Remember when every other day featured some glowing review of rookie safety Caleb Downs and his immediate impact? That receded a bit over the past few weeks as he mostly watched preseason games from the sidelines, but that hasn't adjusted immense expectations, and now they can ramp up again on the eve of the regular season.
Downs isn't the only one raising expectations, as Quinnen Williams said some things that will get Cowboys fans fired up. Presumably, Hunter Luepke is fired up to own a piece of Von Miller's chicken farm, and former Cowboys Shiyazh Pete is still firing up people he speaks to.
With the regular season speeding closer and closer, here is where Dallas' feet
are.
Will Caleb Downs be everywhere?
Dallas Cowboys top draft pick Caleb Downs was the talk of the offseason and of the early part of training camp, as the safety, by all accounts, was sensational. He barely played in the preseason games, which is about the best sign a rookie can get that he's too valuable to the present to risk an injury.
That dropped Downs out of the headlines, but not down in Dallas' plans and in a "bold predictions" on all 32 teams take, ESPN's Dan Graziano offered a reminder of what has Cowboys fans so excited.
For the Cowboys, Graziano's bold prediction is, "Don't be surprised if ... rookie safety Caleb Downs never leaves the field."
Graziano writes: "OK, maybe that's a slight exaggeration, but the Cowboys believe they can use Downs in a ton of different ways. In their ideal world, he and veteran safety Jalen Thompson are interchangeable in the safety and nickel roles. Downs got a lot of work at nickel during camp, and Dallas has faith in his ability to play deep safety. The Cowboys believe in his ability to cover top receivers if that's what they need from him, and they think he will be instantly capable of communicating at a high level and helping keep things organized on the defense.
"The Cowboys drafted Downs hoping they could plug and play him on defense in Year 1, and to their absolute delight, he has shown himself to be just that in every situation they've thrown at him so far. They're counting on him to handle a key role in the revitalization of their defense under new coordinator Christian Parker, and I expect him to play a ton."
Quinnen Williams couldn't be more excited
Much of the reason there is so much confidence that the Cowboys' worst-in-the-league defense is about to get a whole lot better is Quinnen Williams. Last season's big mid-season addition played well, and the defense did marginally improve after his arrival via trade from the New York Jets last season, but Williams thinks that's just the beginning.
Part of the reason he thinks that is because he gets to go against the Cowboys' offense every practice and he see's how much better that's making the entire defense.
"The last time I kind of felt this was when I was at Bama, when it came down to you going against first-rounders across from you," Williams, an Alabama alum, told DallasCowboys.com. "But, here in the NFL, it's All-Pros everywhere, getting a chance to go against one of the best offenses in the league and one of the best quarterbacks in the league.
"And we've got one of the best offensive lines in the league, so using them as a helping tool to get better every single day; and the urgency level from a defensive standpoint to get better every single day. It's been well-needed and fun. It's definitely a battle."
Williams also sees how much the defense has improved from last year under new coordinator Christian Parker.
"The growth, it's like night and day," Williams told DallasCowboys.com. "Starting in OTAs, and starting the first week of training camp, getting a chance to go against one of the best offenses in battle every single day has helped us tremendously. The mindset coming from the coaches, top down to the players and to the leadership, has been drastically changed. It's just fun, man.
"I just can't wait to see the process and the results from all the hard work. But, we're not done yet."
Dallas Cowboys setting 2026 jersey numbers
As Dallas starts assigning numbers that, once worn in Game 1, are immutable for the rest of the year, the big news was that Von Miller did indeed purchase No. 40 from Hunter Luepke for equity in Miller's chicken farm. Luepke is now moving to No. 30.
Camden Brown, the surprise of training camp, is taking No. 80, which was last worn in Dallas by Alvin Harper, while safety Alijah Clark is moving to No. 11 from No. 38.
Here is a list of jersey numbers for rookies and other players making changes, per DallasCowboys.com:
11 - Alijah Clark, S
18 - Jonathan Mingo, WR
23 - Ameer Speed, CB
25 - Israel Abanikanda, RB
30 - Hunter Luepke, FB
31 - Emari Demercado, RB
40 - Von Miller, OLB
47 - Mitch Van Vooren, TE
59 - Tyrus Wheat, OLB
64 - Wanya Morris, OT
77 - Broderick Jones, OT
80 - Camden Brown, WR
81 - Jordan Hudson, WR
90 - Jonathan Bullard, DT
93 - Elijah Garcia, DT
Shiyazh Pete visits NM alma mater
Shiyazh Pete's NFL journey is optimistically on hold, but his story as the first Navajo to sign a contract and play in NFL preseason games as a member of the Dallas Cowboys continues to inspire. To that end, he visited his alma mater, Shiprock High, on Thursday, Sept. 3, and spoke with the students. At one point, he directly addressed the football team.
"The greatest warriors didn’t go to battle because they hated what was in front of them," Pete said, as reported by the Farmington radio station KSJE. "They went to battle because they loved what was behind them. Play the game well. Play for each other. Play for your brothers."
The guard Pete was a final cut of the Dallas Cowboys and is an unrestricted free agent. His locker room speech after Dallas' preseason win at Arizona, which came after a large contingent of Navajos took over a section of State Farm Stadium, went viral.
Dallas Cowboys merch
Dallas's official pro shop, home to a large assortment of merchandise, is here.
Bret Bloomquist can be reached, bbloomquist@elpasotimes.com; @Bretbloomquist on X.
This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: Will NFL rookie Caleb Downs anchor Dallas Cowboys defense?
