In 2025, the presumptive starting five Cowboys offensive linemen (Tyler Guyton – Tyler Smith – Cooper Beebe – Tyler Booker – Terence Steele) only played together on a grand total of 275 snaps out of a possible 1,186, the lowest level since at least 2021. Injuries to their starters forced the Cowboys into an uncommonly high amount of personnel changes along the offensive line, leaving them with one of the least stable lines in the NFL and severely testing their roster depth.
The Cowboys started the
season with 11 offensive linemen on their roster. By the end of the season, 9 of those players had started at least one game and 10 had seen playing time. It’s in such situations that roster depth comes into sharp focus.
Strong rosters have “two-deep” depth (capable starters and reliable backups) at premium positions, while weaker units suffer steep drop-offs after the #1 player. Over the course of a season, that roster depth is inevitably tested, and perhaps tested more than many fans realize.
Here’s a little quiz, adapted from a 19-year old article at NFL.com, that helps understand just how much roster depth is tested over the course of a season.
1. How many quarterbacks have had at least 30 pass attempts in NFL games last year?
- A. 52
- B. 57
- C. 62
- D. 67
2. How many running backs had at least 10 carries last season?
- A. 93
- B. 103
- C. 113
- D. 123
3. How many tight ends caught at least one pass in 2025?
- A. 82
- B. 102
- C. 122
- D. 142
4. How many wide receivers saw at least 10 targets over the course of the last season?
- A. 127
- B. 147
- C. 167
- D. 187
Quiz answers
This quiz was of course designed to make a point about roster depth, but if you answered “C” on every question, you got all four questions right. The numbers are significant because they give you an idea of how much roster depth is tested over the course of a season for all 32 teams.
- 62 quarterbacks across 32 teams means your No. 2 QB will almost certainly have to play at least one game this year. Can that guy win that game for you?
- 113 running backs or fullbacks carried the ball at least ten times. That’s 3.5 RBs per NFL team, which means some teams will likely be down to their fourth-string RB on occasion – if they even have a fourth guy on their roster – and that fourth guy better be up to the task.
- 122 tight ends is close to every team throwing to a fourth-string tight end.
- 177 wide receivers means, on average, teams went all the way down to their fifth wide receiver.
There is no way to answer the question of roster depth quantitatively. There simply are no numbers that will tell you if one roster has better depth than another – you’ll only find out once your roster depth is put to the test.
However, Pat Kirwan of CBS Sports penned an article over a decade ago in which he proposed 12 questions to help evaluate roster depth. I added one more question about backup QBs, and then tried to answer those questions for the 2026 Dallas Cowboys.
Given that we’ve just hit the depths of the offseason, not all of Kirwan’s questions can be answered with certainty. At the same time, questions where the answers may not be obvious today could be very obvious after training camp, and vice versa, so there’s a high degree of ambiguity inherent in answering these questions this far ahead of actual football being played.
But I tried to answer the 13 questions anyway. I chose to answer each question with “Yes,” “No,” or “Probably,” and provided a brief rationale for each answer below. If we assign one point for a “Yes,” half a point for a “Probably,” and zero points for a “No,” we should get a rough idea of how close to the maximum 13 points the Cowboys are.
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Points |
| 1. Does your team have a capable backup QB that can go at least 2-2 in a four-game stretch? | No | 0 |
| Sam Howell is 5-13 in his NFL starts, Joe Milton hasn’t started an NFL game, though he did “win” the Patriots season finale as a sub in 2024. Neither currently looks like they could pull a Cooper Rush, who went 9-5 in his time in Dallas subbing for an injured Dak Prescott. And word out of minicamp isn’t great either. The DMN writes: “It was just minicamp, but it wasn’t an exactly impressive showing from the two quarterbacks behind Prescott. Joe Milton and Sam Howell struggled Tuesday against a Cowboys’ defense that looked a lot more active.” Until training camp shows otherwise, the answer here is a clear “No”. What would be the point of inflating the answers here? | ||
| 2. Does your team have a real swing offensive tackle, a guy that can play left or right tackle and has experience? | Yes, but No. | 0 |
| The Cowboys had Nathan Thomas starting four games at left tackle last year, and even had Tyler Smith starting twice at left tackle, an option they haven’t completely ruled out for 2026 yet. Add rookie Drew Shelton and they do have options at the backup spot. But the questions in Dallas right now are more about the quality of the starters and less the quality of the backups. So until we have more confidence in the starters, the backups don’t matter. | ||
| 3. Does your team have a solid inside offensive lineman that can play guard or center? | Yes | 1 |
| TJ Bass is that guy for the Cowboys. Matt Hennessy was supposed to provide some extra depth, but he’s on season-ending IR. We’ll see in training camp whether Nick Leverett or Trevor Keegan are viable alternatives. | ||
| 4. Is there a quality second running back that can deliver a 100-yard rushing day if he had to start? | Probably | 0.5 |
| Malik Davis did post a 103-yard game in Week 17 in Washington, so the answer here is technically a “Yes”, but until we better understand how the depth chart will ultimately shake out, I’m reserving judgement. | ||
| 5. Is there a good second tight end on the roster? | No | 0 |
| Luke Schoonmaker is that second tight end, but would we really describe him as “good”? Going with a “No” here. | ||
| 6. Can the third wide receiver step up and start in the two-WR packages if a starter went down? | Yes | 1 |
| The DMN calls Ryan Flournoy the “offensive MVP” of OTAs and minicamp, and he’s shown he can step up if needed. He had two 100-yard receiving games last year so a clear “Yes” here. | ||
| 7. Does your team have a designated pass-rush specialist who could play the early downs if need be? | Yes | 1 |
| Not every team has a specialist pass rusher who is largely limited to passing downs. In any case, the Cowboys have enough edge rushers to make this a moot point. | ||
| 8. Is there a third defensive tackle that not only plays in a rotation but could play the whole game if need be? | Yes | 1 |
| The Cowboys brought in two star DTs in Quinnen Williams and Kenny Clark, and then added veterans Jonthan Bullard and Otito Ogbonnia along with rookie LT Overton. One of them will be that third guy. | ||
| 9. Is there a quality nickel corner on the roster, since most teams are at least 60 percent sub defenses? | Yes | 1 |
| Take your pick: Daron Bland has been mentioned as an option for the nickel spot if the Cowboys find alternatives at outside corner, and Caleb Downs will likely take a ton of snaps at nickel as well. | ||
| 10. Is there a fourth corner for dime packages? | Probably | 0.5 |
| If the Cowboys play dime, there’s a good chance they’ll be a in a “heavy dime” where a third safety takes the place of the fourth CB. As such, the team has a lot of options for that sixth spot in the dime package. But today we can’t say with any certainty that whoever they select will be a quality backup if called upon. | ||
| 11. Is there a third safety for big nickel defenses? | Yes | 1 |
| So much yes. The Cowboys have veteran Malik Hooker, free agent acquisition Jalen Thompson, and rookie Caleb Downs – and none of these guys are backups. | ||
| 12. Is there a return specialist that can either handle both punt and kick returns or contribute as a real position player? | Yes | 1 |
| KaVontae Turpin can do anything. | ||
| 13. Does your team have a special-teams linebacker that leads the specials and can play inside linebacker in a pinch? | Yes | 1 |
| Last year, Marist Liufau had the second-most special teams snaps with 361. He’s penciled in at OLB right now, but could play ILB if needed. Shemar James only had 181 special teams snaps, but he’s a candidate for this role as well. | ||
I gave the Cowboys nine points for the 13 questions above. As you go through the list, how many points would you award, and where do you agree/disagree?
