Dallas Cowboys 53-man roster projection (post 2022 mini-camp edition)

Dallas Cowboys 53-man roster projection: DL and LB

Defensive Line (10)

DeMarcus Lawrence, Neville Gallimore, Osa Odighizuwa, Dorance Armstrong, Sam Williams, Carlos Watkins, Chauncey Golston, John Ridgeway, Tarell Basham, Quinton Bohanna

This is another training camp battle sure to excite the masses. The Dallas Cowboys retooled their defensive line this past offseason and watching how that shakes out, promises to be quite the event in Oxnard.

DeMarcus Lawrence is locked in at LDE and Dorance Armstrong is likely the top guy at RDE. Neville Gallimore and Osa Odighizuwa are the probable top-2 starters at DT. Health permitting, those four will likely get the most snaps along the D-line.  Behind them Micah Parsons will get his snaps at DE (but we’ll classify him as a LB still).

Sam Williams will surely get his spot on the roster. If Williams can be a pass-rushing specialist he could push Dante Fowler off the roster completely. Tarell Basham played both DE and DT last year and is much more valued than most fans care to admit, and Chauncey Golston enters his second year expecting a big jump in performance and opportunity.

The Dallas Cowboys rarely keep more than two run-stuffers on the active roster so I think John Ridgeway and Quinton Bohanna make the cut leaving Trysten Hill on the outside looking in. Carlos Watkins was re-signed and has the ability to play 2-gap at DT and at DE so I have him as a pretty safe bet.

Linebacker (5)

Micah Parsons, Jabril Cox, Leighton Vander Esch, Devin Harper, player not yet on roster

Parsons will be a part-time pass rusher and part-time off-ball LB so dependable depth is critical. But since Dan Quinn plays more BIG nickel (using Jayron Kearse as a SAF/LB hybrid) more than base defense, the Cowboys want quality players rather than a quantity of players.

LVE is back on a one-year-deal and Jabril Cox is set to earn major snaps and may even lead the LB unit in snaps played at the position. Luke Gifford might miss the cut if Harper outperforms him on special teams. Keep in mind, Harper was drafted for special teams play more than his ability to play LB.

The key takeaway here is I see the Cowboys adding a player who is not yet on the roster. Trustworthy depth is vital to the unit and the Dallas Cowboys are flush with cash. I think a known veteran will end up on this team before they leave Oxnard.