If anyone has ever played the game of Jenga before, they know that it’s a game about skill, patience, and making sure you don’t pull the wrong piece because the whole tower could come crashing down. Some blocks are more important than others in keeping things together.
When it comes to the 2026 Cowboys, there are a few people who could be key to the team’s success and potential problems on the field. Will wins and losses come down to how many punts Bryan Anger can land in the opponent’s 20-yard line?
Probably not. What about the new addition of Rashan Gary and making sure the Cowboys’ defense can get to the quarterback more than they did last year? There’s some pressure there.
Here are the five “Jenga pieces” for the Cowboys this season, where if all goes well, things should be great. But if there are a few slip-ups, it could lead to another losing season.
5. Brian Schottenheimer (play-caller)
Brian Schottenheimer, the head coach, has exceeded the initial expectations that came with his hire. Many were skeptical of the hire as head coach and assumed the Cowboys would be a lot worse on offense in 2025. To his credit, he helped orchestrate a top-ten unit with Dak Prescott having a career season. He even managed to get the best out of George Pickens when everyone else thought it wouldn’t work. But that defense.
All of the focus has been on fixing the defense this offseason, and rightfully so. However, it shouldn’t be a foregone conclusion that the offense will repeat its success. The best offensive play-callers, like Sean McVay, Kyle Shanahan, and Ben Johnson, evolve their game plans each season to keep defenses guessing.
Hopefully, an elevation of certain players on offense will allow Schottenheimer to be more flexible. Jaydon Blue has had a great start to his second season, getting praise from those who cover the team. The backup running back spot will be important to keep Javonte Williams fresh. Ryan Flournoy is poised for a bigger role with the departure of Jalen Tolbert and has looked good in minicamp. He’s also getting more reps in the slot, which will allow all three of the top receivers to be moved around.
If the offense stumbles in any way, that puts more pressure on the defense to be at their best. With a first-time coordinator teaching a new system, that could be a recipe for disaster. Having a healthy Prescott commanding the offense and George Pickens with CeeDee Lamb should help cover any issues, but making sure the offense evolves in some way will be important.
4. Who can rush the passer?
Where would the Cowboys’ pass rushers rank among other teams’ units in the NFL? Their interior players look really good with Quinnen Williams and Kenny Clark. Glass half full: The Los Angeles Rams won the Super Bowl in 2021 with Aaron Donald as their leader in sacks with 12.5. Leonard Floyd and an aging Von Miller were second and third on the list with 9.5 and 5.0 sacks, respectively. Maybe Dallas is hoping to produce more pressure from an elite player in Williams from the middle and let their outside pass rushers be contributors.
Glass half empty: The Cowboys don’t have anyone on the outside who would scare opposing tackles. Similarly to replacing someone like Tyron Smith, finding the next Micah Parsons is not easy either. Dallas created a massive hole at pass rusher when they traded Parsons away to the Green Bay Packers. They drafted Donovan Ezeiruaku last year, and then added Rashan Gary and Malachi Lawrence this offseason.
Ezeiruaku had a great rookie season as a run defender, but couldn’t produce the same sack numbers as he did at Boston College. Gary was a player the Packers were ready to move on from despite having 7.5 sacks each of the last two years, and Lawrence was a player Parker stood on the table for in the first round. James Houston, Sam Williams, Marist Liufau, and Tyrus Wheat are in the mix to fill in the gaps as rotational players.
How many sacks could a Parker-led defense expect from its outside players? If you look at the 2024 and 2025 Philadelphia Eagles, the leading sackers in both years were Josh Sweat (8.0) and Jalyx Hunt (6.5). However, in 2024, the Eagles had five defensive ends/linebackers register at least 2.5 sacks each. In 2025, six defensive ends/linebackers had more than two sacks.
Could we see Gary, Ezeiruaku, or Lawrence have a double-digit sack season? That would be amazing, but it looks like history shows it should come from multiple contributors and not just one player. Parker’s defense might lean more on the secondary, similar to the Legion of Boom, allowing non-household names like Cliff Avril and Michael Bennett to produce as pass rushers or have Williams and Clark get six sacks apiece. Either way, Dallas needs to find creative ways to apply pressure on opposing quarterbacks. That’s why having someone like pass rush specialist Brandon Jordan in the building could be their secret weapon.
3. Starting Linebackers
The Cowboys are putting their faith in DeMarvion Overshown to help lead the defense from the middle linebacker position. Just like Tyler Guyton, Overshown’s flashes have looked amazing, but his health has been a concern since entering the NFL.
Overshown enters training camp healthy for the first time since his rookie season, when he was rehabbing a knee injury. He’s also entering a pivotal year of his career with his rookie deal set to expire at the end of the 2026 season. Overshown signed with David Mulugheta with the hope that he could cash in at the end of a great year.
In order to do that, he’ll not only have to stay on the field but also show he can command Christian Parker’s defense at a high level. One area that plagued the Dallas defense last year was the lack of communication at the second level. If Overshown is chosen to wear the green dot, there’s a lot of responsibility falling on his shoulders.
Outside of Overshown, the Dallas linebacking corps leaves a lot to be desired. The Cowboys added a few linebackers during draft weekend. They drafted Jaishawn Barham in the third round and traded for Dee Winters for a fifth-round pick. Winters had over 100 tackles last year and started 17 games for the San Francisco 49ers last year, but can that same production come over to Dallas? Can Barham get on the field as a rookie and play with the same tenacity as he showed at Michigan? Shemar James was cherry-picked by Matt Eberflus to develop. Does Parker still see the same vision?
Adding another veteran to the mix would ease concerns about a position that contributed to many mistakes last year. People remember what things looked like when Kenneth Murray was on the field. If Parker can harness some Vic Fangio magic, who turned Zack Baun into an All-Pro linebacker, maybe there’s hope for what he can do for Overshown, Winters, James, and Barham.
2. Finding the right left tackle
Replacing someone like Tyron Smith at left tackle is not easy. The Cowboys drafted Tyler Guyton to be that guy, and to this point, there have been hot and cold moments. In his rookie season, Guyton allowed six sacks and 26 total pressures per Pro Football Focus. He also had 18 penalties, which were the third most among all tackles in 2024.
The moments were better for Guyton in his sophomore season, but he couldn’t stay healthy long enough to build on his progress. First, he missed most of training camp with a knee injury that was originally believed to be season-ending. He got healthy enough to play Week 1 against the Philadelphia Eagles, but was in and out of the lineup throughout the season and ended the year on injured reserve with an ankle injury.
Brian Schottenheimer and Klayton Adams have talked about how Guyton has all the talent to be a great NFL tackle, but has to stay on the field. The uncertainty surrounding his availability has created a competition at left tackle that should heat up in training camp. Nate Thomas and rookie Drew Shelton could get the chance to win the job, but Guyton should get every opportunity to keep progressing.
If the offense is supposed to take another step forward towards championship aspirations, figuring out who should be the best fit at left tackle will be paramount to protecting Prescott’s blindside. Guyton has had a few mentors this offseason, working with Tyron Smith and Terron Armstead. Guyton was recently seen working out at Lane Johnson’s training facility, Rooks Performance (also an Oklahoma alum).
Guyton coming into his own this season would be a huge boost for the offense, but he remains one of the biggest question marks heading into training camp.
1. Christian Parker
The key Jenga piece to everything going right or wrong this season might come down to how Christian Parker does as defensive coordinator. This will be the first time Parker is calling plays. When the lights come on, how will Parker perform? Will he be better suited in the booth versus on the field with players? Since day one, he has sounded prepared for the moment and all that comes with coaching the Cowboys, but the unknown is what makes him the ultimate Jenga piece.
His even-keeled, quiet demeanor might be a superpower if things don’t click on defense in the first few weeks of the season. Aside from P.J. Locke and Rashan Gary, who are familiar with Parker, the Cowboys’ defensive coordinator is trying to work with what’s already in place along with some unfamiliar additions. That could go a few different ways if the players don’t fit the scheme. It could take another offseason before Parker has all the pieces in place to fully execute his vision.
Parker’s bread and butter is developing players in the secondary. After having a historically bad pass defense last year, he’s expected to come in and re-ignite the All-Pro talent in DaRon Bland and breathe life back into Shavon Revel’s first-round pick caliber of play shown in college.
It doesn’t hurt that the team found a way to draft Caleb Downs, who was regarded by some analysts as the best player in the draft. Having veterans like Malik Hooker and Cobie Durant should ease the learning curve for the rookie and others who might not be up to speed on Parker’s defense.
The 34-year-old coordinator aspires to become an NFL head coach someday. Dan Quinn turned a successful run in Dallas into another opportunity with the Washington Commanders. The blueprint is there. If Parker can turn things around for the Cowboys to the point where he’s being talked about as a future head coaching candidate, that would mean the season played out really well for Dallas and would be a good problem to have.
