Projecting the Cowboys’ 53 Man Roster
Photo by Tom Hauch/Getty Images
Dallas, Texas (PSF) - *Christmas tune begins in background*
It’s the most dreadful time of the year! The cuts will be flowing and rosters will be showing the season is nearrrr, it’s the most dreadful time of the year!
Dreadful for the players, that is…us fans are beginning our happy dances as another NFL season approaches. For the players on the roster bubble, dreams will begin to be shattered or rerouted.
With that said, let me take a stab at predicting who will be on the Dallas Cowboys’ 53 man roster in Week 1.
QB (2): Dak Prescott, Cooper Rush
Given the newly implemented QB rule, it wouldn’t be at all surprising if Will Grier is on the 53 come gamedays. I think at this stage, they trust the durability of Prescott and Rush enough to use the spot elsewhere.
RB (3): Tony Pollard, Deuce Vaughn, Malik Davis
This is a tough group to project. The odd man out will be Rico Dowdle or Davis. Dowdle has had a better preseason than Davis, but Davis showed enough flashes in the regular season last year for me to use his larger body of work as the tiebreaker. Dowdle to the practice squad again.
Photo by Kevin Jairaj/USA TODAY Sports
WR (6): CeeDee Lamb, Brandin Cooks, Michael Gallup, Jalen Tolbert, Kavontae Turpin, Jalen Brooks
Looking like the best receiving corps the Cowboys have had in years, it’s hard to imagine anything too surprising happening here. The first three are locked in. Jalen Tolbert appears to be on the verge of a breakout, Kavontae Turpin will actually be used on offense this year, and Jalen Brooks has been enough of a training camp darling to earn a spot. Maybe they go with 7 here? Simi Fehoko or Dennis Houston?
TE (4): Jake Ferguson, Peyton Hendershot, Luke Schoonmaker, Sean Mckeon
Ferguson and Hendershot are relatively unknown by casual NFL observers, but these two will be valuable and dangerous receiving threats this season. Schoonmaker and Mckeon round out a good position group. The latter two will be HUGE on goal-line/three tight end running sets—both good blockers.
OL (9): Tyron Smith, Tyler Smith, Tyler Biadasz, Zack Martin, Terrence Steele, Josh Ball, Matt Farniok, Asim Richards, TJ Bass
Once Chuma Edoga and Matt Waletzko are back from injury, they’ll be in the mix here, and might demote one of these guys to the practice squad.
Photo by Tom Fox/Dallas Morning News
DL (11): Micah Parsons, Demarcus Lawrence, Sam Williams, Dorance Armstrong, Villami Fehoko, Isaiah Land, Dante Fowler, Jonathan Hankins, Osa Odighizuwa, Mazi Smith, Chauncey Golston
Deep, deep group…Isaiah Land may be swapped with Neville Gallimore or Quinton Bohanna, but he’ll at least be on the practice squad. I’d be afraid of him getting plucked from there, however. The rest of the players here shouldn’t be too surprising. Going to be scary hours for opposing QBs against this group. Odighizuwa and Williams look poised to take big steps forward this year.
LB (3): Leighton Vander Esch, Damone Clark, Jabril Cox
Have them going thin here if they don’t like what they see from Devin Harper enough. A couple of reasons for my logic: One, Parsons may still infrequently play off-ball linebacker. Two, they have a couple of de facto linebackers that play safety. Dan Quinn is not afraid to put three or four safeties on the field at a time.
Photo by Smiley N. Pool/Dallas Morning News
CB (6): Trevon Diggs, Stephon Gilmore, Daron Bland, Kelvin Joseph, Eric Scott, CJ Goodwin
Jourdan Lewis will likely demote Eric Scott to the practice squad when he returns from injury. Kelvin Joseph and CJ Goodwin represent a burgeoning special teams ace and a well-established one, respectively. That reality is likely to put them over Nahshon Wright. Not to mention that Kelvin Joseph has looked great in coverage in the preseason.
S (6): Jayron Kearse, Donovan Wilson, Malik Hooker, Israel Mukuamu, Marquese Bell, Juanyeh Thomas
Fun safety group—love what Dan Quinn does with Kearse and what he has planned for Marquese Bell. Juanyeh Thomas has looked really solid in coverage this preseason. Mukuamu can also play corner in a pinch—he looked great doing it in the playoffs last year. Donovan Wilson is a mean, mean bruiser at safety who will have many highlights this year once healthy.
SPECIALISTS (3): Bryan Anger, Brandon Aubrey, Trent Sieg
Anger is a rock-solid punter, Brandon Aubrey is an unproven kicker. The latter statement coming back to bite them at least once this year feels likely.
