The Cowboys didn’t just tweak their defense this offseason - they tore deep into it.
After the final roster cuts, 15 of the 27 defenders who opened 2025 against the Eagles are currently without a team, according to Nick Harris of the Star-Telegram. Harris originally counted 17, then corrected the total to 15 after noting that two of those players were actually on IR.
That’s a staggering amount of turnover for one unit, even in a league where rosters never stop moving. NFL teams typically churn about 30% of their roster from year to year, and the Cowboys’ defense has blown well past that.
Of the 27 players on that Week 1 group, only seven are back on the 2026 roster, plus Marist Liufau, who is on IR. That means just eight of 27 remain, a 70% churn rate.
The list of departures isn’t limited to the back end of the roster, either. Five of last year’s starters are also unemployed right now, a detail that says plenty about how rough the 2025 defense was.
For Dallas, this wasn’t simply normal roster movement. It was a full-scale reset.
Jerry Jones leaned into that idea during his press conference after Day 2 of the draft.
“We have been able to, as of right now, rebuild this defense. I think the fact that we put a new newness to the system and coaching staff, and new faces that we’ve added, we’ve changed this defense.”
Jones also framed the overhaul as something bigger than one bad season.
“product of 3, 4, 5 years, maybe more, where we ultimately didn’t get to where we were trying to go and be a contender.”
The table from the Week 1 defense tells the story in even sharper detail. Across the front, the Cowboys have already moved on from names like Sam Williams, Donovan Ezeiruaku, Kenny Clark, Mazi Smith, Jay Toia, Osa Odighizuwa, Solomon Thomas, Perrion Winfrey, Dante Fowler, Marshawn Kneeland, James Houston, Jack Sanborn, Shemar James, Kenneth Murray, Marist Liufau, Damone Clark, Buddy Johnson, Malik Hooker, Markquese Bell, Donovan Wilson, Juanyeh Thomas, Kaiir Elam, C.J.
Godwin, Trikweze Bridges, DaRon Bland, Trevon Diggs and Reddy Steward. Some of those players are on IR, and C.J.
Godwin retired, but the broader picture is the same: the group has been gutted.
For a franchise that usually prefers stability and comfort, this kind of defensive overhaul stands out. It’s not just unusual. It’s the kind of turnover that makes the old unit look like a distant memory.
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