Five years ago, I had a thought that still holds up: if Micah Parsons hadn’t exploded the way he did as a rookie, Osa Odighizuwa might have gotten a lot more shine. Maybe even enough to sneak into the Defensive Rookie of the Year conversation. The Cowboys’ brand has a way of making those things possible.
Odighizuwa is gone now after being traded this offseason, and the Cowboys are already looking at the next young defender who could get swallowed up by bigger names around him. That player is Jaishawn Barham.
Caleb Downs is going to grab most of the attention, just like Parsons did, but Dallas didn’t solve its biggest offseason need with that pick. Barham’s selection did. The Cowboys still badly need linebacker help, and that’s why he matters so much heading into training camp.
Dallas also added Dee Winters in a trade with the 49ers before drafting Barham, which only adds to the sense that San Francisco helped shape this linebacker room. With all due respect to Winters, and to DeMarvion Overshown as well, Barham is the one worth tracking most closely.
ESPN recently listed him as a rookie to watch in training camp, and the fit is obvious. New defensive coordinator Christian Parker is installing a Vic Fangio-inspired system, and he inherits a defense that has been through a brutal stretch of turnover.
The Cowboys have had four defensive coordinators in the past four years: Dan Quinn, Mike Zimmer, Matt Eberflus and now Parker. Add in injuries, draft misses and the trade of Micah Parsons, and the unit is thin on young talent.
Barham could help change that. He began his college career as an inside linebacker, then moved to the edge in his final season at Michigan.
Dallas plans to shift the third-round pick back to stack linebacker, where there are snaps available in a room that includes Dee Winters and DeMarvion Overshown. But Barham also brings pass-rush ability, which gives him a chance to fill the Zack Baun/Jihaad Campbell type of role Parker helped coach with the Eagles over the past two seasons.
That’s the part worth watching in camp: how often Barham is used, and where he lines up. Those reps should tell us a lot about how Parker wants to call this defense in 2026.
There’s been plenty of dreaming already about what Parker can do with Caleb Downs, and that makes sense given his background with defensive backs. But Barham may be the more revealing piece. Parker’s experience with the Eagles and the way they used Zack Baun and Jihaad Campbell feels like the real blueprint Dallas wants to borrow.
Training camp is almost here, and this is one of the biggest questions waiting to be answered.
In Other News...
Cowboys Fans Are Loving This Embarrassing Giants Coaching Moment
A preseason hype speech is supposed to stir a team, but John Harbaughs latest moment with the Giants did the opposite. The head coach leaned hard into the New York Giants message, only for the players reaction to fall flat enough that the clip quickly became a punchline online, with plenty of fans and commentators treating it as more awkward than inspiring.
For Cowboys fans, it was the kind of sideline stumble that is easy to enjoy from a distance, especially with the Giants carrying extra attention into the season. The bigger question now is whether that disconnect was just a bad viral moment or a sign of a team still trying to find the right edge before the games start to count. [Read more 🡒]
Cowboys Were Quietly Tied To A Quarterback Story Fans Did Not See Coming
Brendan Sorsbys path to the NFL took an unexpected turn when his attempt to enter the supplemental draft was turned away, pushing him back toward the 2027 class instead. The quarterback had already drawn attention from several teams, and his situation became more notable because his NCAA eligibility was lost after a sports gambling issue, a background that made any pro interest feel a little more complicated than the usual developmental quarterback chase.
For Dallas, the connection is easy to understand even if the timing is not. The Cowboys have Dak Prescott atop the depth chart, but they are always looking ahead at the position, and a player like Sorsby could have fit as a long-term backup or eventual successor if the process had moved differently. For now, the story is less about a fit than a missed opportunity, with the leagues decision leaving open whether the Cowboys will circle back when Sorsby is eligible again. [Read more 🡒]
Cowboys May Already Be Losing Faith In Their Latest QB2 Fix
The Cowboys still have a real question behind Dak Prescott, and it is one that did not get any easier once the offseason dust settled. Joe Milton, who was the primary backup last year, is now in a camp battle with newly signed Sam Howell for the QB2 job, giving Dallas a competition that feels less like a formality and more like a test of which passer can steady the position.
Howell brings more experience and a financial commitment that could help him stick on the active roster, while Milton is still trying to show he can be more accurate and consistent. His preseason work last year left room for doubt, and if that does not change quickly, the Cowboys may have to decide whether he is better suited for the practice squad than for the role they hoped he could fill. [Read more 🡒]