The Cowboys cornerback play in 2025 was dreadful. The Dallas defense ranked 31st in yards per play at 6.1, but their inability to slow down any opposing quarterbacks was their biggest issue. As we start to see a lot of way too early 53-man roster predictions and depth charts flow in, a consistent name we see as a starter on the outside in a lot of them is second-year cornerback Shavon Revel Jr.
Revel played in just seven games in his rookie season, and it was a bit of a rocky road for the 2025 third-rounder
out of East Carolina. Since the end of the 2025 season, the Cowboys defensive back room has undergone a major makeover. The Cowboys spent a lot of assets improving their secondary this offseason and Revel could be one to take a backseat if some of the Cowboys new additions workout.
Revel was a third-round pick for the Cowboys in last year’s draft so by no means are the Cowboys considering giving up on him, but given that he was drafted for Matt Eberflus’ defense in mind, Christian Parker may have other plans on who he wants to start at outside corner opposite of DaRon Bland.
Revel was highly touted coming out of East Carolina, but his injury history made him fall to day two of the 2025 NFL draft. In his rookie campaign, it was obvious Revel was still not fully back to his pre-injury self and he hopes to have a full offseason to prepare for year two. But unlike last year, there is a lot more competition in the room this season.
Veteran corner Cobie Durant was signed to a one-year deal in free agency and has a lot of starting experience on the outside under his belt. The Cowboys also drafted Devin Moore in the fourth-round of the 2026 NFL draft, and hearing Will McClay talk about him on the DLLS Cowboys podcast earlier this week, the team has big plans for the Florida cornerback, if he’s able to stay healthy. There are also players like Derion Kendrick, Caelen Carson, Josh Butler and Trikweze Bridges waiting for their shot.
Unlike in previous seasons, the Cowboys could go into 2026 with a week-to-week plan for their third cornerback spot. As of today, it’s safe to assume Bland will be an every week starter, barring injury, Caleb Downs will be playing a ton of nickel corner, and a mixture of Cobie Durant, Shavon Revel, Devin Moore, and even Caelen Carson and Josh Butler could get looks depending on the matchup each week. This offseason will be a big one for a lot of the down the roster cornerbacks on this team.
The Cowboys would love for Revel to run with the opportunity, but in 2026, they have multiple contingency plans to fall back on if it’s a slow start for the second-year cornerback.
