The Dallas Cowboys defense in 2025 isn’t just looking for improvement—it’s looking for a total transformation. After finishing near the bottom of the league in most key defensive categories in 2024, the team parted ways with coordinator Mike Zimmer and brought in Matt Eberflus.
Known for building disciplined and aggressive units in Indianapolis and Chicago, Eberflus will bring the same mindset to Dallas.
With a new scheme, fresh faces, and returning talent like Micah Parsons and DaRon Bland, the Cowboys are betting on a defensive reset.
Here’s a full breakdown of the roster, key additions, stats from last season, and projected impact in 2025.
2024 Defensive Recap: Pressure and No Payoff
Despite finishing 3rd in sacks (52.0) and 2nd in quarterback hurries (79.0), Dallas was one of the worst defenses in football when it mattered:
- 27th in total defense: 355.2 yards per game
- 31st in scoring defense: 27.5 points per game
- 29th in run defense: 137.1 YPG, 25 rushing touchdowns
- 17th in pass defense: 218.1 YPG, 28 passing touchdowns
- 32nd in red zone defense: 75% touchdown conversion rate
- 13th takeaways: 13 interceptions, 18 forced fumbles (9 recovered),1.3 takeaways per game
The 2024 defense allowed the second-most touchdowns (55 TDs), with only the Carolina Panthers allowing more (61 TDs).
It routinely collapsed in the red zone—a critical factor that Eberflus was hired to fix.
Eberflus Brings Discipline to Chaos
The hiring of Matt Eberflus is more than cosmetic. His defensive philosophy focuses on:
- Speed and pursuit angles
- Attacking defensive front
- Turnover generation through rally tackling
- Mixes of zone and man to disguise coverages
New Cowboys DC Matt Eberflus on defensive philosophy: “It’s pretty simple, we take the ball away. That’s what we do. We stop the run. We want to make exciting plays for our football team. That’s really what we do.” pic.twitter.com/HFaPwbVW0k
— Jon Machota (@jonmachota) February 18, 2025
The 2025 defense will emphasize swarming the football and limiting explosive plays, something Dallas failed to do consistently last year.
Front Seven: Built Around Micah Parsons
Everything starts with Micah Parsons, who remains one of the NFL’s most dynamic defenders. In 2024, Parsons recorded:
- 12.0 sacks
- 23 QB hits
- 12 tackles for loss
- 43 combined tackles
He will again move between EDGE and linebacker roles depending on matchups.
Around Parsons, Dallas has reshuffled its defensive front:
- Sam Williams: Emerging starter has 8.5 sacks in 32 games.
- Marshawn Kneeland: Going into his second year, he had flashes in year one, but year two should see an increased role.
- Dante Fowler Jr.: Veteran pass-rusher in his second stint with Dallas. Will be a rotational pass rusher off the edge.
- Donovan Ezeiruaku: Explosive second-round rookie who has been getting rave reviews in off-season training sessions.
Inside, Osa Odighizuwa returns after re-signing and producing 4.5 sacks and a forced fumble in 2024.
Mazi Smith, entering his third season, is expected to start at nose tackle and must show major strides after a quiet sophomore year.
Linebackers: A New-Look Trio Takes Over
Dallas completely overhauled its linebacker group. The starting three for 2025 are:
- Kenneth Murray Jr.: Athletic former Chargers first-round pick with sideline-to-sideline speed
- Jack Sanborn: Underrated enforcer with instincts and toughness
- Marist Liufau: Second-year player from Notre Dame had a tough rookie season, but shows promise with his awareness and aggressiveness
DeMarvion Overshown, once healthy, will come in and take one of the starting linebacker positions. He was a superstar in the making last season before the season-ending injury.
Returning contributor Damone Clarke will be a key reserve, and rookie Shemar James has been turning heads in OTAs. Both of these players will provide depth and special teams value.
Secondary: Bland, Diggs & a Wave of Cornerbacks
This year’s cornerback room is almost unrecognizable compared to last year’s, and a few new starters could be named once players return from injury.
- DaRon Bland: Still the star of the group even after a down year in 2024. If he can get half the production from 2023, 9 interceptions, he will be fine.
- Trevon Diggs: Will be returning from a season-ending injury and should resume CB-1 duties.
- Shavon Revel Jr.: Aggressive rookie with size and press-man skills; his return from injury is also unknown.
- Caelen Carson: After an up-and-down 2024, Carson looks to up his game in 2025 after under-the-radar shoulder surgery in the offseason.
- Kaiir Elam, Andrew Booth Jr., Josh Butler: Competing for rotational and boundary roles, but the change of scenery may be working for Elam, who was traded for during the offseason.
- C.J. Goodwin: Special-teams staple and locker-room leader.
The nickelback position is a true training camp battle. Candidates include:
- Israel Mukuamu: Long, rangy, versatile defender who has locked up George Pickens in practice.
- Alijah Clark: Physical rookie who played safety and nickel in college. Thrives against the run and in zone.
At safety, Malik Hooker returns as the deep-field leader.
Donovan Wilson’s future is uncertain due to cap space—if cut, Dallas would save over $4 million.
Juanyah Thomas and Mukuamu could be the top candidates to step in at strong safety if needed.
Projected 2025 Starting Defense
- EDGE: Micah Parsons
- DE: Sam Williams
- DT: Mazi Smith
- DT: Osa Odighizuwa
- DE: Marshawn Kneeland/ Dante Fowler Jr.
- LB: Kenneth Murray Jr.
- LB: Jack Sanborn
- LB: Marist Liufau
- CB: Trevon Diggs
- CB: DaRon Bland
- Nickel: Mukuamu
- S: Malik Hooker
- S: Donovan Wilson
2025 Defensive Stat Projections
With an improved structure, Eberflus should elevate Dallas to middle-of-the-pack or better in most key metrics:
Individual Projections: Key Contributors
- Micah Parsons: 15 sacks, 3 forced fumbles, 30 QB hits
- Daron Bland: 5 INTs, 1 defensive TD
- Sam Williams: 7 sacks
- Osa Odighizuwa: 5 sacks, 10 TFLs
- Mazi Smith: 2.5 sacks, improved anchor in run game
- Kenneth Murray Jr.: 85 tackles, 2 sacks, 6 TFL
- Jack Sanborn: 90 tackles, 2FF
- Marist Liufau: 75 tackles, 1 INT
Final Take: Room to Grow, but Floor Raised
The 2025 Dallas Cowboys defense is still a work in progress, but it’s no longer broken.
With Eberflus installing a system built on speed, simplicity, and accountability, Dallas is betting on young talent to complement veterans like Parsons and Hooker.
This isn’t a top-five unit yet. But if they climb from bottom-five to top-12, particularly in red zone and scoring defense, it might be enough to push the Cowboys back into serious NFC contention.
I agree!! I like having Mukuamu in the slot and Bland on the outside and if Diggs isn’t ready for week one, I think Elam will be the other starter!! And I think Elam will be a lot better than most people think!! He didn’t show that much in Buffalo, but part of that is because they gave up on him too soon!! But now he’s with us and this coaching staff and front office are showing him that they believe in him and giving him the opportunity to prove himself, and that’s gonna be what makes Elam be the player he was drafted to be!! Players won’t care much about showing what they can do if they feel like they’re own coaches don’t care about them, so I think that’s why Elam wasn’t his best in Buffalo!! And another thing is, he’s now in a system that suits him more!! He’s almost a perfect player for Matt Eberflus’ system, so I think he’ll be a completely different player for us!! And with Diggs going through all the injuries he’s been through the last few years, he can’t be relied on anymore!! So if I’m right and Elam does break out this year, I think we’ll be better off keeping him and trading Diggs!! Not only is Diggs not reliable, but he’s not been the same player he was before his first knee injury!! He has went down hill a lot since then!! So I think we’ll be fine with Bland, Mukuamu and Elam as our starters!!
And as far as our total defense goes, I think our run defense will be better than top 18!! I’m not gonna say we’re gonna be the best or anything like that, but this staff is good, I think our defensive coaching staff will make it a point to make that part of the defense the main thing they fix!! So I think we’ll be closer to top 10 than top 18!! And I really think Mazi Smith will have his breakout year this year!! And I really think that rookie Jay Toia is gonna be a gem we found late in the draft and he’ll be a big part of stopping the run!! And another thing we’ll be better at is turnovers, you have us top 10, watch isn’t bad, but it’s with only 25 turnovers, I think we’ll have more than 25!! Eberflus said that was gonna be a one of the main things they focus on this year, so I wouldn’t be surprised if we were top 5 in that category!! And I think our pass defense will be better than top 10!! Or at least they won’t give up 207 yards a game!! It probably won’t be much better than that, but I think they can do better!! But that’s probably because I have more faith in our corners than most people do!!
But overall, I think we’ll be a top 10 unit this year!! I think we have a better defense than most people think, and I’m really excited about the whole defensive coaching staff!! Every member of the defensive staff are really good at their jobs, and I think they’ll get the most out of every player they put on the field!! So between the players we have and the coaching staff, that’s what gives me the feeling that we’ll be at least a top 10 unit!! This is probably one of the best coaching staffs we’ve had in a long time!! And that includes the offensive staff too!! The only thing I’m worried about is the head coach, but I’m not gonna say he’s not any good yet!! There’s been plenty of head coaches that turned out to be a lot better than they were coordinators, so maybe Brian will be one of those coaches!! But either way, he put together one of the best coaching staffs we’ve had in a very long time!! I know I rambled on, I just had to throw it in there!! But anyways, I feel comfortable saying that our defense can be top 10 with the coaches and players we have!! But I guess we’ll just have to wait and see!!
Very Well Said!!
I appreciate you and the comment.
Thanks for reading the article. I like your take, I also think the run defense will be better and Mazi Smith will have a big year.
a Dallas Cowboys fan, since the 70’s defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus won’t be able to change much because the Cowboys defense lack talent because in the past two seasons a lot of the players left through free agency