 11th NFL season in 2026. Since being drafted by the Bears in the third round of the 2016 NFL Draft out of Florida, Bullard has played for six different teams in the Bears, Cardinals, Seahawks, Falcons, Vikings and Saints.”
Cowboys owner Jerry Jones keeps bringing up the importance of stopping the run and Bullard is good at that, helping the Vikings form an elite ground defense as recently as 2024. In Dallas, Bullard will meet departed Vikings DL coach Marcus Dixon, who joined the Cowboys in the same role after his contract had expired.
NFL reporter Mike Garafolo added a sweet wrinkle: “Bullard is signing a one-year, $2.5M max deal on the day of his late grandmother Joyce’s birthday, which is fitting because he’s said she was a ‘hollering at the TV’ Cowboys fan.”
Bullard, now 32, entered the league as a Bears third-rounder in 2016. The Florida product spent three seasons with the Bears but was cut ahead of the 2019 campaign and he played for the Cardinals that year, followed by seasons with the Seahawks in 2020 and the Falcons in 2021.
His time in Minnesota began in 2022, when the Vikings signed him in June. For three seasons, Bullard was part of the defensive line rotation in the Twin Cities, even surviving the defensive coordinator change from Ed Donatell to Brian Flores.
Bullard missed five games in his first year in Minnesota, but he played all 17 games in each of the following two, including 17 starts in 2024. In those 46 contests, Bullard registered 108 tackles and 3 sacks. He has never been a numbers guy, but he’s making sure his teammates can collect tackles around him.
Last offseason, Bullard was on the move and eventually signed with the New Orleans Saints, where he logged 15 games and 6 starts. Dallas will be his seventh stop in the NFL.
The Vikings have to find help elsewhere to stop the ground game, either in free agency, the draft, or on their own roster. Levi Drake Rodriguez and Tyrion Ingram-Dawkins, who were both drafted in the last two years, could be in line for a promotion, while Jalen Redmond will get a huge workload after his breakout season.
Editor’s Note: Information from PFF, Over The Cap, and Sports Reference helped with this article.