{"id":787611,"date":"2026-05-11T00:11:37","date_gmt":"2026-05-11T00:11:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/787611\/"},"modified":"2026-05-11T00:11:37","modified_gmt":"2026-05-11T00:11:37","slug":"can-the-dallas-cowboys-have-a-top-10-defense-3-concerns-that-could-make-or-break-new-look-unit-following-roster-overhaul","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/787611\/","title":{"rendered":"Can the Dallas Cowboys have a Top 10 defense? 3 concerns that could make or break new-look unit following roster overhaul"},"content":{"rendered":"

People are getting overly excited about the Dallas Cowboys defense. But there are concerns that will likely keep them from being a Top 10 unit when the 2026 season is over. <\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\"May
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tMay 1, 2026; Frisco, TX, USA; Dallas Cowboys linebacker Jaishawn Barham (55) goes through a drill during practice at the Ford Center at the Star Training Facility in Frisco, Texas.
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tChris Jones-Imagn Images<\/p>\n

It\u2019s tough to predict what the Dallas Cowboys will do in the 2026 regular season because it\u2019s tough to know what the defense will look like. <\/p>\n

Some expect small improvements. Some are hyping it up as a potential Top 10 defense. The latter sounds exciting, but I\u2019m not buying into it just yet. Below, I list my three biggest concerns that are keeping me from getting too optimistic just yet. <\/p>\n

Yes, their overhaul on that side of the ball should be applauded. The Cowboys hired one of the best candidates in the defensive coordinator cycle in Christian Parker. And now, they\u2019ve given him a revamped group of players to work with, including three defensive picks in the Top 100 of the draft.<\/p>\n

But the question is, is it enough to go from one of the worst units in the game to one of the best? I\u2019m not so sure. Let\u2019s dive into why. <\/p>\n

1. Lack of a stellar pass rush<\/p>\n

The Cowboys have done a fantastic job rebuilding the depth of the roster at edge rusher. Going into OTAs, Dallas counts with a rotation headlined by Rashan Gary, Donovan Ezeiruaku, and first-round pick Malachi Lawrence. <\/p>\n

That\u2019s a good group, but it\u2019s a long way from being elite. Specifically, the Cowboys need to prove they have a genuine game-wrecker. Defensive tackle Quinnen Williams could be the secret key here, as he\u2019s one of the best pass rushers among interior linemen. <\/p>\n

The best defenses affect quarterbacks on passing downs. Can the Cowboys do it consistently? I\u2019m not ruling it out, but I\u2019m also not putting all my money on them achieving so. <\/p>\n

2. Play at middle linebacker<\/p>\n

As of today, the Cowboys don\u2019t even know who will rock the green dot<\/a> on their defense. The reason is clear: No player on the roster has experience with it entering OTAs. <\/p>\n

The Cowboys\u2019 biggest additions at linebacker this offseason were Dee Winters and third-round pick Jaishawn Barham. Though Barham played some middle linebacker at Michigan, he played multiple spots before moving to edge rusher in 2025. Meanwhile, Winters was a weakside linebacker for the San Francisco 49ers. <\/p>\n

Either Dallas will start an unexperienced MIKE in Week 1 or they\u2019ll have to add someone else to the team. Until then, there is uncertainty at the position. <\/p>\n

3. Outside cornerback spot(s)<\/p>\n

On paper, the Cowboys are fine here. One side is manned by an All-Pro cornerback in DaRon Bland. The other should come down to either Cobie Durant (one of the Cowboys\u2019 top free agency signings) and Shavon Revel Jr. (considered a first-round talent that fell to the third in 2025 due to a knee injury). <\/p>\n

But each of those names comes with question marks. What will Bland look like after foot surgeries in consecutive years? Durant was solid in L.A., but was he a high-end starter? And is Revel Jr. a different player with a full offseason under his belt or will the same struggles from his rookie season show up? <\/p>\n

Your pass defense is only as good as your worst cornerback. This position group needs to earn its respect in 2026. <\/p>\n

The good news\u2026<\/p>\n

The Cowboys don\u2019t have to have a Top 10 defense to make a playoff run. As long as their offense remains elite, Parker needs to lead an above average defense to allow Dallas to win more games. Top 10 would be nice, but as long as the Cowboys get on the same page quickly, things should be okay. <\/p>\n

\t\t\t\"May\t\t<\/p>\n

Dallas Cowboys News<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\tAs excited as Dallas Cowboys fans are about Caleb Downs, jersey sales are unlikely to heat up for the rookie any time soon\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

The Dallas Cowboys know how to sell jerseys. But this time, they might have to be patient with questions surrounding Caleb Downs\u2019 true number for the 2026 NFL season as more changes could be in the horizon. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"People are getting overly excited about the Dallas Cowboys defense. But there are concerns that will likely keep…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":787612,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[5135],"tags":[5229,237669,1596,8998,136785,301077,358,3187,67,586,132,5230,68,2969],"class_list":["post-787611","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-dallas","tag-america","tag-christian-parker","tag-dallas","tag-dallas-cowboys","tag-jaishawn-barham","tag-malachi-lawrence","tag-texas","tag-tx","tag-united-states","tag-united-states-of-america","tag-unitedstates","tag-unitedstatesofamerica","tag-us","tag-usa"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/116553048995913736","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/787611","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=787611"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/787611\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/787612"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=787611"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=787611"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=787611"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}