The Cowboys went into this offseason knowing exactly where their money needed to go. Defense. They threw resources at it, reworked the front seven, and now enter training camp with a roster that actually looks balanced for once. The offense was never the problem. The question is whether the defense can catch up fast enough to make Dallas a real threat in the NFC East.
Camp opens July 29 with the first full practice, and there are starting jobs up for grabs. Not just bottom-of-the-roster stuff either. Real roles. Here are the three camp battles worth tracking.
RB2 Race Between Jaydon Blue and Malik Davis
Re-signing Javonte Williams to a $24 million extension was smart. He’s the guy. But behind him? That’s where it gets interesting. Dallas has two backs fighting for the number two spot, and the early buzz favors the younger one.
Jaydon Blue didn’t exactly light it up as a rookie. He was inactive for stretches, and he admits now that he wasn’t ready. “I wasn’t mature enough,” he said recently. But he also says he’s learned from that. Head coach Brian Schottenheimer confirmed they had a real conversation after last season. “We put all the cards on the table,” Schottenheimer told ESPN’s Todd Archer. “He didn’t like being inactive, and I was honest about why. He took it in and came back with a great look on his face and a great work ethic.”
If Blue shows up and competes, the job is probably his. But Malik Davis is still there. He’s not flashy. He’s got 90 carries for 411 yards and three touchdowns over two seasons. That’s it. But coaches like reliable生产的 veterans, and Davis is exactly that. This could go either way depending on how Blue handles the first padded practices.
Jonathan Mingo vs. Marquez Valdes-Scantling for the Fifth Receiver Spot
Receivers one through four are locked in. CeeDee Lamb, George Pickens, Ryan Flournoy, and KaVontae Turpin give Dallas a strong top four. But the fifth spot is open, and it might be the last one depending on whether the Cowboys carry six. They might not, since Turpin handles returns anyway.
That leaves Jonathan Mingo and Marquez Valdes-Scantling fighting for one gig. MVS has been around. He’s played for Green Bay, Kansas City, Buffalo, San Francisco, and Pittsburgh. He’s 6-foot-4, 206 pounds, and knows how to fit into a contending team’s rotation. That experience matters.
Mingo came into the league as a second-round pick with serious expectations. His rookie year was OK — 43 catches for 418 yards — but he hasn’t topped that since. This is his second full offseason in Dallas, and that familiarity could give him an edge over MVS. Whoever wins, Dak Prescott gets another big body to throw to.
James Houston, Sam Williams, and Marist Liufau Battle for Edge Depth
For the first time in years, the Cowboys don’t have to worry about replacing Micah Parsons. They traded him to Green Bay last year, and now the edge room actually has some real starters in Rashan Gary, Donovan Ezeiruaku, and Malachi Lawrence. But behind them? It’s a three-man scrap for probably one or two roster spots.
Sam Williams has the most experience. He was a second-round pick in 2022 but never turned into more than a rotation guy. He also has to learn a 3-4 front, which isn’t his comfort zone. James Houston came out of nowhere with the Lions in 2022, putting up eight sacks as a pass rush specialist. He’s not great against the run, so if Dallas wants a guy who can set the edge, Houston might lose out. Then there’s Marist Liufau, who came into the league as an off-ball linebacker and just switched to edge rusher before camp. He’s the longest shot on paper, but camp is where guys like that can surprise people.
Whoever makes the cut will tell us something about how the Cowboys want to use their depth. Are they looking for run stoppers or pure pass rushers? That answer comes in August.
Leave a Comment