The Dallas Cowboys roster has its fair share of stars and clear-cut starters.
Whether it be at quarterback, wide receiver, or pass rusher, we know who the top dogs are.
What we don’t have as much clarity on is a few positional groups that will be competing with each other for starting roles in 2024.
These battles are some of the most important pieces of the off-season.
In OTA’s, training camp, and the pre-season, the eyes of the front office and coaches are on those competitions, not the set-in-stone players.
#Cowboys offensive skill players getting some work in together ahead of voluntary OTAs.
Pictured: Dak Prescott, Ezekiel Elliott, Jalen Tolbert, and Jalen Brooks.
(📸: @ JLStudioz on IG) pic.twitter.com/qJson4LxVg
— Brandon Loree (@Brandoniswrite) May 17, 2024
Before you can set the 53-man roster and order the depth chart, you need to know who your starters are.
The Cowboys roster has no shortage of these positional battles.
Because of what they lost in free agency, things are a bit more murky in Dallas than usual.
Offensively and defensively, there are quite a few decisions to be made before September.
With that in mind, let’s take a look at three of the most important positional battles for the Cowboys in 2024.
Brock Hoffman vs Cooper Beebe
The very second former starting Center Tyler Biadasz left Dallas in free agency, there was going to be a battle for his position.
Here we are a few months later, and that has come to fruition.
With the Cowboys selecting Cooper Beebe in the 2024 NFL Draft, and three-year veteran Brock Hoffman grinding, there is a major positional battle brewing in the trenches.
Dallas’s reputation across the league starts with the offensive line.
And the winner of this battle will have a major responsibility on their shoulders to keep that reputation alive.
You may be thinking Beebe has this job in the bag.
And while I understand why that is the narrative.
He was a highly touted prospect, a top-75 draft pick, and his talent and potential are off the charts.
Rookie center Cooper Beebe working on balance after minicamp practice Saturday pic.twitter.com/X8UdZAWXPt
— Nick Eatman (@nickeatman) May 11, 2024
However, Hoffman has a real shot to win this battle as Beebe grows and develops.
The former UDFA has caught the eyes of many in the building, and he could be named the stater while Beebe gets a bit more seasoned.
At the end of the day, it will be whoever performs best in the lead-up to the season.
This one is far from a foregone conclusion.
Ezekiel Elliott vs Rico Dowdle
To build on positional battles that were destined to happen, let’s talk about running back.
The Cowboys were never really “in” on Tony Pollard in the off-season, and the same can be said for every other free-agent running back.
This led to a do-or-die moment in the draft, and they chose the latter.
Dallas did not select a running back in all seven rounds of the draft.
And in the days that followed, they brought back a familiar face to compete with Rico Dowdle for the starting job in 2024.
Dak & Zeke reunited at @dallascowboys OTAs 🙌pic.twitter.com/JW3gJ6lXVi
— NFL (@NFL) May 22, 2024
Ezekiel Elliott, a franchise great and former All-Pro, returned on a one-year deal.
Now, the Cowboys roster has Elliott, Dowdle, and a few extras ready to hash it out for the RB1 role.
While we may see more of a “by committee” situation than a true winner of the starting job, it is still important to consider who the starter will be.
Dowdle, 25, is coming off a year with lots of flashes of talent.
Don’t let a mere 361 rushing yards in 2023 fool you, this guy passed the eye test with flying colors when Pollard was off the field.
Elliott on the other hand had a solid season up north in New England.
Especially in the passing game, he provided a steady hand to an otherwise shaky offense.
The winner of this job might be Elliott purely on seniority, but I expect Dowdle’s snap count to grow as we get deeper into the 2024 season.
The WR3 Carousel
Long gone are the days of the vaunted Amari Cooper, CeeDee Lamb, and Michael Gallup trio.
Now, heading into the 2024 season, the Cowboys are looking at the WR3 spot with no true answer.
It’s a long list of unproven young players who will compete for the job during the buildup to the 2024 campaign.
Most prominently, former 3rd-round pick, Jalen Tolbert.
He has his best chance yet to establish himself as a worthwhile draftee.
Tolbert is coming off an improvement in his sophomore season, catching 22 passes for 268 yards and 2 touchdowns.
Jalen Tolbert mentioned to me today he gets with Dak outside of The Star once or twice a week, "You can tell that the chemistry is continuing to grow, it's special to have a quarterback who believes in you, understands you as a person, and as a player."
— Savannah Huemoeller (@sportssavvyy) May 30, 2024
But it won’t be a cakewalk for the former South Alabama Jaguar.
He’s got real competition for the WR3 role.
Starting with the Cowboys’ return man of the last two seasons, KaVontae Turpin, who looks to be much more involved in the passing game in 2024.
Stephen Jones, talking about Turpin’s role, said “I think we can get him the ball a dozen, twenty, two dozen times.”
However many dozens he gets, it seems clear his role will increase to a level it hasn’t been before.
The dark horse in this race, former 7th-round pick Jalen Brooks is looking to make his case.
A young receiver flashes early in every NFL camp.
Jalen Brooks is that guy for the Cowboys.
Enjoy this TD. It wasn’t his first of the day. pic.twitter.com/VGJbqxf8Oe
— David Moore (@DavidMooreDMN) August 1, 2023
This Harrisburg, NC native and former Gamecock had a nice showing in his rookie season.
Whether or not the speedster builds on that is yet to be seen, but he should not be counted out, it sounds like he has impressed many inside the Cowboys building.
Regardless of who wins this battle, it seems like it will be a major increase in snaps for them.
The Cowboys roster has major question marks, to say the least.
