The start of the 2024 NFL regular season is still months away. That may make discussing the starters the Dallas Cowboys already have on their roster wildly premature. After all, free agency has barely begun, especially for the normally slow moving Cowboys, and the draft is always their main tool for talent acquisition.
Allow me to explain why this may be far more relevant than you think. Last year, Dallas made two significant acquisitions before the draft, Stephon Gilmore and Brandin Cooks. Both came via trade, but still made bigger contributions than we have seen from outside players in years. And in the draft, they got exactly (checks notes) zero week one starters. Or week eighteen, for that matter.
So if you had examined the roster after the Gilmore and Cooks trades, you could have predicted the starting lineup for 2023. We are really, really hoping the draft goes better this year with so many needs facing the team. Some still hold out hope for a big free agent signing despite how futile that really is based on the history of the team. But even if they do land some very good talent, there is no guarantee that any of them will have claimed a starting job when the games start to matter in September.
That means we can project a starting lineup that is probably at least 90% accurate right now, and possibly even higher. There is already one projection out there, the depth chart at Ourlads.com. I’m going to work off that, but I do differ with them at a couple of positions. Here is the way they would line up the players they already have to work with, and some discussion of why.
Quarterback – Dak Prescott. It’s a given. The management (read: Stephen Jones) is indicating they will probably not work on an extension with him until training camp, but he is the starter no matter how that goes. He is a very good if not elite quarterback. His success and the success of the team is going to depend a lot on how well Mike McCarthy runs his offense this year.
Running back – Malik Davis. Ourlads lists Deuce Vaughn as the starter, but that seems unrealistic. Even if you don’t consider questions of size and durability, Vaughn just did not show that he is ready to be RB1. His average yards per running attempt was a dismal 1.7. Davis did not have any stats last year, but he still seems a better bet. This is one place free agency might change the starter. Rico Dowdle is still unsigned. He averaged 4.1 yards per carry last year as RB2, and his market is highly unlikely to be strong. This looks like a nearly inevitable signing unless Stephen Jones finds a real bargain in the outside free agent pool.
Tight end – Jake Ferguson. Ferguson had 721 yards and five touchdowns last year. He also provides that safety blanket element for Prescott. There’s no controversy here.
Wide receivers – CeeDee Lamb, Brandin Cooks, and Jalen Tolbert. Ourlads still listed Michael Gallup as a starter when this was being written, but the team has just released him. Tolbert was the next most productive receiver behind Gallup last year, and probably would have done much better with more chances. There will probably be the usual camp darlings at WR this year, but that usually turns out to be sizzle, not steak. Lamb and Cooks are just obvious, and look for Lamb to get extended, as much for cap reasons as for his obvious value as a weapon.
Left tackle – Tyler Smith. Smith is so good at guard that it would be a bad idea to move him. But opinions can change based on data. With Tyron Smith on his way to the Jets, there are no good options outside of Tyler. It would probably have to be either Matt Waletzko, Asim Richards or Earl Bostick, and no one would feel the cockles of their hearts warming at that thought. Tyler is going to have to kick out to where the team always planned for him to end up unless they get really lucky in the draft.
Left guard – T.J. Bass. Bass has gained a good measure of trust from the coaching staff. He certainly is a less unsettling option than what they face at LT. It is driven by necessity, but it may not be a bad way to go.
Center – Brock Hoffman. Tyler Biadasz has already signed with the Washington Commanders, where Dan Quinn is building a rather solid roster that should make them a much more formidable division rival. The development of Hoffman seems to have been a factor in the Cowboys not trying to retain their starting center. The innate stinginess of the team also played an unfortunate role, but as we should know by now, it is what it is.
Right guard – Zack Martin. No team in the NFL would complain about this on their roster.
Right tackle – Terence Steele. Don’t be surprised if Dallas drafts an offensive tackle high this year with an eye to upgrading from Steele rather than finding a new LT. He has been more serviceable than great. But for now, he is the starter.
Defensive ends – Micah Parson and DeMarcus Lawrence. In my opinion, they are a top five pass-rushing duo in the league, and bring added value as run defenders.
Nose tackle – Mazi Smith. This is as much by default as a statement of hope for Smith’s development in year two after a notably unimpressive rookie season. However, Johnathan Hankins is also still unsigned, and if the management works out a deal to bring him back, he could be the starter at least for the early going. He is coming off injury, however.
Defensive tackles – Osa Odighizuwa and Chauncy Golston. Odighizuwa is the starter on running downs, and Golston will come in on passing downs when they pull the nose tackle. Odighizuwa is one of the best returns on draft investment on the team.
Linebackers – Eric Kendricks and Damone Clark. Mike Zimmer said Kendricks was brought in to help run Zimmer’s defensive scheme. Clark is the best they have to pair with him, especially with the news that the team has released Leighton Vander Esch with a failed physical designation. DeMarvion Overshown could be a challenger for Clark’s starting job, but that is going to depend on his recovery from the injury that cost him his rookie season.
Cornerbacks – Trevon Diggs, DaRon Bland, and Jourdan Lewis. We are putting a good bit of hope in Diggs’ recovery from his own injury, but when healthy he is excellent. Bland had a record-breaking year in 2023, and the re-signing of Lewis to man the slot was a wise move. This could be impacted if the team manages to bring back Stephon Gilmore, but that is still very much to be determined.
Safeties – Donovan Wilson and Malik Hooker. A solid pair, with Wilson the enforcer in the secondary. One thing to watch in the room is whether Markquese Bell could get into the mix. He was used as a linebacker last season, but that was Dan Quinn having to find a way to work without the management giving him better options. Zimmer has already gotten more help there with Kendricks than Quinn ever did, and he may want to put Bell back in the safeties.
Specialists – Bryan Anger, Brandon Aubrey, and Trent Sieg. If you have any complaints, I mean, seriously?
This is how things would stack up right now, and there are good reasons to think it is going to be mostly accurate when September rolls around. This is what the team will have to work with in a division where all three of their rivals are being much more aggressive in building their own rosters.