This is a big year for Matt Eberflus and the Dallas Cowboys defense. The first-year defensive coordinator is taking the reins from Mike Zimmer, and the unit will have a major say in Dallas’ success.
It isn’t just the big names either; Micah Parsons, DaRon Bland, and the recently paid Osa Odighizuwa are going to need some help.
The front office has done a solid job of retaining and acquiring that kind of supplemental talent, but now it’s time to see if they are really up for the job.
Those guys are what could make this defense elite.
If you look at the depth chart, there are a few guys who hold serious weight in the defensive potential of this team; players who could essentially be catalysts for either a huge revival on defense, or a major let-down.
Three of those players are being heavily underrated as we head into the 2025 campaign, and it’s time we showed them some love.
Mazi Smith: The Best Is Yet To Come
It seems like everybody is forgetting, or didn’t know in the first place, about Mazi Smith’s bounce-back season in 2024.
The former first-round pick from Michigan had everybody selling his stock after a disastrous rookie year, but he thoroughly turned things around last season.
He isn’t the kind of player who is going to rack up the sacks, which can lead some fans to see him as unproductive. I would implore the Cowboys faithful, however, to look deeper; you’ll see that he made an impact in 2024, and he is poised for growth again this year.
Cowboys DT Jay Toia (rookie seventh-round pick) saw some burn with the ones today. pic.twitter.com/0vuCamya30
— Nick Harris (@NickHarrisFWST) May 29, 2025
Smith, soon to be 24, will face competition from rookie Jay Toia this summer, and I think that could push him even more.
His improvement from his rookie-to-sophomore years was noticeable, but a regression could spell the end of his Cowboys career. They aren’t going to tolerate a poor season in what should be his best one yet.
I think this will motivate Smith, who has some great players around him now, to become the starter he should always have been.
Dante Fowler Jr: An Exciting Reunion in 2025
The Cowboys’ front office made some free agent signings this year, and while many of them felt underwhelming, the reunion with Dante Fowler Jr. is far from that.
Formerly a reclamation project of Dallas’s, Fowler had 10 sacks in two seasons with the star on his helmet. That may not sound impressive, but if you were paying attention during his tenure, you’d know he was a productive pass-rusher for the Cowboys.
Dan Quinn thought so as well, and brought him along to Washington last season to light up the defensive line, and he did just that.
Sack leaders in the NFC East…
Dante Fowler WAS = 10.5
Micah Parsons DAL = 9.5
Dexter Lawrence NYG = 9.0
Josh Sweat PHI = 8.0 pic.twitter.com/qTenl1AL2M— Dan Rogers (@DannyPhantom24) January 1, 2025
Fowler recorded 1o.5 sacks with the Commanders in 17 games, and he is now headed back to Dallas to essentially replace DeMarcus Lawrence’s production.
I get it; that may sound like a big task for a guy that Dallas fans remember as a rotational piece. What you have to consider, however, is that he would have been second to Micah Parsons in sacks last year, with 6 fewer starts.
Fowler will continue his resurgence in 2025 as a key member of the Cowboys defense.
Malik Hooker: Staple Of The Secondary
I don’t understand why Malik Hooker gets so overlooked by both fans and the media.
Since joining the Cowboys defense in 2021, Hooker has played a minimum of 15 games each season, and he has just put together the best year of his entire career at 28 years old.
Now 29, Hooker is looking to replicate his 81-tackle season in a secondary filled with youth, inexpereince, and question marks.
https://twitter.com/SleeperCowboys/status/1925993549541118221
His running-mate at safety, Donovan Wilson, is a likely cap cut this summer, which will put even more pressure on the former first-round pick. It’s no small task, but he’s up for it.
Hooker has been a consistent presence throughout his career in Dallas, despite his injury-prone label as a young player, which is even more helpful considering the issues Trevon Diggs and DaRon Bland have had recently.
If the Cowboys secondary has a big year, I’m willing to bet Malik Hooker is right in the middle of it. Do not sleep on this veteran; he’ll fly under the radar to a great season once again.
