Of the 54 players on the team (including Reserve/NFI list LB Damone Clark), only 8 players are veteran free agents signed by the Cowboys:
- signed 03/22/2021 – DE Tarell Basham, VFA (2017 3rd round pick of Colts
- signed 03/30/2021 – S Jayron Kearse, VFA (2016 7th round pick of Vikings)
- signed 04/07/2021 – P Bryan Anger, VFA (2012 3rd round pick of Jaguars)
- signed 07/27/2021 – S Malik Hooker, VFA (2017 1st round pick of Colts)
- signed 03/08/2022 – DE Dante Fowler, Jr., VFA (2015 1st round pick of Jaguars)
- signed 03/18/2022 – WR James Washington, VFA (2018 2nd round pick of Steelers
- signed 07/27/2022 – WR Kavontae Turpin, VFA (2020 UDFA of FCL League)
- signed 08/03/2022 – LB Anthony Barr, VFA (2014 1st round pick of Vikings
All 8 of these players were signed in the last 18 months. 6 of them are former 1st, 2nd or 3rd round picks, and one was last year's USFL MVP.
The other 46 players on the roster were either drafted by the Cowboys or were signed directly by the Cowboys as undrafted college free agents (40 draft picks, and 6 college free agents). I remember back in the mid-oughts when Bill Parcells and Wade Phillips were the head coaches, and right up until about 2012 under Jason Garrett. The entire fan board loudly complained about poor drafting, and wasting money on free agents.
Now people complain because the Jones family and the Cowboys prefer home-grown players.
Edit: Only 17 players remain from the Jason Garrett era. In the last 3 preseasons, McCarthy has brought on 37 new players.