FRISCO, Texas — Plenty has been made of the Dallas Cowboys rebuilding their defense, and rightfully so. After all, this is a team that fielded the worst defense in the league, and in franchise history, in 2025, so cleaning house on that side of the ball felt inevitable — both within the coaching staff and the roster itself.
Adding to the latter is the signing of defensive lineman Jonathan Bullard, the latest addition to Christian Parker's defense ahead of the 2026 NFL Draft. The 32-year-old has plenty of experience at the professional level, a former third-round pick of the Chicago Bears in 2016, suiting up for what will be his seventh club when the 2026 season gets underway.
But, as Bullard tells it, this all feels very different, and in the best possible way.
"It's a dream come true," he told DallasCowboys.com. "When I grew up, my entire family was Cowboys fans. My grandma was a huge one — that's where it started, obviously — but also my mom, everybody. To be here and to put the Star on my helmet just means a little more, knowing what she did for me, and I'm excited about it."
And it's not only his family, but also everyone else in Shelby, NC, where he was born and raised before leaving to become a First-team All-SEC lineman at the University of Florida.
"My whole city [is full of] Cowboys fans, too," he said. "Just to go out there and put my stamp on this season."
Bullard's grandmother passed away in 2012, and he still carries her in his heart, and that means he feels added, although welcomed, pressure to show up big for the Cowboys, both literally and figuratively speaking.
Scheduled to meet with Parker this week, Bullard did reveal his role in Dallas will be as a "big end", the exact position he's played throughout his 10-year career for various teams that deployed a 3-4 scheme.
"I think the defense they're trying to bring in is what I've done for the last 10 years," Bullard explained. "To come in and be a big end, and be present on run downs, to make it tougher for teams to run the ball — for us to get the run defense going. To have the opportunity to come here, it just fit."
As for what he plans to bring to the table for a defense that, last year, mostly brought cups and ice to the pot luck, Bullard didn't mince words; nor did he stutter in explaining why the Cowboys wanted him, and why he wanted the Cowboys.
"The smarts of the game, understanding what we're gonna get and being able to communicate down the line with the guys," he said. "And the guys that are already here are vets, too, like Kenny Clark and those guys. I think, just us being able to communicate, as we get older and get that experience — the game slows down.
" … And I'm bringing the toughness and physicality, for sure."
Bullard joins a defensive tackles room headlined by Quinnen Williams and Kenny Clark, with Jay Toia, a second-year talent, and Otito Ogbonnia in rotation — Osa Odighizuwa and Solomon Thomas both traded in March. It's a complete overhaul at the position, and Bullard has the experience and ability help it get to a level its not experienced in decades.
