IRVING, Texas -- Ten-year Dallas Cowboys veteran Timmy Newsome, who told the team he would rather be cut than play backup, will be released Thursday, the team said Wednesday.
The Cowboys said they called around the league, trying to line up a trade for the 31-year-old fullback but could not find a team interested.
Coach Jimmy Johnson said two younger players, Broderick Sargent and Daryl Johnston, the team's No. 2 draft choice, were performing better than Newsome.
'So we feel like it's in Timmy's best interest to get a shot with another club,' Johnson said.
Newsome had told Johnson that if he was not on the starting team, he wanted to be released, the team said.
Newsome, a sixth-round draft choice out of Winston-Salem State in 1980, rushed for a total of 1220 yards in 10 years for the Cowboys. His best season was 1984, when he ran for 268 yards and five touchdowns. That same year he had 263 yards receiving and one touchdown.
He is No. 9 on the Cowboys' all-time receiving list with 212 receptions for 1966 yards.
His best receiving year was 1986, when he caught 421 passes for three touchdowns.
Newsome rushed 32 times for 75 yards last year before suffering a season-ending injury to his calf after the ninth game.
Also Wednesday, the Cowboys released rookie kick returner Tyrone Thurman, thie 5-3 dynamo from Texas Tech.
They also picked up Detroit wide receiver James Dixon, a University of Houston product.
