The Cowboys defense could reach elite status if these 3 players make the leap

Earlier this week, we spoke about three players on the Cowboys that could bring the offense to new heights if they reach their potential.

Today we will be discussing the same topic on the defensive side of the ball.

The Dallas Cowboys have one of the youngest defenses in the NFL after spending 21 draft picks on that side of the ball in the last four draft classes.

Of those 21 picks, 16 of them are still with the team.

There were several players to choose from when it came to deciding which three could most impact the 2023 version of the defense. I narrowed it down.

Oct 23, 2022; Arlington, Texas, USA; Dallas Cowboys defensive end Sam Williams (54) runs with the ball after recovering a fumble in the fourth quarter against the Detroit Lions at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports

Sam Williams

Opposing offenses better be prepared. Samuel Degarrick Williams is here to stay and has the potential to be one of the best defensive players in the entire league once he puts it all together.

Williams was drafted 56th overall by the Cowboys in the 2022 NFL Draft.

Dallas is notorious for taking chances on high upside players with character or injury concerns in the 2nd round.

Coming out of Ole Miss, some teams took Williams off of their draft board due to sexual battery allegations that he was accused of in college.

He has since been cleared of those charges. Here come the Cowboys in the 2nd round, happy with the findings of their own investigation, to add another weapon to Dan Quinn’s stable.

Once Williams started showing flashes of great play during his rookie season, social media started a rumor that Jerry Jones was using his money to clone Micah Parsons.

Even Sam Williams himself got in on the fun.

https://twitter.com/DegarrickSamuel/status/1535748395041755137

The physical resemblance is uncanny, but the Cowboys and their fans are more excited about how similarly they play the game of football.

Williams did not show the consistency and production that Parsons had in his rookie season, but he did show similar flashes in spurts.

Big Sam finished the 2022 season with 22 tackles, 10 tackles for loss, a forced fumble, and three fumble recoveries on rushing downs.

According to PFF in 166 pass rush snaps, Williams accumulated 4.0 sacks, 9 QB hits, 11 hurries, and 22 total pressures. Add them up, and he affected the quarterback 27.7% of the time.

Considering he only logged 27% of the defensive snaps in 15 games played, he was very effective in just a small sample size.

With a full offseason in Quinn’s defense, the sky is the limit for Williams.

The main challenge is going to be wrestling away snaps from veterans Dorance Armstrong and Dante Fowler.

More playing time for Sam Williams can equal a more electric defense for the Cowboys. Both in run defense, and in the pass rush.

Cowboys’ LB Damone Clark

Damone Clark

One of the biggest surprises for the Cowboys in 2022 was the recovery of rookie 5th-round pick Damone Clark.

The Cowboys’ medical team discovered a spinal issue during the combine while testing Clark that would require surgery to repair.

Clark’s draft stock fell from a 1st-2nd round prospect to as far down as undrafted on many NFL team’s boards. Dallas scooped him up in the 5th round, with plans to redshirt the young linebacker until the 2023 season.

To everyone’s surprise, Clark started practicing a few weeks after the season started. By Week 8, he saw his first NFL action and didn’t look back.

The Young Bull ended up appearing in 10 games, even being given credit for starting five of them alongside fellow linebacker Leighton Vander-Esch.

He finished the season playing 59% of the defensive snaps, more than the fully healthy Sam Williams despite playing in five fewer games.

Clark recorded 47 total tackles, one tackle for loss, and three forced fumbles in his limited playing time.

His development jumped off of the screen.

He started playing faster and became more decisive with his movements at the snap of the football.

Little by little Clark began to look like a stud that was a force on those tough LSU defenses in college. His sophomore campaign should be a fun one to watch.

Another year with Dan Quinn can elevate the defense to new heights.

Cowboys CB DaRon Bland

DaRon Bland

The Cowboys already deploy All-Pro cornerbacks Trevon Diggs and the newly acquired Stephon Gilmore on the outside of the defensive formation.

Adding a player like DaRon Bland, who led all rookies in interceptions in 2022 seems almost unfair.

Drafted in the 5th round of the 2022 NFL Draft out of Fresno State University, Bland quickly made his way up the depth chart in Dallas.

He cemented himself as the Cowboys’ top slot cover cornerback, logging a team-high 474 snaps.

He even earned the trust and opportunity to play outside of the numbers by season’s end.

Bland is already looking like one of the best late round draft picks of the past few seasons.

He appeared in all 17 regular season games, and was credited with 54 tackles, and fewer TDs allowed (3) than interceptions (5).

The thought of Bland getting even better should make Cowboys Nation giddy with excitement.

The Cowboys already will start two players who are considered shutdown cornerbacks (Diggs and Gilmore) on the outside.

Bland being able to step up his game to become a lockdown cornerback himself inside the hashes could give Dallas the best cornerback trio in recent memory.

If Bland is able to improve even slightly on his incredible 2022 rookie season, opposing quarterbacks will have a tough time deciding who to test in coverage.