The Dallas Cowboys’ 2025 draft class already delivered a couple of rookies who looked ready for real jobs, and now the conversation has shifted to which sophomore is set up for the biggest second-year rise.
Tyler Booker and Donovan Ezeiruaku sit at the center of it. Booker, the first-round pick, stepped in at right guard and immediately looked like a difference-maker.
Ezeiruaku, taken in the second round, grew into a starter. Both are expected to matter again this season, and both have the kind of pedigree that makes a Year 2 jump feel likely.
At DallasCowboys.com, Patrik Walker and Tommy Yarrish both landed on Booker as the answer. Walker pointed to how polished Booker already looked as a rookie and suggested another offseason alongside Tyler Smith could unlock even more.
"Booker looked refined beyond his years as a rookie, and another offseason of training and learning from Tyler Smith who, by the way, can't stop praising Booker, tells me something special is cooking that's currently flying under many people's radar because he's not playing a skill position," Walker wrote.
The numbers back up the idea that Booker was already operating at a high level. PFF ranked him 16th among NFL guards and seventh in run-blocking with a 76.8 grade. For a player selected 12th overall, that’s a strong first impression - and it leaves room for more now that he has a full NFL season behind him.
Kurt Daniels saw it differently. He acknowledged Booker as a candidate, but picked Ezeiruaku as the Cowboy most likely to make the biggest leap. Daniels even forecast that Ezeiruaku would lead the team in sacks, and he tied that prediction to the defensive pieces Dallas added this offseason.
"Assuming he's at full strength from his January hip surgery, Ezeiruaku should benefit greatly from having a full slate of Quinnen Williams and Kenny Clark together in the middle, plus reinforcements on the outside in Rashan Gary, Malachi Lawrence, Charles Snowden and the return of James Houston and Sam Williams," Daniels wrote.
"Throw in defensive coordinator Christian Parker's more aggressive and deceptive 3-4 defense and Ezeiruaku could indeed take a sizeable Year-2 jump."
That’s the case for Ezeiruaku in a nutshell. He finished his rookie year with two sacks, but the help around him was limited. If the new pieces on defense do what Dallas expects, his production could spike fast.
Booker may be the safer bet to keep climbing, but Ezeiruaku has the bigger runway. Booker already showed he belongs.
Ezeiruaku still has more room to explode. And if Daniels is right and he ends up leading the team in sacks, that would be the more dramatic Year 2 leap.
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Traeshon Holden Is Forcing His Way Into A Cowboys Camp Battle
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