Cowboys reunite with veteran former Giants, Packers cornerback for ’26
The Cowboys continued to address depth within their secondary this offseason, this time bringing back veteran cornerback Corey Ballentine, a move aimed more at stability than the flashy addition Dallas fans expected.
Ballentine’s return comes after a brief but active stint in Dallas in 2025, when he initially joined the team’s practice squad on September 26, two days before the Cowboys Monday Night Football, 40-40 tie against the Green Bay Packers.
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His Christmas wish came true when the team signed Ballentine to the active roster on December 24, a day before the Cowboys’ 30-23 holiday road victory over Washington.
Ballentine entered the league as a sixth-round pick in the 2019 NFL Draft by the New York Giants, playing in 13 games as a rookie, including two starts. He was waived by the Giants midway through his sophomore season and picked up by the crosstown Jets a day later, finishing his 2020 season with New York’s other team.
After making the Jets’ 2021 roster, the team released Ballentine after their Week 1 loss to the Panthers, marking the start of his run in the league. Ballentine would spend 2021 with the Lions, 2022 with the Falcons, Cardinals and Packers. He would spend the 2023 and 2024 seasons in Green Bay before spending part of the 2025 training camp with the Colts.
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Eventually, he found his way back to the Packers for a short stint in August before landing in New England just before the start of the 2025 NFL season.
Dallas came calling after being cut by the Patriots and on September 26 of last season, Ballentine joined the Cowboys practice squad remaining with the club in some capacity for the duration of the season.
Fittingly, the Washburn product won the Cliff Harris Award in 2018, given annually to the best small-school defensive player in the country. Harris played 10 seasons with the Cowboys en route to six consecutive Pro Bowl nominations, five Super Bowl appearances (two rings) and was enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame (class of 2020).
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This article originally appeared on Cowboys Wire: Corey Ballentine returns to Cowboys as Dallas strengthens secondary
