The Dallas Cowboys are just days away from kicking off the 2025-26 NFL season. Dallas enters the season with one of the youngest rosters in the entire league, so first and second-year players will find themselves in significant roles.
One of those players is Donovan Ezeiruaku, the team’s second-round pick in the 2025 NFL Draft.
Ezeiruaku has some big shoes to fill following the departure of Micah Parsons, and he’s already shown flashes of brilliance during training camp and the preseason.
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There is one thing Cowboys fans were hoping would change, however. Ezeiruaku has been wearing the No. 41 jersey, which isn’t a conventional number for a pass rusher, so fans were hoping he would switch to something more appealing.
Some even joked Ezeiruaku should take Parsons’ No. 11 jersey, but that isn’t going to happen. In fact, fans better get used to seeing the No. 41 cause chaos in opposing backfields.
Dallas Cowboys defensive end Donovan Ezeiruaku celebrates during a game against the Baltimore Ravens at AT&T Stadium. / Jerome Miron-Imagn Images
Clarence Hill of ALL City DLLS reports Ezeiruaku was hoping for a single-digit jersey number, but since there are none available, he is sticking with the No. 41. Ezeiruaku wore the No. 6 while starring at Boston College.
“It appears Cowboys rookie DE Donovan Ezeiruaku will [stick with] No. 41. He prefers a single digit and that’s unavailable as of now,” Hill wrote. “He will make 41 pop.”
MORE: Dak Prescott happy for Cowboys to put Micah Parsons drama behind them
At the end of the day, as long as Ezeiruaku makes plays, no one will care what number is on his jersey. After all, they say the player makes the number, so he will put that theory to the test.
In his final year at Boston College, Ezeiruaku recorded 80 tackles, 21 tackles for a loss, and 16.5 sacks, the second most in the nation. He was awarded the Ted Hendricks Award as the nation’s top defensive end. Let’s hope he kicks off his NFL career on a high note.
Baltimore Ravens tight end Charlie Kolar and Dallas Cowboys defensive end Donovan Ezeiruaku in action at the line of scrimmage / Jerome Miron-Imagn Images
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