Here is a look at the state of the Cowboys cornerbacks group.
Because of free agent departures and injuries, the Dallas Cowboys are in a precarious spot with their cornerbacks. With Jourdan Lewis signing with the Jacksonville Jaguars, it leaves a big hole for the Cowboys to address at slot cornerback. Also, the injuries to two of their top cornerbacks have left them in an uneven position while also transitioning to a new defensive coordinator. Yet, the young blood in the position brings a lot of excitement and promise for the future. Here is where the Cowboys are at cornerback.
DaRon Bland
For DaRon Bland, the question is which version of him are we getting in 2025? From playing sparingly in his rookie season, Bland produced flashes of what was to come with some big-time interceptions that were a precursor to his phenomenal 2023 season. That year Bland was a ballhawk and set the record for most interceptions returned for touchdowns while gaining All-Pro honors.
However, 2024 was a disappointment as he spent most of the season on injured reserve with a foot injury. Plus, when he did play, it wasn’t to the standard we’ve come to expect. Bland now enters the final year of his rookie contract and should he recapture his 2023 form, he will break the bank on his new contract. For the Cowboys, that may be out of the budget as there may not be enough money to go around to retain players like Tyler Smith and Micah Parsons, let alone Bland.
Trevon Diggs
As of now, Trevon Diggs is still not participating in OTA’s due to rehabbing from a knee injury that shortened his 2024 season. It’s a disappointing trend for Diggs as he also had a season-ending knee injury in 2023. Diggs has been rehabbing away from the team. However, if he does not participate in 84.375% of the offseason program, he could forfeit $500,000 in salary should the Cowboys enforce that clause in his contract.
Currently, Diggs carries a $12.5M cap hit this season that will increase over the next two years, topping out at $23.4M. Diggs struggled when he did play last season and you could say injuries were a largely contributing factor. Should Diggs have a similar year battling injuries and less-than-stellar play, what’s the move for the Cowboys? If the Cowboys view Diggs as a depreciating asset, they could cut ties. Diggs would only carry a dead cap hit of $5.8M going into next season.
Shavon Revel
Getting Shavon Revel with the 76th overall pick is terrific value for the Cowboys. Revel played three games in his senior season before tearing his ACL. Had it not been for that injury, Revel is arguably a first-round pick.
He is a very tall corner at 6’3” with excellent speed to match and has the ideal traits of a boundary cornerback. He uses his length fully to his advantage and is able to stonewall receivers trying to get off the line of scrimmage. Because of his size and speed, he has terrific range to close ground if beat vertically. The intrigue will be how soon Revel can get on the field for meaningful snaps. Forward-looking, could Revel be the bridge to life without Bland next season?
Kaiir Elam
During the offseason, the Cowboys executed a trade with the Buffalo Bills that saw them give their 2025 fifth-round pick and 2026 seventh-round pick to the Buffalo for Elam and a 2025 sixth-round pick. While Elam is a former first-round pick of the Bills, his career hasn’t launched in Buffalo as the Bills and Elam would have hoped. Elam wasn’t able to overtake the veterans on Bills depth chart with Buffalo also having a keen eye on cornerbacks, evidenced by them drafting Maxwell Hairston in the first round. These factors made Elam expendable.
Elam is best playing on the outside where there’s going to be a log jam for snaps. By extension of the trade, there’s some investment by the team to hope it works out for Elam. Yet, he needs to show out in camp and in the preseason.
Caelen Carson
Like Revel, Caelen Carson came at an excellent value for where he was taken. Some analysts had Carson going as high as the third round and Dallas was able to get him with the 17th pick in the fifth round. That said, because of injuries, Carson might have been asked to bite off more than he could chew. Because the Cowboys were decimated by injuries at cornerback, Carson was thrust into the starting lineup and it didn’t go as well as anyone would have hoped. Per PFF, Carson finished 210th out of 212 eligible cornerbacks in pass coverage.
Starting in the NFL as a rookie is no easy task and Carson was put in an unenviable spot before he was ready. Unfortunately, he also suffered an injury that ended his rookie season prematurely. So far this offseason, Carson is back on the field and looks ready to bounce back in year two.
Josh Butler
Josh Butler has put together some very good training camps and preseasons over the last two years. Although he hasn’t made the team coming out of training camp, he has managed to stick around on the practice squad. Last year, he was promoted to the active roster and appeared in five games before suffering a knee injury that forced him out of the remainder of the season. He’s still in recovery but there is optimism that he could be ready by September. Anyone who follows Butler and his story closely knows he’s got great character, is a competitor with a great attitude about where he stands on the roster, and will work hard to get back on the field.
Israel Mukuamu
Earlier this season, Israel Mukuamu returned to the Cowboys on a one-year contract. It’s anyone’s guess why Mukuamu hasn’t seen the field as much as he could have. Like Revel, Mukuamu is a tall corner with long arms ideal for press man coverage. Yet, Mukuamu moves very well with fluidity for his size.
This summer he has been getting looks in the slot and when tasked with that role he’s done pretty well. When Dallas beat the Tampa Buccaneers in the playoffs in 2023, Mukuamu did well in that capacity. With so much inexperience in the position, playing more Mukamu needs to be explored. You can already be assured he’ll be an integral member of the special teams unit.
