The 1 rookie that showed up in Sunday’s loss

He’d been sidelined for four weeks, recovering from a shoulder injury, but when rookie cornerback Caelen Carson returned to the starting lineup, he showed up.

Carson had seven tackles, six solo. Those six solo tackles led the Cowboys in that category.

He was certainly one of the bright spots on defense and the brightest of the rookies for sure.

At the midway point of the NFL season, the Cowboys’ rookie class is a mixed bag, at least so far.

Injuries and inconsistent play have hampered the class quite a lot.

But for now, Carson and Cooper Beebe are the front runners for the Cowboys’ rookie of the year.

Here’s how the rookies fared in Sunday’s loss to Atlanta:

Tyler Guyton

The offensive tackle and first-round pick out of Oklahoma, Tyler Guyton, struggled along with the rest of the offensive line on Sunday.

He also collected his second three-penalty game of his rookie season. Back in the fourth game, Guyton drew three holding penalties against the Giants.

Against the Falcons, and all in the second half, Guyton was flagged for holding, illegal formation, and for a false start.

Guyton saw action in 74 of the 77 offensive snaps. But it may be time for Dallas to move Guyton to right tackle, put Tyler Smith in at left tackle and see if that shores up the line.

Marshawn Kneeland

The second-round pick from Western Michigan, edge rusher Marshawn Kneeland, missed his third-straight game. He remains on track to return from injured reserve sometime in December.

Kneeland had been having a good rookie season before injuring his knee against Pittsburgh on October 6th.

Marist Liufau

The third-round pick from Notre Dame at linebacker, Marist Liufau, had started the last two weeks. But he was back on the bench on Sunday against Atlanta.

Liufau only saw five snaps on defense, and another dozen on special teams.

He recorded one pass defended for his lone stat of the game.

Cooper Beebe

The third-round pick, Beebe, from Kansas State, started at center as he has in all eight games, Beebe saw action in all 77 offensive snaps.

Beebe was not flagged for an infraction for the entire game, the fourth-straight game he has had a clean sheet. But he was beaten by his man at times as he keeps learning the position he never played in college.

Caelen Carson

The fifth-round pick from Wake Forest, cornerback Carson, ended his streak of missed games at four, returning from a shoulder injury suffered in the loss to Baltimore.

The banged-up Cowboys’ secondary eagerly welcomed him back. Carson started the game, as he has in all four games he has played in this year, and played in 54 defensive snaps.

Ryan Flournoy

The sixth-round pick, wide receiver Ryan Flournoy, was targeted twice on Sunday and hauled in one pass for 13 yards.

Even better, this time he retained possession of the football until the end of the play. Two games ago, in the blowout loss to the Lions, Flournoy caught his first NFL pass.

He promptly fumbled the ball away to Detroit.

Flournoy saw action in 17 snaps on Sunday, an indicator of Mike McCarthy not losing confidence in the young receiver despite the earlier miscue.

Nathan Thomas

Offensive Tackle Nathan Thomas, the seventh round pick out of Louisiana, has spent the season on injured reserve.

But at least he is still in the organization. His fellow seventh round pick, Justin Rogers, was cut before the season began and is now on the Bengals’ practice squad.

The Undrafted

With John Stephens out again for the year, tight end Brevyn Spann-Ford, out of Minnesota, is now the third tight end on the roster.

Spann-Ford saw 16 offensive snaps on Sunday, but he was not targeted during the game. He also saw action on five special teams plays.

The other three undrafted rookies are currently on the practice squad.

Safety Emany Johnson, Defensive Tackle Denzel Daxon, and linebacker Brock Mogensen will likely remain there until an injury necessitates a call up.