Brett's Cowboys Corner

The Cowboys are set to begin their first practice later today. There are plenty of interesting things that fans should keep on eye on as Schottenheimer brings in a new era for Dallas. New schemes, philosophies and practice styles.

There are a few position battles that will be critical for Cowboys success in 2025. Figuring out a running back room, need a starting corner while Diggs in on PUP, the starting middle linebacker, and a wide receiver three to compliment Lamb and Pickens.

Lets introduce the battles and keep up with them throughout camp.

Running Back

Javontae Williams, Miles Sanders, Jaydon Blue, Phil Mafah, Hunter Luepke

The Cowboys have faced criticism this offseason for their handling of the running back position. They let Rico Dowdle walk for cheap and signed two veterans, Javonte Williams and Miles Sanders, both have flashed in the past but come with question marks. Williams has struggled with injuries, and Sanders hasn’t looked the same since his 1,200-yard season in Philly.

Fans expected the team to draft a running back early, but instead they waited until Day 3, selecting Texas speedster Jaydon Blue in the 5th and Clemson power back Phil Mafah in the 7th. With minimal investment in the vets, the door is wide open for a rookie to claim the starting job, but they’ll need to pick up the playbook quickly and prove they belong.

The Cowboys will need to use the entirety of training camp and hopefully all three preseason games to figure out who emerges as the starting running back. If Sanders or Williams see limited snaps in preseason, it could signal a starter. I predict Dallas keeps 3–4 backs. Freeman is the early favorite, Luepke returns as a hybrid FB/short-yardage option, and Blue is a rookie favorite and a solid pass-catcher. Whether Sanders earns a role may depend on how confident the team is in Blue’s ability to handle early-down work.

One quick note — I don’t see a path for Deuce Vaughn to make the 53-man roster. With Turpin taking RB reps and Blue offering a similar profile with more upside, Vaughn may be seen as redundant and nothing more than a practice squad guy.

Cornerback

Kaiir Elam, Shavon Revel Jr, Caelen Carson, Kemon Hall, Troy Pride

As the Cowboys will wait on Trevon Diggs to return back to full health and comeback as CB1. Dallas will need to survive the first few weeks of the season with DaRon Bland and a bunch of guys who can step up. What will be interesting to see is where Bland plays. If he is in the nickel primarily, then you have Elam who could be a primary starter.

The Cowboys will hope for their third round pick Revel to take the big step here, but he is still rehabbing and will begin camp on the non-football injury list. Dallas would also like Caelen Carson to make a big jump in his second year.

What I will be interested in seeing is if DaRon Bland plays on the outside, meaning the nickel job will be someones to win. Elam and Revel aren’t nickels. We saw Hall and Pride make some noise in mini-camps. Both players saw game action last season.

If you keep Bland outside, you could also let one of the safeties play in the nickel, we have seen Israel Mukuamu

If the goal is to put your best guys on the field, Bland should play the slot with Kaiir Elam starting outside and if healthy Shavon Revel will be on the other side.

Linebacker

Kenneth Murray, Jack Sanborn, Marist Liufau, Damone Clark

Linebacker might be the biggest “if” on the Cowboys’ roster. This position needs a true field general. They need someone who can communicate, lead, and make the right pre-snap adjustments. The question is: who wears the green dot and calls the defense?Sanborn was with Eberflus in Chicago, but Murray had more reps in mini-camp.

Liufau is positioned for a year two leap. As for Damone Clark, this may be one of his final shots to make the roster. The Cowboys will be missing DeMarvion Overshown who will be on PUP and likely miss the first half of the season. They will need to survive until he gets back, but really there hasn’t been much stability at the position.

Stopping the run has been an issue for Dallas for many years, and in the preseason games they will look to the guy that gives him the best shot at doing so. Though going with the guy that understands the defense the best and can keep everything in line will have the best outlook for Dallas.

Wide Receiver

Jalen Tolbert, Johnathan Mingo, Jalen Brooks, Ryan Fournoy, Traeshon Holden

Ceedee Lamb and George Pickens will light up scoreboards, and be a pair that will draw most of the oooh’s and aaah’s of training camp. But the real battle of camp will be the WR3 job. Because Ceedee Lamb is best used when he can move around and line up in multiple spots, Lamb will see a lot of plays as the slot receiver. As most teams utilize three receiver sets, the Cowboys WR3 will get plenty of reps as a starting outside receiver.

The part that stands out here is the disparity between targets between the winner of this battle and everyone else. I think Kavontae Turpin will be the WR4 and primarily back up Lamb as a slot receiver, and be a gadget player.

Tolbert and Mingo have the best shot at taking this position and will get the priority reps because of draft status with Tolbert and Mingo being a trade last season. I think it would be interesting to see Brooks or Flournoy, who both got real game time reps last season have an opportunity to win the job. I have also held out caution for a roster spot to end up in Traeshon Holden’s hands as his former Oregon coach is now our WR coach.

Depending on how many offensive spots Dallas will keep on the 53-man roster. I wouldn’t be surprised if they go light at WR with five: Lamb, Pickens, Turpin, Tolbert and Mingo. Though I hope Dallas won’t play into the politics and disregard the draft status and pick the best players.