Cowboys sign Nikita Whitlock to practice squad and waive Ahmad Dixon

The Bengals chose not to keep a true fullback on the roster this year, and that meant there was no place for Nikita Whitlock. The former Wake Forest defensive tackle was converted to fullback this offseason during the pre-draft process, and he made the transition very nicely.

In terms of just blocking, he was the best fullback on the roster during training camp and through the preseason, but his inability to do anything else led to him being waived. The Bengals opted instead to go with H-back Ryan Hewitt, a pass-catcher who does a decent job as a blocker, and resembles the kind of player Cincinnati wants in their offense.

They didn't even sign Whitlock to their practice squad, but the Dallas Cowboys did.

The Cowboys have waived S Ahmad Dixon and signed S C.J. Spillman. FB Nikita Whitlock has been placed on the practice squad.

— Dallas Cowboys (@dallascowboys) September 1, 2014

It's bit of a surprise that Dixon was waived, considering he was vying for a starting spot on Dallas' depleted and flat-out bad defense. He was a player to watch for the Bengals to sign to their 53-man roster, given that they have only four safeties, and Taylor Mays really makes a bigger impact at linebacker.

Dallas will likely try and sign Dixon, a seventh-round pick by way of the Baylor Bears from this year's NFL Draft, to their practice squad. The Bengals may have to sign Dixon to their 53-man roster if they want him.

Like Mays, Dixon is a hard-hitter that lined up at linebacker, nickelback, and strong safety in college, where he finished with 288 career tackles and multiple All-Big 12 honors. He could be an ideal replacement for Mays, who becomes an unrestricted free agent in 2015.

Dixon is also a guy who would easily contribute on special teams.