The Dallas Cowboys’ path back to the playoffs in 2026 starts with more than just new faces on defense. It also depends on getting real production from players who fell short in 2025.
That group includes a few names who have a strong case for a better second act. With training camp set to open later this month, four players stand out as prime bounce-back candidates.
Caelen Carson Revel is first on that list. After working his way back from a torn ACL suffered in his final year of college, he gave up a completion rate of 73.7% and a passer rating of 126.1 when targeted. It wasn’t the kind of rookie season that builds instant confidence, but there are reasons to expect a sharper year ahead.
Revel never had a normal offseason while rehabbing, and that alone made the jump to the NFL tougher. He also may not have felt like himself yet, which is often the case for players in their first year back from that kind of injury.
“I did not feel like myself,” Revel said. “I just had that heart and grit to go out there.
If I can still run, I'm going to go play. It's all about what you can put in for the team.”
Now another year removed from the injury and headed into a full offseason, the 2025 third-round pick should be in a much better spot.
Jadeveon Clark is another player Dallas is banking on. He wasn’t a disaster in 2025, but he also didn’t look like the Pro Bowl-level defender he had been in Green Bay. That dip has stretched back to 2024, and the numbers show it: after a 2023 season with 7.5 sacks and 61 pressures, Clark has produced just 77 pressures and four sacks over the last two years.
The Cowboys believe a role adjustment could help bring him back to form. Clark is expected to spend more time at nose tackle in Christian Parker’s defense, which lines up with what he said about where he feels most comfortable.
“I pride myself on being an all-around defensive tackle, but I’m primarily a nose tackle. That's my bread and butter,” he said in 2025.
Dallas will learn soon enough whether that change gets the old Clark rolling again, but the possibility is there.
Mazi Williams is also in line for a reset. He was one of several Cowboys defenders who underwhelmed last season, finishing with just one sack when the team needed edge pressure badly. Williams has never been a dominant pass rusher, but he has reached 4.5 sacks in a season before, so 2025 was clearly a step down.
There may be a reason for that, too. Williams was another player working his way back from a torn ACL, and now he’s further removed from that injury. On top of that, he’s returning to a 3-4 outside linebacker role, the same spot where he thrived in college.
“This is what I did at Ole Miss, so I’m happy," Williams said of reverting back to an outside linebacker.
He posted 10.5 sacks in his final season at Ole Miss, and even half of that kind of output in 2026 would count as a meaningful turnaround. That would also be a big boost for his 2027 free agency case.
Then there’s Jaydon Blue, the rookie who barely made a dent in 2025. A fifth-round pick, he logged only 38 carries for 129 yards in five games, and he spent much of the year inactive after failing to earn the staff’s trust. Maturity issues were a major part of the problem for the Texas product.
This offseason, though, head coach Brian Schottenheimer says Blue looks like a different player. He called the change “night and day,” and Blue himself says he has turned a corner.
“The game has slowed down completely for me. I just think I’m a completely different person than what I was at this time last year. I think it was just me looking myself in the mirror and (figuring out) why I wasn’t on the field like I should have been last year."
“I think I made a 180 from where I was last year. I think I’ve gotten a lot better, whether that’s the football part, the physical part, my body, I feel really good. I’m just ready to go," Blue added.
Schottenheimer has also said Blue can become a major part of the offense in 2026 if he keeps trending the right way. If that happens, the Cowboys may finally start hearing a lot more from him in his second NFL season.
In Other News...
Cowboys Finally Showed Their Hand With Caleb Downs
The Cowboys spent the spring sorting through a new-look secondary, and Caleb Downs quickly emerged as one of the more intriguing pieces in Christian Parkers defense. Based on what showed up during OTAs and minicamp, plus Todd Archers read on the situation, Dallas appears ready to use the rookie defensive back in a way that takes advantage of the versatility that made him such an appealing prospect in the first place.
What matters most for Dallas is the vacancy left behind by Jourdan Lewis, because the nickel corner role is one the staff has to get right. Downs is expected to handle that job first and foremost, with the ability to shift around as needed, giving the Cowboys a player who can help them solve one of the more important assignments on the field while still leaving some room for the final usage picture to settle in. [Read more 🡒]
Former Cowboys Ballhawk Suddenly Floated As Cheap Reunion Bet Elsewhere
Miamis roster rebuild has opened the door to a familiar name for Cowboys fans, with Bleacher Report floating the idea of a bargain-bin free-agent fit in former Dallas cornerback Trevon Diggs. The fit makes at least some sense on paper: the Dolphins are looking for help in the secondary, and Diggs brings the kind of playmaking reputation that once made him one of the leagues most talked-about young defensive backs.
The appeal is easy to trace back to his peak. Diggs was a Pro Bowl and All-Pro defender after a sensational 2021 season that produced 11 interceptions, and the broader resume still carries weight even with the volatility that has followed. For Miami, the attraction would be adding depth to a thin cornerback room and seeing whether Diggs can still push for a role in the slot, but for now it remains just another outside idea in a fluid market. [Read more 🡒]
Cowboys Camp Could Reshape Two Backup Battles In A Big Way
With Dallas Cowboys training camp set to open soon, a couple of backup battles are worth keeping an eye on as the roster starts to take shape. Running back Phil Mafah enters camp healthy and with a real chance to separate himself as the top option behind Javonte Williams, while linebacker Dee Winters is also positioned to build on the work he has already flashed and make a stronger case for a larger role.
Mafah has shown enough promise before to make this a meaningful competition, and the timing is right for him to turn offseason progress into something more concrete once the pads come on. Winters, meanwhile, has been one of the more intriguing defensive names to watch because of the way he has moved and made plays, and if that carries over into camp, the Cowboys could end up with two reserve spots that look very different by the time the roster settles in. [Read more 🡒]