Here is a look at the state of the Cowboys defensive line group.
This past offseason, the Dallas Cowboys made many changes. Aside from parting with veterans DeMarcus Lawrence and Brandin Cooks, the team also named their offensive coordinator, Brian Schottenheimer, their new head coach. With that change, also comes a new defensive coordinator. Mike Zimmer lasted one season in his return with the Cowboys, replaced by another reunion with a former coach. Matt Eberflus, who was with the Cowboys from 2011-2018, takes over as their defensive coordinator. In our roster review series, we examine what Eberflus has to work with, starting with the defensive tackles.
Mazi Smith
Much more has been expected of Mazi Smith since he was team’s top draft pick in 2023. Smith has been disappointing thus far. When he was selected, was seen as the solution to the team’s struggles with stopping the run. Unfortunately, that hasn’t been case and Dallas’ struggles in stopping opposing teams from running the ball have persisted.
That’s not all on Smith. However, his individual production has left a lot to be desired. Over his first two seasons, Smith has totaled 54 tackles and two sacks. In his third year, Smith has to produce more than he has and start to anchor the middle of the defensive as Dallas had hoped when he was drafted.
Osa Odighizuwa
After completing a contract at the last minute, the Cowboys made sure that Osa Odighizuwa would be around for the foreseeable future. The team and Odighizuwa agreed to a 4-year, $80M contract right before the start of free agency. It’s a big payday for Odighizuwa and for whom much is given, much is expected. He has 13.5 sacks over his four-year career and Dallas hopes the best is yet to come.
Odighizuwa has great quickness to get past interior offensive linemen and closes in quickly on quarterbacks. Per PFF, Odighizuwa was 11th overall among defensive tackles in pass rush grade. That said, he could also be better as a run defender and some teams can use his quickness against to create running lanes.
Solomon Thomas
Fans may remember Solomon Thomas as the former top-five pick of the San Francisco 49ers in 20217. Although his career hasn’t matched the expectations that come with being drafted that high, he’s still managed to carve out a long career for himself by being a good rotational player. With Dallas, he would likely settle in as the under-tackle to spell Odighizuwa, and move around the defensive line as he has great versatility.
Thomas is not too dissimilar from Odighizuwa in the way he can beat guards on pass rush downs with his quickness and hand usage. He’s totaled 7.5 sacks over his last 28 games with the New York Jets. That pretty good when you consider he has played 43 and 42 percent of the snaps respectively in 2023 and 2024. Dallas gave Thomas a two-year, $8M contract which should signify his standing to make the team out of training camp.
Jay Toia
Despite many people urging the Cowboys to take a defensive tackle earlier in the draft amidst a solid class for the position, Dallas was patient and landed a pretty good prospect with Jay Toia in the seventh round. Toia is a huge plug in the middle of the defense at 6’2”, 342 lbs.
He’s got a solid base to occupy double team blocks and also offers some pass rush upside for his size to collapse the middle of the pocket. The question is: Can Toia earn meaningful snaps as a rookie where the Cowboys need it? They’ll be others vying for that spot, but Toia involvement is going to be one of the more overlooked, yet important storylines of the offseason.
Tommy Akingbesote
Doubling down on the defensive tackle position, the Cowboys also drafted Tommy Akingbesote in the seventh round of the draft. Akingbesote was a high school basketball player that began playing football his junior year, therefore he’s still relatively new to the spot.
He is a bit smaller than his draft-mate Toia, but is also a bit more athletic. Akingbesote will need to improve his playing strength as he develops. The Cowboys will likely try him out at different positions/situations so they can better assess what they have in the former Terrapin.
Denzel Daxon
Denzel Daxon joined the Cowboys last year as an undrafted rookie from Illinois. While his running mate on the Fighting Illini interior, Jer’Zhan Newton, got a lot of the fanfare, Daxon was very good at Illinois in his own right. In 2023, Daxon had 27 tackles while playing the nose tackle next to Newton. Daxon is big and strong.
At 6’2”, 320 lbs., he’s got enough of a base to anchor himself in the running game and occupy two blockers. He also can drive offensive linemen backwards to collapse the pocket but isn’t much of pass rusher. Last season, he made a solid impression in the preseason against the Las Vegas Raiders where he had five tackles and the Raiders running game was held under four yards per attempt.
Last year, because Daxon is a native of the Bahamas, the Cowboys were given a roster exemption and therefore Daxon didn’t count against the roster, much like when the Cowboys had Isaac Alarcon on the team.
