Why Cowboys traded for 49ers' LB Dee Winters during NFL Draft
Dallas is in on defense.
Why Cowboys traded for 49ers' LB Dee Winters during NFL Draft originally appeared on The Sporting News . Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here . The Dallas Cowboys focused on defense with their two first-round picks in the NFL Draft, getting Caleb Downs and Malachi Lawrence.
They weren't done with that during the draft, although their next moved involved a trade for 49ers veteran linebacker Dee Winters. It's a fun move, and it came right during the middle of the second round, but it wasn't so the Cowboys could make a pick. It was so Dallas could keep strengthening that side of the ball.
2026 NFL DRAFT HQ: Live tracker | Pick-by-pick grades | Best players still available Why did the Cowboys trade for Dee Winters? The Cowboys completed their early-draft defensive trifecta. They traded up for safety Caleb Downs at 11.
They traded down for edge rusher Malachi Lawrence at 23. And now, instead of another pick on a rookie, they've got the veteran Winters from San Francisco. Winters is 25 years old and made 101 tackles in the 2025 season.