The Dallas Cowboys are heading to Oxnard on Monday morning, and training camp arrives with a lot more heat than the front office has shown all offseason. That quiet stretch is over now. Camp always brings noise in Dallas, and this summer has the feel of a real sorting-out process.
A lot of the roster is already settled, but there are still a few names walking into camp with real pressure attached. All four of these players made the 53-man roster last season, and all four have something to prove before the Cowboys start trimming the roster again.
Tyler Guyton is one of the biggest names in that group, and the left tackle job is not being handed to him on autopilot. Head coach declaring an open competition at your position is about as clear a warning sign as it gets. Third-year pro Nate Thomas and fourth-round rookie Drew Shelton are both in the mix to push him.
Guyton’s first two seasons have been interrupted by injuries and penalties that stalled his momentum. Pro Football Focus did not love his play last year, but there were signs of growth before he missed seven games. There’s also the question of how healthy he really was when the season began, since he had just come back from a bone fracture in his knee that kept him out for most of camp.
The 2024 first-round pick should still have the inside track if he can stay on the field. But another injury would give Thomas or Shelton a real opening, and even if Guyton holds the job, this season matters a lot for where he stands with the organization going forward.
Jonathan Mingo is in a different kind of bind, but it’s a serious one all the same. Dallas traded a fourth-round pick to Carolina for him less than two years ago, and that move is starting to look like one of those deals that never really had a chance. He now enters his second camp with the Cowboys facing a crowded receiver room and very little room for error.
CeeDee Lamb, George Pickens, Ryan Flournoy, and KaVontae Turpin look locked in. That means the rest of the group is fighting for what could be one or maybe two spots, depending on how Dallas wants to build the back end of the roster. Traeshon Holden, Marquez Valdes-Scantling, Anthony Smith, Jordan Hudson, Tyler Johnson, and Denzel Mims are all in that mix with Mingo.
Even if the Cowboys keep six receivers, Mingo still has work to do. He had a quiet camp last year, then a PCL sprain in his right knee during a preseason game knocked him out for more than a month.
He did not get activated until Week 12 and finished with one catch for 25 yards in six games. His special teams value helps, but it does not make the pressure go away.
Markquese Bell has a different path to survival. Special teams may be what keeps him around, and that matters because Dallas needs someone to step into the role long held by C.J.
Goodwin, who retired this offseason. Bell has been a core special-teams player throughout his time with the Cowboys, and last season he logged 304 special teams snaps.
He’s trusted in a lot of areas, too: kickoff return, kickoff coverage, punt return, punt coverage, and field goal block. The issue is the safety room around him.
Dallas brought in Caleb Downs, Jalen Thompson, and P.J. Locke this offseason, and Malik Hooker is still there.
Those four are expected to make the 53, which leaves Bell fighting for his place after playing 352 defensive snaps last season.
He could still make it. But entering camp, he’s very much on the bubble.
Then there’s Joe Milton, who has to earn the backup quarterback job the hard way. The Cowboys are making him compete with Sam Howell, and unlike the left tackle situation, this one feels close. Milton has the arm and the physical traits, but the league has seen plenty of gifted quarterbacks fall short because accuracy and timing never quite come together.
Howell has the edge in command and experience after starting every game for Washington in 2023. The backup quarterback bar in Dallas is not exactly high, but Howell looks like the safer bet right now.
Milton’s preseason work last year was rough. He played almost every snap and completed 36 of 65 passes for 397 yards, with two touchdowns, two interceptions, four turnover-worthy plays, and a 71.1 passer rating, according to PFF.
Over three games, that tells the story pretty clearly. If that kind of performance carries into camp, the Cowboys could easily decide to move on and leave him off the 53.
In Other News...
Cowboys RB Battle Has One Twist Fans Arent Talking About
As training camp nears, the Cowboys backup running back picture is getting tighter, and Jaydon Blue and Phil Mafah have both made a strong early impression with their development and burst. But this is more than a simple youth movement at the position, because Dallas also has to sort out how much value it wants to place on a back who can help in other phases of the game.
Malik Davis has a case that goes beyond the depth chart at running back. His work on special teams gives him a different path to the roster than Blue or Mafah, and that matters for a team that has to account for the loss of C.J. Goodwin and the possibility that Ryan Flournoy takes on a bigger offensive role. Davis has handled key special teams responsibilities before, and that kind of versatility could end up being the detail that keeps this battle alive well into camp. [Read more 🡒]
Cowboys Already Have One Big Concern About Jake Ferguson's New Deal
Jake Fergusons new deal gives the Cowboys a clear answer at tight end, but it also puts a spotlight on what theyre actually paying for. The four-year, $52 million extension with $30 million guaranteed makes him one of the leagues highest-paid players at the position, and that kind of contract brings expectations that go well beyond catches and volume.
Ferguson did post a career-high in receptions last season, yet the bigger concern is whether the production matched the role. His yards after catch dipped, his impact on a per-play basis faded, and the Cowboys now have to sort out whether the extension reflects the player they believe he is or the one they still hope he can become. [Read more 🡒]
Cowboys Rookie Suddenly Has A Real Shot In Unsettled Secondary
The cornerback picture in Dallas is still very much in flux as the 2026 season approaches, and that has created a real opening for a rookie who might not have seemed like much more than a developmental piece a few weeks ago. Cobie Durant, Shavon Revel Jr. and Caelen Carson are all in the mix, but none has separated enough to make the job distribution feel settled, especially with the spot opposite Daron Bland still hanging in the balance.
Devin Moore, the Cowboys fourth-round pick, has started to look like more than just depth as live contact practices get underway. His physical style gives him a chance to press up on receivers and help in the run game, and in a secondary where opportunity is tied closely to availability and consistency, that kind of profile can matter quickly if the competition stays open. [Read more 🡒]