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Every so often, we gather to discuss the latest news about the Dallas Cowboys and seek our writer’s perspective on each headline. Welcome back to the roundtable. This week we have Jess Haynie, Sean Martin, Brian Martin, and for his first Roundtable appearance we have Jorge Guajardo.
Which rookie are you most excited to watch in training camp this year?
Mike: Jaishawn Barham is the rookie I’m most excited to watch because linebacker was one of Dallas’ biggest weaknesses last season and desperately needed an upgrade. Barham is has the size to handle traffic between the tackles, but also the athleticism to chase plays outside and create pressure when sent after the quarterback. Training camp will show how quickly he diagnoses offenses and earns the coaches’ trust, but the opportunity is there for him.
Jess: If we’re all being honest, the answer is Caleb Downs. So I’ll go with my next guy, Jaishawn Barham. We’re desperate for stability at inside linebacker, let alone a playmaker. Even if DeMarvion Overshown explodes this year, and his knee doesn’t, we still need one more guy to help make this defense competitive again. Comparisons between Barham and the Eagles’ Zack Baun, given the Christian Parker connection, are also tantalizing.
Jorge: The answer is Caleb Downs, but I really want to see Michael Trigg. TE is one of the deepest position groups on this team, and if Brevyn Spann-Ford makes a leap, the path to the 53-man roster gets really tough for everybody behind Spann-Ford, setting up what could be a desperate attempt to make the roster, which, I think, always leads to entertaining and even good football. Trigg is a physical specimen, so seeing him fight and claw for a roster spot could be epic, and could light a fire under the other TEs on the roster as well.
Brian: As much as I’m looking forward to seeing what Caleb Downs can do in the ever important nickel/safety role in Christian Parker’s scheme, I’m going to go with the Cowboys other first-round pick, Malachi Lawrence. Dallas’ pass rush was pretty much nonexistent a season ago, but will hopefully be much improved this year with the new, versatile 3-4 scheme and the additions of Rashan Gary and Lawrence. The rookie could play a big role as a pass rush specialist or maybe even earn a starting role.
Sean: Kind of an “old man sitting on the porch” answer from me, which believe me doesn’t feel too great on a personal level, but I’ve covered enough Cowboys camps at this point to know that it is a yearly tradition like no other to absolutely lose our minds over a fringe wide receiver that makes some intriguing plays. It is the one position where a huge swarm of fans always have a “pet cat” they swear has to be a roster lock, very few ever are, but the fun and enthusiasm still goes on year after year.
For these reasons I’m going with seventh-round pick Anthony Smith, who has the speed to make plenty of social media highlights potentially getting behind a Christian Parker secondary that won’t take too well to giving up big plays, making the back and forth that much more intense. Let’s see what Anthony Smith can do.
Name an underrated player you think will shine in Oxnard?
Mike: Brevyn Spann-Ford is my underrated player to watch in Oxnard. He was already trending upward last season despite sitting third on the tight end depth chart, and he has a genuine opportunity to overtake Luke Schoonmaker for the number two role. Spann-Ford’s size and catch radius make him an intriguing target.
Jess: Training camp seems to always be when CB Caelen Carson shines. The problem is that we haven’t seen it carry into the regular season, either due to injuries or just general inexperience. Now in his third season, and playing under a DB guru in Parker, I’m intrigued to see if many have been too quick to dismiss Carson as a contender this summer.
Jorge: For the same reasons Jess believes in Caelen Carson, I’m going to go with Shavon Revel. He has all the tools to be a solid contributor at the NFL level. He finally has a full, injury-free offseason to work on his craft and be mentored by Christian Parker, which I think will do wonders for him.
Brian: It’s going to be difficult for certain players to shine in training camp due to the lack of physicality (tackling/hitting) in practices, so I’m going to have to go with a skill player here. I think second-year WR Traeshon Holdon could pick up where he left off last year in training camp where he turned some heads. He has another year in Brian Schottenheimer system and has been working with Dak Prescott. I think we’ll be hearing quite a bit from No. 80.
Sean: I’m going to go with Shemar James, just because there is so much uncertainty around what he can bring to the defense, but a lot of potential as well. There’s been a laundry list of things to call a wash from last year’s defense and hope for better under Parker, and the overall communication on the backend of the defense under Eberflus was high on that list. James got “lost in the sauce” in this overall bad defense probably one too many times to have a lot of fans excited about him in Oxnard, but don’t forget how much legitimate smoke there was about the Cowboys drafting a traditional linebacker in the first round. That is still a roster need that’s been a little under-addressed, but if James starts turning the corner, it would go a long way.
Is there any particular battle in training camp you’re keeping a close eye on, or one that Cowboys fans should be watching for this year?
Mike: Shavon Revel against George Pickens. Pickens is a physical receiver who can challenge a corner at every level, making him the perfect daily test for measuring how far Revel has developed. Revel is also another year removed from his ACL injury, so he should look more confidence. There will inevitably be difficult reps against a receiver of Pickens’ quality, but that is exactly how Revel can accelerate his development. If he holds his own consistently, it would be an encouraging sign that he is ready to take a major step in the Cowboys’ secondary.
Jess: The battle that has the most chance to decide wins or losses is at backup QB. Since 2020, Dak Prescott has missed five or more games every other season. He played a full 17 last year, so that’s daunting if the pattern holds. Sam Howell is now here to give Joe Milton real competition for the job. During some of Prescott’s absences, Cooper Rush reminded us how having a QB2 who can play competently can keep your season afloat. We need to see more of Howell and Milton to build our confidence that they can at least do that.
Jorge: It’s the running back battle behind Javonte Williams for me. Each back, whether it’s Jaydon Blue, Phil Mafah, or Malik Davis, brings a different skill set to the table. The Dallas rushing attack was solid last year, and if one of the backs emerges behind Williams this offense could take another leap forward and make them even more lethal than last year’s unit.
Brian: I’m going to cheat and go with two position battles we should all be watching closely, linebacker and left tackle. From a starting standpoint and a backup one, both positions remain unsettled right now heading into training camp. Both positions also carry some significant injury concerns for projected starters like Tyler Guyton and DeMarvion Overshown. Staying healthy and showing consistency at both positions will be key for the Cowboys success this year.
Sean: I really like Jorge’s answer about the running backs, but I’m going to go with cornerback myself. We know Christian Parker will be working very closely and hands-on with this position group, so through the cornerback battle we’ll also learn about the new defensive coordinator. This is also a position group where the Cowboys had almost no choice but to keep some retreads from the Eberflus defense, although several were here even before that, and this could be the camp where we find out if players like DaRon Bland are still dependable, just how good the Cobie Durant acquisition was, and if Caelen Carson and/or Shavon Revel can assert themselves.
If there’s one takeaway you want from this year’s training camp, what would it be?
Mike: The one takeaway from training camp this year would be clear evidence that the defense has genuinely improved, not just changed names. Dallas needs to look far more connected than it did last season, especially at linebacker and in the secondary. If the communication is cleaner and making life difficult for Dak Prescott, that would be the strongest sign that this team has actually raised its floor heading into the season.
Jess: I’ll take the low-hanging fruit on this one: stay healthy! I’m so tired of key players starting the year on IR, or spending most of the year nursing injuries that limit their effectiveness. I want to see everything Overshown has to offer. I want Bland back to full form. I want Ferguson taking full advantage of an explosive offense. I know this is part of the game and we’re not going to get out of August unscathed, but it just feels like lately we’ve had a pretty bad run with injuries to key players.
Jorge: Establish standards early and often on the defensive side. It was gut-wrenching at times to watch the 2025 Dallas Cowboys on defense. Missed gap assignments, blown coverages, and just straight-up bad football. Matt Eberflus paid for it with his job, but many of the guys who were on that team are still here, and new DC Christian Parker has to flush the bad habits and approaches that partly led to that disaster. If he can set the foundation of standards and non-negotiables, a culture of success will follow.
Brian: I’m going to have to go with leadership/accountability. We’ve already heard some good things about certain players stepping into leadership roles in OTAs and hopefully that will continue in training camp/preseason all the way through the season. With better leadership will hopefully mean more accountability, specifically cutting down the penalties. Dallas is continually one of the most penalized teams in the league, but hopefully no more.
Sean: I’m going to have my ear very close to the ground for the details of how this offense will actually be better in 2026. It’s been a long offseason of repeating the same talking points about continuity on the depth chart, and continuity in coaching with Brian Schottenheimer and Klayton Adams. That much continuity should be tangible on the field when it comes to Dak Prescott getting the offense in the right look always, protections being picked up, receivers playing in different spots (which has been teased already), and overall just a level of command that should feel different all summer. After all, we all sort of know it will be the offense that can be this team’s best defense during some of their most recent winning seasons.
