Six weeks ago, the Dallas Cowboys had a hole in the middle of their front four, with no experienced defensive tackles under contract.

After reaching a Friday night agreement to retain unrestricted free agent and four-year veteran Michael Myers, however, Dallas can claim that it now has one of the better three-man tackle rotations in the league.

A starter in all 16 games last season, Myers will sign a one-year contract worth about $1 million. He will be the "swing" tackle behind starters La'Roi Glover and Brandon Noble and still log considerable playing time.

The Cowboys signed Glover, the NFL sack leader two years ago, as an unrestricted free agent last month. Noble signed a one-year qualifying offer earlier this week. Both Noble and Myers will be eligible for unrestricted free agency next spring unless they are signed to contract extensions.

Myers, 26, only recently began to draw interest in the free agent market, having visited with Atlanta and the New York Jets in the past 10 days. That he would return to Dallas, and as a likely backup, was a bit surprising. But apparently none of the clubs he visited were prepared to sign him now, preferring to wait until after this weekend's draft.

A former Alabama star, Myers posted a career-best 72 tackles last season and also added 3½ sacks. At 6-feet-2 and 292 pounds, he is more a one-gap player, using his quickness to hit the gaps. Despite a lack of bulk, though, Myers has still played the run well.

He was the Cowboys' fourth-round choice in the 1998 draft, the 100th player selected that season. For his career, he has 152 tackles, 6½ sacks, 31 quarterback pressures and six pass deflections. Myers has played in 51 games and started 24 of them.

Len Pasquarelli is a senior writer for ESPN.com.