For a while, Caleb Downs drifted a little out of the spotlight in Dallas.
That feels strange to say about a player who was the story of the Cowboys’ draft just a short time ago. At one point, the conversation around him got so loud that people were arguing online about whether a veteran should give up his jersey number so Downs could wear the one he wanted. Then training camp rolled on, other new faces popped up around the Cowboys - especially on defense - and the buzz around Downs quieted down.
Then Week 1 happened.
The Cowboys should be leaning hard into Caleb Downs, because the first game gave them a pretty clear reminder of what they have. Dallas used him all over the place against the Giants, and that kind of flexibility is exactly why the team should keep expanding his role. According to NFL Pro, Downs lined up in the slot on 29 of his 60 defensive snaps, including 26 snaps in nickel, and he also got three pass rush chances against Jaxson Dart.
That last part matters. Downs is a defensive back, not a pass rusher, and his best long-term home may not even be in the slot.
That part is still being sorted out. But on those three rushes, he hit on all three with pressures.
One of them became the sack and forced fumble everybody saw, and Zebra Technologies said it was the fastest sack of Week 1 at 2.49 seconds.
He doesn’t need to be a full-time edge threat for that to matter. If he’s creating pressure, he’s creating disruption, and that helps the whole defense.
It was also the first time a Cowboys defensive back had at least three pressures in a game since Donovan Wilson did it in Week 3 of 2022, and that came against the Giants too. That doesn’t mean Downs has to be sent after the quarterback every week. It does mean Dallas should keep asking him to do it all - play nickel, rush the passer, and drop back at safety.
That’s a lot to ask of a rookie, but Downs already looks like the kind of player who can handle it. And if that’s the case, there’s no reason to wait around for some future point when he’s supposed to be “ready.” He may already be there.
There are plenty of ways to use him. The Cowboys should keep exploring all of them, as often as they can.
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Miami instead leaned into its rookie trio of Caleb Douglas, Chris Bell and Kevin Coleman, leaving Tolbert on the sideline and raising immediate questions about where he fits in the group. For Dallas fans who watched Tolbert try to carve out a role elsewhere, it was an ugly early sign that his next chapter may be off to a far more complicated start than anticipated. [Read more 🡒]
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Cowboys Suddenly Have A DeMarvion Overshown Problem Again
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Now a hamstring issue is expected to keep him out for 1-2 weeks, and it lands at a difficult moment because he is also in a contract year. Dallas still knows what Overshown can look like when he is healthy, which is what makes the situation so frustrating, but the bigger issue is whether the team can count on that version of him enough to shape what comes next. [Read more 🡒]