FRISCO, Texas — Camden Brown found out he had made the Dallas Cowboys’ 53-man roster from a post on X. Nobody from the team called.
Brown’s heart was pumping all day Sunday while he waited for that phone call, Nick Harris of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported Monday. It never came.
“I realized it off your tweet [of the roster],” Brown said. “Everyone sent it to me. I was like, ‘Why the hell everybody calling me?’ I feel like it’s a dream come true, for real.”
“What I’ve realized is the job is not over, so you got to keep putting your best foot forward every day,” Brown continued. “Wake up with a sense of gratitude every single day and know why you’re here. That’s how I’m approaching it, and I’m grateful, for real.”
Dallas set its initial 53-man roster ahead of the NFL’s 5 p.m. CT deadline on Sunday, waiving 28 players and releasing 7 to reach the limit. Six rookies made it. Brown signed after the 2026 draft as one of 11 undrafted free agents, on a three-year contract worth $3 million, and he is the only player on the roster who arrived that way this year. He wears No. 6.
Brown finished the preseason with 5 catches for 139 yards and 2 touchdowns, and he led the Cowboys in receiving yards in both games he played. Against the Seattle Seahawks on Aug. 15 he caught 3 passes for 62 yards, taking a 39-yard throw from Sam Howell and a 2-yard throw from Joe Milton III into the end zone. A week later in Arizona, on third-and-3 from the Dallas 29, Milton rolled left and hit Brown for 70 yards to the Arizona Cardinals‘ 1-yard line.
Brian Schottenheimer Says Camden Brown Is A Shadow At Practice
Cowboys coach Brian Schottenheimer said Monday he did not know much about Brown when Dallas signed him. He described the stretch after the draft as the coaches and scouts going into warp speed on undrafted free agents, a night he gets through with a frozen margarita.
“I remember hearing the name Camden Brown and hearing the guys talk about it, the scouts and the coaches,” Schottenheimer said. “And they were really excited, along with a number of the other guys, but I didn’t know much about him.”
“So when I’m giving the plays to the quarterback, Patrick, I always feel a shadow, like literally it’s a shadow on my left,” Schottenheimer continued. “And so like I go, and at some point I was just like, back up. But coach, what you got? Coach, what you got? Coach, what you got? So I’m giving the play to the quarterback, and then I’m like, you ready?”
Schottenheimer said he has not sat down with Brown yet about what the rookie has to do to dress on game days.
“The guy makes plays every day. And his ball skills are unique,” Schottenheimer said. “But what I will tell him when we get a chance to sit down is special teams is a big part of what you have to do. If you want to be active on game day and things like that, you can’t just be a guy that catches red zone fades all day long.”
“But terrific young man, works like crazy,” Schottenheimer explained. “I think that’s the first thing that stands out to me about Camden was the fact that he’s literally like angel on my shoulder, always wanting to know what the play is.”
Schottenheimer also explained why nobody called Brown on Sunday. He said his focus over the weekend was on the players getting the difficult news, and that the staff sits down with released players rather than sending them off with a handshake.
Camden Brown’s Path From Auburn To Georgia Southern
Auburn had Brown for three seasons, from 2022 to 2024, and he caught 26 passes for 289 yards and 3 touchdowns there. He transferred to Georgia Southern for 2025. That season he led the nation with 14 receiving touchdowns, set a school record, and became the first Georgia Southern receiver to pass 1,000 yards in a season, finishing with 65 catches for 1,079 yards.
Calvin Watkins of The Dallas Morning News had Brown on his fourth 53-man roster projection of the summer.
Dallas Cowboys Wide Receiver Room After The Cuts
Brown is one of 6 receivers on the 53-man roster, along with CeeDee Lamb, George Pickens, Ryan Flournoy, KaVontae Turpin, and Jonathan Mingo. Dallas released Marquez Valdes-Scantling on Sunday and waived seventh-round pick Anthony Smith. Smith cleared waivers at noon CT Monday and signed to the practice squad.
Valdes-Scantling signed in Dallas on April 27 and has 8 NFL seasons, which made him a vested veteran and sent him straight to free agency rather than the waiver wire. Smith caught 4 passes for 46 yards in two preseason games and started against the Cardinals.
The Cowboys open the season at the New York Giants on Sunday, Sept. 13, with kickoff at 7:20 p.m. CT on NBC.
