FRISCO, Texas — The Dallas Cowboys are releasing wide receiver Denzel Mims, ESPN’s Todd Archer and Jordan Schultz of The Schultz Report reported Saturday, a day before the NFL’s deadline to reach 53 players.
Rosters across the league have to be at 53 by 5 p.m. CT Sunday. Waiver claims process at noon CT Monday. Dallas closed the preseason Friday night at AT&T Stadium with a 27-24 loss to the New Orleans Saints and finished 2-1.
Mims signed on June 18, the final day of mandatory minicamp, as one of three UFL additions the Cowboys announced that morning. Cornerback Ameer Speed and offensive lineman Chris Glaser came in the same day, and Dallas moved offensive lineman Matt Hennessy to injured reserve to open a spot. Mims signed a one-year contract carrying a $1.15 million cap hit for 2026.
Mims met with KLTV’s Kyle Owens at training camp in Oxnard, Calif., on July 30, two practices into his first week with the team.
“I just keep you know, keep my mind straight, keep going,” Mims said. “It’s going to be a lot of ups and downs, but keep going staying positive and just do what I need to do. Keep working.”
Denzel Mims’ Preseason With the Dallas Cowboys
Through the first two preseason games, Mims ran nine routes and finished with minus-1 yard. His minus-0.11 yards per route run ranked last among Cowboys receivers.
Undrafted rookie Camden Brown ran 27 routes over the same stretch and gained 139 yards. Jonathan Mingo ran 16 routes for 82 yards. Brown caught 3 passes for 62 yards and 2 touchdowns in the Aug. 15 opener, both scores coming in a 17-7 win at Seattle. Mingo added a 53-yard touchdown from Joe Milton III the following week at Arizona.
Dallas waived wide receiver Traeshon Holden on Aug. 17 to open the roster spot for Von Miller. Holden muffed a punt late in the fourth quarter of the opener in Seattle, and the Seahawks recovered at the Dallas 5. Miller agreed to a one-year deal worth $5.5 million that can reach $7.5 million through incentives.
Denzel Mims’ NFL Career Before Dallas
The New York Jets took Mims 59th overall in the second round of the 2020 draft out of Baylor. He appeared in 30 games with 15 starts across three seasons in New York. Mims caught 42 passes for 676 yards and never scored a touchdown. He missed most of his rookie training camp with an injury and did not play until Week 7. Mims finished that season with 23 receptions for 357 yards in nine games.
Mims requested a trade through his agent on Aug. 25, 2022. New York sent him to the Detroit Lions on July 20, 2023, along with a conditional 2025 seventh-round pick, in exchange for a conditional 2025 sixth-round pick. Detroit waived him with an injury designation on Aug. 18 of that year.
The Pittsburgh Steelers signed Mims to their practice squad on Oct. 3, 2023, and to a reserve/future contract the following January. Pittsburgh waived him on June 19, 2024. The Jacksonville Jaguars signed him a day later and released him on Aug. 25, 2024, at final cuts. He has not appeared in an NFL regular-season game since 2022.
Mims signed with the St. Louis Battlehawks of the UFL on Oct. 15, 2024, and caught 5 passes for 51 yards in six games that spring. The Dallas Renegades selected him in the UFL Draft on Jan. 13, 2026. He caught 6 passes for 55 yards on 12 targets in five games with the Renegades.
Mims grew up in Daingerfield and played at Daingerfield High School before Baylor, where he was a first-team All-Big 12 selection in 2019. His UFL seasons ended with the Renegades in Arlington, roughly 20 minutes from AT&T Stadium.
“Oh it feels good. You know it lets you know that no matter where you come from, you can always make it somewhere if you put your mind to it,” Mims said in Oxnard on July 30.
The Renegades hold Mims’ UFL rights if he returns to the league. The Toronto Argonauts of the CFL added him to their negotiation list in July. Dallas opens at the New York Giants on Sept. 13. Kickoff is 7:20 p.m. CT on NBC.
