OXNARD, Calif. — Von Miller was still a free agent when four Dallas Cowboys defenders showed up at his Sack Summit in July. He signed with the Cowboys on Sunday night, five weeks later, and he already knew most of the front he joined.
Miller founded the event in 2017 and called it the Von Miller Pass Rush Summit. Raiders defensive end Maxx Crosby and Saints defensive end Cam Jordan co-host it now. This year’s edition ran July 9 through July 11 in Las Vegas.
Rashan Gary, Donovan Ezeiruaku, Quinnen Williams, and Kenny Clark made the trip for Dallas. Cowboys pass rush specialist Brandon Jordan went with them. Training camp opened 17 days later.
“So, Donovan, I’ve been knowing Donovan for two years now, and that relationship just kind of happened naturally. I always had a young guy that I had a liking to, whether it was Shaq Barrett or Shane Ray or Greg Rousseau, Ed Oliver. There’s always been one guy in the room that’s kind of like my guy. And that started way before I was a Cowboy with Donovan,” Miller said. “And I’ve been knowing Rashan Gary for six or seven years now. Quinnen Williams, I’ve known him as well. Kenny Clark, I haven’t been familiar with Kenny, but he came to the pass rush tournament as well.”
“Like I said, it only takes one thing for me for us to be friends. We don’t have to be from the same spot or like the same color. Our thought is we want to win championship football and that’s enough for me,” Miller continued. “It’s kind of like when you play golf with guys. The one thing that you have in common is golf, and you can build a lifelong friendship just off of that one thing. All these guys, we’re in for the same goal. We have the same mindset. And that’s all I really need to build some of these friendships.”
Who Von Miller Already Knew In Dallas
Ezeiruaku is a second-year edge rusher out of Boston College. Dallas took him 44th overall in 2025. He posted 40 tackles and 2.0 sacks as a rookie and made ESPN’s All-Rookie second team.
Gary spent his first seven seasons in Green Bay after the Packers drafted him 12th overall in 2019. He has one Pro Bowl selection.
Williams came to Dallas from the New York Jets on Nov. 4, 2025, in a trade that sent a 2026 second-round pick, a 2027 first-round pick, and Mazi Smith to New York. The Jets had drafted him third overall in 2019. Williams is a first-team All-Pro from 2022 and a four-time Pro Bowl selection, and he signed a three-year extension worth $105.9 million on Aug. 11.
Clark arrived in the Micah Parsons trade in August 2025. Green Bay sent Clark and two first-round picks to Dallas and gave Parsons a contract worth $188 million with $136 million guaranteed. Clark has three Pro Bowl selections and nine seasons with the Packers behind him.
James Houston went to Detroit in the sixth round in 2022, 217th overall. He put up 8.0 sacks in seven games as a rookie, the most ever in a season by a player drafted 200th or later. Dallas signed him in July 2025. He had 5.5 sacks in 17 games last season.
“And even some of the guys that I didn’t have relationships with, Houston, I saw him play years ago when he was in Detroit and he had a crazy game. Like I’m a fan of football in general. My dream is to be a GM, front office exec, director of player personnel,” Miller explained. “And when you have that dream, you’ve got to love football, and you’ve got to love the players that make it happen. So even though some of these guys haven’t been my teammates, I know a little bit about everybody. Especially the pass rushers, I know a little bit about their game. Rush and coverage go together. DBs, I love DBs as well. We’ve got some great ones here. I played with P.J. Locke in Denver. So rush and coverage, we go together. A lot of these guys, I’ve been fans of them before, and you just build off our common goal to win a Super Bowl.”
Dallas Cowboys Pass Rush Entering 2026
The Cowboys finished 26th in sack rate last season. They allowed 4,521 passing yards, more than any team in the league.
Dallas has spent the year since the Parsons trade adding to the group. Malachi Lawrence went 23rd overall in April. Jaishawn Barham came in the third round and has worked on the edge. Miller is the second veteran signing of the offseason at the position.
Miller has 138.5 career sacks, the most among active players, and he had 9.0 last season for Washington.
The Cowboys break camp Friday and return to North Texas. Miller is expected to practice at The Star for the first time on Tuesday, Aug. 25. The club hasn’t committed to that date.
Dallas plays at the Arizona Cardinals on Saturday at 9 p.m. CT. The Cowboys host the New Orleans Saints on Friday, Aug. 28, at 7 p.m. CT at AT&T Stadium. The regular season opens Sept. 13 at the New York Giants at 7:20 p.m. CT on NBC.
