The bye week came at the perfect time for the Dallas Cowboys’ defense, which has been one of the worst in the NFL during the first half of the season. Heading into the Week 10 bye, the Cowboys gave up 27 points to the Arizona Cardinals on Monday Night Football, and that was coming off the heels of allowing 44 points to the Denver Broncos in Week 8.
The Matt Eberflus era as Dallas' defensive coordinator has been one to forget. No matter what the Cowboys’ defense tries to do, they can’t get out of their own way.
That said, despite the poor performance of Dallas’ defense on tape through the first half of the regular season, they’re getting healthy at the right time and adding a couple of new additions (Quinnen Williams and Logan Wilson) coming out of the bye, which will help them in their Monday night clash against the Las Vegas Raiders.
Revamped Cowboys’ Defense Gets Reinforcements in Week 11
On Thursday afternoon, ESPN’s Todd Archer reported that the Cowboys opened up the 21-day practice window for safety Malik Hooker, while mentioning that fellow veteran safety Donovan Wilson is expected to work at practice. A toe injury has sidelined Hooker, while a knee injury has hampered Wilson.
Additionally, Joseph Hoyt of DLLS reported that four other injured Cowboys players, including veteran CB Trevon Diggs, were seen working out on the side Thursday. If you’re a Cowboys fan, this is great news as it shows help is on the way, even if none of these guys play on Monday night.
Speaking of Monday night’s game, we already know that linebacker DeMarvion Overshown and rookie cornerback Shavon Revel are both expected to make their 2025 debuts against the Raiders.
Dallas fans are excited to see both guys back on the field, especially Overshown, who is a playmaker at linebacker last year and is an instant upgrade over linebackers Kenneth Murray and Jack Sanborn. A linebacker core of Overshown, Wilson, and Marist Liufau is much better on paper than Dallas had a few weeks ago.
Cowboys' D Could Feast vs. Raiders
Monday night’s game against the Raiders is the perfect matchup to get those guys some reps, as Las Vegas has one of the worst scoring offenses (15.4 points per game) and struggles to run the football (87.4 yards per game, 29th). That's without mentioning how the team is averaging just 12.0 PPG amid its three-game losing streak, which includes scoring seven points in one game while being shut out in another.
Dallas has been one of the worst teams against the run this season (143.0 yards per game allowed, 28th), but with the addition of Quinnen Williams in the middle (90.8 run defense grade, 2nd, per Pro Football Focus), the team's run defense should be able to keep rookie Ashton Jeanty in check.
And not to mention, the Raiders also traded their best wide receiver (Jakobi Meyers) ahead of the trade deadline, giving Dallas’ secondary no excuses. It's worth noting that Las Vegas has finished with fewer than 200 passing yards in five of its last six games.
Now, the Cowboys have to keep an eye out for tight ends Brock Bowers and Michael Mayer, but that will fall on the linebackers, too (Overshown and Wilson). Wilson has had his struggles in pass coverage this season (139.0 passer rating allowed, 3 TDs allowed), but he has a chance to change the narrative about his game in primetime.
That being said, if the Cowboys’ defense can play as well as it did a few weeks ago at home against the Washington Commanders, it might give the fanbase some hope for the rest of the season. Some people will point out that it's the Raiders, and they’re supposed to dominate them on both sides of the ball. However, the defensive turnaround has to start somewhere, and Monday's matchup could send Dallas' confidence through the roof.
And suppose the Cowboys can get back on track on Monday night. The hope is that they can take those positives and adjustments into their next three games against the Philadelphia Eagles, Kansas City Chiefs, and Detroit Lions, who will all pose different threats to Eberflus’ crew.
And if the unit can survive that stretch, Cowboys fans will feel a lot better about the franchise's defensive outlook.