Thirty-eight Cowboys players were held out of Friday night's preseason finale versus the Saints, meaning the team's coaching staff has almost assuredly made up their minds about their places on the 53-man roster, due Sunday afternoon.
For many of those who were remaining, though, their usage in the 27-24 loss to New Orleans can offer an early hint as to their fate, or at least determine who the organization felt they still needed to give a good, long look.
Several first-year prospects seemingly had much to prove, judging by their snap counts. Fourth-round draft pick Drew Shelton has been put through the wringer, topping the club's offensive depth chart for all three preseason games. Whether he's done enough to stay has been a hotly-debated topic
among observers. Fellow linemen Nick Leverett, Trevor Keegan, and Sebastian Gutierrez also played nearly the whole game; they would figure to be the other top depth options fighting for a place alongside primary backup T.J. Bass, who did not play, and perhaps Ajani Cornelius, who also did not play but has been nursing an injury.
Wide receivers Anthony Smith, Jordan Hudson, and Tyler Johnson got a lot of action in the Dallas passing attack as they battle for a spot behind a corps that presumably already includes CeeDee Lamb, George Pickens, KaVontae Turpin, Ryan Flournoy, and Jonathan Mingo. Have the Cowboys seen enough from Camden Brown? Maybe; he played just a quarter of the night's offensive snaps. Veteran pass-catchers Denzel Mims and Marquez Valdes-Scantling played sparingly but are more familiar commodities, so their low snap counts may not be particularly telling.
On defense, coordinator Christian Parker assigned just light work for rookies Jaishawn Barham and Devin Moore, clearly electing to use the exhibition to more closely evaluate others, including several veterans. Sam Williams was a highly-touted second-round draft pick just a few years ago, yet he played over half the night and has been mentioned by many analysts as a possible bubble player this offseason. Cornerback Caelen Carson, the 2024 fifth-rounder, may be in the same boat after taking over 40% of the defense's snaps on the night.
Always of note, and especially in this last preseason outing, is special teams. That third phase of the game is the best chance for certain players to secure a roster spot, so a guy like Mitch Van Vooren, Langston Patterson, Jashaun Corbin, or Zion Childress- who has a high number of special teams reps and also plays a position where depth is a concern- may have a slight leg up on the competition even if his regular-unit snap counts look sparse.
The Cowboys' dedicated special teams battery- Brandon Aubrey, Bryan Anger, and Trent Sieg- are not included in these snap count numbers.
The snap counts listed were distributed to media following Friday's game but are considered unofficial and could change upon further film review.
Offensive Snap Counts
Defensive Snap Counts
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This article originally appeared on Cowboys Wire: Snap Counts: Cowboys take long last look at these veterans, prospects in preseason finale
