Scouting the Cowboys: How Last Season's Collapse Shaped a Rebuilt Roster Ahead of Week 1

Dallas finished the 2025 season 7-9-1, second in the NFC East, and missed the playoffs for a second straight year, according to Pro Football Reference. The offense averaged 27.7 points per game, seventh in the NFL, according to CBS Sports, but the defense allowed 511 points, a franchise record, and ranked last in the NFL in total yards allowed. Owner Jerry Jones fired defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus in January. "After reviewing and discussing the results of our defensive performance this season, though, it was clear that change is needed," Jones said, according to SI. Dallas hired Christian Parker off the Eagles' staff to replace him, according to the team's own announcement.

Brian Schottenheimer enters his second season as head coach, and this year he's sharing the play sheet. Offensive coordinator Klayton Adams called plays in three preseason games, against Seattle, Arizona and New Orleans, a step Schottenheimer described as developmental. "He's truly an offensive coordinator now. And that's why I've allowed him to call some plays," Schottenheimer said, according to Yardbarker's Ashutosh Kadam. Schottenheimer will call the plays himself in the regular season, starting Sunday.

Dak Prescott is entering his 10th season and is the starter; he dealt with soreness in his right knee during camp, which the team described as minor, and it has not been reported as a Week 1 concern. CeeDee Lamb remains the top receiving option; George Pickens, acquired in a 2025 trade with the Steelers, is the No. 2. "It's exciting knowing that, in Year 10, I'm playing my best," Prescott said, according to the Cowboys' own site.

The offensive line has a hole. Left guard Tyler Smith, a three-time Pro Bowler, needs thumb surgery and will start the season on injured reserve, out roughly four to six weeks, GiantsGator reported Sept. 8; T.J. Bass takes his spot. At right tackle, Dallas is still deciding between incumbent Terence Steele and Broderick Jones, acquired in an Aug. 29 trade with Pittsburgh. Schottenheimer called Steele the "1A" option as of Aug. 31 but said the competition "may not be decided" before kickoff, according to the team's own site.

Fixing the defense drove most of the offseason. Dallas traded Micah Parsons to Green Bay in 2025 for two first-round picks and defensive tackle Kenny Clark. One of those picks, Green Bay's 2026 first-rounder, was later traded to the Eagles on draft day and became pass rusher Malachi Lawrence at No. 23, according to SI's revisit of the trade. The other, a 2027 first-rounder, was flipped to the Jets at the 2025 trade deadline — along with a 2026 second-round pick and defensive lineman Mazi Smith — to acquire defensive tackle Quinnen Williams, according to the Jets' own site. Separately, Dallas traded up from its own natural first-round pick, No. 12, to No. 11 with Miami to draft Ohio State safety Caleb Downs. Cowboys Wire's Reid D. Hanson reported Sept. 4 that Dallas is now trying to build a Denver-style, distributed pass rush — the Broncos had seven players record four or more sacks in 2025, while Dallas had two: Jadeveon Clowney (8.5) and James Houston (5.5), per Pro Football Reference. Denver has the player Dallas doesn't: Nik Bonitto, who had 14 sacks last season and signed a four-year, $106 million extension, per Over The Cap. Clowney is not on Dallas's 2026 roster, either. The current edge group is Houston, rookies Donovan Ezeiruaku and Malachi Lawrence, Tyrus Wheat, and two veteran additions who signed in August: Rashan Gary and Von Miller, according to the team's official 53-man roster release.

Dallas is projected to go 10-7 and make the playoffs, per CBS Sports' Garrett Podell, who points to the offense's continuity under Schottenheimer and the defensive investment as reasons for optimism. The toughest part of the schedule comes in a five-week stretch from Weeks 12 to 16, against the Eagles, Seahawks and Rams.

Dallas's most significant Week 1 injury is season-ending. Running back Malik Davis suffered a hip injury at Friday's practice and had surgery that night; he is out for the year, DallasCowboys.com's Nick Eatman and NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth reported. Davis had won the No. 2 running back job in camp; Emari Demercado moves into that role behind starter Javonte Williams. Defensive tackle Jonathan Bullard (groin) was a full practice participant Wednesday and Thursday, and offensive tackle Ajani Cornelius (knee) was a limited participant both days, according to the team's own injury report; both carried no game designation for Sunday, per Yardbarker's account of the team's final report. Linebacker Marist Liufau (fractured forearm, surgery) and cornerback Devin Moore (hip) opened the season on injured reserve; both moves were made Aug. 30, according to the team's transaction log.